Supplementary Information Report: 2019-20 Budget Implementation Votes

Budget 2019 announced $253.8 million over five years to better support the Social Security Tribunal of Canada, with $56.7 million per year ongoing, to strengthen the recourse process for Employment Insurance, Canada Pension Plan, and Old Age Security appeals and make it easier to navigate and be more responsive to the needs of Canadians.

To help Canada’s tourism sector innovate and grow, Budget 2019 proposes to provide $58.5 million over two years, starting in 2019–20, to the Regional Development Agencies for the creation of a Canadian Experiences Fund. The Fund would support Canadian businesses and organizations seeking to create, improve or expand tourism-related infrastructure—such as accommodations or local attractions—or new tourism products or experiences. These pan-Canadian investments would focus on five categories: tourism in rural and remote communities, Indigenous tourism, winter tourism, inclusiveness, specifically for the LGBTQ2 community, and farm-to-table tourism, which is also known as culinary tourism.

The Budget 2019 Increased Funding initiative will allow ACOA to reinvest receipts from repayable program contributions in order to provide contributions under the Regional Economic Growth through Innovation Initiative (REGI), the Business Development Program and/or the Atlantic Innovation Fund to support growth and diversification of the Atlantic Canadian economy. Budget 2019 funding will enable ACOA to advance diversification and growth opportunities by helping more stakeholders to take advantage of ACOA’s program initiatives. 

The CBSA will increase the number of detector dogs at select Canadian airports and postal facilities to help prevent illegally imported meat products from countries affected by African swine fever from entering into Canada. The CBSA is planning for the addition of up to 24 detector dog teams over 2 years, bringing the total number to 39 Food, Plant, and Animal Detector Dog Service (DDS) teams.

The Government of Canada announced the establishment of an external and independent review body for the CBSA. Funding will be used to refine and expand the current enhanced complaints mechanism (ECM),  and the implementation of necessary organizational changes to support the activities of the independent review body.  

Under this initiative, the CBSA will increase asylum system capacity, improve horizontal governance and demonstrate immediate action on key issues (e.g. streamlined intake, accelerated processing, as well as provide for new authorities to make faster decisions). The CBSA will also increase capacity to manage, monitor and report on claims throughout the system. This initiative aims to improve the removal of failed asylum claimants in a timely manner, better manage, deter and prevent irregular migration by increasing the CBSA’s international network of Liaison Officers and through targeted and measured engagement with uncooperative countries.

Over the two-year period of the initiative, the CBSA will add temporary resident processing capacity in order for the Agency to keep pace with increased volume demands, especially those related to key markets (e.g. China, India) where significant growth is anticipated.

Under this multi-year plan, the Agency will undertake investments to keep pace with international partners in border management and enforcement, as well as to ensure that the CBSA remains responsive to the ongoing needs of cross border trade and traveler facilitation and targeting. As part of this investment, the Agency will develop a common Agency-wide risk framework and data analytics capacity to better inform risk-based compliance and evidence based decision-making.

This IRCC-lead initiative is to increase enforcement of immigration consultant violations under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act as part of improving the legal, regulatory, and disciplinary frameworks governing and overseeing immigration, refugee and citizenship consultants in Canada.  The CBSA plans to increase the number of investigations per year related to identifying and pursuing a greater number of cases involving unauthorized consultants or consultant-linked cases involving misrepresentation or organized fraud. 

The Rental Constrution Financing Initiative (RCFi) provides low-cost loans for the construction of new rental housing across Canada where the need is clearly demonstrated. It provides up to $3.75 billion in loans from 2017-18 to 2020-21, creating 14,000 new rental units for modest and middle-income Canadians.

Budget 2019 proposes to expand the current RCFi by making an additional $10 billion over nine years available in low-cost loans, helping to build an additional 28,500 new rental units across Canada.

Budget 2019 announced a $1.25 billion First-Time Home Buyer Incentive (FTHBi) over three years to make homeownership more affordable for first-time home buyers, and up to $100 million in lending over a five-year period to help existing shared equity mortgage providers scale-up their business and encourage new players to enter the market. The FTHBi allows first-time home buyers with incomes of less than $120,000 to finance 5% of the price of existing homes, or 10% of newly constructed homes, through a shared equity mortgage with CMHC. The first mortgage must be insured. No ongoing monthly payments are required on the FTHBi. The FTHBi amount plus the first mortgage, exclusive of the mortgage premium, may not exceed 4 times household income.

To create a new category of qualified donee for not-for-profit journalism organizations that produce and disseminate a wide variety of news and information of interest to Canadians. As qualified donees, these entities will have largely the same benefits as other charitable organizations, such as issuing donation receipts. A registered journalism organization will also have similar requirements to comply with in order to maintain its qualified donee status.

To stabilize Phoenix-related activities at the CRA until problems with the system are resolved. In its role as administrator of the tax system, the Agency will continue to explain how Canada’s tax law applies to all Government of Canada employees affected by Phoenix, process reassessments, objections and collections related to Phoenix and handle related telephone enquiries. 

To give low-income workers improved access to the Canada Workers Benefit (CWB) throughout the year, the CRA will conduct targeted outreach and allow low-income workers to apply online for advance payment of the benefit through the CRA’s My Account portal. The outreach would increase awareness of the CWB, including the advance payment provision.  This funding will also be used to allow low-income workers to apply online, through the CRA's My Account, for advance payment of the CWB once the necessary investments to implement this change are made. 

To hire additional staff to reduce the current backlog related to processing T1 (income tax) adjustments as a result of reassessments, and to make permanent the pilot project for dedicated telephone lines for income tax preparers. The investment will give income tax preparers faster and more reliable access to experienced CRA officers.

To further combat tax evasion and aggressive tax avoidance, this will invest additional funds to support new initiatives and extend existing programs aimed at combatting non-compliance. By cracking down on tax evasion and aggressive tax avoidance, the Government is ensuring that it has the money needed to deliver the programs that Canadians depend on. In addition to hiring additional auditors and extending programs aimed at combatting offshore non-compliance, this investment will build technical expertise to target non-compliance associated with cryptocurrency transactions and the digital economy.

This also includes investments to improve the CRA's compliance IT infrastructure including replacing legacy systems to help stay ahead of non-compliance schemes driven by the use of new, advanced technologies.

To establish four new dedicated residential and commercial real estate audit teams in Ontario and British Columbia to increase compliance, and respond to Canadians' concerns about not sufficient efforts being invested in the real estate sector to address non-compliance. These teams will address non-compliance in the real estate sector and ensure that tax provisions regarding real estate are being followed. The CRA will ensure there is a sufficient number of experienced and trained auditors and real estate evaluators to provide the proper coverage and adequately address the non-compliance in high risks regions of the real estate sector. Audit teams will be looking at the complete spectrum of real estate in both the Income Tax and GST/HST areas.

To support Canadian digital news media organizations in achieving a more financially sustainable business model, this investment will introduce a new temporary, non-refundable 15-per-cent tax credit for amounts paid by individuals after 2019 and before 2025 for qualifying subscription expenses. The credit will be calculated by multiplying the lowest personal income tax rate (15%) by the total of all amounts paid by individuals for qualifying subscription expenses in the year up to $500.

Budget 2019 included funding of $288 million for 2019-20 to continue to protect the public by securing critical elements of the air transportation system. The supplemental funding for 2019-20 will allow CATSA to target a wait time service level where, on average, 85% of all passengers will wait 15 minutes or less to be screened at Class I airports on an annual basis, and to continue to deliver its current enhanced Non-Passenger Screening program. Furthermore, through Budget 2019, the Government of Canada announced its intention to introduce legislation that would enable the Government to sell the assets and liabilities of CATSA to an independent, not-for-profit entity. To that end, the funding envelope for 2019-20 also includes transition resources to support this change of corporate structure.

This new funding enhances federal capacity to detect and take enforcement action against known food fraud in Canada, which is the deliberate substitution, tampering, or misrepresentation of food ingredients or packaging for economic gain. This program falls under the broader Agriculture and Agri-food Canada-led Food Policy for Canada.

This new funding will support the Agency in its work to move away from its existing paper-based system for issuing export certificates, and replace it with digital tools to allow Canadian firms to submit and receive forms online. The initiative will support service delivery and, in the long-term, economic growth of the agri-food sector

This funding is for the renewal of the Daily Shift Inspection Presence program to ensure that all federally registered meat processing establishments are inspected every 12 hours, allowing meat exporters to comply with United States inspection frequency requirements. This program ensures continued access to the American market for Canadian meat products.

This funding is for the renewal of the Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) programming delivered by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, Health Canada and the Public Health Agency of Canada to mitigate risks in human and animal health, as well as economic risks related to BSE. 

Funding was proposed for the Canadian Human Rights Commission (CHRC) to implement a modern and streamlined case management system.  The new integrated system will improve the efficiency of the complaints process under the Canadian Human Rights Act thereby contributing to better access to justice for Canadians. The system will also better support the CHRC’s employment equity program towards equality in federally regulated workplaces for designated group members.  In addition, the system will be leveraged to administer the requirements of the new Pay Equity Act and Bill C-81 - the Accessible Canada Act.  This is in line with Government priorities both in terms of advancing human rights, and facilitating the digitization of services to Canadians.  

To further improve equity, diversity and inclusion in the research system, Budget 2019 proposes to provide a total of $37.4 million over five years, starting in 2019–20, and $8.6 million per year ongoing, to the federal granting councils, —the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council ($14.6M/5yrs), the Canadian Institutes of Health Research ($14.2M/5yrs) and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council ($8.6M/5yrs) – to expand parental leave coverage from six months to 12 months for students and postdoctoral fellows who receive granting council funding. This investment will help young researchers, especially women. It will also help parents better balance work obligations with family responsibilities, such as child care.

To help more students access graduate studies, Budget 2019 proposes to provide $114 million over five years, starting in 2019–20, with $26.5 million per year ongoing, to the federal granting councils—the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council ($34.2M/5yrs), the Canadian Institutes of Health Research ($31.9M/5yrs) and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council ($47.9M/5yrs) —to create 500 more master’s level scholarship awards annually and 167 more three-year doctoral scholarship awards annually through the Canada Graduate Scholarship program.

As part of a National Food Policy, Budget 2019 proposes to provide the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency with $15 million, over five years, starting in 2019–20, to establish a Northern Isolated Community Initiatives Fund. This fund will support community-led projects for local and Indigenous food production systems ($3 million per year).  

To help Canada’s tourism sector innovate and grow, Budget 2019 proposes to provide $58.5 million over two years, starting in 2019–20, to the Regional Development Agencies for the creation of a Canadian Experiences Fund. The Fund would support Canadian businesses and organizations seeking to create, improve or expand tourism-related infrastructure—such as accommodations or local attractions—or new tourism products or experiences. These pan-Canadian investments would focus on five categories: tourism in rural and remote communities, Indigenous tourism, winter tourism, inclusiveness, specifically for the LGBTQ2 community, and farm-to-table tourism, which is also known as culinary tourism. 

To support innovation and encourage stronger business growth in the territories, Budget 2019 proposes to provide an additional $75 million over five years, starting in 2019–20, to the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency to enhance its current economic development program. This investment would help to create a new initiative: Inclusive Diversification and Economic Advancement in the North (IDEANorth). This updated programming will allow the agency to support a wider range of initiatives, including the development of foundational economic infrastructure such as roads or visitor centres, to address the higher cost of doing business in the North ($10 M, $10M, $15M, $20M, and $20M). 

This initiative is rooted in Canada’s National Cyber Security Strategy (2018), which identified critical infrastructure as a potential risk area for cyber defence. Budget 2019 earmarks funds to identify and protect critical infrastructure (including banking, transport, telecommunications, and energy) from cyber threats. This program will be overseen by Public Safety Canada, and implemented by departments and regulators responsible for identified sectors, in partnership with Canada’s Centre for Cyber Security.

As the regulator for the telecommunications industry, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission will be responsible for ensuring that critical infrastructure owners and operators abide by the standards set out in the legislative and regulatory framework. First steps, once enabling legislation is in force, will be to develop regulations, and consult with stakeholders in order to foster a balanced approach to protecting Canada’s critical infrastructure.

CSIS is responsible for conducting security screening for prospective in-Canada asylum claimants within time periods established by service-level agreements. CSIS provides advice on potential threats to CBSA and IRCC, who are charged with making a decision regarding a person’s case and assuring both the Government of Canada and the general public that the immigration system is secure from those who would do Canada harm. 

While IRCC is responsible for granting visas, CSIS’s role is to provide security advice to immigration partners in support of the administration of the admissibility provisions of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA). CSIS conducts screening investigations in order to provide security advice to the CBSA and IRCC regarding persons attempting to enter or claim status in Canada who might represent a threat to national security.  

The purpose of the Investment Canada Act (ICA) is to provide for the review of significant foreign investments to ensure the investment delivers net economic benefits to Canada and to review foreign investments that could be injurious to national security. Analytical and investigative resources for CSIS will directly support CSIS' contributions to the ICA National Security review including through intelligence collection and assessment, and provision of advice to Government partners on economic-based national security threats. 

CSIS has experienced unprecedented changes to requirements and expectations related to operational compliance with legal obligations and the protection of Canadians’ privacy rights.  As a result, CSIS must ensure its IT infrastructure and related policies are enabling its employees to be compliant, and that compliance is achieved consistently across the organization.

CSIS’ IT infrastructure was not built to support contemporary collection and retention requirements, as determined by the Federal Court and noted by independent review bodies.  CSIS will develop and deploy a Case Management System, which will address warrant requirements, and will also provide CSIS a foundation to address future compliance requirements.  CSIS will create the necessary protocols and mechanisms to ensure all data collected under s.21 of the CSIS Act (warrants) is fully attributed at, or near, the point of collection and then ensure it is properly life-cycled managed.

CSIS will maintain a security intelligence posture in the Middle East in support of Canadian and Coalition military operations. The organization will collect against threats to Canada and provide advice to Canada and allies. In doing so, we will make a significant and demonstrable contribution to stability in the Middle East and the North African region as a key player and active member of the Coalition.

Budget 2019 proposes to provide $5 million to Destination Canada for a tourism marketing campaign that will help Canadians to discover lesser-known areas, hidden national gems and new experiences across the country.

This funding supports the Government’s initiative, announced in Budget 2019, to expand the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission to act as an independent review body for the Royal  Canadian Mounted Police and the Canada Border Services Agency.

CSE, through the new Canadian Centre for Cyber Security, would serve as the source of technical expertise, and cyber security advice and guidance, for the Government’s implementation of a new approach to ensuring the minimum baseline of cyber security of up to four of Canada's federally-regulated critical infrastructure sectors. This expert assistance will help ensure that the most critical of cyber systems on which Canadians depend are better secured against cyber threats.

In support of Government efforts to better respond to emerging economic-based national security threats, CSE will bolster its capacity to use its technical expertise in cyber security and foreign intelligence to provide evidence-based advice to Government actions in the interests of Canada’s economic security. 

In support of broader Government efforts to protect Canada's democracy, CSE will enhance its capacity to respond to requests from Canadian political parties and elections administrators for technical cyber security advice, guidance, and services. This expert assistance will go towards ensuring that Canada’s democratic processes are better protected from cyber threats, including attempts at interference.

In support of the Government’s continuing implementation of its Middle East Strategy, CSE will continue to provide intelligence support to ensure the safety of deployed Canadian Armed Forces, as well as to support decision-making in pursuit of Canadian development and foreign affairs interest in the region. 

Through Budget 2019, CSC has secured additional funding to maintain operations for 2019-2020 (one year only).  Specifically, Budget 2019 provides resources for CSC to address pressures resulting from collective agreements ($37.0M), legal services/litigation ($18.5M), Workers Compensation Benefits ($24.0M), services to Not Criminally Responsible individuals at CSC’s Shepody Healing Centre ($0.9M), as well as statutory amounts related to the funded items above ($14.6M).

It is expected that the Enhancing the Integrity of Canada's Borders and Asylum System Budget measure will result in an increase in volume of case files brought before the Federal Court. This initiative will create three new judicial positions in the Federal Courts Act. Funding for the Courts Administration Service (CAS) provided over two years includes one-time costs for construction of judge's chambers, employee and auxiliary space. Funding is also to cover ongoing costs for judicial and registry support staff; judicial and employee accommodation charges; translation, court reporting and transcription; file storage; court materials and supplies; travel; training; IT/office equipment and licences; and common services. Given that funding is provided for two years through this Budget measure, CAS will require ongoing funding beyond 2020-21.

Supporting the Delivery of Justice through the Courts Administration Service (CAS) includes funding for two separate items: Montreal Office relocation and Translation of court decisions

Montreal is the federal Courts' third-largest location. The federal Courts and CAS currently occupy a leased building. Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) has determined that it would be more economical over the long-term to purchase land and construct a new Crown-owned building for the Courts and CAS. Relocation is planned for January 2023. Funding in this Budget measure is to cover CAS’s portion of the project, including the additional costs for fit-up of special purpose judicial space.

This Budget measure also includes $1.7M in funding to support the translation of more court decisions within a reasonable timeframe. This measure essentially renews and augments previous funding of $1M per year that sunset at the end of 2018-19.

In support of the Department's core responsibility of Advancing Gender Equality in Canada, Budget 2019 funding would support an increase in the number of projects that enable community action.  More specifically, funding would support a critical mass of gender equality interventions that would build on the current momentum, better equipping women’s organizations and the sector to strategically address or remove systemic barriers impeding women’s progress and advancement. 

A Food Policy for Canada  will set out a coordinated and collaborative approach to addressing food-related issues while ensuring that Canada’s agriculture and agri-food sector continues to succeed.  As part of a broader government effort to support food policy objectives, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada will invest $19 million in 2019-20 from Budget 2019 in the following areas of action:

• A Local Food Infrastructure Fund that will support infrastructure for local food projects including at food banks, farmers' markets and other community-driven projects;
• A Buy Canadian Promotion Campaign that will promote Canadian agricultural products, in collaboration with existing branding initiatives; and
• A  Food Waste Reduction Challenge with funding awarded for the most innovative food waste reduction proposals in the food processing, grocery retail and food service sectors.

Budget 2019 announced an investment of $30 million over five years, starting in 2019–20, to enable Canadian sport organizations to ensure a safe and healthy sport environment. The proposed three-point initiative will focus on:

1. Supporting measures to eliminate harassment, abuse, and discrimination in sport;
2. Improving anti-doping efforts and;
3. Addressing concussions and other emerging ethical issues in sport. Funding will be provided through the Sport Support Program to National Sport Organizations, Multisport Services Organizations, and Canadian Sport Centers.

Budget 2019 allocated $61 million over two years to: modernize the Canada Music Fund and strengthen the promotion of Canadian artists so that audiences in Canada and abroad can enjoy a diversity of Canadian music; provide additional support through the Canada Arts Presentation Fund for professional arts festivals and performing arts series presenters across Canada and increase operational support for the Fathers of Confederation Buildings Trust component; provide additional investment for the Building Communities through Arts and Heritage Program’s Local Festivals component to address unmet and increasing demand due to rising costs for festivals, under-supported small festivals and growth in the number of Indigenous cultural celebrations and LGBTQ2+ events; support additional celebrations and commemoration initiatives through the Celebration and Commemoration Program; and support Departmental efforts to integrate Gender-based Analysis plus in program design.

Budget 2019 provided $23 million for inclusion of Canadians with visual impairments and other print disabilities. There is a market failure in Canada in the production and distribution of accessible books. High production costs and limited sales have prevented Canadian publishers from investing in the production of accessible books. Only 10% of published books in Canada are available in formats fully accessible to people with print disabilities. The initiative will increase the availability of accessible Canadian-authored digital books. The Canada Book Fund (CBF), which supports production of Canadian-authored books, will be the main vehicle for the delivery of the initiative. With increased support from the CBF from 2019-20 to 2023-24, Canadian-owned publishers, with assistance from book industry organizations, will increase their production of accessible Canadian-authored digital books and make them available through commercial sales channels and public libraries across the country.

Budget 2019 allocated $45M over 3 years, starting in 2019-20, to support a new Anti-Racism Strategy to counter racism in its various forms, with a strong focus on community-based projects. An Anti-Racism Secretariat is at the core of the Strategy, which would work across government to identify opportunities, coordinate activities and engage with Canada’s diverse communities.

Budget 2019 allocated $10 million over two years, starting in 2019-20 for the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. The funding will enable communities to recognize and commemorate the legacy of residential schools on the proposed National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, and to celebrate the unique heritage, diverse cultures and outstanding contributions of First Nations, Inuit and Métis Peoples on National Indigenous Peoples Day.

Budget 2019 allocated $19 million over four years, starting in 2019-20 for Protecting Democracy.  The funding will expand the Digital Citizen Initiative to create a new research program that will help us understand disinformation and its impact on Canadian society and identify possible action moving forward, while also engaging in an international multi-stakeholder dialogue to strengthen citizen resilience to online disinformation.

Budget 2019 allocated $333.7 million over five years, starting in 2019-2020, for the preservation, promotion and revitalization of Indigenous languages. $115.7 million per year ongoing has also been proposed to support the implementation of the proposed Indigenous Languages Act.  One of the purposes of the Act is to establish measures to facilitate the provision of adequate, sustainable and long-term funding for the reclamation, revitalization, maintenance and strengthening of Indigenous languages. The goal will be to provide funding directly to Indigenous Governments, Indigenous organizations and Indigenous communities to support the objectives and purposes of the Act. The funding would be used by communities based on their priorities.

The Budget 2019 allocation will enable Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada to increase capacity in asylum intake including funding to address influxes of irregular migrants at the Canada-U.S. land border. Funding will allow for re-baselining to approximately 50 000 claims per year. Budget 2019 will also provide resources for the Border Enforcement Strategy which aims at preventing irregular migration while ensuring the asylum systems remain available to those fleeing persecution and that the health and safety of Canadians are not compromised.

These funds will be used to sustain client support service levels in the face of rising volumes and changes in client behaviors. Funding will stabilize the current client support structure and build evidence to prepare the Department for a new transformation agenda aligned with government priorities. This will fund increases in the number of IRCC call centre agents so that enquiries from visitors, new Canadians, and others can be responded to more quickly, with a focus on the business lines with the longest delays.

This investment will ensure immigration and border officials are well-equipped to facilitate the efficient entry of visitors, while protecting the health and security of Canadians. Funding will be used to provide capacity to keep up with significant growth volume being experienced over the past several years specifically the processing of visas and electronic travel authorizations issued to visitors, international students and temporary workers.

Funding is provided to investigate and prosecute unscrupulous immigration consultants, both authorized and unauthorized, to create and implement a new compliance tool – administrative monetary penalties – to complement the enforcement regime and to convert the Immigration Consultants Regulatory Council of Canada to a statutory body.  This funding will help the Government to close compliance and enforcement gaps relating to consultants and to protect the integrity of the immigration system from those actors who actively help clients circumvent eligibility and admissibility requirements for entry to Canada. 

Interim Federal Health Program funding is intended to provide limited temporary coverage of health care benefits to resettled refugees, asylum seekers, and certain groups (such as victims of human trafficking, and persons detained under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act) until they become eligible for provincial/territorial healthcare coverage, or in the case of unsuccessful asylum seekers, leave Canada.

Budget 2019 proposes new funding of $1 million per year from 2019–20 to 2023–24 for ESDC to support the hiring of additional mediators to strengthen the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service’s overall advisory capacity.

To improve seniors’ quality of life, and to better promote seniors’ participation and inclusion in their communities, Budget 2019 proposes to provide additional funding of $100 million over 5 years, with $20 million per year ongoing, for the New Horizons for Seniors Program.

Budget 2019 proposes $40 million over 4 years, beginning in 2020–21, and $10 million per year ongoing to enable Skills Canada to continue to encourage and support a coordinated approach to promoting skilled trades and technologies to young people through skills competitions and by providing resources to better equip them in the skilled trades. It will also create a national campaign to promote the skilled trades as a first-choice career for young people, to change the perception around careers in the skilled trades, and promote their merits, with funding of $6 million over two years, starting in 2019–20. 

To ensure Income Security benefits are fair and efficient, Budget 2019 proposes funding of $133 million over 5 years to support enhanced oversight and assessment of benefit entitlements to prevent, detect, address error, fraud and abuse so that Canadians who deserve benefits receive them.

Building on the success of the two-year pilot project introduced as part of the Global Skills Strategy to help innovative Canadian firms quickly access highly skilled global talent, Budget 2019 proposes to establish the Global Talent Stream as a permanent program. This will give Canadian businesses expedited, predictable access to top global talent when Canadian workers are unavailable, while ensuring that participating employers create long-term benefits for the Canadian economy.  To establish this new permanent program, Budget 2019 proposes to invest $35.2 million over five years, beginning in 2019-20.

Budget 2019 proposes to invest up to $314.8 million over 5 years, starting in 2019–20, with $83.8 million per year ongoing, to make the Canada Service Corps the signature national youth service program. This investment will support up to 15,000 annual service opportunities, 1,000 individual grants, new incentives and program supports co-created with young people to address barriers to participation in service programs and a new digital platform – integrated with the new Youth Digital Gateway – that allows young people to identify, manage and share experiences from their service placements.

Budget 2019 proposes to expand the Student Work Placement Program to give students in fields outside of STEM – such as the arts, humanities and social sciences – access to work-integrated learning opportunities. Budget 2019 proposes to invest $631.2 million over 5 years, starting in 2019–20, to support up to 20,000 new work placements each year for post-secondary students across Canada, in all disciplines, by 2021–22. In addition, Budget 2019 also proposes to provide ESDC with an additional $150.0 million over four years, starting in 2020–21, to create partnerships with innovative businesses to create up to an additional 20,000 work-integrated learning opportunities per year. 

With new funding of $5M over 5 years, starting in 2019–20, Budget 2019 proposes to develop a strategy and improve capacity to better measure, monitor and address gender disparity and promote access of under-represented groups across skills programming.

Budget 2019 proposes the following investments to support the inclusion of Canadians with visual impairments and other print disabilities.  $1M in 2019–20 to the Canadian National Institute for the Blind to connect persons with visual impairments to small and medium-sized employers.  $0.5M in 2019–20 towards finding ways to improve the accessibility of electronic payment terminals to enable persons with disabilities to conduct daily activities. To provide the Centre for Equitable Library Access with an investment of $3M in 2019–20, to be funded from existing resources, to produce new accessible reading materials that will be available through public libraries across Canada.  

Budget 2019 proposes $305.3 million in Service Canada over five years to continue improving and modernizing service delivery systems, which will allow Employment and Social Development Canada to make improvements to the Old Age Security and Canada Pension Plan delivery platforms, hire additional staff at Service Canada to assess and process Old Age Security benefit claims and migrate Service Canada’s call centres to more modern phone and information technology platforms, which will help to ensure faster and better quality service.

Budget 2019 announces $253.8 million over five years, with $56.7 million per year ongoing to renew the recourse process for Employment Insurance, Canada Pension Plan, and Old Age Security and make it easier to navigate and be more responsive to the needs of Canadians. 

Budget 2019 proposes to provide $25 million over five years, starting in 2019–20, for projects and capital assistance to celebrate, share knowledge and build capacity in Black Canadian communities.

Budget 2019 proposes to invest an additional $49.5 million over 5 years, starting in 2019–20, to launch the modernized Youth Employment Strategy informed by the recommendations of the Expert Panel on Youth Employment and extensive engagement with youth, service delivery organizations and other stakeholders. This investment will serve to support work placements, build partnerships with stakeholders, test pilot programs for hiring youth and improve program evaluation, and support the ongoing development of the Youth Digital Gateway.

To improve employment outcomes for persons with intellectual disabilities, and Autism Spectrum Disorders, Budget 2019 proposes to provide $12 million over three years, starting in 2019–20, to the Canadian Association for Community Living, in partnership with the Canadian Autism Spectrum Disorders Alliance for the Ready, Willing and Able program. The funding will be provided through the Opportunities Fund for Persons with Disabilities. 

To support Indigenous students, Budget 2019 proposes to provide Indspire with $9 million over 3 years, starting in 2019–20, for additional bursaries and scholarships.  

In Budget 2019, the Government of Canada confirmed the Social Finance Fund, with proposed investments of $755 million over 10 years to establish the fund and reaffirmed the $50 million over two years to improve the ability of social purpose organizations to successfully participate in the social finance market. This funding will support more robust business planning, provide technical assistance and enable social purpose organizations to develop impact measurement tools to monitor progress achieved.

Budget 2019 announced the Minister of Finance’s intention to appoint a governance council to support the Agency in becoming a world leader in financial consumer protection. The Council will guide FCAC in its expanded mandate and promote the confidence of Canadians in our financial consumer protection system.

In keeping with its evidence-based approach to policy development, the Government proposed in Budget 2019 to provide $150,000 over three years to the National Pension Hub to support pension research focused on improving retirement savings outcomes for Canadians and developing solutions to pension challenges.

Recent reviews of Canada’s Anti-Money Laundering/Anti-Terrorist Financing (AML/ATF) Regime have identified improvements to close legislative and regulatory gaps, improve the exchange of information, strengthen intelligence capacity and enforcement, and modernize the framework. Implicated federal departments and agencies have worked together to develop a set of proposals that respond to the changing context, recommendations stemming from domestic and international reviews, as well as feedback received through Finance Canada-led public consultations.

These measures include, among others, legislative amendments to strengthen and modernize Canada’s legislative framework, the creation of an Anti-Money Laundering Fusion Centre on a pilot basis by Public Safety Canada, and the creation of a multi-disciplinary Centre of Expertise by the Canada Border Services Agency.

Funding will be used to support the continued improvement of marine environmental response planning in order to protect Canada's coastline. Environmental response plans will be co-developed with Indigenous and other partners to advance a state-of-the-art planning approach in Canada that will contribute to a more integrated and collaborative marine safety system.

Funding is being provided to support capacity within the Department of Fisheries and Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard and to support capacity of Indigenous partners to work together on ways to further advance reconciliation in the fisheries. In particular, the funding will address engagement and negotiation pressures, particularly in the Pacific Region, and support departmental policy and partnership-building.

The new tariff rate quotas (TRQs) to be established under the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans Pacific Partnership, the new TRQs and global dairy export thresholds to be established under the Canada-US-Mexico Agreement, and the new steel safeguard TRQs to be established pursuant to a recommendation by the Canadian International Trade Tribunal, represent a significant increase in the number of trade controls programs that Global Affairs Canada will administer. Implementation of these commitments significantly increases the department’s workload. To address these pressures, Global Affairs Canada will draw on the relevant funds in Budget 2019 to create new full-time employee positions and to provide operational support for IM/IT needs.

The Department will maintain Canada as an attractive, innovative and open economy, while ensuring that it is well placed to better contribute to establishing an integrated and effective whole of government approach to managing the national security implications of economic engagement with foreign partners. The department will strengthen its ability to meet its responsibilities to review and approve commercial transactions and investments under various statutes.

To operationalise the G7 Rapid Response Mechanism (RRM) aimed at strengthening G7 coordination to identify and respond to diverse and evolving threats to G7 democracies.  Announced at the G7 Charlevoix Summit in 2018 and endorsed by G7 Ministers in Dinard (France) in 2019, the RRM responds to foreign actors seeking to undermine G7 democratic societies and institutions, electoral processes, sovereignty, and security. The G7 considers the malign, multifaceted and ever-evolving tactics against democracies as constituting a serious strategic threat which the G7 is committed to confront, including by working with other governments.  The RRM is composed of Focal Points from G7 countries and is led by Canada on an ongoing basis. In order to meet its commitment, RRM Coordination Unit is being established at Global Affairs Canada.  

Budget 2019 confirms the Government’s plan to provide an additional $1.39 billion over two years on a cash basis, starting in 2019–20, to renew the Middle East Strategy, with a greater focus on building stability, governance and long-term resilience. Of this amount, $500 million will be provided from the fiscal framework and $426 million would be sourced from Global Affairs Canada’s existing International Assistance Envelope resources. The total funding for Global Affairs Canada is: $926 million to support humanitarian, development, stabilization and security, and diplomatic activities.

Budget 2019 provides Global Affairs Canada with $6.1 million in 2019-20 to support activities that enhance Canada’s global Arctic leadership. The funding will support: initiatives that strengthen Canada’s capacity to contribute to the work of the Arctic Council; establishment of a Canadian-based permanent secretariat for the Arctic Council Sustainable Development Working Group; provide increased, coordinated and stable funding to strengthen the capacity of the Canada-based Indigenous Permanent Participants to engage in the Arctic Council; strategically increase the University of the Arctic’s activities and programming for Northern Canadians; and, enhance opportunities for Northern youth engagement in the development and implementation of Canada’s international Arctic policy and programming.

Budget 2019 proposes the necessary funding and legislative revisions to move forward on the Roadmaps for the Health and Bio-sciences and Agri-food and Aquaculture Sectors, including initiatives to: create a user-friendly regulatory system; use novel or experimental approaches; and facilitate greater cooperation and reduce duplication. Funding would also support Justice Canada resources to strengthen the Government’s capacity to draft the legislative and regulatory changes needed to facilitate a new approach to regulations in these sectors.

Budget 2019 proposes to provide $30.5 million over 5 years, starting in 2019–20, with $1 million in ongoing funding, for targeted measures to address persistent gaps in harm reduction and treatment. Specifically, funding will support efforts to expand access to a safe supply of prescription opioids, protecting people with problematic opioid use from the risks of overdose and death. It will also support better access to opioid overdose response training and to Naloxone—a life-saving medication that can stop or reverse an opioid overdose—in underserved communities.

To help make prescription drugs more affordable for more Canadians, the Government proposes to work with provinces, territories, and stakeholders to create the Canadian Drug Agency. The Agency would: assess the effectiveness of new prescription drugs; negotiate drug prices on behalf of Canada's drug plans; and recommend which drugs represent the best value-for-money for Canadians, and in cooperation with provinces, territories and other partners, identify which drugs could form the basis of a future national formulary. Budget 2019 proposes to provide Health Canada with $35 million over four years, starting in 2019–20, to establish a Canadian Drug Agency Transition Office to support the development of this vision.

Ovarian Cancer Canada supports women living with the disease and their families, raises awareness and funds research. Budget 2019 proposes to provide $10M over five years, beginning in 2019-2020, to help address existing gaps in knowledge about effective prevention, screening, and treatment options for ovarian cancer.

This funding is for the renewal of the Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) programming delivered by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, Health Canada and the Public Health Agency of Canada to mitigate risks in human and animal health, as well as economic risks related to BSE.

To continue to support a safe and non-discriminatory approach to blood donation, Budget 2019 proposes to provide $2.4 million over three years, starting in 2019–20, for additional research specific to reducing barriers to the donation of blood plasma, which supports crucial treatment for patients with immunodeficiency, leukemia and a wide range of other illnesses. New funding would inform feasibility assessments and pilot testing of new approaches for donation in consultation with key stakeholders, including the LGBTQ2+ community and patients who depend on plasma.

The Terry Fox Research Institute manages the cancer research investments of the Terry Fox Foundation. Budget 2019 proposes to provide the Terry Fox Research Institute with up to $150 million over five years, starting in 2019–20, to help establish a national Marathon of Hope Cancer Centres Network. The Institute would seek matching funding through a combination of its own resources and contributions that it would seek from other organizations, including hospital and research foundations.

To help Canada move to a more coordinated and effective approach to organ donation and transplantation, Budget 2019 proposes to provide Health Canada with $36.5 million over five years, starting in 2019–20, with $5 million per year ongoing, to develop a pan-Canadian data and performance system for organ donation and transplantation, in collaboration with provincial and territorial partners. This will help to improve consistency and quality in data, allowing more donors and recipients to be effectively matched in order to ensure Canadians have timely and effective access to organ transplant care.

The Government is committed to advancing reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples and to redressing past wrongs related to Canada’s failure to discharge its legal obligations to First Nations. The specific claims process helps right past wrongs and address longstanding grievances of First Nations through a voluntary process to seek resolution of claims through negotiations, rather than through the court system. To support negotiated settlements of specific claims in a timely way, Budget 2019 proposes to renew and replenish funding for the Specific Claims Settlement Fund and proposes to provide additional support to First Nations to help research and develop their claims.

As Canada seeks to renew nation-to-nation relationships and implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, tools to facilitate meaningful engagement and consultation with Indigenous communities and organizations are increasingly essential. A Whole-of-Government approach to implementing Section 35 rights within the Constitution requires continued focus on how best to coordinate federal efforts. This funding allows for: The continuation of consultation supports for Indigenous Peoples to manage consultation processes, specifically to deliver on existing commitments with consultation protocol and resource centre agreement holders.

The Truth and Reconciliation Commission's Final Report included specific Calls to Action for ongoing healing and reconciliation, which the Government of Canada has committed to addressing. Calls to Action 72 to 76 relate to the dark reality that a number of Indigenous children died or went missing while attending Indian Residential Schools. As per the Calls to Action, the Government of Canada will seek to partner with relevant parties, including but not limited to Survivors, Indigenous organizations, and the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation. The National Centre was established by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission pursuant to the Settlement Agreement as a research centre to preserve and archive the extensive material collected by the Commission.

In support of the advancement of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's Call to Action 66, and to help ensure that the voices of First Nations, Inuit and Métis youth are heard, funding is being provided for a three year pilot program delivered by Canadian Roots Exchange. Funding will support the establishment of a distinctions-based national network of Indigenous youth, help ensure that Government of Canada policies and programs are informed by the diverse voices of Indigenous youth, and provide support to community events and gatherings for Indigenous youth and reconciliation-focused community based Indigenous youth activities.

The Government of the Northwest Territories will commence the development phase  of the Taltson Hydroelectricity Project, which has the potential to significantly reduce the cost of electricity production and could therefore make the mining industry more competitive. The Taltson project would provide 60 megawatts of hydroelectricity on an already developed river (Taltson River), with power generation commencing within five to ten years. The project could also attract new investments, with the potential for new employment opportunities for all northerners.  Partnerships with Indigenous groups are expected.

This investment, through the Community Opportunity Readiness Program, will help First Nations and Inuit communities to develop or expand existing Indigenous-led businesses.

Building on Budget 2016 investments to support the Métis Nation in developing an economic development strategy, Budget 2019 will enhance the funding of the Métis Capital Corporations to support the start-up and expansion of Métis small and medium-sized enterprises.

The Arctic and Northern Policy Framework will provide activities and investments in the North and Arctic through support for higher education initiatives, including: the establishment of a task force to study the concept of a University of the Canadian Arctic; supporting the Dechinta Centre for Research and Learning in the Northwest Territories; and, helping fund the transition of Yukon College into Yukon University. The creation of the Yukon University is historically significant as it will be the first Canadian university physically located North of 60.

Permanently fund the First Nations Regional Health Survey. This survey provides important information on a broad range of topics based on both Western and traditional understandings of health and well-being, including health status, health behaviours and risk factors—information that is needed for decision-making in First Nations communities and for designing programs and services tailored to community needs.

Funding to make sure all First Nations children can access the products, services and supports they need, when they need them. It can help with a wide range of health, social and educational needs. In addition, this funding will help the government continue to meet Canada's legal obligations under the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal.

Funding to directly support communities in greatest need obtain the expertise, advice and tools required to govern their communities and deliver critical programs and services.

Support efforts to strengthen emergency management across the country by investing in expanding the FireSmart program on-reserve (e.g. mitigate the increasing cost associated with wildland fires by treating on-reserve land based on local Indigenous knowledge).

Funding to support ongoing efforts to eliminate and prevent long-term drinking water advisories - funding urgent repairs to vulnerable water systems and providing water operator training and support programs, so that First Nations communities can effectively operate and maintain their public drinking water systems.

Funding to ensure the Assisted Living Program continues to help meet the needs of seniors and people with disabilities. To better support First Nations and Inuit individuals living with chronic illnesses and disabilities now and in the future, work will be done with First Nations and Inuit communities on developing a new and more holistic long-term care strategy.

Investments will strengthen the capacity of First Nations communities to prepare for and respond to emergencies, support activities to prevent and reduce the consequences of emergencies, and fund infrastructure projects such as dams and culverts to help decrease the need for emergency response and recovery on-reserve. Funding also to support the creation of an Indigenous Fire Marshal’s Office. This would be a First Nations-led institution that would promote fire safety and prevention, undertake public education, enforce local fire safety and building codes, and conduct regular building inspections in First Nation communities.

Funding to ensure that urban Indigenous residents have safe and accessible spaces to access culturally-relevant services (e.g. through capital infrastructure investments in Friendship Centres and other Urban Programming for Indigenous Peoples service provider facilities).

Funding to advance Indigenous Post-Secondary Education through distinction-based strategies that support First Nations, Inuit and Métis Nation students to attain post-secondary credentials. Programming includes a variety of direct student supports and indirect supports for wrap-around services aimed at reducing the gap in educational attainment.

Funding to provide services to Inuit children as work continues with Inuit and other government partners to improve local capacity to deliver services (e.g. health, social, or education needs).

Implement the National Inuit Suicide Prevention Strategy developed by and for Inuit and under Inuit ownership and control. It includes increasing access to suicide prevention services, improved access to traditional healers and expand hours of access to existing services.

To help every Canadian gain access to high-speed internet at minimum speeds of 50/10 Mbps, Budget 2019 proposes to invest up to $1.7 billion in new targeted initiatives, over 13 years, that will support universal high-speed internet in rural, remote and northern communities. The investments will notably be used to establish a new national high-speed internet program (Universal Broadband Fund), top-up the Connect to Innovate Program to secure new, low-latency Low Earth Orbit satellite capacity, and to complete surveys to measure household access and use of the internet and business online behaviours.

To give even more young people opportunities to get the digital skills that will help them succeed, Budget 2019 proposes to provide $60 million over two years, starting in 2019–20, to support CanCode’s ongoing work and help one million more young Canadians gain new digital skills. The CanCode program helps young people get these coding and digital skills, with training support for their teachers and a special focus on reaching young people who are traditionally underrepresented in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics, such as girls and Indigenous youth.

Budget 2019 proposes to provide $117 million over five years, starting in 2019–20, to continue to effectively manage wireless networks in Canada. This will support equipment modernization and the development of innovative tools and systems to enhance ongoing efforts to minimize network interference and verify compliance with health and safety standards, including in the context of the new generation of wireless networks, referred to as 5G.

To strengthen the cyber security of Canada’s critical infrastructure, Budget 2019 proposes to provide $144.9 million over five years, starting in 2019–20, including $22.9 million from within existing Communications Security Establishment resources to help protect Canada’s critical cyber systems including in the finance, telecommunications, energy and transport sectors. Funding will also support the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security in providing advice and guidance to critical infrastructure owners and operators on how to better prevent and address cyber attacks.

To support efforts to assess and respond to economic-based security threats, Budget 2019 proposes to invest $67.3 million over five years, starting in 2019–20 and $13.8 million per year ongoing. Funding will also enhance outreach and engagement with key stakeholders including Canadian businesses and academic institutions; raise awareness about risks; and enhance the suite of tools to appropriately address threats while continuing to encourage foreign investment, trade and economic growth.

Budget 2019 proposes to provide $100 million over four years, starting in 2019–20, to the Strategic Innovation Fund to leverage private sector co-investments, in order to support the activities of the Clean Resource Innovation Network. By developing ground-breaking clean tech and emission-lowering solutions through collaboration, the Network will support economic growth, will create good, well-paying jobs, and will lead to cleaner energy production from source to end use.

Budget 2019 proposes to provide $9.1 million over three years, starting in 2019–20, to support the construction of an Indigenous Legal Lodge at the University of Victoria. The Indigenous Legal Lodge will house the university’s new dual degree program in Canadian Common Law and Indigenous Legal Orders, and will serve as a foundation for debate, learning, public education and partnership on the revitalization of Indigenous laws.

To help Futurpreneur Canada continue its efforts to support the next generation of entrepreneurs, Budget 2019 proposes to provide Futurpreneur Canada $38 million over five years, starting in 2019–20. It is expected that this renewed investment would help support the work of approximately 1,000 young entrepreneurs per year.

Budget 2019 proposes to provide the Business/Higher Education Roundtable with up to $17 million over three years, starting in 2019–20, to help forge partnerships and create more work-integrated learning opportunities for young Canadians. The Business/Higher Education Roundtable represents some of Canada’s largest companies and leading post-secondary institutions. The organization works to support young Canadians as they transition from education to the workplace, deepen collaboration between industry and educational institutions, and help Canadian employers and workers adapt to the economy of the future.

To help Canada’s tourism sector innovate and grow, Budget 2019 proposes to provide $58.5 million over two years, starting in 2019–20, to the Regional Development Agencies for the creation of a Canadian Experiences Fund. The Fund would support Canadian businesses and organizations seeking to create, improve or expand tourism-related infrastructure—such as accommodations or local attractions—or new tourism products or experiences. These pan-Canadian investments would focus on five categories: tourism in rural and remote communities, Indigenous tourism, winter tourism, inclusiveness, specifically for the LGBTQ2 community, and farm-to-table tourism, which is also known as culinary tourism.

Budget 2018 announced a Regulatory Review to support innovation and encourage economic growth in Canada by examining current regulatory practices to remove barriers.  In the Fall Economic Statement, the Government launched the first round of targeted regulatory reviews, looking for ways to reduce barriers and bottlenecks to innovation, economic development and investment. This first round of reviews, which is now completed, took place across the following sectors: agri-food and aquaculture, health/bio-sciences, and transportation and infrastructure. Regulatory Roadmaps lay out the Government’s plans to modernize regulatory frameworks in light of the reviews, without compromising our strong health, safety, and environmental protections. The resources announced in Budget 2019 for the Department of Justice will strengthen the Government’s capacity to draft the legislative and regulatory changes needed to facilitate a new approach to regulations in these sectors.

The Department of Justice provides contribution funding for legal aid services to provinces and territories with the objective of promoting fair legal proceedings for eligible persons and to promote public confidence in the justice system. Legal aid funding for immigration and refugee (I&R) matters contributes to a fair and efficient asylum system. Access to legal aid services for eligible in-Canada asylum seekers and persons involved in immigration proceedings helps ensure that claimants have the necessary documentation, understand the process and are well prepared for their hearing.

Six provinces (British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, Newfoundland and Labrador) provide I&R legal aid services and have been receiving federal funding since 2002. New resources announced in Budget 2019 will be mostly dedicated to I&R legal aid and will build on previous investments. These resources will also support the delivery of legal services within the Government of Canada.

Navigating Canada's complex legal system can be daunting. Canadians deserve to have access to information and services that help them understand and exercise their legal rights. Across Canada, Public Legal Education and Information (PLEI) organizations provide people who may face barriers to accessing justice with services to better understand their legal rights. PLEI materials and activities provided by PLEI organizations assist the public in understanding the law, their rights and obligations, the Canadian justice system, and how they might deal with their legal matter. The new resources announced in Budget 2019 will support the ongoing work of Public Legal Education and Information organizations across Canada while building on previous investments.

Indigenous Peoples in Canada have unique laws and legal traditions. Call to Action 50 responds to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's finding that colonialism impacted Indigenous communities' connection to their laws, along with the languages and cultures.  The Government recognizes the importance of revitalizing Indigenous legal systems, and the important role that Indigenous law institutes, in partnership with Indigenous communities, can play in the development, use, and understanding of Indigenous laws. The new resources announced in Budget 2019 will support Indigenous laws initiatives across Canada through the Justice Partnership and Innovation Program, to improve equality for Indigenous Peoples in Canada's legal system.   

To support efforts to assess and respond to economic-based security threats, Budget 2019 proposes to invest $67.3 million over five years, starting in 2019-20 and $13.8 million per year ongoing, to Public Safety Canada; Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada; Global Affairs Canada; and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, among other federal agencies.  DND is allocated $12 million over 5 years towards this initiative.

Budget 2019 confirms the Government’s plan to provide an additional $1.39 billion over two years on a cash basis, starting in 2019-20, to renew the Middle East Strategy.  Of this amount, $967.9 million will be provided from the fiscal framework and $426 million would be sourced from Global Affairs Canada’s existing International Assistance Envelope resources.  The overall funding would be allocated as follows:

• $926 million to support humanitarian, development, stabilization and security, and diplomatic activities.
• $442 million to renew Operation IMPACT, Canada’s military contribution.
• $25.9 million to support intelligence activities.

Budget 2019, proposes a number of initiatives to improve administrative processes around this transition. To support these initiatives, Budget 2019 proposes to provide Veterans Affairs Canada and the Department of National Defence with $135.1 million over six years, beginning tin 2018-19, with $24.4 million per year ongoing. The Budget identifies $94 million over five years specifically for DND.

Since 2015, the Canadian Armed Forces, with the support of Global Affairs Canada, have been providing military training and capacity building to the Ukrainian Armed Forces through Operation UNIFIER.  Budget 2019 confirms the Government’s plan to invest up to $105.6 million over three years, starting in 2019-20, to renew Operation UNIFIER.  This includes $99.6 million over three years in incremental funding for Canada’s military contribution, and up to $6 million to support broader efforts on defence and security sector reforms in Ukraine allocated by Global Affairs Canada from existing International Assistance Envelope resources.  These efforts complement Canada’s participation in North Atlantic Treaty Organization assurance and deterrence measures in Central and Eastern Europe through Operation REASSURANCE, which was extended in July 2018 at a cost of $514 million over four years.

The Government continues to make strides in the transition to a low carbon economy. Increased adoption of zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs) is a key part to meet an ambitious target of 100% for new light-duty vehicle sales to be ZEVs by 2040.

Budget 2019 provides Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) with $130M over five years to deploy 20,000 new charging/refuelling stations where Canadians live, work and play (e.g., condo buildings, work places or public parking lots). Some electrification of mass transit, last-mile delivery and fleet infrastructure projects will be supported as well. This builds on the $106.4M of federal investment to build a cross-Canada network of electric vehicle fast-chargers and hydrogen/natural gas refuelling stations (and develop codes/standards). 

Budget 2019 proposes to provide $12.8 million in 2019–20 to Natural Resources Canada to maintain its capacity to conduct meaningful consultations with Indigenous communities on major energy projects and to support Indigenous economic participation in the natural resource sectors.

This proposed measure includes $3 million to renew the Interim Measures for Environmental Assessments which will allow the Major Project Management Office to lead Phase III Indigenous consultations on major energy projects in a manner that meets the standards set by the courts in advance of the proposed Impact Assessment regime coming into force.

It also includes $9.8 million to continue engagement and support of Indigenous economic participation in the natural resource sectors via $6 million in contribution funding and renewal of the Indigenous Partnerships Office-West.

Natural disasters are increasing in frequency and magnitude, threatening the safety and economic stability of Canadians.

Budget 2019 announced $151M for Ensuring Better Disaster Management Preparation and Response, of which Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) was allocated $88M over five years including $11M in 2019-20.

The funding allows NRCan to contribute foundational scientific knowledge and expertise to address strategic policy and capability gaps in Canada’s emergency system management; and to support implementation of targeted initiatives to strengthen resiliency and reduce disaster risk, supporting the Federal, Provincial and Territorial Emergency Management Strategy, to be developed in partnership with Indigenous peoples. NRCan will collaborate with stakeholders, including various levels of government, critical infrastructure operators and non-governmental organizations.

Accurate and reliable information is important to inform Canada’s energy future.

Budget 2019 proposes to invest $15 million over five years, starting with $2 million in 2019-20, and $3.4 million ongoing, to establish the Canadian Centre of Energy Information, which will be delivered by Statistics Canada.

This Centre will compile energy data from several sources into a single easy-to-use website. It will also support ongoing research by Statistics Canada to identify data gaps that would improve the overall quality of energy information available to Canadians.

Improved energy information will allow Canadians to benefit from comparable and consolidated energy data as it contributes towards better decision-making by governments and industry, and supports higher quality research.

The safety and security of Canadians and our energy sector is of paramount importance to the government.

The Government intends to propose new legislation and make necessary amendments to existing federal legislation in order to introduce a new critical cyber systems framework.

Budget 2019 allocates $3 million over three years to Natural Resources Canada, starting with $0.81M in 2019-20, to support development of the cyber systems framework as it relates to the energy sector.

This forms part of an overall commitment of $144.9M over five years (starting in 2019-20) to help protect Canada’s critical infrastructure systems such as banking, transport, telecommunications and energy, and also to support the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security in providing advice and guidance to critical infrastructure owners and operators on how to better prevent and address cyber attacks.

As part of the government’s ongoing priority to develop the immense potential of the Arctic and Northern Communities, Budget 2019 allocated $14M to Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) for two initiatives.

$10M over two years, including $5M in 2019-20, for the Polar Continental Shelf for Arctic Research program, which provides critical support to Arctic research projects, enabling participants to conduct fieldwork safely and efficiently. The investment reaffirms the government’s commitment to research to help deepen our understanding of the Arctic.

$3.6M over five years, including $1M in 2019-20, (plus $4.3M to be sourced internally from NRCan) was allocated towards Defining the Outer Limits of Canada’s Continental Shelf in the Arctic Ocean. Rigorous scientific data and evidence support Canada's entitlement to its continental shelf in the Arctic Ocean and sovereign rights over the seafloor and subsoil.

This initiative will help ensuring Better Disaster Management Preparation and Response through targeted measures such as:

• Non-discretionary requirements to address existing and future obligations under the Disaster Financial Assistance Arrangements (DFAA) program.
• A National Risk Profile to create Canada’s first all-hazards national-level risk assessment. This will include leveraging existing federal scientific risk assessment efforts, as well as incorporating critical infrastructure risks, to inform local, provincial, and federal decision-making and build national resilience.
• A Public Awareness Campaign targeted at increasing risk awareness among vulnerable audiences such as low-income Canadians, seniors, people with disabilities, recent immigrants, and Indigenous Peoples
• Investments to address hazard specific threats, such as earthquakes, wildfires and floods, with a focus on vulnerable communities and Indigenous Peoples.

Provided the proposed legislation receives Royal Assent, funding received through Budget 2019-2020 would fund the creation of a team dedicated to the implementation of this program. This would include hiring four FTEs to staff the team (including necessary Top Secret clearances, as well as fit up costs and IT systems) who would be in charge of leading consultation and regulation development in the identified sectors. Additionally, in order to complete these tasks, funding would be used towards organizing these consultation meetings (rentals, hospitality costs, etc.), potential contracts (researchers, notetakers, etc.), regulation development, translation, travel, as well as a lawyer to ensure the proposal is on sound legal footing. 

Budget 2019 proposes to invest $67.3 million over five years, starting in 2019–20 and $13.8 million per year ongoing, to support efforts to respond to economic-based security threats. Public Safety Canada will work closely with implicated departments and agencies such as Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada; Global Affairs Canada; and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, among others, to: enhance outreach and engagement with key stakeholders, including Canadian businesses and academic institutions; raise awareness about risks; and enhance the suite of tools to appropriately address threats while continuing to encourage foreign investment, trade and economic growth.

Budget 2019 proposes to invest $22.24 million over three years, starting 2019–20, to enhance Public Safety Canada’s efforts to combat child sexual exploitation online. This funding will support efforts to raise awareness of this serious issue, reduce the stigma associated with reporting, increase Canada’s ability to pursue and prosecute offenders, and work together with industry to find new ways to combat the sexual exploitation of children online. Of this amount, $4.44 million will be invested in 2019-20 and will be used to develop the following initiatives: launching a Public Opinion Research to gauge the public’s perception and awareness of online child sexual exploitation; developing national and targeted awareness and education campaigns; signing contribution agreements with provinces to build provincial and municipal law enforcement capacity to investigate cases of online child sexual exploitation; and developing a comprehensive plan to engage stakeholders, in particular, the criminal justice system and digital industry. Specifically, these initiatives will contribute to protecting children from sexual exploitation online by increasing the public’s awareness of signs of online child sexual exploitation and reducing the stigma associated with reporting, leading to an increase in reporting and greater protection of victims. These investments will also help build the capacity of local law enforcement and the judicial system, leading to more investigations and prosecutions. Finally, increased engagement with digital industry will help prevent the uploading and increase the rate of removal of illicit content online.

Additional funding for Communities at Risk: Security Infrastructure Program (SIP). The program provides funding to private, non-profit organizations linked to a community at risk being victimized by hate motivated crime, to make security improvements to their community gathering spaces, including community centers, educational institutions and places of worship.  SIP was created in 2007, as part of the National Crime Prevention Strategy, in response to concerns raised by a number of communities across Canada regarding their vulnerability to hate-motivated crime.  The next funding call will take place in June 2019.

Money laundering and financial crimes are increasingly complex and the actors involved are increasingly difficult to investigate and prosecute. Combatting complex forms of money laundering, such as the use of professional money launderers, require specialized resources, new tools and strategies, and coordinated action. The Anti-Money Laundering Action, Coordination and Enforcement (ACE) team is a five-year pilot initiative to bring together dedicated experts from across intelligence and law enforcement agencies to strengthen inter-agency coordination and cooperation to identify and address significant money laundering and financial crime threats. ACE resources will focus on: (1) developing mechanisms to strengthen and coordinate horizontal intelligence sharing and assessment to better understand and triage money laundering threats; and (2) piloting a collaborative model to use the improved intelligence to support priority case identification and support enforcement coordination.

The Cost and Profit Assurance Program (CPAP) provides cost audit and assurance services (integrity of pricing and payments) on domestic/international contracts for both the GoC and foreign governments. This program ensures that procurement costs and pricing are fair and reasonable by performing assurance engagements early in the contracting process.

The program currently risk assesses 80% of domestic defence procurement for reasonableness/overpayment; and audits about $1B to $3B annually, mainly in the area of marine and defence procurement over a total average of $20B procured by PSPC yearly.

Budget 2019 announced $9M over 3 years for the continuation of the CPAP program. This funding will provide sufficient resources to sustain the program activities at existing levels.

PSPC is accountable for the administration of payroll for approximately 300,000 federal employees, working in departments and agencies, as well as Members of Parliament and their staff. PSPC is also responsible for providing Pension Services with accurate and timely pay data to administer pension benefits for active and retired members of the Public Service Pension Plan.

Budget 2019 announced a total funding of $553M for PSPC over 4 years starting in 2018-2019 for PSPC to continue progress on stabilizing the current pay system by ensuring that adequate resources are dedicated to addressing payroll errors and the employees are paid properly and on time.

This investment will also support system improvements, expand the Pay Pods model for the remaining departments served by the Pay Centre which have proven to improve capacity, develop more efficient and simple HR-to-Pay processes across the government, and ensure that employees facing pay problems can request emergency payments.

Five interprovincial crossings in the National Capital Region (NRC) connect the Ottawa and Gatineau regions. Of these five crossings, PSPC manages three crossings: Alexandra, Chaudière and Macdonald-Cartier.

The use of these crossings are well integrated in the daily life of the population and are critical in order to maintain a strong regional economy. Each day, close to 150,000 vehicles, 9,000 pedestrians and cyclists travel back and forth on the bridges.

Budget 2019 announced $60M over 5 years starting in 2019-2020 to support the rehabilitation and ongoing maintenance of the Chaudière and MacDonald-Cartier crossings. In addition, PSPC will work with the National Capital Commission to refresh studies on an additional crossing in the NCR, to develop long-term integrated interprovincial crossing plan and to move forward with the replacement of the Alexandra Bridge.

Budget 2019 announced a total funding of $37 million over 5 years starting in 2019-2020 for PSPC to replace the current complement of aging industrial security systems PSPC relies on with a single, unified electronic system for managing contractor security clearance processing. The fully integrated system will provide government clients and industry with an accessible and intuitive self-service electronic interface with automated workflows.  The new system will directly support the delivery of supporting both the Contract Security Program (CSP) and Controlled Goods Program (CGP).

This project will improve processes, increase efficiency and better meet the expectations of Industry and Government clients and partners.These programs contribute to the protection of national security through all phases of the contracting process and supports Canada’s economic growth by providing companies and individuals the necessary security clearance needed to do business with the Government.

Controlled Goods Program (CGP) is a domestic industrial security program that regulates the examination, possession, or transfer of controlled goods – items with a military/national security significance (e.g., large calibre weapons, missiles, military aircraft, etc.), including “defense articles” (e.g. large caliber weapon accessories such as rifle silencers and scopes, military data, etc.) controlled by the U.S. International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR). The CGP contributes to the Government of Canada’s national security objectives through its processes to prevent the unauthorized transfer/proliferation of controlled goods and to the economic growth and innovation objectives through the facilitation of license free transfers of ITAR controlled “defence articles” as a result of CGP registration (e.g. access to US market).

Budget 2019 announced $12M over three years for PSPC to sustain existing operation levels of the CGP’s Enhanced Security Strategy.

PSPC provides Real property Services, safe and secured accommodation spaces, government-wide systems and other various specialized programs to federal departments.  In addition, the Department manages and protects the Parliamentary Precinct and surrounding federal heritage buildings. PSPC also manages 17 engineering assets nationwide which constitute critical public infrastructure, including: 7 bridge crossings, 5 dam complexes and 5 specialized assets.

Budget 2019 announced funding of $3.3B over 5 years starting in 2019-2020 for PSPC to improve the recapitalization of its portfolio of assets. This will allow PSPC to implement multi-year planning which will maximize the management of its assets. The first 2 major initiatives approved for funding under this envelope are the rehabilitation of the Alaska Highway and the Sinclair Center in Vancouver.

PSPC provides work environments for about 260,000 FTEs, for 99 federal departments and agencies in over 1,500 locations across Canada. Its mandate is to provide safe, secure and stable work environments to these federal departments and agencies.

To manage its real estate portfolio, PSPC has an annual gross budget of $2.0B to operate and maintain the real property portfolio.  Of note some 88% of this funding is non-discretionary and is used to pay for contractual obligations such as rental costs, utilities and payments similar to property taxes. The remainder is insufficient to properly meet the repairs and maintenance requirements of the portfolio.

Budget 2019 announced $275M for 2019-2020 to provide essential top up to the base budget to ensure PSPC can continue to maintain the integrity of these assets. This funding will be used across Canada for priority areas such as building maintenance, security, repairs and furthering important building condition assessments.

Environment and Climate Change Canada’s primary role in Integrated Marine Environmental Response Planning is to facilitate the integration of operational science into response plans. Through this initiative, ECCC (working DFO, Indigenous peoples and other stakeholders) will fill priority data gaps relevant to marine safety planning and responses in British Columbia (B.C.). ECCC will develop and maintain a database of geospatially referenced, up-to-date data on environmental sensitivities and provide this data to Transport Canada to complete risk assessments and to the Canadian Coast Guard to inform the development and evolution of marine response plans. This will improve the ability of the Government of Canada, the province of B.C. and a wide range of stakeholders to predict and identify areas of ecological importance and environmental sensitivity for emergency prevention, preparedness and response.

Environment and Climate Change Canada will contribute to improving Canada’s ability to predict and respond to threats through the use of early warning systems, and will enhance understanding and practices to characterize flood risk.

As part of the Pan-Canadian Framework on Clean Growth and Climate Change, the Government of Canada committed to developing and implementing a federal carbon pollution pricing "backstop" system to apply in jurisdictions that request it or that do not put a system in place aligned with the Pan-Canadian Benchmark. These measures seek to support the implementation of the federal carbon pollution backstop’s output-based pricing system (OBPS), which took effect in specified jurisdictions in January 2019. A federal offset system will help ensure there are carbon offsets credits for regulated industries under the OBPS, and will create incentives to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in sectors not subject to carbon pollution pricing. Upkeep of the OBPS on-line registration module, as well as the development, implementation and administration of an on-line reporting module and compliance unit tracking system is required to enable emissions trading, reporting and compliance under the federal OBPS.

The Eureka site, operated by Environment and Climate Change Canada, is part of a network of High Arctic Weather Stations and serves as both an operational weather station and science facility. It is the third-northernmost permanent research community in the world and is populated by a minimum of 8 staff on a continuous rotational basis. Eureka is located approximately 400 km North of the closest permanent civilian settlement of Grise Fiord, Nunavut, and 480 km South-West of Alert, Nunavut. Due to its extreme remoteness, Eureka must be operated independently, meaning that its operations can’t rely on immediate help or access to nearby resources, as is the case in more urban or populated areas. By its very existence, Eureka contributes to maintaining Canada’s sovereignty in the Arctic. 

Budget 2019 allocated $45.8M over three years to support innovation and modernization of Transport Canada’s world-class regulatory regime. Examples include the commercial testing of remotely-piloted aircraft systems beyond the visual line-of-sight, cooperative truck platooning pilot projects, and an enhanced road safety transfer payment program. These measures will be described in Transport Canada’s Regulatory Review Roadmap, which will be published in May 2019, and is based on extensive consultations with stakeholders across all modes.

The Canadian Coast Guard, Transport Canada and Environment and Climate Change Canada will continue to improve marine environmental response planning. This initiative brings together federal, provincial and Indigenous partners to jointly plan for a quicker and more efficient response to marine pollution incidents.

Top-up funding of $3 M to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police to support the program integrity of the Transportation Security Clearance Program and $5 M to Transport Canada to support the program integrity of the Transportation Security Clearance Program and funding for a project team and external advisors to support sending CATSA assets and liabilities to an independent, not for profit entity.

In Budget 2019, $300 M in funding to Transport Canada was announced to introduce a new federal purchase incentive for eligible zero-emission vehicles. Through the zero-emission vehicle incentive program, the government is making it easier and more affordable for Canadians to choose zero-emission vehicles while improving air quality and cutting greenhouse gas emissions at the same time. Budget 2019 allocated $71M, in the first year of the program, to grant consumers point-of-sale incentives of up to $5,000 for eligible vehicles with a manufacturer’s suggested retail price of less than $45,000, reducing the gap between the purchase price of conventional vehicles and zero-emission vehicles.

The funds for this initiative will support a new critical cyber systems framework so that private sector operators of vital services and systems in the transportation sector develop and maintain a baseline level of cyber security.

With funding received through Budget 2019, Transport Canada will continue to provide Canadians with access to a safe and secure transportation system into the future, through reinforced regulations and oversight activities that enhance community safety; improved evidence-based analysis; promoting open government, transparency and community engagement; and strengthened collaboration with the United States. As well, Budget 2019 allocated $12.1M over three years to implement the modernized Motor Vehicle Safety Act, including the use of fines to increase safety compliance and greater regulatory flexibility to support the safe testing and deployment of innovative technologies.

Budget 2019 announced a new Veterans Survivors Fund committing funds over 5 years starting in 2019–20. Veterans Affairs Canada is currently reviewing this budget measure and further information regarding this initiative will be forthcoming.

In 2007, a portion of the 401 highway in Ontario between Trenton and Toronto was designated the Highway of Heroes, reflecting its use as the route taken to carry fallen Canadian Armed Forces service men and women. The Highway of Heroes project will see 2 million trees planted between Trenton and Toronto: one tree for every Canadian that has served since Confederation, including the more than 118,000 men and women who lost their lives in service to Canada. So far, over 90,000 trees have been planted. To support the Highway of Heroes project, Budget 2019 proposes funding over three years, starting in 2019–20, to the Highway of Heroes Fund, through Veterans Affairs Canada.

The Juno Beach Centre is a Second World War museum in Normandy, France, that pays homage to the Canadians who lost their lives during the Second World War. The Centre’s mandate is to preserve the legacy of all Canadians who served during the Second World War for future generations.

Recognizing the commemorative significance of the Juno Beach Centre, the Government of Canada, through Veterans Affairs Canada’s Commemorative Partnership Fund, has previously provided the Centre with financial assistance for their operations.

To help the Centre continue delivering on its mandate, Budget 2019 provides funding over five years, starting in 2019–20.

In 2017, the Government of Canada and the Métis Nation, as represented by the Métis National Council and its governing members, signed the Canada-Métis Nation Accord. The Accord outlines the ways both parties will work together to set priorities and co-develop policy in areas of shared interest. Métis Veterans are one of the priority areas included in the Accord.

Building on the significant investments already made to support Métis Nation priorities, Budget 2019 proposes to provide funds in 2019-20 to recognize the contribution of Métis Veterans to the country’s Second World War efforts, and commemorate the sacrifices and achievements of all Métis Veterans.

Budget 2019 proposes to create a Centre of Excellence on Chronic Pain Research. The Centre will have a dual focus on research and treatment. Working closely with Veterans, partners and experts in the field, the Centre will help ensure that Veterans’ chronic pain realities are reflected in research on chronic pain treatment, and help pilot innovative therapies and enhance treatment options.

The Centre of Excellence will contribute to a greater understanding of treatment and best practices in chronic pain for Veterans. It will complement initiatives across multiple departments as part of a whole-of-government approach to addressing the wider issue of chronic pain.

To support the Centre, Budget 2019 proposes to provide Veterans Affairs Canada funding over five years, starting in 2019–20.

For some Canadian Armed Forces members, the transition to post-service life can be difficult.  Veterans Affairs Canada (VAC) will work with the Department of National Defence (DND) and the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) to streamline the transition process and help ease access to benefits and services.

Budget 2019 proposes a number of initiatives to simplify the transition process for Veterans, including:

• Expanding access to personalized support services for all CAF members, not just those who are ill or injured.
• Enhanced training on transitioning to post-service life.
• Online questionnaire to identify and proactively assist CAF members at risk of a difficult transition.
• Improved service to departing members by making information sharing between VAC and the DND simpler.
• A personalized transition guide, in My VAC Account, to help navigate the process.

Budget 2019 proposes to provide VAC and the DND with funding over six years, beginning in 2018–19.

To help Canada’s tourism sector innovate and grow, Budget 2019 proposes to provide $58.5 million over two years, starting in 2019–20, to the Regional Development Agencies for the creation of a Canadian Experiences Fund. The Fund would support Canadian businesses and organizations seeking to create, improve or expand tourism-related infrastructure—such as accommodations or local attractions—or new tourism products or experiences. These pan-Canadian investments would focus on five categories: tourism in rural and remote communities, Indigenous tourism, winter tourism, inclusiveness, specifically for the LGBTQ2 community, and farm-to-table tourism, which is also known as culinary tourism.

To support climate change adaptation across the Prairies, Budget 2019 provides Western Economic Diversification Canada with up to $1M, in 2019–20, to develop a new strategy to sustainably manage water and land in the Prairies. This strategy would be developed in partnership with the provinces of Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, as well as Indigenous partners, academics and private sector groups.  It would take stock of existing federal and provincial actions that address the impact of climate change on water and land resources, to help ensure greater resilience in Prairie communities for years to come. 

The Budget 2019 Increased Funding initiative will allow WD to reinvest receipts from repayable program contributions in order to provide contributions under the Regional Economic Growth through Innovation Initiative (REGI), and/or Western Diversification Program (WDP) to support growth and diversification of the western Canadian economy. Budget 2019 funding will enable WD to advance diversification and growth opportunities by helping more stakeholders to take advantage of WD’s program initiatives. 

To support the creation of a more resilient, inclusive and diversified economy in the West, Budget 2019 proposes to provide $100 million over three years, starting in 2019–20, for WED to top up investments to its Regional Economic Growth Through Innovation (REGI), and/or Western Diversification Program (WDP). This funding will contribute to sustainable growth in response to challenges faced by communities across western Canada related to changing trade relationships; market access for goods and transportation infrastructure capacity; and extreme weather events impacting communities. This will in part be realized by making strategic investments that support innovation, business growth, business services, and community initiatives. 

To help Canada’s tourism sector innovate and grow, Budget 2019 proposes to provide $58.5 million over two years, starting in 2019–20, to the Regional Development Agencies for the creation of a Canadian Experiences Fund. The Fund would support Canadian businesses and organizations seeking to create, improve or expand tourism-related infrastructure—such as accommodations or local attractions—or new tourism products or experiences. These pan-Canadian investments would focus on five categories: tourism in rural and remote communities, Indigenous tourism, winter tourism, inclusiveness, specifically for the LGBTQ2 community, and farm-to-table tourism, which is also known as culinary tourism. 

To help Canada’s tourism sector innovate and grow, Budget 2019 proposes to provide $58.5 million over two years, starting in 2019–20, to the Regional Development Agencies for the creation of a Canadian Experiences Fund. The Fund would support Canadian businesses and organizations seeking to create, improve or expand tourism-related infrastructure—such as accommodations or local attractions—or new tourism products or experiences. These pan-Canadian investments would focus on five categories: tourism in rural and remote communities, Indigenous tourism, winter tourism, inclusiveness, specifically for the LGBTQ2 community, and farm-to-table tourism, which is also known as culinary tourism. 

Budget 2019 strengthens FINTRAC’s operational capacity, as well as the effectiveness of Canada’s anti-money laundering/anti-terrorist financing (AML/ATF) Regime, through five distinct initiatives: implementing new legislative and regulatory amendments without compromising the delivery of existing programs and systems; strengthening compliance outreach and examinations in the real estate and casino sectors with a focus on British Columbia; expanding FINTRAC’s ability to support public-private partnerships (PPP); expanding the disclosure of FINTRAC’s financial intelligence to new disclosure recipients; and providing financial intelligence support to CBSA’s new Trade-Based Money Laundering and Trade Fraud Centre of Expertise. Combined, these five initiatives will meaningfully strengthen Canada’s AML/ATF Regime, and bolster FINTRAC’s ability to contribute to the safety of Canadians and the security of the Canadian economy.

The IRB renders quality decisions and resolves immigration and refugee cases in a timely manner. This includes determining refugee protection claims and appeals and applications to vacate or cease refugee protection. It also includes making decisions on admissibility hearings and detention reviews, and on appeals on certain immigration cases. The new budget measures will impact the total number of decisions the IRB will be able to render per year.

Budget 2019 allocations will enable the IRB to process 40,700 and 50,000 refugee protection claims and 10,950 and 13,500 refugee appeals in 2019-20 and 2020-21 respectively by hiring additional adjudicative personnel, as well as, increasing internal services in support of these activities.

The funding provided to the National Energy Board (NEB) in Budget 2019 is for “Canadian Energy Regulator Transition Costs”. The funds will be used to transition from the NEB’s current governance model to the model proposed in the new Canadian Energy Regulator Act as set out in Bill C-69: An Act to enact the Impact Assessment Act and the Canadian Energy Regulator Act, to amend the Navigation Protection Act and to make consequential amendments to other Acts. 

To further improve equity, diversity and inclusion in the research system, Budget 2019 proposes to provide a total of $37.4 million over five years, starting in 2019–20, and $8.6 million per year ongoing, to the federal granting councils, —the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council ($14.6M/5yrs), the Canadian Institutes of Health Research ($14.2M/5yrs) and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council ($8.6M/5yrs) – to expand parental leave coverage from six months to 12 months for students and postdoctoral fellows who receive granting council funding. This investment will help young researchers, especially women. It will also help parents better balance work obligations with family responsibilities, such as child care.

To help more students access graduate studies, Budget 2019 proposes to provide $114 million over five years, starting in 2019–20, with $26.5 million per year ongoing, to the federal granting councils—the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council ($34.2M/5yrs), the Canadian Institutes of Health Research ($31.9M/5yrs) and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council ($47.9M/5yrs) —to create 500 more master’s level scholarship awards annually and 167 more three-year doctoral scholarship awards annually through the Canada Graduate Scholarship program.

Compensation for 3 new positions at the Federal Court

Compensation to Judicial Advisory committee members

As set out in Budget 2019, the Government of Canada is committed to supporting the continued fulfillment of the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions’ (ODPP’s) responsibilities to carry out the prosecution of criminal offences under federal law.  The $4.2M of funding allocated to the ODPP for 2019-20 as part of Budget 2019 is in addition to $17M of short-term program integrity funding that Treasury Board approved on December 13, 2018 under an off-cycle request.  The purpose of this funding is to enable the ODPP to continue delivery of its mandate at service levels that are consistent with expectations through to the end of 2019-20.  The measures announced in Budget 2019 is expected to permanently increase the ODPP’s funding by $21.2M starting in 2020-21 in order to enable the ODPP to continue fulfilling its mandate at expected levels on an on-going basis.

Funding to enhance the OPC’s capacity to engage with Canadian individuals and businesses by: developing guidance and information on privacy issues relevant to new technologies, both to empower Canadians in exercising their rights and to help organizations comply with the law; increase education and outreach efforts; and, providing advice to organizations at the design stage of specific initiatives. Funding to enable the OPC to more meaningfully fulfill its breach-related responsibilities in both the public and private sectors, responsibilities for which no new funding was provided; and increase the Office’s capacity to adequately respond to individual breach reports received and enforce mandatory notification and information safeguards requirements. Funding to enable the OPC to reduce the backlog of privacy complaints older than one year, and give Canadians more timely resolution of their complaints.

The Office of the Information Commissioner (OIC) investigates all access to information complaints about federal institutions. As of March 31, 2019, with the increasing number of access requests across government and the resulting increase in the volume of complaints, the OIC's Inventory stood at nearly 3,400 complaints. The timely resolution of these complaints is not achievable with the OIC's current funding levels. Over the past three years, with the temporary funding received, the OIC has exceeded the expected results for its complaints inventory reduction strategy. To maintain the momentum of the strategy, the OIC requires $3.0 M for 2019-20. This temporary funding would also enable the OIC to further reduce the number of complaints pending the passage of Bill C-58 and the accompanying increase in the OIC's permanent funding of $1.7 M on an ongoing basis. It will put the OIC in a better position to make the transition to any new business model legislative amendments might require.

Budget 2019 proposes to provide the Public Health Agency of Canada with $50 million over five years, starting in 2019–20, to support the implementation of Canada’s first national dementia strategy, which is expected to be publicly released this spring. This investment supports the National Strategy for Alzheimer's Disease and Other Dementias Act and complements Budget 2018 funding that established the Dementia Community Investment. PHAC will work with key stakeholders, including the provinces and territories, to ensure Budget 2019 funding will help improve the quality of life of people living with dementia and their caregivers, by: increasing awareness about dementia through targeted campaigns and activities to support prevention, as well as reducing risk and stigma; developing treatment guidelines and best practices for early diagnosis; and improving our understanding through surveillance of the prevalence and effects of dementia on our communities.

This funding is for the renewal of the Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) programming delivered by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, Health Canada and the Public Health Agency of Canada to mitigate risks in human and animal health, as well as economic risks related to BSE. 

Budget 2019 provides $25 million over five years, starting in 2019-20, with $5 million per year ongoing, to the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) to support a pan-Canadian suicide prevention service, in order to provide people across Canada with access to free, bilingual and 24/7 crisis support from trained responders, using the technology of their choice (voice, text or chat). This service will leverage and build on existing services and experiences of partners dedicated to suicide prevention.

Funding is proposed for the Transportation Security Clearance (TSC) program ($11.5M for the RCMP) on an accrual basis over the next three years in support of transitioning the Canadian Air Transport Security Agency to an independent, not-for-profit entity.

Through the Transportation Security Clearance (TSC) program, the Minister of Transport is authorized to issue, suspend, revoke or deny a TSC.  This decision is informed by the information identified through the TSC program.

TC relies on the RCMP to conduct Law Enforcement Records Checks (LERC) against law enforcement information systems to which they have access, and provide relevant information, including information about whether the applicant has links to organized crime or has been investigated for any criminality, to Transport Canada.

Budget Plan 2019 proposed to provide the RCMP with up to $80 million over five years and $13.5M thereafter  for the purpose of border security and enforcement between the official ports of entry at the areas experiencing the greatest influx.  The proposed funding, if approved through Parliament, will help address challenges related to irregular migration, allowing law enforcement to be better positioned to detect, intercept, and assess individuals attempting to irregularly cross the Canada/U.S. border.

Pursuant to the national security provisions of the Investment Canada Act (ICA), the Department of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness manages the national security review process in collaboration with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) and other security and intelligence partners. Through the ICA and other economic security tools, the RCMP provides intelligence to detect, prevent and deter criminal activities that affect the integrity and security of the Canadian economy. Budget 2019 funding  will provide dedicated capacity to the RCMP to conduct research, and to identify and analyse trends in criminal activities with a nexus to foreign investments.

The RCMP is charged with a critical mandate of enforcing federal laws and protecting Canada's national security, institutions and officials.  In support of this mandate, a total of $68.9 million over 5 years was provided to the RCMP in Budget 2019 for the Federal Policing program, including to fight money laundering.

Funds earmarked in Budget 2019 for Strengthening the RCMP will be used to address cost pressures identified in the RCMP's Departmental Review. This includes funding to support enabling programs serving front line policing as well as Force Generation activities, in the recruitment, screening and training of police officers. Additionally, funding will be used to support modernization, including establishing an Interim Management Advisory Board and secretariat that will provide expert advice to help modernize the management and administration of the RCMP. A modest modernization team will also be established.

This measure supports 'Accessible Government' (which in turn supports the Proposed Accessible Canada Act by positioning the GC to lead by example and become a model for accessibility). Specifically, this measure seeks to  increase  capacity of SSC's Accessibility, Accommodations and Adaptive Computer Technology (AAACT) program so that it can meet the increase in demand for its services  resulting from the GC commitment to hire 5,000 persons with disabilities within the next 5 years. It will also support the program  in meeting existing demand for its services.  The AAACT program, which serves a number of GC departments, assists and integrates people with disabilities into the workplace - providing access to systems, programs, information, computers and other resources. This measure represents an incremental step that serves to address immediate GC hiring commitments and risks. 

To further improve equity, diversity and inclusion in the research system, Budget 2019 proposes to provide a total of $37.4 million over five years, starting in 2019–20, and $8.6 million per year ongoing, to the federal granting councils, —the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council ($14.6M/5yrs), the Canadian Institutes of Health Research ($14.2M/5yrs) and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council ($8.6M/5yrs) – to expand parental leave coverage from six months to 12 months for students and postdoctoral fellows who receive granting council funding. This investment will help young researchers, especially women. It will also help parents better balance work obligations with family responsibilities, such as child care.

To help more students access graduate studies, Budget 2019 proposes to provide $114 million over five years, starting in 2019–20, with $26.5 million per year ongoing, to the federal granting councils—the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council ($34.2M/5yrs), the Canadian Institutes of Health Research ($31.9M/5yrs) and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council ($47.9M/5yrs) —to create 500 more master’s level scholarship awards annually and 167 more three-year doctoral scholarship awards annually through the Canada Graduate Scholarship program.

To improve monitoring of real estate purchases and ensure that information is shared in a timely manner, Budget 2019 proposes to provide Statistics Canada with up to $1 million over two years starting in 2019–20 to conduct a comprehensive federal data needs assessment. The assessment would seek to facilitate further streamlining of data sharing between federal and provincial governments to inform enforcement efforts on tax compliance and anti-money laundering.

Budget 2019 proposes to provide $1.5 million over 5 years, starting in 2019–20, to the Treasury Board Secretariat to work with departments receiving Budget 2019 funding to ensure robust administrative data collection and reporting practices with respect to gender-based analysis plus (GBA+) information for all initiatives. The Secretariat will draw on the expertise of Statistics Canada and the Department for Women and Gender Equality in developing standardized frameworks and tools for GBA+ disaggregated data collection and reporting. These activities will achieve greater consistency and comparability over time and across programs with the aim of improving the inclusiveness of Government of Canada programs.

Budget 2019 announced $25 million for the Treasury Board Secretariat to continue working with departments and agencies to address existing Phoenix pay challenges by improving Human Resources (HR) business processes, change management activities, HR and pay data analytics and reporting, in addition to oversight and project management.

Budget 2019 announced ongoing funding to implement plan amendments as a result of an arbitral decision (rendered on October 1, 2018) on negotiations for the Public Service Dental Care Plan.