[homeles_ot-l] Act now - push for affordable housing in the Jan 27 federal budget

Wed Jan 7 16:41:14 EST 2009

Hi Everyone,

We're down to the wire - please take a few minutes today or tomorrow morning to urge the federal government to include affordable housing in the stimulus funding package in the Jan 27th budget. 

The Alliance to End Homelessness is calling on the federal politicians to spend 2.5 billion on affordable housing. We're working on this with people from across Canada from Vancouver, BC to St. John's Newfoundland in groups like the Alliance on behalf of homeless families and individuals and those living on very low incomes.

Here's 3 quick ways you can help right now! 

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	Jan 9th (this Friday) is the deadline to participate in the government's online consultation: <http://www.fin.gc.ca/scripts/prebudgetsurvey/selectMainPriorities_e.asp> http://www.fin.gc.ca/scripts/prebudgetsurvey/selectMainPriorities_e.asp <http://www.fin.gc.ca/scripts/prebudgetsurvey/selectMainPriorities_e.asp> 

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		We ask you to give housing the 1st priority and add a comment that it be direct federal money for  affordable housing with at least 30% for those on low incomes and those who are homeless.

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	Sign onto the Facebook group Canadians for Affordable Housing in the Federal Budget  http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=39812861251.  Spread the word - fast!

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	Email 5 politicians: 

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			Prime Minister Harper at pm at pm.gc.ca and 
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			Finance Minister Flaherty at flaherty.j at parl.gc.ca  
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			Also email Michael Ignatieff, Liberal leader at Ignatieff.M at parl.gc.ca <mailto:Ignatieff.M at parl.gc.ca>  and 
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			Jack Layton NDP leader at Layton.J at parl.gc.ca
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			Email local MP, Minister John Baird, at mintc at tc.gc.ca 

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		Tell them you want the Federal Government to invest an additional 2.5 billion in affordable housing in stimulus package in the Jan 27th budget.  It's a simple as that!

It's never too late to act! 

Many thanks!

Lynne

Lynne Browne
Coordinator, Alliance to End Homelessness 
Office 613-241-7913, ext 205
147 Besserer Street, Ottawa ON  K1N 6A7 
lbrowne at ysb.on.ca 
www.endhomelessnessottawa.ca 

Background on what ATEH has been doing

The Alliance to End Homelessness is asking all federal politicians to...

1)      Invest an additional $2.5 billion over two years to create 30,000 to 50,000 units of affordable housing.  This would include: 

*	A significant number of new affordable rental units (i.e., 30% or higher) for homeless or very low income Canadians who can afford no more than $300-400 a month in rent.
*	New supportive housing units.
*	Repair of existing social housing; and purchase & conversion, adaptive reuse or renovation of property for affordable housing.
*	A federal funding model that is flexible to meet local needs and allows for capital construction as well as short term supports for stable housing until stable support funding is achieved. 
*	Delivering funding through existing mechanisms to save time using programs such as the Homeless Partnering Strategy and Affordable Housing Initiative (AHI), and the Residential Rehabilitation Assistance Program (RRAP). 

2)      Amend the Income Tax Act to eliminate the capital gains tax on donations of land and buildings to registered public charities for the purpose of providing perpetually affordable housing to create more affordable housing without tax leakage.

o        Possible "tax leakage" would be reduced or eliminated by: restricting the registered charity's use of capital gains exempt donations to develop the donated land or buildings as perpetually affordable housing; limiting the use of the donated land or buildings to address the housing needs of beneficiaries who meet the Core Housing Need criteria as defined by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation; and requiring the donated land or buildings to remain an asset for the registered charity in perpetuity. This can be ensured by registering the occupant income requirement and other eligibility criteria as a covenant on title for the affordable housing project or unit. 

o        The intent of this tax change is very specific and available only to charities for the purpose of developing affordable housing. 

o        Administrative processes for this program could be similar to the existing Canadian Cultural Property Export Review Board in the case of gifts of certified cultural property and those of the Minister of the Environment for donations of ecologically sensitive land. 

Affordable housing to stimulate the economy

We have also urged the Ontario Government to immediately advocate with its Federal counterparts so that short-term economic stimulus funding is used to create new affordable housing especially for people living on low incomes. This will be an infrastructure investment with benefits across the community in Ontario. 

An infrastructure investment in affordable housing will provide greater and longer lasting benefits. An estimated 150,000-300,000 Canadians are homeless and the annual public cost of homelessness is estimated at $4.5 billion. Affordable housing with supports is five times less expensive than institutional responses to homelessness (prison, detention, and psychiatric hospitals), and about half the cost of emergency shelters. Currently more than 1.4 million Canadian households (slightly more than 10% of all Canadian households) spend more than 30% of income on housing.  

In a recession, the possibility of job losses puts these Canadians at significantly greater risk of homelessness. Particularly vulnerable are lower income and fixed income Canadians as well as renters, female lone-parent families, seniors, immigrants and aboriginal households.

Construction investment represents approximately 12% of Canada's annual GDP

More than one million Canadians (one in 16 Canadian workers) earn a living in the construction industry. Each new home built creates an estimated four to six person years of direct and indirect employment for Canadian workers.

We also note that it requires no budget increase to stabilize Canada's affordable housing sector by committing all money saved as federal social housing mortgages (CMHC) expire and reinvesting these funds in the maintenance, modernization and expansion of Canada's affordable housing supply. We ask Ontario to advocate and work with the Federal Government to create new and truly affordable housing in the current recession. 

Thanks again! 

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