Bill C-273 is currently being reviewed in the House of Commons, and if passed, it will then be reviewed by the Senate.
Second Session, Forty-third Parliament,
69-70 Elizabeth II, 2020-2021
HOUSE OF COMMONS OF CANADA
BILL C-273
An Act to establish a national strategy for a guaranteed basic income
FIRST READING, FEBRUARY 22, 2021
Ms. Dzerowicz
432070
Available on the House of Commons website at the following address:
2nd Session, 43rd Parliament,
69-70 Elizabeth II, 2020-2021
HOUSE OF COMMONS OF CANADA
BILL C-273
An Act to establish a national strategy for a guaranteed basic income
Preamble
Whereas all Canadians have the right to have their basic needs met, to participate fully in society and to live with dignity, regardless of their employment status;
Whereas the Government of Canada is committed to promoting those rights, including by reducing income inequality and other disparities that exist in communities across the country;
Whereas the Government of Canada is committed to supporting the workforce of the 21st century by ensuring that program and service delivery structures are more responsive to workforce disruptions, and that the social welfare system is flexible and adaptable;
Whereas the Government of Canada is determined to ensure that its social welfare system is updated to meet the current and future needs of Canadians and to realign its program and service delivery structures to maximize Canadians’ ability to innovate;
Whereas a guaranteed basic income program could enhance the economy’s ability to grow and improve its productivity;
And whereas a guaranteed basic income program could lift many Canadians out of poverty and provide them with the stability they need to access education and employment opportunities and to reach their full potential;
Now, therefore, Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate and House of Commons of Canada, enacts as follows:
Short title
1 This Act may be cited as the National Strategy for a Guaranteed Basic Income Act.
Definition of Minister
2 In this Act, Minister means the Minister of Finance.
Development
3 (1) The Minister must develop a national strategy to assess implementation models for a guaranteed basic income program in Canada.
Consultation
(2) In developing the strategy, the Minister must consult with the Minister of Employment and Social Development, the Minister of Industry, representatives of provincial governments responsible for employment and social development, leaders of Indigenous communities and governments, representatives of municipal governments, experts in guaranteed basic income pilot projects, the academic community and key stakeholders, including representatives of organizations involved in labour and employment and in entrepreneurship and innovation.
Content
(3) The strategy must include measures to
(a) establish a pilot project in one or more provinces to test models of implementation of a guaranteed basic income program;
(b) create a framework of national standards to guide the implementation of a guaranteed basic income program in any province;
(c) support research programs that will provide evidence to guide the design and implementation of a guaranteed basic income program in each province, including through collaboration with international organizations and institutions with experience of similar programs;
(d) collect and analyze data for the purpose of assessing, for each model tested,
(i) the effect on government, including in relation to the efficiency, flexibility, cost, continuity and responsiveness of program and service delivery models and the potential of a guaranteed basic income program to reduce the complexity of or replace existing social programs, to alleviate poverty and to support economic growth,
(ii) the effect on recipients and their families, including in relation to their quality of life, their physical and mental health, their use of health services, and in relation to housing stability, living standards, nutrition, savings, education, social relations and labour market participation, and
(iii) the direct or indirect benefits for the recipients’ communities, including in relation to entrepreneurship, job creation and civic action; and
(e) establish metrics that may be used to measure the effects and benefits described in subparagraphs (d)(i) to (iii).
Federal-provincial agreements
4 The Minister, with the approval of the Governor in Council, may enter into an agreement with the government of a province for the collection, analysis and sharing of data for the purpose of determining how a guaranteed basic income program might best be structured and implemented in the province.
Tabling of national strategy
5 (1) Within two years after the day on which this Act comes into force, the Minister must prepare a report setting out the national strategy and cause it to be tabled in each House of Parliament on any of the first 15 days on which that House is sitting after it is completed.
Publication
(2) The Minister must publish the report on the website of the Department of Finance within 10 days after it has been tabled in both Houses of Parliament.
Report
6 Within two years after the report referred to in section 5 has been tabled in both Houses of Parliament, the Minister must, in consultation with the parties referred to in subsection 3(2), prepare a report on the results of the implementation of the national strategy in each province that sets out the Minister’s conclusions and recommendations, and cause it to be tabled in each House of Parliament on any of the first 15 days on which that House is sitting after it is completed.
