Presentation to the:
ONWAA Spring Assembly
Leah Myers, Executive Lead
Commission for Review of Social Assistance in Ontario
May 15, 2012
The Vision: A 21st century income security system that enables all Ontarians to live
with dignity, participate in their communities, and contribute to a prospering economy.
Purpose of the Presentation

To provide an update on the work of the Commission

To discuss the key issues from the ONWAA submission
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Update on the Work of the Commission
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Engagement with First Nations

The Commission held “separate and substantive discussions with
First Nations to ensure reforms that reflect their needs and
priorities”, in keeping with the Commission’s Terms of Reference

We engaged with the Chiefs of Ontario, ONWAA and OFIFC, and
met with political leadership and communities through regional
sessions with various First Nations communities throughout the fall:
•
Community Hosts: Fort William First Nation, M’Chigeeng First Nation,
Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte, Moravian of the Thames First Nation, Six
Nations
•
Organization Hosts: Timmins Native Friendship Centre, Fort Frances
Chiefs Secretariat, Kenora Chief Advisory
•
Assemblies/Annual Meetings: All Ontario Chiefs Conference, Grand
Council Treaty #3 AGA, Mushkegowuk AGA, ONWAA assemblies,
OFIFC assembly
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Discussion Paper 2

On February 3 the Commission released Discussion Paper 2:
Approaches for Reform along with a companion report on the
first phase of stakeholder engagement, What We Heard: A
Summary of Discussions on Social Assistance

This second paper continues the conversation on social
assistance reform that begun last spring, by seeking feedback
from stakeholder groups and communities on different
approaches to improving some key areas of the system
•

These approaches were developed based on our research, the
response to the first discussion paper, and our engagement with
First Nations
Discussion Paper 2 looks at different ways to improve social
assistance in 5 chapters, organized by the 5 outcomes. A
separate chapter is devoted to social assistance and First
Nations
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Next Steps

Deadline for written submissions and completion of online
workbooks was March 16
•
We have received approximately 250 written submission and 125
online comments, including input from ONWAA, Grand Council
Treaty #3, OFIFC, ONWA
•
175 have been posted on our website

Key meetings ongoing through April/May

Feedback will inform the recommendations of the Final Report
•
We are currently drafting the paper
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Key Reform Issues
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Employment



The paper identifies and discusses 4 key features of effective
employment services and supports:
•
Consistent assessment and case management
•
Integrated pre- and post-employment services and supports
•
Access to the same level of services for people with disabilities
•
Strong connections with employers
It asks a series of questions on how to ensure these features are
effectively and consistently reflected in employment services
across the province
It also identifies possible approaches to improving access and
delivery of employment services and supports - including
changed roles of the province, municipal and First Nations
administrators, from improved collaboration to exclusively
municipal/First Nations delivery to full delivery by the province
through Employment Ontario – and seeks feedback on these
models
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Employment (cont’d.)


ONWAA emphasized the importance of:
•
locally identified program outcomes and targets, to be negotiated
with the ministry;
•
local flexibility in service delivery approaches, assessment tools;
•
focusing on the whole person;
•
recognizing regional and community variances in service and funding
approaches
ONWAA called for First Nations direct delivery of all employment
services programs, and noted the potential for Federal Social
Assistance Transfer Fund as a model re employment incentives
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Benefit Structure

The paper describes the challenge of finding the right balance
between three key goals:
•
Adequacy of benefits
•
Fairness between people receiving social assistance and low-income
people who are working but not receiving social assistance
•
Work incentives

It notes the lack of benchmarks to use in developing a rate
methodology; the dilemma of the trade-offs between these goals is
rooted in the labour market, characterized by low earnings, lack of
extended health benefits and growing income inequality

Two approaches are proposed to ease this dilemma: Extended
health benefits provided to all low-income Ontarians; and a rate
structure that changes over time
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Benefit Structure (cont’d.)



The dilemma of trade-offs is even more pronounced in designing a
benefit structure for people with disabilities; the new benefit
structure should support the aspirations of people with disabilities to
work, while also taking into account additional living costs
One proposed approach is a new supplementary disability benefit to
all low-income people with disabilities, which could be phased out as
employment earnings increase; another would provide a basic
income for people with severe disabilities who are unlikely to
generate significant earnings
Other measures to help make work pay and improve fairness in
incomes levels include an earned income supplement or a housing
benefits for all low income Ontarians
•

The problem of high marginal effective tax rates created as these types
of benefits are withdrawn is also discussed
The paper also describes possible approaches to reducing the
complexity of the benefit structure, including simplifying the number
of special benefits and arriving at a “standard” rates
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Benefit Structure (cont’d.)

We heard from ONWAA that:
• Benefits should support healthy living standards, taking into
account regional cost variations
- The Market Basket Measure needs to be adjusted for First
Nations communities
• Benefits should also incorporate annual cost of living
adjustments, as is the case for the OAS benefit
• The potential to combine benefits into standard rate depends
on adequacy
• Better access to medical assessments and other services
are needed to allow First Nations to qualify for disability
supplement
• ONWAA is concerned with an approach that focuses on the
severity of disability, rather than employment barriers for the
individual or the community
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Complexity

The paper notes that the current approach to monitoring
compliance with social assistance rules is a major contributor to
the complexity of the system, and describes an alternative
approach that would involve a more targeted audit-based
process, accompanied by effective risk identification tools and
penalties

Complex asset rules also create challenges to financial selfsufficiency and contribute to a cycle of dependence. The paper
sets out various approaches to revise the current limits on assets
that a recipient can have

ONWAA expressed caution about punitive approaches,
emphasized the need for flexibility, and cited the potential to
move to an local social assistance justice system
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Service Delivery

The paper looks at additional approaches to coordinating or
integrating social assistance on a system-wide basis, and make it
more effective and efficient

It also discussed the need for new accountability arrangements
to accompany any potential changes to the role of municipalities
and First Nations

ONWAA pointed to the greater opportunity for First Nations in
local delivery of employment services, and that the Temporary
Care Allowance should be delivered through First Nations Child
Welfare Authorities
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First Nations and Social Assistance: The Bigger Picture


The paper notes that a number of First Nations leaders and
administrators spoke of the desire to regain control over their futures
through social services, based on principles adopted in the 1990s
by the All Ontario Chiefs Conference:
•
First Nation controlled – provided by First Nation government and
accountable to First Nation members
•
First Nation determined – designed and developed within the community
by the membership
•
First Nation specific – designed to address community needs in harmony
with local culture and social structure
•
First Nation based – managed and delivered within the community
ONWAA pointed to the goal of decreased dependency on social
assistance, and called for changes with the current system and legal
framework including: recognizing cultural activities as participation
requirements, increasing access to child care, increasing access to
addictions services, eliminating the Living with Parent rule, making
benefits more adequate, adopting culturally sensitive definitions
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The Bigger Picture (cont’d.)

More broadly, ONWAA emphasized the importance of social
programs being developed, designed, and delivered by First
Nations and the desire to see a commitment by Ontario to explore
the viability of First Nations gaining further control over social
services delivered within their territory through:
• First Nations-specific directives
• a First Nations Commission that can make recommendations
on a social assistance program under the authority of First
Nations law

ONWAA also emphasized the importance of tri-partite discussions
about creating opportunities to move beyond the current framework
and the current definition of roles and responsibilities
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In Closing

The Commission is very appreciative of the advice and input of
First Nations and ONWAA to the task of transforming social
assistance in Ontario

I look forward to engaging in dialogue with you in the time we
have together this morning
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