Federal Budget 2015

[maryjane48]

Finance Minister Joe Oliver guided his maiden budget voyage into port Tuesday with a precious cargo of targeted pre-election measures on board — and just enough leeway to keep the federal books above water.

The razor-thin $1.4-billion surplus projected this year — the first Conservative surplus in eight years and just the third since Prime Minister Stephen Harper took office riding a $13-billion surplus in 2006 — is entirely dependent on a lengthy series of bookkeeping measures, including asset sales, reduced reserve funds and unrealized collective bargaining gains.

"A promise made, a promise kept, Mr. Speaker, this budget is written in black ink," Oliver told the House of Commons in a budget speech remarkable for its sharp partisan rhetoric.



The template was set months ago, when Prime Minister Stephen Harper pre-empted his government's 2015-16 spending blueprint by announcing a five-year, $27-billion package of family benefit increases and targeted tax cuts. The first retroactive cheques from that largesse will arrive in family bank accounts this July, with an election call expected by the first week of September.

However, the ship of state almost immediately began leaking revenues after Harper's Halloween spending binge as global oil prices took a nosedive, and the resulting 2015-16 budget was late arriving and barely afloat.

Total program expenses this year are budgeted at $263.2 billion, up from $254.6 billion in 2014-15, while revenues are forecast at $290.4 billion in 2015-16, an increase of $11 billion over last year. Public debt charges are projected to fall by a billion dollars to $25.7 billion.

Marginal surpluses are projected for the next five years, topping out at $4.8 billion in 2019-20.

"If you want to come to the most important reason that we're in a budgetary surplus today it's that we've restrained public expenses," Oliver said at a news conference, pointing to five years of government austerity.

However, to keep afloat in 2015, the Conservatives also threw overboard the usual $3-billion contingency reserve, cutting the cushion to $1 billion for the next three years at a time when global economic turbulence makes prudent assumptions all the more advisable.

They sold off a stake in General Motors — bought to prop up the auto industry in 2009 — for a net gain of $2.1 billion. They've booked $900 million in savings from civil service negotiations that have yet to take place, while offloading $1.6 billion in spending on veterans benefits into the previous fiscal year — effectively killing the 2014-15 surplus in order to preserve one for this election year.

"There's a lot of things booked in here that are not based on economic fundamentals," said Randall Bartlett, the senior economist at TD Economics.

"I wouldn't necessarily call it the healthiest balance. Is it on the strength of the economy and the strength of revenues? It's not."

What the budget may lack in fiscal depth it more than makes up for in eye-catching policy (including balanced budget legislation), even if many of the new spending measures don't ramp up immediately.

The major pre-election spending is aimed at families, with other priorities temporarily put on hold.

Starting in 2017, there's money for major public transit systems that eventually will hit $1 billion annually. Those funds are expected to target Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal.

There are significant increases in the military budget, again starting in 2017, and a slew of security-related spending including more than $290 million over five years for the RCMP and Canada's spy services to enforce the government's new anti-terror law.

Seniors will see a package of benefits that include a relaxation of the rules on registered retirement savings redemptions, a near-doubling of the annual Tax Free Savings Account limit to $10,000, and new writeoffs for home retrofits to accommodate disabilities.

The tax rate for small businesses will gradually drop to nine per cent from 11 per cent over the next four years, there's a 10-year accelerated capital cost allowance for manufacturers and new lifetime capital gains exemptions for fishermen and farmers.

Recently announced improvements to services for military veterans, meanwhile, were booked into the 2014-15 fiscal year just ended.

And in declaring that the "entire budget is about our unflinching march into the future," Oliver queued up new funding for celebrations of Canada's 150th birthday that totals $210 million over four years. The actual anniversary of Confederation is in 2017.

The rookie finance minister denied the budget was geared to an election year audience while making an ideal election year pitch.

"We believe, as we've said again and again, Canadians need a break," said Oliver.




http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2015/04/21 ... ref=canada

[maryjane48]

About one-in-five Canadians families are single parent households. These families will see some extra cash in their pockets thanks to the doubling of the Universal Child Care Benefit, which will now max out at $160 per child per month, though it is a fraction of child care costs across the country.

The expanded children's’ fitness tax credits is less likely to benefit low-income parents, who find extracurricular programs difficult to afford in the first place. However, parents might also be able to benefit from new job training initiatives that will increase eligibility for loans.

Retirees

Seniors seem to be the biggest winners in this pre-election budget as baby boomers retire in droves. The document aims to alleviate fears that some people are outliving their savings, especially after the 2008-2009 recession battered retirement funds.

The budget relaxes requirements around registered retirement income funds, reducing the minimum withdrawal by about 30 per cent. The doubling of the TFSA limit also benefits seniors, particularly those over 71 who are no longer allowed to contribute to their RRSPs, thereby providing them with a higher after-tax income. Seniors also received a renovation tax credit to help make their homes accessible.

Young City-Dwellers

This growing demographic has been hard hit by economic weakness since the recession, but there was little in the budget to address the issues most affecting them. The doubling of the TFSA to $10,000 will help some to put aside more money tax-free in order to save more for a first home, education or retirement.

However, as Yalnizyan points out, this only helps those who can put aside more than $5,500 in savings even as this group continues to pile on debt, largely thanks to student loans and the high cost of housing in many cities. Another potential benefit for urban commuters is promised funding for public transit, but that doesn’t kick in for another two years.

Nuclear Families

The budget contained lots of goodies for this demographic. Two-parent families with young children benefit from the increase in the child care credit as well as a doubling of the fitness tax credit. The biggest Conservative gift to this group is the the controversial Family Tax Cut, also known as income splitting, which allows families with children to split their incomes, for a tax credit maxing out around $2,000.

It is most beneficial to families with large gaps in pay, such as those with a stay-at-home parent. But, Yalnizyan says, fewer than 20 per cent of couples with children under 18 fit that model.


http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2015/04/21 ... 11102.html

[maryjane48]

The Conservatives have their balanced budget — barely.

Finance Minister Joe Oliver has managed to keep the Conservatives' 2011 election promise to return Canada to a surplus in 2015 with a federal budget that has the government spending $1.4 billion less than it takes in — despite a spate of pre-election tax cuts announced last fall.


But the slim surpluses for this year and the next three years were bolstered by setting aside a smaller contingency fund than they planned just a few months ago in the fall economic update, as well as sales of some assets. Savings from public sector negotiations that haven't yet taken place also helped put the budget barely into the black.


The annual contribution limit for tax-free savings accounts rises to $10,000 from $5,500, effective immediately.
Seniors at age 71 can leave more money in their tax-sheltered Registered Retirement Income Funds each year to help their savings last longer.
EI benefits to care for a sick or dying relative extended to six months from current six weeks.
A new home accessibility tax credit to renovate homes to make them more accessible for seniors and people with disabilities.
Small businesses earning less than half a million dollars will see their tax rate cut to nine per cent from 11 per cent by 2019.
Industry will see the accelerated capital cost allowance for new equipment extended 10 years.
Changes to student grant and loan programs to ease eligibility for short-term students and working students


NDP Leader Tom Mulcair said Prime Minister Stephen Harper is "stubbornly clinging to his view" that the best thing to do for society is help the wealthiest.

"He wants to increase the tax-free savings account, which is very nice if you have $60,000 in your back pocket," Mulcair said.

Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau said his party would reverse the TFSA increase if it were in government.

"The TFSA itself, up to $5,000, is an encouragement to people to save and there's a lot of Canadians who do that," Trudeau said.

"But the reality is there's not a lot of people who at the end of the year have $10,000 laying around that they can invest."

The smaller contingency fund also raised Mulcair's hackles. He accused the Conservatives of abusing it to show a balanced budget in an election year.

"I think that's probably the contingency they're worried about ... the election."

http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/federal ... -1.3041628

[maryjane48]

well the budget is pretty simple to see what the money is being spent on and what is not being addressed . personally i fail to see anything that would persuade me to vote for the harper down home ole fashion jesus rocks party

[Captain Awesome]

TFSA's are being doubled - that's good news in my books.

[maryjane48]

yes if a person has 10 grand to invest it is good , but i dont know to many people that will be able to

[Atomoa]

15% of Canadians will get those 2.7 billion in income splitting tax cuts. 27% of the savings go to those making 170K or more a year. People making 31K or less get 0.1% of that 2.7 billion. Single parents get nothing.

You know every penny counts when Dad's making 170+ a year and Mom's only pulling in 28K with her little jewelry store job on Thursdays and Sundays!

I know me and my friends are all pleased with Stephen Harper's Budget™. I was just saying to my friend Morty after our golf game how that extra 6 grand a year will help feed my children - at the country club restaurant.

Zing!

[maryjane48]

prolly one the worst budgets in recent history . embarrassing really

[goalie]

I like the TFSA contribution being doubled but the Finance Ministers comments are stupid.

[bob vernon]

What's wrong with working Canadians? Put away another $5,000 a year into that TFSA. No problem.

[Atomoa]

Even the CBC’s Peter Mansbridge pointed out to Oliver that had Canada waited just two more weeks to sell their GM shares, Canada would have received an extra $100,000,000 for the shares.

We raided the contingency fund in order to give billions of tax cuts to the richest of Canadians. If the rich didn't get their tax cuts we'd have more money in the contingency fund. We flogged our GM shares at rock bottom prices ( I wonder which staffers has friends over at Goldman Sachs? ) to make the fudged math work - so Stephen could gift his buddies for the election.

2 weeks and technically speaking that would have been a extra 3 million dollars per Canadian for the tax coffers.

[Captain Awesome]

yes if a person has 10 grand to invest it is good , but i dont know to many people that will be able to

Lots of people are able to. Most TFSA holders are middle class Canadians, and almost half of them are making below $40,000/year.

Also, the tax for small businesses has been cut as well.

[goalie]

Math problems much? Just because someone has a TFSA account doesn't mean they have 5k-10k laying around.
It would be interesting to see how much people making under 40k a year are actually contributing.

[Captain Awesome]

There you go:

Individuals with annual incomes of less than $80,000 accounted for more than 80 per cent of all TFSA holders and about 75 per cent of TFSA assets as of the end of 2013.

People who make less than $80K/year (middle class) account for 75% of TFSA assets. Assets, not number of accounts. They are TFSA prime users and prime beneficiaries of the increase.

But thank you for your yet another uneducated opinion.

[Atomoa]

1.9 million Canadians contributed the max to the TFSA.

Thats 5.1% of Canadians. As Captain pointed out, people making 80K (or less - how much less?) contribute 75% of the assets into the total TFSA's held. Again that number dwindles down to who really benefits.

How many of that 5% of Canada can now double that?