Passage of the Economic Action Plan 2013 Act, No. 1

Jim Flaherty, Minister of Finance, on June 10, 2013, welcomed the passage of Bill C-60, the Economic Action Plan 2013 Act, No. 1, by the House of Commons.

“We are one step closer to implementing measures that will build on our Government’s record of creating jobs, growth and prosperity for Canadians,” said Minister Flaherty. “We will not waver from our commitment to achieving these goals, while returning to balanced budgets by 2015.”

The Economic Action Plan 2013 Act, No. 1 positions Canada for long-term success by:

Building a stronger economy and creating jobs

  • Extending for two years the temporary accelerated capital cos t allowance for new investments in machinery and equipment by Canadian manufacturers.
  • Increasing Gas Tax Fund payments to Canada’s cities, to better support job-creating municipal infrastructure projects.
  • Reforming the Temporary Foreign Worker Program to ensure that Canadians are given the first crack at available jobs.
  • Extending for one year the Mineral Exploration Tax Credit for flow-through share investors.
  • Modernizing the Investment Canada Act to clarify the treatment of proposed investments in Canada by foreign state-owned enterprises and the timeline for national security reviews.
  • Providing $165 million in multi-year support for genomics research.
  • Providing $18 million to the Canadian Youth Business Foundation to help young entrepreneurs grow their firms.
  • Providing $5 million in 2013–14 to Inspire for post-secondary scholarships and bursaries for First Nations and Inuit students.

Supporting Canadian families and communities

  • Enhancing the Adoption Expense Tax Credit to better recognize the costs of adopting a child.
  • Introducing a new, temporary First-Time Donor’s Super Credit for first-time claimants of the Charitable Donations Tax Credit to encourage all young Canadians to donate to charity.
  • Expanding tax relief for home care services to better meet the health care needs of Canadians.
  • Removing tariffs on imports of baby clothing and certain sports and athletic equipment.
  • Providing over $55.8 million in total transfer protection payments to Manitoba and New Brunswick.
  • Providing $30 million in 2013–14 to support the construction of new housing in Nunavut.
  • Investing $20 million in the Nature Conservancy of Canada to continue to conserve ecologically sensitive land.bdgt2013-189x180-eng
  • Providing $3 million to the Pallium Foundation of Canada to support training in palliative care for front-line health care providers.
  • Providing $3 million to the Canadian National Institute for the Blind to expand library services for blind and partially sighted individuals.
  • Supporting veterans and their families by no longer deducting veterans’ disability benefits when calculating other select benefits.
  • Streamlining the process for approving tax relief for Canadian Armed Forces members and police officers deployed to international missions.

Respecting Canadian taxpayers’ dollars

  • Improving the fairness of the tax system.
  • Eliminating duplication.
  • Taking steps to align employee compensation offered by Crown corporations with what is available to federal employees.

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