Last week, the Government released Ontario’s 2023 Budget titled Building a Strong Ontario. Here are some highlights:
Business:
- Proposal to lower costs for more small businesses by expanding access to the small business Corporate Income Tax (CIT) rate
- The small business limit phase-out would be increased from between $10M and $15M of taxable capital to between $10M and $50M
- Conducting a review of Ontario’s tax system to make Ontario an attractive place for businesses to invest and grow
Labour:
- $224 million for a new capital stream of the Skills Development Fund to leverage private-sector expertise and expand training centres to provide more accessible, flexible training opportunities for workers
- $25M over three years to enhance the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program. Ontario’s allocation of Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program nominations will increase to over 18,000 by 2025 to fill targeted labour market gaps in in-demand industries
Northern Ontario:
- Committing just under $1B to support critical legacy infrastructure such as all-season roads, broadband connectivity, and community supports to the Ring of Fire
- Investing $139.5M for three new trainsets to reinstate the Northlander passenger rail service between Timmins and Toronto
- Providing nearly $2B over five years, beginning in 2021-22 to help 425 small rural and Northern communities to construct and repair community infrastructure such as roads, bridges, water and wastewater infrastructure
Infrastructure:
- Providing an additional $5M in annual funding for Winter Roads Program enhancements
- Investing nearly $4B to ensure every community across the province has access to high-speed internet by the end of 2025
Housing:
- Creating the Streamline Development Approval Fund to provide more than $45M and increasing the Non-Resident Speculation Tax to 25 percent
- Investing an additional $202M each year in the Homelessness Prevention Program and Indigenous Supportive Housing Program
Energy:
- Launching a voluntary Clean Energy Credit registry to boost competitiveness and attract jobs
- Continuing to provide more than $6.5B in electricity price relief for both people and businesses under the Comprehensive Electricity plan, Ontario Electricity Rebate, and other targeted programs like the Northern Energy Advantage program
Consumer Costs:
- Extended the current gas tax and fuel tax rate cuts, keeping the rates at 9 cents per litre until December 2023