The New Québec Basic Income Program: A Useful Set of Policy Directions for the Canadian Disability Benefit

Authors

Samuel Ragot, McGill University

Document Type

Article

Abstract

The Québec government started implementing a new Basic Income Program (BIP) on 1 January 2023. As a last-resort financial assistance program, the BIP intends to support people who have “severely limited capacity for employment” and have been participating in the province’s Social Solidarity Program for at least five and a half years. The BIP has been touted as a program that will lift more than eighty-four thousand individuals out of poverty, providing them with a partially individualized benefit and allowing them to work with limited clawbacks, study, and live fuller lives of quality.2 While some disability advocacy organizations are critical of specific aspects of the BIP, the BIP can nevertheless provide some lessons to the federal government on what to do and what not to do when creating the Canada Disability Benefit (CDB). Through presenting the historical background and justifications for introducing the BIP as well as an extensive examination of the policy choices made, this paper brings to light what these lessons are, especially those pertinent to women with disabilities and other marginalized populations.

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.

Citation Information

Ragot, Samuel. "The New Québec Basic Income Program: A Useful Set of Policy Directions for the Canadian Disability Benefit." Osgoode Hall Law Journal 61.2 (2024) : 513-546.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.60082/2817-5069.4020
https://digitalcommons.osgoode.yorku.ca/ohlj/vol61/iss2/9

References

1 Ph.D. Student, School of Social Work, McGill University. As a Senior Policy Analyst at the Québec Intellectual Disability Society, the author has been a member of the Québec government’s work committees tasked with the policy formulation and the design of regulatory parameters for the new Québec Basic Income Program since 2018.

2 See Québec, Cabinet de la ministre responsable de la Solidarité sociale et de l’Action communautaire, “Québec lance le Programme de revenu de base : une avancée majeure pour mieux soutenir les personnes ayant des contraintes sévères à l’emploi” (17 January 2023), online: [perma.cc/CWL6-5ULF].

3 Ibid.

4 Ibid [translated by author].

5 An Act to reduce poverty and to support the financial security of persons with disabilities by establishing the Canada disability benefit and making a consequential amendment to the Income Tax Act, 1st Sess, 44th Parl, 2022, cl 3 (first reading 2 June 2022) [Bill C-22].

6 Canada Disability Benefit Act, SC 2023, c 17, s 3.

7 Following the 2022 Québec election, the Ministry of Labour was distinguished from the Ministry of Employment and Social Solidarity, and the latter continued to manage and administer the Basic Income Program. “Ministry” in this article refers to both the Ministry of Labour, Employment, and Social Solidarity and the newly named Ministry of Employment and Social Solidarity.

8 CQLR c A-13.1.1 [IFAA].

9 In social assistance programs, a means test is a test used to verify if a person has no other alternatives or resources available (including income), while a needs test is used to determine if a person has important needs that are not fulfilled.

10 Art 392 CCQ.

11 Individual and Family Assistance Regulation, CQLR A-13.1.1, r 1, s 52 [IFAR].

12 Québec, “Social Assistance and Social Solidarity” (11 April 2024), online: [perma.cc/R4H3-BBY4] [Québec, “Social Assistance”]. See also IFAA, supra note 8, ss 44, 67.

13 See ibid, ss 44, 53.

14 Québec, “Monthly benefit amounts under the Social Assistance Program” (19 December 2023), online: [perma.cc/BB7F-V896].

15 IFAR, supra note 11, ss 68-81.

16 See Statistics Canada, “Market Basket Measure (MBM) thresholds for the reference family by Market Basket Measure region, component and base year” (26 April 2024), online: [perma.cc/9SMB-VPX5], DOI: https://doi.org/10.25318/1110006601-eng.

17 See IFAR, supra note 11, s 114.

18 Ibid, ss 146-147, 151.

19 See supra note 8, ss 30-31, 36, 64.

20 Ibid, s 106.

21 Ibid, ch V.

22 Québec, Ministère de l’Emploi et de la Solidarité sociale, Rapport statistique sur la clientèle des programmes d’assistance sociale, août 2022 (MESS, 2022) at 6 [Rapport statistique août 2022].

23 Québec, “Social Assistance,” supra note 12.

24 Rapport statistique août 2022, supra note 22 at 14.

25 Québec, Ministère de l’Emploi et de la Solidarité sociale, “Admissibilité en raison de contraintes sévères à l’emploi démontrées par un rapport médical” (2024), online: [perma.cc/94TP-Z5RB] [translated by author].

26 Québec, Ministère de l’Emploi et de la Solidarité sociale, “Diagnostics évidents” (2024), online: [perma.cc/GMW3-YYYG] [translated by author].

27 Québec, “Monthly benefit amounts under the Social Solidarity Program” (19 December 2023), online: [perma.cc/37VY-WWQZ] [Québec, “Monthly benefit under the SSP”].

28 See IFAR, supra note 11, ss 68-81.

29 See Statistics Canada, supra note 16; Québec, “Monthly benefit under the SSP,” supra note 27.

30 See IFAR, supra note 11, s 114.

31 See ibid, ss 163-64.

32 See IFAA, supra note 8, ss 30-31, 36, 64.

33 See generally Sherri Torjman & Caledon Institute of Social Policy, Dismantling the welfare wall for persons with disabilities (Caledon Institute of Social Policy, May 2017).

34 See generally Gerald Prein & Petra Buhr, “Does Welfare Lead to Dependency? Effectiveness and Undesirable Side-Effects of Welfare Institutions” in Gaby Flösser & Hans-Uwe Otto, eds, Does Welfare Lead to Dependency? Effectiveness and Undesirable Side-Effects of Welfare Institutions (De Gruyter, 1998) 75 at 76.

35 François Blais published a book on guaranteed income in 2001. See François Blais, Un revenu garanti pour tous: introduction aux principes de l’allocation universelle (Les Éditions du Boréal, 2001).

36 See Québec, Ministère du Travail, de l’Emploi et de la Solidarité sociale, Government Action Plan to Foster Economic Inclusion and Social Participation 2017-2023 (MTESS, 2017) [PAGIEPS].

37 Ibid at 19.

38 Ibid at 17.

39 Québec, Ministère du Travail, de l’Emploi et de la Solidarité sociale, Stratégie nationale pour l’intégration et le maintien en emploi des personnes handicapées 2019-2024 (MTESS, 2019).

40 Unfortunately, results have been limited and employment measures are still lacking, especially for young adults with disabilities. See Société québécoise de la déficience intellectuelle, “Semaine québécoise des personnes handicapées : c’est au tour du gouvernement de fournir un effort à 100 %” (7 June 2022), online: [perma.cc/UK6J-VQZM].

41 Starting in 2018, people who had a cumulative participation in the Social Solidarity Program of at least sixty-six of the last seventy-two months received additional money. This was done to immediately provide recipients with supplementary disposable income. In 2022, Social Solidarity Program recipients who qualified received $1,400 per month, compared to $1,138 for all other recipients. See e.g. IFAR, supra note 11, s 177.43.

42 Québec, Cabinet de la ministre responsable de la Solidarité sociale et de l’Action communautaire, supra note 2.

43 1st Sess, 41st Leg, Québec, 2018 (assented to 15 May 2018), SQ 2018, c 11.

44 See generally Samuel Ragot, Mémoire de l’Association du Québec pour l’intégration sociale concernant le Projet de loi no173, « Loi visant principalement à instaurer un revenu de base pour des personnes qui présentent des contraintes sévères à l’emploi » (Association du Québec pour l’intégration sociale, 2018).

45 Québec, Assemblée nationale, “Intentions réglementaires déposées par le ministre de l’Emploi et de la Solidarité sociale, M. François Blais, concernant le projet de loi visant principalement à instaurer un revenu de base,” Sessional Paper, 41-1, No 4113-20180314 (14 March 2018) at 1 [Québec, Assemblée nationale, “Intentions réglementaires”].

46 Québec, Ministère de l’Emploi et de la Solidarité sociale, “Plan d’action gouvernemental pour l’inclusion économique et la participation sociale 2017-2023 - Adoption à l’unanimité du projet de loi no 173 : Québec confirme son leadership en matière de politiques sociales” (15 May 2018), online: [perma.cc/9AJ6-NXNZ].

47 The five organizations were (1) the Société Québécoise de la déficience intellectuelle (Québec Intellectual Disability Society), (2) l’Alliance Québécoise des regroupements régionaux de personnes handicapées, (3) the Réseau Communautaire en santé mentale, (4) the Confédération des organismes de personnes handicapées du Québec, and (5) the Fédération québécoise de l’autisme (which dropped out of the committee because of a lack of resources).

48 See Comité conjoint sur l’accès au Programme de revenu de base, Pour un programme de revenu de base novateur et structurant (Québec, Ministère du Travail, de l’Emploi et de la Solidarité sociale, 2019), online: [perma.cc/J3CX-WZHX].

49 See IFAR, supra note 11.

50 See Société québécoise de la déficience intellectuelle et al, “Le Programme de revenu de base, une avancée insuffisante pour les personnes handicapées et celles ayant des troubles de santé mentale” (4 May 2022), online: [perma.cc/EFH8-2H4N].

51 See Samuel Ragot, Position de la Société québécoise de la déficience intellectuelle sur le Projet de règlement visant à préciser les modalités de fonctionnement du Programme de revenu de base (Société québécoise de la déficience intellectuelle, May 2022).

52 Décret 1140-2022, Aide aux personnes et aux familles—Modification, (2022) GOQ II, 3445.

53 Québec, Cabinet de la ministre responsable de la Solidarité sociale et de l’Action communautaire, supra note 2.

54 PAGIEPS, supra note 36 at 20.

55 IFAR, supra note 11, s 177.51.

56 Retraite Québec, “Supplement for Handicapped Children Requiring Exceptional Care” (2024), online: [perma.cc/U7R2-CMSN].

57 IFAR, supra note 11, s 177.45.

58 See Québec, “Basic Income Program” (15 February 2024), online: [perma.cc/8SXJ-RU72] [Québec, “BIP”].

59 Ibid.

60 IFAR, supra note 11, ss 177.96, 177.108.

61 The PAGIEPS aimed for a benefit amount of $18,029 per single adult and $26,400 for a couple in constant 2017 dollars or $21,145.97 and $30.964.20 in 2022 dollars. See PAGIEPS, supra note 36 at 22.

62 See Revenu Québec, “Solidarity Tax Credit Payments Estimator,” online: [perma.cc/6WHG-G6GU].

63 Canada Revenue Agency, “Webinar for persons with a modest income: Get your benefits and credits” (9 February 2022), online: [perma.cc/2MZB-VNP9].

64 Canada, “Disability tax credit (DTC): Claiming the credit” (25 April 2024), online: [perma.cc/3V4J-YBZ9].

65 Vivian Labrie, Minh Nguyen & Julia Posca, Le revenu viable 2022 en période de crises multiples (Institut de recherche et d’informations socioéconomiques, 2022) at 9.

66 The “viable income” threshold was created by researchers at the Institut de recherche et d’informations socioéconomiques. Using and adjusting components of the MBM while also considering other factors, this indicator is meant to determine how much money is required to live a “viable” life in different regions and cities in the province. In 2022, the average “viable income” needed in Québec was $27,056, calculated averaging data available in ibid at 13.

67 See Québec, Ministère de l’Emploi et de la Solidarité sociale, “Coût des services et biens assumé par le Ministère” (2024), online: [perma.cc/26Q4-HPQ4].

68 See Québec, “BIP,” supra note 58.

69 IFAR, supra note 11, s 177.79.

70 Ibid, s 177.91.

71 Ibid, s 177.99.

72 Ibid, ss 177.96, 177.108.

73 Ibid, s 177.80.

74 Ibid, s 177.78.

75 Ibid, s 177.87.

76 Ibid, s 177.83.

77 PAGIEPS, supra note 36 at 19.

78 See “Recommandation 8” in Comité conjoint sur l’accès au Programme de revenu de base, supra note 48 at 69.

79 See “Recommandation 1” in ibid at 64.

80 See Québec, Ministère du Travail, de l’Emploi et de la Solidarité sociale, “Attribution des contraintes sévères à l’emploi au MTESS : perception des principaux acteurs intéressés et pistes de solution” (24 May 2022), online: [perma.cc/TUC7-PPM9].

81 See Nadia Giguère, Stéphane Handfield & David Barbeau, “Évaluer la contrainte sévère à l’emploi: Travail interdisciplinaire et processus complexes” (2017) 10:2 R CREMIS 16.

82 See Société québécoise de la déficience intellectuelle et al, supra note 50.

83 See Chantale Lecours, Portrait des proches aidants et les conséquences de leurs responsabilités d’aidant (Institut de la statistique du Québec, 2015) at 1, online: [perma.cc/6E2C-JYGK].

84 See Appui proches aidants, “L’allocation pour contraintes temporaires à l’emploi,” online: [perma.cc/8WR4-LWTS]; See also Proche aidance Québec, “Statistiques,” online: [perma.cc/QZH5-29F5].

85 See Institute for Research and Development on Inclusion and Society, Help Wanted – Ending Sheltered Work in Canada: Transitioning to Inclusive Employment for People with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IRIS, 2021).

86 See Québec, Assemblée nationale, “Intentions réglementaires,” supra note 45.

87 See “Recommandation 16” in Comité conjoint sur l’accès au Programme de revenu de base, supra note 48 at 73.

88 See Samuel Ragot & Société québécoise de la déficience intellectuelle, “Passing Bill C-22 Promptly: A Priority for Persons With Disabilities or With Mental Health Conditions in Quebec,” Quebec Intellectual Disability Society (15 November 2022), online: [perma.cc/H32F-RNQP]; Amélie Duranleau, Samuel Ragot & Société québécoise de la déficience intellectuelle, “Society’s testimony before the Senate on Bill C-22,” Quebec Intellectual Disability Society (30 March 2023), online: [perma.cc/CX8L-JF7W].

89 See Bill C-22, supra note 5, Preamble.

90 See Jenny de Fine Licht et al, “Does transparency generate legitimacy? An experimental study of procedure acceptance of open-and closed-door decision-making” (2011), The Quality of Government Institute, Working Paper No 2011:8, online: [perma.cc/JG39-CNRK].

91 See “Recommandation 1.9” in Comité conjoint sur l’accès au Programme de revenu de base, supra note 48 at 25.

92 Bill C-22, supra note 5, cl 3.

93 Accessible Canada Act, SC 2019, c 10, s 2.

94 An Act to reduce poverty and to support the financial security of persons with disabilities by establishing the Canada disability benefit and making a consequential amendment to the Income Tax Act, 1st Sess, 44th Parl, 2022, cl 2 (second reading 14 December 2022).

95 See Nicole Ineese-Nash, “Disability as a Colonial Construct: The Missing Discourse of Culture in Conceptualizations of Disabled Indigenous Children” (2020) 9 Can J Disability Studies 28, DOI: https://doi.org/10.15353/cjds.v9i3.645.

96 “Welfarization” refers to the idea that persons with disabilities are forced into welfare programs, even if these were created as temporary solutions to unemployment or sickness. See Institute for Research and Development on Inclusion and Society, supra note 85.

97 See David Korzinski, “Canadians concerned about disability poverty, on-board with proposed new national benefit,” Angus Reid Institute (22 June 2021), online: [perma.cc/5RKZ-LJSV].

98 Employment and Social Development Canada, Canada’s Disability Inclusion Action Plan (ESDC, 2022) at 11, online: [perma.cc/6V7L-7M65].

99 See John Paul Tasker, “Freeland’s mini-budget waives interest on student loans, sends more money to low-income workers,” CBC (3 November 2022), online: [perma.cc/XQ5M-MLP6].

100 PAGIEPS, supra note 36 at 23.

101 See “Recommandation 20” in Comité conjoint sur l’accès au Programme de revenu de base, supra note 48 at 75.

102 See United Nations Enable, “Fact Sheet 1: Employment of persons with disabilities” (November 2007), online: [perma.cc/S7HP-LQFS].

103 This was actually “Recommandation 15.11” in Comité conjoint sur l’accès au Programme de revenu de base, supra note 48 at 73.

104 See “Recommandation 16” in ibid.

105 See DAWN Canada, “Fact Sheet on Women with Disabilities and Violence” (January 2014), online: [perma.cc/XN84-RURN].

106 See Amanda Dale, Krys Maki & Rotbah Nitia, A Report to Guide the Implementation of a National Action Plan on Violence Against Women and Gender-Based Violence (Women’s Shelters Canada, 2021).

107 See Stephanie Dunn & Jennifer Zwicker, “Policy Brief – Why is Uptake of the Disability Tax Credit Low in Canada? Exploring Possible Barriers to Access” (2018) 11 School Pub Pol’y Publications, DOI: http://doi.org/10.11575/sppp.v11i0.43187.

108 See Finautonome, “Comprendre comment se vit ici, le REEI?” (25 August 2023), online (blog): [perma.cc/QT7M-9ZEF].

109 Rapport statistique août 2022, supra note 22 at 14-15.

110 Ibid.

111 Ibid.

112 Ibid.

113 Ibid.

114 Ibid.

115 Ministère de l’Emploi et de la Solidarité sociale, Rapport statistique sur la clientèle des programmes d’assistance sociale, octobre 2010 (MESS, 2010) at 13-14.