From: AlanBaggett@volcanomail.com   
      
   The Canada Revenue Agency Keeps People With Disabilities In Poverty : CRA SOTW    
      
    The administration of the Registered Disability Savings Plan and the   
   Disability Tax Credit must be taken out of the CRA's hands.    
        
   By Al Etmanski    
      
   Canada's Registered Disability Savings Plan (RDSP) is the first    
   overty-fighting tool for people with disabilities in the world. This   
   remarkable example of federal/provincial/territorial cooperation, which was   
   created in 2008, has already changed the    
   lives of more than 150,000 Canadians with disabilities.    
      
   Unfortunately, the RDSP is only reaching 29 per cent of those eligible. Due to   
   restrictions imposed by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA), it's not available   
   for many other Canadians with disabilities who are poor. For this to change,   
   two things must happen:   
    administration of the RDSP and the Disability Tax Credit (DTC) must be taken   
   out of the hands of the CRA, and coordinated national action to eliminate the   
   link between disability and poverty must begin.    
      
   The RDSP has three components: contributions by the individual, family or   
   community; matching federal grants; a disability Savings Bond of $1,000 a   
   year. To be eligible, an individual must quality for the Disability Tax Credit   
   first. That's the source of    
   the bottleneck.    
      
   The CRA is determining who has a disability. The result: people with   
   autism,Type 1 Diabetes, brain injury and mental illness are too frequently   
   being denied the DTC, even though they qualify for other disability benefits   
   at the provincial and territorial    
   level. Still others are having their eligibility terminated by the CRA and are   
   being asked to refund federal contributions to their RDSP.    
      
   The irony of the CRA, an agency set up to go after tax cheats and fraudsters,   
   keeping people with disabilities in poverty would not be lost on the families   
   who originally proposed the RDSP. I know because I'm the father of a daughter   
   who experiences    
   disability, and I was with these families through every step of the campaign   
   to set up the RDSP.    
      
   Together we created Planned Lifetime Advocacy Network (PLAN) to address the   
   question, "What happens to our sons and daughters with disabilities when we   
   die?" Our search for answers led us to rethink the assumptions associated with   
   having a disability.    
      
   For example, the punitive and suspicious mindset associated with disability   
   welfare kept our sons and daughters poor. They couldn't save beyond a modest   
   amount without being disqualified, and if we financially supported them, it   
   would be clawed back.    
   Furthermore, disability services don't address financial well-being, and too   
   often unwittingly perpetuate a view that financial well-being isn't a major   
   consideration for people with disabilities in care.    
      
   We concluded that one of the biggest handicaps to overcome was the link   
   between poverty and disability. Our proposal for a savings plan had two   
   practical goals. First, to enable Canadians with disabilities to earn or   
   receive income and to accumulate    
   financial assets without penalty, claw back or disentitlement from other   
   government benefits. Second, to access this income when they were most in   
   need.    
      
   Ten years later, it's clear financial freedom for Canadians with disabilities   
   makes a big difference. There is a discernible pride and confidence among   
   those I meet across Canada who have an RDSP. They tell me they can now dream   
   and start controlling    
   their destiny.    
      
   The precedent of provinces and territories to eliminate some of the   
   soul-destroying aspects of welfare has now been established. Governments all   
   over Canada have essentially said to people with disabilities and their   
   families: "We trust you to spend RDSP    
   income on what you think is best. You don't have to report, you don't have to   
   justify."    
      
   But the RDSP is only one tool among many that are needed, because Canadians   
   with disabilities are more likely to live in poverty than other Canadians.    
      
   Here are four recommendations to improve the RDSP and raise Canadians with   
   disabilities out of poverty.    
      
   First, there should be an automatic enrollment in the RDSP once someone   
   becomes eligible for the DTC, or is receiving provincial/territorial   
   disability benefits and assistance. If they have already satisfied eligibility   
   for provincial/territorial    
   disability benefits, that should be sufficient to qualify for federal   
   benefits.    
      
   Second, remove all CRA responsibility for assessing and determining   
   eligibility for the DTC, and place it under the Minister of Persons with   
   Disabilities. People with disabilities and their families are not cheats. The   
   CRA should go after people who    
   defraud and cheat the tax system. However, that requires a suspicious and   
   mistrustful mentality that should not be associated with the RDSP.    
      
   Thirdly, ensure the forthcoming federal accessibility legislation explicitly   
   addresses poverty. The RDSP demonstrates that economic citizenship is the   
   primary engine of accessibility.    
      
   Fourth, create a Guaranteed Basic Income Supplement for Canadians with   
   disabilities. Quebec's minimum income program, Ontario's Basic Income pilots,   
   British Columbia's liberalization of welfare restrictions, the push for a   
   refundable Disability Tax    
   Credit and improvements to the RDSP all point to the need for coordinated   
   national action.    
      
   We're getting better at closing the poverty gap for seniors and low-income   
   families. The RDSP has shown us that we must now do the same for Canadians   
   experiencing disability.    
      
   Al Etmanski received the Order of Canada in part for his work on the RDSP. He   
   recently presented his concerns regarding the DTC and RDSP to the Senate   
   Committee on Social Affairs. He is an expert advisor with EvidenceNetwork.ca.    
      
      
      
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