INFORMATION: Public Hearings on Ontario’s 2025 Budget (Pre-budget Consultations) Notice

Posted: December 10, 2024

(December 10, 2024)

The Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs will meet to conduct Pre-Budget Consultations.

(For those who know about hearings, scroll down to get to the dates, deadlines and registration link.)

A “Standing Committee” of the Legislature is made up of MPPs from the political parties. There are Standing Committees on Justice, and Social Policy, on Infrastructure and Heritage and so on. This one is on Finance and Economic Affairs. When you send in a written submission or make a verbal presentation before the Committee, you are giving your input to the MPPs on that Committee.

Here is a link giving the list of MPPs on the Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs. The number of representatives that each political party has on each committee is determined by the proportion of seats in the Legislature held by each party. Thus, when there is a majority government, as is the case now, the party with the majority has the majority of seats on each Committee. The Committees hold hearings (though, the Ford government is not doing that for major pieces of legislation — they really are shockingly undemocratic) and they vote on amendments to legislation. Often, a government will amend legislation based on what it has heard in consultations. I note that the Ford government has not passed any amendments to any of their major health care legislation since they took office, except amendments they have proposed themselves. This is unprecedented. We have won amendments in the public interest to every single major piece of health care legislation going back for decades… up until the Ford government.

In any case, it is important to push them to have to face public input. Media also usually attend the hearings.

All Ontario residents can apply to make a verbal submission before the Committee. Local health coalitions usually do so across the province and the Ontario Health Coalition usually does so in Toronto. You can apply to the nearest hearing and go in person or you can appear by Zoom. Again, if you missed the nearest local hearing already, you can apply elsewhere. They will give you a time limit for the length of your presentation and it is strict. They will cut you off at that time limit. After you present, the MPPs will ask you questions about your input. You do not have to have your submission ready when you apply. You only have to get it in before the deadline.

You can do a written submission and/or a verbal presentation. When you do so, it becomes part of the official record of our province. It will be included in Hansard (which is the transcript of the hearings) and researchers can use it when they study what happened in this period. When we have decent governments, public input is also used to shape public policy.

Note: the deadlines are strict. If you do not apply for standing – that is to make a verbal presentation – before the deadline for that town, you will not be considered. If you do not get in your written submission by the deadline, it will not go into the record.

We will help by providing a sample submission, key messages and facts about health care funding. If you need any help in understanding how the hearings work, we can provide that also, or you can call the Committee Clerk (contact information is below).

The Committee intends to hold public hearings in:

• Timmins on Tuesday, December 3, 2024
• Manitoulin Island on Wednesday, December 4, 2024
• Kenora on Thursday, December 5, 2024
• Stratford on Monday, December 16, 2024
• Ottawa on Thursday, January 9, 2025
• Leamington on Tuesday, January 14, 2025
• St. Catharines on Wednesday, January 15, 2025
• Hamilton on Thursday, January 16, 2025
• Stouffville on Monday, January 27, 2025
• Mississauga on Tuesday, January 28, 2025
• Toronto on Wednesday, January 29, 2025
• Peterborough on Thursday, January 30, 2025.

Interested people who wish to be considered to make an oral presentation to the Committee are required to register by :

• 5:00 p.m. (EST) on Monday, November 25, 2024 for Timmins and Manitoulin Island;
• 5:00 p.m. (CST) on Monday, November 25, 2024 for Kenora;
• 5:00 p.m. (EST) on Friday, December 6, 2024 for Stratford;
• 5:00 p.m. (EST) on Friday, December 27, 2024 for Ottawa;
• 5:00 p.m. (EST) on Monday, January 6, 2025 for Leamington, St. Catharines and Hamilton;
• 5:00 p.m. (EST) on Friday, January 17, 2025 for Stouffville, Mississauga, Toronto and Peterborough;

Those who do not wish to make an oral presentation but wish to comment on the issue may send a written submission by 7:00 p.m. (EST) on Wednesday, February 5, 2025.

To register or send a written submission, please visit the following link: ola.org/en/apply-committees.

The Committee will stream live from location when available. For the link to the webcast, and to find times and availability, please visit the Legislative Assembly website at ola.org.

Vanessa Kattar, Clerk
Whitney Block, Room 1405
Toronto, ON M7A 1A2
Telephone: 416-325-3509
Facsimile: 416-325-3505
TTY: 416-325-3538
E-mail: scfea@ola.org
Collect calls will be accepted.
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