Bill 148 and Offsets for Small Business
On Tuesday, November 14, the Government of Ontario released its 2017 Fall Economic Statement. As part of this statement, the government announced $500 million in new initiatives for small businesses. These initiatives include:
– cutting the small business Corporate Income Tax (CIT) rate from 4.5% to 3.5%, creating savings of $250 million over three years; and
– $124 million to support employment for youth aged 15 – 29. This support would provide small employers with up to $2,000 when hiring a youth.
The announcement of these initiatives is a good first step toward providing offsets for the impacts of Bill 148, but there is much more to be done. As peer-reviewed economic analysis from CANCEA shows, Bill 148 presents a $12 billion challenge for Ontario’s employers and puts 185,000 jobs at risk. While the cuts to the small business CIT could save businesses as much as $5,000, this is about the same as the wage increases for a single minimum wage employee.
In order to ensure that Ontario’s economy continues to thrive and that businesses can remain competitive, the Government of Ontario will have to do more to help businesses weather the impacts of Bill 148.
Advocacy at Queen’s Park
On Thursday, November 2, Karl Baldauf, Vice President of Policy and Government Relations for the Ontario Chamber of Commerce, and spokesperson for the Keep Ontario Working Coalition, deputized to the Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs to close out the final day of the Bill 148 hearings. Check out the video below for Karl’s remarks and responses to the committee’s questions.
Bill 148 Handbook for Employers
To help prepare Greater Sudbury’s business community for Bill 148, your chamber, in collaboration with the Ontario Chamber of Commerce and the manage consulting firm MNP, has created a comprehensive handbook called Steering Through Change. This handbook will help businesses navigate the new costs and regulations associated with Bill 148. It provides a summary of the incoming changes, outlines the potential risks to business, and identifies strategies to help mitigate the impact.
The handbook includes important insights into the legislation and offers practical solutions and strategies to support businesses through the initial changes. As the implementation dates draw closer, employers will be able to turn to this handbook to understand the legislation and navigate change.
In addition, MNP and the OCC hosted a webinar on Thursday, November 2 from 9:30-10:30 a.m. to discuss the handbook and go into further detail about the full slate of changes Bill 148 will implement. Check out a recording of that webinar here.
Remember, Bill 148 will come into effect on January 1, 2018, so you need to begin preparing for the changes now.