Reposted from Income Security Advocacy Centre (ISAC)
On November 14, 2022, the Ontario Economic Outlook and Fiscal Review proposed changes to how earned income will be deducted from benefit cheques of people on the Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP) only. Note: These changes do not apply to Ontario Works (OW) clients.
The government announced that the ODSP monthly flat rate earnings exemption – the amount people can earn without any deductions from their benefits – will increase from $200 to $1000. The amount that is deducted on income above the exemption amount will increase, from 50% to 75%.
Our analysis shows that:
- The proposed changes will improve the incomes of people on ODSP who earn up to $2600 net (after taxes and deductions) each month. This will help those who can work. However, for those who cannot work, these proposed changes will have no impact on incomes.
- The proposed rules will mean that people become ineligible for ODSP at a lower income point. They will “earn their way off” the program $224 earlier per year ($18.67 per month). At that point, they will no longer have access to associated supports that cover some disability costs such as prescription drug coverage, assistive living devices, or the Guide Dog Benefit.
We have put together two examples showing how the incomes of two different fictional people on ODSP would be treated under the current rules, and how the same incomes would be treated under the proposed rules.
We have also created a chart which shows the impact of the difference between the current rules and the proposed new rules for a single person on ODSP and for different amounts of earnings.
Click here to access the factsheet which includes examples and chart in English.
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Kingston Community Legal Clinic 