LONDON, Ontario (January 31, 2024) -- Pillar Nonprofit Network has submmitted a suite of recommendations to the provincial government that would see investment in Ontario nonprofits as ever-ready partners to government in delivering innovative solutions on public priorities in a collaborative way. The recommendations -- Investing in nonprofits for a more affordable, more resilient Ontarioare made as part of the Ontario Ministry of Finance's consultations in advance of the 2024 provincial budget, expected by March 31.
Informed by our members’ insights and experiences, Pillar's submission focuses on issues that apply across the nonprofit sector, and we are grateful to network partners like the Ontario Nonprofit Network and Ontario Volunteer Centre Network for helping to identify some of these issues shared across Ontario nonprofits. Pillar's submission illustrates how these pan-provincial and pan-sector issues are being felt here in London and Southwestern Ontario, the communities we know best and help care for.
In a departure from previous years, Pillar has also made a recommendation associated with a nonprofit sub-sector and the people it supports, joining with other advocates like the United Way Elgin Middlesex in calling on the government to double social assistance rates. In addition to the immediate relief this would bring to affected people, it would also be effective relief for a nonprofit sector increasingly unable to meet demand for services and has other co-benefits for communities.
"2021 reports indicate Canada’s overall poverty rate is 7.4%, Ontario’s poverty rate is 10.2%, and the Elgin and Middlesex poverty rate is 15.2%, with 1 in 4 kids in ElginMiddlesex living in poverty. Our province and region are falling behind and, of course, poverty is disproportionately impacting Indigenous Londoners, newcomers, and immigrants.
Pillar recommends that the government of Ontario:
1. Invest immediately in reducing demand for nonprofit services by doubling social assistance rates.
2. Establish a home in government for the nonprofit sector to work efficiently with the over 58,000 nonprofits, charities, and grassroots groups in Ontario. 3. Future-proof Ontarians’ social infrastructure with investments that reflect true cost of service delivery to take the pressure off of institutional settings, like hospitals and long-term care.
4. Address the nonprofit human resource crisis to ensure Ontarians have access to community support.
5. Make government activities deliver twice as much for communities by implementing strategies for community benefit agreements and social procurement.
6. Enable communities to develop the infrastructure they need with access to capital and lands.
Read the full report: INVESTING IN NONPROFITS FOR A MORE AFFORDABLE, MORE RESILIENT ONTARIO: PILLAR NONPROFIT NETWORK'S 2024 ONTARIO PRE-BUDGET SUBMISSION