Guaranteed public services

Recommendation 30: Ensure Indigenous mothers are able to maintain an adequate standard of living by raising income assistance and disability rates, ensuring safe and affordable housing, and guaranteeing food and transit allowances. Provide grandparents raising grandchildren, and all kinship care providers, with livable incomes and benefits. Provide income, housing, food, transit and all additional supports to youth transitioning out of government care until the age of 25 years old.

Guaranteed public services

Recommendation 33: Provide a free transit pass for children ages 0-18 years old, all youth transitioning out of government care till age 25 years old, and for all adults on pensions, income assistance, and disability assistance.

Recommendations to guarantee economic security for Indigenous women in the DTES

Recommendation 58: Increase the federal Old Age Security (OAS), the Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS), Canadian Pension Plan (CPP), and BC Seniors Supplement.

Recommendations to guarantee economic security for Indigenous women in the DTES

Provincial income assistance

Recommendation 61: Increase income and disability rates to the Market Basket Measure to reflect the cost of an adequate standard of living, and index them to inflation.

Recommendations to guarantee economic security for Indigenous women in the DTES

Provincial income assistance

Recommendation 62: Provide grandparents raising grandchildren, and all kinship care providers, with incomes and benefits comparable to foster parents. This includes a living wage and full access to child care and respite support.

Recommendations to guarantee economic security for Indigenous women in the DTES

Provincial income assistance

Recommendation 65: End clawbacks of income and disability assistance including clawbacks of Canada Pension Plan Disability Benefits and penalties for cohabitation.

Recommendations to guarantee economic security for Indigenous women in the DTES

Provincial income assistance

Recommendation 66: Increase earnings exemptions for those on provincial income and disability assistance program, and any clawbacks must be incrementally tied to income.

Recommendations to guarantee economic security for Indigenous women in the DTES

Provincial income assistance

Recommendation 67: Raise all asset limitations for those on income assistance to bring them in line with asset limitations for those on disability benefits.

Recommendations to guarantee economic security for Indigenous women in the DTES

Provincial income assistance

Recommendation 68: Amend income and disability benefits assessments so that only relationships that display significant financial dependence or interdependence are relevant for the purposes of eligibility, and remove financial interdependence by default on the basis that a person indicates parental role for a child unless a spousal relationship can be established.

Recommendations to guarantee economic security for Indigenous women in the DTES

Provincial income assistance

Recommendation 73: Eliminate the prohibition on accessing Rental Assistance Program (RAP) and Shelter Aid for Elderly Renters (SAFER) housing subsidies for people on income and disability assistance.