Highlights of Ontario Budget 2003

Garfield Dunlop, MPP

The Right Choices: Securing Our Future
For the first time in almost 100 years – Ontario’s budget is balanced for the fifth year in a row.
Ontario’s economy is strong and will continue to grow in 2003-04.
We will focus our spending in priority areas and eliminate unnecessary spending, including $500 million in wasteful government spending.

Ontario’s Tax Cuts Are the Key to Opportunity and Prosperity

We will follow through on our commitment to reduce personal income taxes by 20% by January 1, 2004.
We’ll eliminate punishing income surtaxes for 470,000 people earning less than $75,000, and reduce the tax rate for 125,000 small businesses to 4% by 2005
We’ll start eliminating the capital tax with a reduction of 10% in 2004.
We will reduce the tax rate for larger businesses and the manufacturing sector to 8% by 2006.

Investing Our Health Dollars Wisely
· Health care remains a top priority for Ontarians: we are increasing Ontario’s total health care funding by $1.9 billion, despite the federal government contribution of only 17 cents on the dollar.

· This brings our total health care investment to $28.1 billion, an increase of $10.5 billion since 1995.

· We will invest over $275 million for payment to physicians and other practitioners including primary care renewal.

· Our increased health care funding will include: $10.3 billion for hospitals (a 50% increase since 1998), and funding for 252 nurse practitioners to help serve under-serviced areas.

Supporting Our Seniors
· Thanks to our seniors for the freedom and prosperity we enjoy today. We owe our seniors no less.

· Every senior homeowner or tenant will receive a tax credit to reimburse the residential education tax that they pay – an average savings of $475 for 945,000 senior households.

· More health services including improved access to cataract surgeries and osteoporosis treatment.

Investing in Safe and Secure Communities
· We will invest $750 million over three years to invest in safe drinking water.

· A multi-year funding increase of 18 percent over the 2002-03 budget for municipalities.

· $271 million to support infrastructure renewal in eight major cities outside of the GTA.

· $31 million over 7 years to support services for victims. We will double our funding to women’s centres for services to help vulnerable women find jobs.

· Up to $40 million over 5 years to municipal fire services in small and rural communities to assist them in purchasing new emergency firefighting equipment they need.

Investing in Education
· We are accepting the advice of Dr. Rozanski by increasing funding to school boards by almost $2 billion – or 14 percent.

· We will create 20,000 new student spaces for a total of 135,000 new student spaces.

· We are creating two Quality Assurance Funds to ensure the quality of post-secondary education:

o University fund: $75 million growing to $200 million by 2006-07.

o College fund: $60 million growing to $100 million by 2006-07.