Bill 44 explained in plain English
Lowering Energy Costs for Northern Ontarians Act, 2010
Ontario legislature bill summary, status, timeline, sponsor, votes, and official sources.
At a glance
Official Legislative Assembly of Ontario snapshot for 39th Parliament, 2nd Session. Representative vote breakdowns appear when the Assembly publishes an Ayes and Nays page for the bill.
Our plain-language take, written for civic education.
Source: By PoliticalData.ca
The Lowering Energy Costs for Northern Ontarians Act, 2010 amends the Taxation Act, 2007 to establish a Northern Ontario energy credit for eligible residents, including a transitional credit for 2010.
This Act, called the Lowering Energy Costs for Northern Ontarians Act, 2010, creates a new Northern Ontario energy credit. It amends the Taxation Act, 2007 to introduce this credit. The credit is for individuals who live in Northern Ontario and pay certain housing costs or energy costs for their principal residence. There are different credit amounts and income thresholds for individuals who are single versus those who have dependants or a spouse/partner. The Act also includes a transitional credit for the 2010 tax year. The credit is administered by the Ontario Minister of Finance or the Minister of Revenue, and payments are made in instalments. The new provisions related to the credit are repealed on January 1, 2014.
- Amends the Taxation Act, 2007 to introduce a new Northern Ontario energy credit.
- Establishes eligibility criteria for the credit, focusing on residency in Northern Ontario and payment of housing or energy costs.
- Defines amounts and income thresholds for the credit, with different rules for individuals with dependants or spouses/partners.
- Introduces a transitional Northern Ontario energy credit for the 2010 tax year.
- Specifies that the credit will be paid in instalments.
- Repeals the new provisions related to the credit on January 1, 2014.
- Individuals residing in Northern Ontario
- Individuals paying municipal tax, rent, or energy costs for their principal residence in Northern Ontario
- Dependants and spouses/common-law partners of eligible individuals
- The Ontario Minister of Finance
- The Ontario Minister of Revenue
- The Legislature of Ontario (regarding appropriations)
- Right for eligible individuals to receive a Northern Ontario energy credit.
- Obligation for individuals to repay any credit amounts received to which they are not entitled.
- Right for the Ontario Minister to accept lesser repayment amounts in special circumstances.
- Right for the Minister of Revenue to enter into arrangements with the Federal Minister for information sharing.
- The Act came into force on the day it received Royal Assent (June 8, 2010).
- The regular Northern Ontario energy credit is payable for specified months after June 2011.
- The transitional Northern Ontario energy credit is for the 2010 taxation year and is payable in two instalments (November 2010 and February 2011).
- Applications for the transitional credit must be made no later than June 30, 2011.
- Payments for the transitional credit cannot be made after December 31, 2011, unless related to an assessment or reassessment before January 1, 2013.
- The provisions establishing the Northern Ontario energy credit (Parts V.6 and V.7 of the Taxation Act, 2007) are repealed on January 1, 2014.
- Individuals may receive a Northern Ontario energy credit, with amounts varying based on income and family status.
- The credit amount for eligible individuals without a qualified relation or dependant is $130 annually (for 2011 and subsequent years), reduced if adjusted income exceeds $35,000 and eliminated if it exceeds $48,000.
- The credit amount for eligible individuals with a qualified dependant or relation is $200 annually (for 2011 and subsequent years), reduced if adjusted income exceeds $45,000 and eliminated if it exceeds $65,000.
- The transitional credit for 2010 follows similar income-based reduction and elimination thresholds.
- Money required for the credit program will be paid out of money appropriated by the Legislature.
- There is no interest payable on credit amounts paid or repayable.
- Individuals who receive a credit payment to which they are not entitled, or an amount greater than they are entitled to, must repay the excess amount to the Ontario Minister.
- Repayable amounts constitute a debt to the Crown in right of Ontario and can be recovered through various legal means.
- These repayment obligations do not apply if the repayable amount is $2 or less.
- The Minister may accept a lesser repayment amount in special circumstances deemed unreasonable to demand full repayment.
- The specific "prescribed" amounts or criteria that the Minister of Finance may prescribe are not detailed in this text.
- The exact definition of "base taxation year" is prescribed by the Minister of Finance and not detailed here.
- The determination of "adjusted income" follows federal definitions, which are not fully provided within this text.
- The Act does not specify how the "determination date" is calculated for each "specified month" beyond it being the day immediately before the specified month.
- The Act does not detail the specific "requirements of this Part" beyond the eligibility criteria outlined.
Adds new parts to establish and govern the Northern Ontario energy credit, including definitions, eligibility, credit amounts, payment procedures, and repayment rules.
Source: Section 1 and Section 2
Adds Part V.6, which defines terms and sets out the rules for the Northern Ontario energy credit for taxation years after 2010.
Source: Section 1
Adds Part V.7, which sets out the rules for a transitional Northern Ontario energy credit for the 2010 tax year.
Source: Section 2
This Act is cited in defining the geographic areas that constitute "Northern Ontario" through Ontario Regulation 180/03.
Source: Part V.6, Section 104.19 (1)
Referenced in defining criteria for a "qualified dependant", specifically regarding eligibility for special allowances.
Source: Part V.6, Section 104.19 (1) and Part V.7, Section 104.25 (2)
Definitions such as "adjusted income", "cohabiting spouse or common-law partner", "return of income", and specific sections related to individual income tax calculations are referenced.
Source: Part V.6, Section 104.19 (1) and Part V.7, Section 104.25 (2)
Generated using AI from official bill text. Not legal advice. It is written by PoliticalData.ca for civic education, automatically checked and spot-reviewed before publishing.
Official textProcess Snapshot
Vote Summary
This bill does not have a published recorded division in the current official sources, so representative-by-representative vote counts are not shown.
No published representative vote breakdown
The current official sources do not publish a recorded division breakdown for this bill, so there is no representative-by-representative table to show.
Official sources
Status, sponsor, votes, and timeline on this page are drawn from these official legislative sources and public records. Each summary above is attributed to its own source.
How this data is sourced