Backgrounder: Support for Municipalities, Universities, Schools and Colleges, Hospitals, Non-Profits, and Indigenous Communities

The Government of Canada has a plan to build a cleaner environment and a stronger economy for today and tomorrow. Over the past two years, it has established a federal standard for reducing carbon pollution, and has given provinces and territories the flexibility to choose a pollution pricing system for meeting this standard that works best for them.

Provinces or territories that meet this standard with their own carbon pollution pricing systems will continue to reduce carbon pollution using their own systems. For all other provinces and territories, starting in 2019, a federal 'backstop' carbon pollution pricing system will apply to ensure that all jurisdictions in Canada meet the federal standard.

In the provinces that have not taken action to meet the federal standard for pricing carbon pollution (Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario and New Brunswick), sectors such as universities and colleges, hospitals, schools, municipalities, non-profit organizations, and Indigenous communities can expect to incur additional costs as a result of pricing carbon pollution. In recognition of this fact, the Government intends to return a portion of the proceeds collected through the price on carbon pollution to help these groups take climate action, and this will also help them lower their energy costs.

Estimates of support available for those groups in provinces that do not meet the federal carbon pollution pricing standard in fiscal years 2019-20 to 2023-24 are presented in Table 1.

Further details on the program design will be outlined in early 2019.

In addition, universities, schools and hospitals can benefit from the Low Carbon Economy Fund (LCEF). Under both the Low Carbon Economy Leadership Fund and the LCEF Challenge, universities, schools and hospitals are eligible recipients for federal funding of proposals that aim to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and contribute to clean growth.

Additional information on support for Indigenous communities can be found in the backgrounder Climate Action and Indigenous Peoples.