Helping Charities Bring Canadians Together—An Open Letter to Members of Parliament and Senators
Dear MPs and Senators,
As you know, the government has implemented the Government of Canada Workplace Charitable Campaign, reaching out to 500,000 federal retirees and 280,000 public servants, asking them to consider donating $130 to charitable organizations to help them deal with the financial challenges of the pandemic. If half of them contributed that amount to their charities of choice, they would receive about $50 million in donations. It’s a laudable initiative, but it could be just the beginning, if the government were to follow through by including a measure in the 2021 Budget to remove the capital gains tax on charitable donations of private company shares and real estate. Long advocated by the charitable sector, this would cost the government only a foregone $50 million a year, while stimulating at least $200 million a year in donations to healthcare, educational, arts and cultural, religious and community organizations, creating hope and help where it is much needed and, not least, creating many new jobs along the way. In its important pre-Budget report, Investing in Tomorrow, the Commons Standing Committee on Finance recommends eliminating the capital gains tax on such charitable donations. Thousands of charities and millions of Canadians need help more than ever during the pandemic. This isn’t about a tax break for the rich. It’s about enabling Canadian charities to hire thousands of Canadians and help millions of their fellow Canadians in need. As hospitals and universities would be significant beneficiaries, and the provinces provide healthcare and education, they should be supportive and appreciative. All stakeholders in our healthcare, social service agencies, universities, arts and cultural and religious organizations, as well as the millions of Canadians they serve, would be very appreciative of this additional support as a timely reminder that we are, indeed, all in this together. Budget 2021 presents an important opportunity to get this done. Yours sincerely,