Bill C-304: Libby’s Affordable Housing Bill passed second reading
2nd Session, 40th Parliament,
57-58 Elizabeth II, 2009
HOUSE OF COMMONS OF CANADA
NOT OFFICIAL VERSION
DRAFT PREPARED BY BRUCE PORTER AND LEILANI FARHA
FROM ADOPTED AMENDMENTS
AS WE UNDERSTOOD THEM
DECEMBER 11, 2009
BILL C-304
An Act to ensure secure, adequate, accessible and affordable housing for
Canadians
Whereas the provision of and access to adequate housing is a fundamental
human right according to paragraph 25(1) of the United Nations Universal
Declaration of Human Rights;
Whereas, in 1976, Canada signed the International Covenant on Economic,
Social and Cultural Rights, a legally binding treaty committing Canada to
make progress on fully realizing all economic, social and cultural rights,
including the right to adequate housing;
Whereas the enjoyment of other human rights, such as those to privacy, to
respect for the home, to freedom of movement, to freedom from
discrimination, to environmental health, to security of the person, to
freedom of association and to equality before the law, are indivisible from
and indispensable to the realization of the right to adequate housing;
Whereas Canada’s wealth and national budget are more than adequate to ensure
that every woman, child and man residing in Canada has secure, adequate,
accessible and affordable housing as part of a standard of living that will
provide healthy physical, intellectual, emotional, spiritual and social
development and a good quality of life;
Whereas improved housing conditions are best achieved through co-operative
partnerships of government and civil society and the meaningful involvement
of local communities;
And whereas the Parliament of Canada wishes to ensure the establishment of
national goals and programs that seek to improve the quality of life for all
Canadians as a basic right;
Now, therefore, Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the
Senate and House of Commons of Canada, enacts as follows:
SHORT TITLE
Short title
1. This Act may be cited as the Secure, Adequate, Accessible and Affordable
Housing Act.
INTERPRETATION
Definitions
2. The definitions in this section apply in this Act.
“accessible housing”
“accessible housing” means housing that is physically adapted to the
individuals who are intended to occupy it, including those who are
disadvantaged by age, physical or mental disability or medical condition,
and those who are victims of a natural disaster.
“adequate housing”
“adequate housing” means housing that is habitable and structurally sound,
and that provides sufficient space and protection against cold, damp, heat,
rain, wind, noise, pollution and other threats to health.
“affordable housing”
“affordable housing” means housing that is available at a cost that does not
compromise an individual’s ability to meet other basic needs, including
food, clothing and access to education.
“Minister”
“Minister” means the Minister responsible for the Canada Mortgage and
Housing Corporation.
“Aboriginal Community”
“Aboriginal Community” means a community made up of Métis, Inuit or First
Nations peoples, whether or not that community is situated on a reserve.
NATIONAL HOUSING STRATEGY
National Housing Strategy to be established
3. (1) The Minister shall, in consultation with the provincial and
territorial ministers of the Crown responsible for municipal affairs and
housing and with representatives of municipalities
and Aboriginal communities, non-profit and private sector housing providers
and civil society organizations, including those that represent groups in
need of adequate housing establish a national housing strategy designed to
respect, protect, promote and fulfil the right to adequate housing as
guaranteed under international human rights treaties ratified by Canada.
Financial assistance
(2) The national housing strategy shall include incentives for affordable
rental housing and ensure that the cost of housing in Canada does not
compromise an individual’s ability to meet other basic needs, including
food, clothing, and access to health care services, education and
recreational activities, and shall provide financial assistance, including
financing and credit without discrimination, for those who are otherwise
unable to afford rental housing.
Requirements
(3) The national housing strategy shall also ensure the availability of
housing that:
(a) is secure, adequate, affordable, accessible, and not-for-profit in the
case of those who cannot otherwise afford it;
(b) reflects the needs of local communities, including Aboriginal
communities;
(c) provides access for those with different needs, including, in an
appropriate proportion, access for the elderly and the disabled, and
reasonable design options;
(d) uses design and equipment standardization where appropriate to
accelerate construction and minimize cost;
(e) uses designs with LEED (Leadership in and Environmental Design)
certification;
(f) includes not-for-profit rental housing projects, mixed income
not-for-profit housing cooperatives, special-needs housing and housing that
allows senior citizens to remain in their homes as long as possible;
(g) includes housing for the homeless;
(h) includes provision for temporary emergency housing and shelter in the
event of disasters and crises; and
(i) complies with standards for the maintenance of existing housing stock or
for the construction and maintenance of new housing and appropriate health,
security and safety standards.
Priority
(4) The national housing strategy shall give priority to ensuring the
availability of secure, adequate, accessible and affordable housing to those
without housing and to members of groups particularly
vulnerable to homelessness, including: (a) those with special housing
requirements because of family status or size or because of a mental or
physical disability;
(b) members of groups denied housing as a result of discrimination; (c)
those who are experiencing violence or who are at risk of experiencing
violence.
Quebec
(5) The Government of Quebec may choose to be exempted from the application
of this
Act and may, if it chooses to do so, receive an unconditional payment equal
to the total of
the amounts that would otherwise be paid within its territory under this
Act.
Implementation of national housing strategy
4. (1) The Minister, in consultation with the provincial and territorial
ministers of the Crown responsible for municipal affairs and housing and
with representatives of municipalities and Aboriginal communities shall
develop a coordinated approach to the implementation of the national housing
strategy and may provide advice and assistance in the development and
implementation of programs and practices in support of the strategy.
Measures may be taken
(2) The Minister, in cooperation with the provincial and territorial
ministers of the Crown responsible for housing and with representatives of
municipalities and Aboriginal communities, may take any measures that the
Minister considers appropriate to implement the national housing strategy as
quickly as possible.
Conference to be held
5. (1) The Minister shall, within 180 days after the coming into force of
this enactment, convene a conference of the provincial and territorial
ministers of the Crown responsible for municipal affairs and housing, of
representatives of municipalities and Aboriginal communities, non-profit and
private sector housing providers and civil society organizations, including
those that represent groups in need of adequate housing, in order to
(a) develop standards, and set objectives and targets for the national
housing strategy referred to in subsection 3(1) – including targets to end
homelessness – with clear timelines and accountabilitv mechanisms and
develop programs to carry out the strategy;
(b) set targets for the commencement of the programs referred to in
paragraph (a)
(c) develop the principles of an agreement between the federal, provincial
and territorial governments and representatives of the municipalities,
Aboriginal communities, housing providers and civil society organizations,
including those representing groups in need of housing, for the development,
delivery, monitoring and evaluation of the programs referred to in paragraph
(a): and
(d) develop a process for the independent review, addressing and reporting
of complaints about possible violations of the right to adequate housing;
and
e) develop a process for review and follow-up on any concerns or
recommendations from United Nations human rights bodies with respect to the
right to adequate housing.
6. The Minister shall cause a report on the conference, including the
matters referred to in paragraphs 5(a) to (Lib) to be laid before each House
of Parliament on anyone of the first five days that the House is sitting
following the expiration of 180 days after the end of the conference.