CCA BULLETIN 24/07

Ottawa, Friday, July 12, 2007

CCA Prepares its 2008-09 Federal Pre-Budget Submission

Just the Facts

The CCA has begun consultations on the 2008-09 federal pre-budget submission. The Standing Committee on Finance has set a deadline of August 15, 2007 for briefs. This is about one month earlier than previous years. They have also asked interveners to limit their briefs to five pages. The Standing Committee will hold hearings on the pre-budget exercise in the Fall. The CCA has already made known its intention to appear in front of the Standing Committee in October in Ottawa.

Given the relatively quick turn around time and the limit of five pages, the CCA intends to focus on the most important issue facing the arts and culture sector – increased and stable federal investments in the cultural sector.

Several factors have lead to this decision;

• the end of the $ 50 million increase to the budget of the Canada Council for the Arts at the end of the 2007-08 fiscal year,
• the fate of the new federal museum policy which has been in the works for a number of years,
• the end of the Tomorrow Starts Today envelope of funding programs in 2009-10,
• continuing concerns around the Canadian Television Fund,
• lack of clarity around the $ 30 million festival program announced in the 2007-08 federal budget,
• the next phase of revisions to the Copyright Act which could enhance the economic and moral rights of creators and copyright owners.

The CCA has traditionally called for income averaging, exemption of copyright and residual income from federal income tax and extension of the “soft benefits” associated with the Employment Insurance Program as a part of the annual pre-budget process. Given the recent correspondence from the Minister of Finance regarding the Advantage Canada consultations, these issues will constitute the basis for ongoing discussions with Finance Department officials. The CCA also recently wrote a letter to the Office of the Minister of Human Resources and Social Development to support the brief of the American Federation of Musicians of the United States and Canada (AF of M) regarding access to Employment Insurance benefits for professional self-employed artists.

Consultations have taken place with member organizations and individuals by telephone conference but the CCA welcomes additional input as the pre-budget submission is developed.

What Can I Do?

If you have any suggestions about other issues, or a particular concern with the proposed focus of the CCA pre-budget submission contact Guillaume Sirois, Cultural Policy Advisor by telephone (613) 238-3561 ext. XX  or by email at Guillaume.sirois@ccarts.ca . We would appreciate receiving your input no later than July 20, 2007.