Feds considering changes to disaster relief payments to provinces

While British Columbia and other western provinces are experiencing a severe wildfire season, the federal government says it is open to making changes to the way it provides financial relief to provinces dealing with major disasters.

Canada’s Disaster Financial Assistance Arrangement is decades old, but there’s been growing discussion about making changes to either speed up payments or expand the expenses that are covered.

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Public Safety and Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc says it will require negotiations and agreement from all provinces and territories to make the changes, but they are open to it.

“Reviewing what is covered and what isn’t covered in a decade’s long agreement between 13 different jurisdictions…you don’t change that on the fly unilaterally,” LeBlanc said.

“You talk to your partners about what’s working and what’s not working, and how we can make adjustments.”

In British Columbia alone, there are around 380 active wildfires, according to the BC Wildfire Service.

One option LeBlanc said he is actively considering, which has been put forward by the premier of PEI, is advanced payments where, when a province knows a disaster will cost them at least a certain figure, the federal government can send that cash right away and work out the rest later. Currently, provinces much of the costs upfront, and then submit the bills for reimbursement when the disaster is over.

LeBlanc says no matter what happens, the priority is to keep people safe.