Carmen Bezner Kerr

Implementation of the Homelessness Reduction Innovation Fund Expand funding for community efforts to address homelessness through Reaching Home and make changes to the National Housing Strategy, Reaching Home, and federal housing policy to support ending homelessness and the implementation of the right to housing in Canada. Seeking to secure federal government investment in affordable and supportive housing for Canadians experiencing or at risk of homelessness and expand housing options for people at risk of or experiencing homelessness through Build Canada Homes. Policies and investments in support of ending homelessness in Budget 2026 Taxation relating to Canadian charities Seeking program and policy changes from Women and Gender Equity to address housing need and homelessness for women. Seeking program and policy changes from Veterans Affairs Canada and Housing Infrastructure and Communities Canada to support federal action on ending homelessness for veterans. Seeking funding support for National Conference on Ending Homelessness, funding to support work to prevent and reduce homelessness as well as funding for research on homelessness and housing need in Canada, through Reaching Home (HICC); Veterans Affairs Canada; Canada Mortgage Housing Corporation; and Women & Gender Equality, to support research on homelessness for women and advancing the right to housing. Encouraging the implementation of housing policies in alignment with the human right to housing and National Housing Strategy Act

Advocate for place-based solutions to Canada’s biggest challenges, which support the region-specific mandates of public colleges and ensure local training needs are considered in policy development. Increase support to developing countries and other partner countries to build technical and vocational training capacity, strengthen skills development and education systems, and enhance Canada’s global education brand. Advocate for support for college-led research as a core component of federal research and innovation funding and policy. Discuss how colleges can support immigration programs, such as foreign credential recognition or international students, to meet Canada’s labour market needs, and share with officials impacts of policy changes on the college sector. Share with officials how colleges can support Canada’s training and workforce development needs to meet Canada’s biggest challenges. Share with officials the role of colleges and institutes in delivering high quality education for Canadians, and ensuring access to education for Canadians. Advance reconciliation through partnerships with Canada’s public colleges, institutes, CEGEPs, polytechnics, and Indigenous Institutes of Education. Promote the role and expertise of colleges in deepening Canada’s relationships with other countries. Promote the value of educational fair dealing in supporting colleges and institutes in their mandate to provide advanced skills and to enable them to better respond to the skills shortage. Increase investments and support to address colleges’ infrastructure needs to increase Canada’s training space and access in key high-demand fields that align with federal priority areas. Enable post-secondary institutions to obtain grants and loans to develop student housing projects, with additional supports for housing that supports students from vulnerable populations. Ensure Canada’s colleges and institutes have the necessary federal support to provide high-quality training for future healthcare professionals. Ensure the specific needs of institutions, including French institutions and those in minority linguistic communities, are taken into account when federal policies and programs are designed and delivered.

Advocacy related to the contents of the Spring Economic Statement and particularly initiatives related to federal housing policy and the environment. These include: - discussions around reduction in development charges through federal grants to provinces and municipalities - reduction in the federal GST on new homes for sale - possible financing tools to encourage new housing development - technical amendments to the EIFEL and accelerated capital cost allowance rules for purpose-built rental - encouraging foreign investment and speeding up development approval timelines - some questions around implications of the Cowichan decision in British Columbia and the Musqueam Rights Recognition Agreement on private property rights - discussion around energy policy, decarbonization policy, and REIT legislation reform. Advocacy related to Budget 2025, including taxation issues, issues relevant to public capital markets, issues related to housing and housing incentive programs, issues related to GST taxation, and issues related to programs to restart the housing sector. Providing input on the implementation of the Public Surplus Lands for Homes program that was announced in the Budget 2024. Working with Natural Resources Canada and Finance Canada to create a robust Sustainable Development Strategy for Commercial Real Estate in Canada We are working with staff on Interest Deductibility Limits (the “Proposed Interest Rules”) as proposed in the 2021 federal budget and relating to our concern that the Proposed Interest Rules may unfairly impact Canadian real estate investors, relative to both investors in other Canadian industries and investors in foreign jurisdictions (most importantly the United States (“US”)) Discussions with the Ministry of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities on the development of the Renters' Bill of Rights announced in the 2024 Budget Advocating for policy proposals within Canada's Sustainable Development Strategy which would improve building energy efficiency. Advocating for policy inclusions within annual budgets that improve the national commercial real estate markets. These include infrastructure enhancements, tax fairness, and energy efficiency grants. Advocacy with the Department of Finance regarding Clean Technology Investment Tax Credits (applicability to real estate entities and program implementation) Advocacy with Natural Resources Canada's regarding their Energy Star Portfolio Manager Program and Green Building Strategy. Advocacy with Environment and Climate Change Canada relating to their Clean Electricity Regulations. Advocacy with CMHC, the Federal Housing Advocate, and the Ministry of Housing regarding affordable housing programs and policies Advocacy relating to the government's possible proposal to impose an earnings-based interest deductibility limitation on Canadian corporations, including commercial real estate corporations and housing providers. Advocacy relating to the government's Budget 2024 proposal to increase the Capital Gains Inclusion Rate from one-half to two-thirds for corporations and trusts, and from one-half to two-thirds on the portion of capital gains realized in the year that exceed $250,000 for individuals, and in each case for capital gains realized on or after June 25, 2024. Advocacy relating to the creation of seniors' housing real estate investment trusts vehicles that would encourage institutional investment in seniors' housing similar to existing real estate investment trust models. Advocacy relating to the 2024 Federal Budget proposal to temporarily provide accelerated CCA for new eligible purpose-built rental projects, increasing the CCA rate from 4% to 10%. Advocacy related to Budget 2024 proposal to introduce a new anti-avoidance rule that will preclude a corporation from qualifying as a “mutual fund corporation” where it is controlled by or for the benefit of certain specified groups (which may be comprised of any combination of persons that do not deal with one anot