The Ontario government has opted to mobilize its own funds to take advantage of stimulus measures announced in the January 2009 federal budget. However, the extra stimulus will come at a cost—a $14.1-billion deficit this coming year, and a long, difficult path to regaining fiscal balance.
2009 Ontario Budget Analysis
2009 Ontario Budget Analysis
$0.00
- The province will prioritize infrastructure spending—mobilizing an additional $3.4 billion in financing for new projects in each of the two upcoming fiscal years. The spending is in addition to the existing multibillion-dollar ReNew Ontario and MoveOntario 2020 initiatives.
- In fiscal year 2009–10, total program expenses are forecast to rise by 12.5 per cent. They will jump a further 5.1 per cent in 2010–11. Thereafter, the Ontario government will begin its attempt to control spending in an effort to climb out of deficit.
- Ontario will harmonize its sales tax with the federal goods and services (GST) on July 1, 2010. The new value-added harmonized sales tax (HST) will promote long-term business efficiency but also generate upward of $2 billion in new revenues annually.
- Assuming that infrastructure spending is timely, new measures announced in Budget 2009 will add a sizable 1.2 percentage points to real GDP in 2009.
- Ontario is poised to go from “have” to “have not” status, and will receive $347 million in federal equalization payments in the coming fiscal year.
Effective January 26, 2026, AERIC Inc./Signal49 Research discontinued use of ‘The Conference Board of Canada’ name, logo and branding, which had been used by AERIC Inc./Signal49 Research under license from The Conference Board, Inc. The Conference Board, Inc. and its licensees, which are not affiliated with Signal49 Research, own all right, title and interest in THE CONFERENCE BOARD name and trademarks in Canada and have the exclusive right to their use in Canada since January 26, 2026.
