Dr. Raymond Roy SENIOR CITIZEN ISSUES

PROPERTY TAXES • Help seniors, disabled persons and their spouses receive the benefits available to them under the Ontario Fair Assessment System (section 373 of the Municipal Act) where municipalities are required to defer or cancel property taxes or provide other relief such as limit their tax to maximum 5% of their income when rapid increases in property values push property taxes above affordable levels. (* Ontario Guaranteed Annual Income Act or federal Old Age Security Act or The Ontario Ministry of Community and Social Services’ Income Support Plan for seniors, people with Disabilities and their surviving spouses provides guidelines as to what constitutes a low-income.) The experience and insights of our seniors will help us build a successful future. Providing our senior citizens with affordable housing, recreational opportunities, access to community events and health facilities is important way to pay respect and repay them for their contributions to our community. Active and engaged seniors will keep our town energetic and provide diverse solutions and viewpoints on community issues. • Continue the shuttle service to assist seniors’ with mobility. • Encourage builders and developers to create more senior citizen housing units, including assisted living facilities. • Develop more senior programming at a variety of town locations. • Organize a monthly senior health fair. • For those low income seniors who are unable to pay their property taxes, provide help as required by the law. • Implement the “ARE YOU OK?” Program, a computer system that calls participating seniors living in their home alone on a daily basis to check on their welfare. • Build more affordable housing for the low-income families, seniors and those with disabilities.

Cam Jackson – Burlington

Question 1: Identify what you believe are the critical issues impacting seniors within Halton and your Municipality that you would address if elected. These would be issues that the Municipality and Region have the ability to impact.

Thank you for forwarding this important question regarding seniors’ issues to my attention. The issues are clearly the ability for seniors to live with dignity, security, comfort and good health in our city. First among these needs is affordable housing, then income security, access to medical and social supports. The city and region can play a key role in providing these programs to ensure that seniors can afford to live in their homes and or apartments.

Question 2: Clearly state what you would do to address those issues.

It has been my privilege to actively support CARP since its inception as a member of Provincial Parliament, Cabinet Minister and now as Mayor of Burlington. As Mayor, I will continue to work towards social change at City Hall and Halton Region that allows our seniors to live with dignity, comfort and good health. I am pleased to address seniors’ concerns as I have a long standing tradition of lobbying for the recognition and support of the evolving concerns of seniors in Ontario and the City of Burlington for over 27 years. My past achievements in this area are: • Demonstrated my commitment to seniors as Canada’s first Minister of Long Term Care and Seniors; Ontario’s first Alzheimer Strategy and Elder Abuse Strategy; implemented Ontario’s Community Care Access Centres, Home Care Program; developed 20,000 new Long Term Care beds, approved 1764 more beds for Halton; instrumental in introduction and passage of The Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2001 – Canada’s most comprehensive disabilities legislation; $9.6 million expansion for 79 new beds at Joseph Brant Hospital in 2002; and Canada’s first Self-Directed Attendant Care Program for the disabled. • Hosted 27 annual breakfast seminars for Burlington Seniors to inform them of new Provincial and Municipal programs that may benefit our residents while simultaneously gathering input on seniors’ concerns and advocating for their interests within the Regional, Provincial and local Council. • Ontario’s Minister of Citizenship with responsibility for creating the first “Seniors’ Secretariat”. • Board Member and Advocate for persons with disabilities, which includes many seniors, with the Multiple Sclerosis Society. • As Mayor, each year I ‘spend a day in a wheelchair’ to emphasize the challenges of persons with disabilities getting around Burlington. • Championed the passage of The City of Burlington to adopt a resolution from the World Health Organization’s definition of an “Age Friendly City” (May 2009) within the world at large. Ontario has six age friendly cities – I am proud that Burlington is one of them and I intend to make it the best “Age Friendly City” in Ontario.