Letter to Minister Sean Fraser on reimbursement and funding for refugee shelter in the City of Hamilton

To ensure every refugee, asylum seeker and Hamilton resident can access shelter in our city, we request that the federal government immediately provide:      

• A streamlined program to provide committed, up-front funding to municipalities for the housing and support of refugees and asylum seekers. Cities should be seen as partners in responding the refugee and asylum seeker crisis, and provided incentive to expand spaces in their communities, instead of being forced to fight for reimbursement and jump through hoops to prove documentation of individuals whose status in this country is a federal responsibility.
• $9.095-Million in immediate funding to the City of Hamilton including:
  • $2.37M in direct reimbursement for costs incurred by our shelter system as a result of refugee residency since January 1, 2023.
  • An additional $4M in annualized funding for forecasted refugee shelter costs for the remainder of 2023.
  • $1.2M reimbursement for 20% of the $6M in annualized costs that the City of Hamilton is providing for refugees and asylum seekers to access hotel overflow spaces due to shelters being at capacity.
  • $1.3M for the annualized cost women and children refugees who are housed through Hamilton Violence Against Women shelters (20%).
  • $225K in outstanding reimbursement for shelter costs incurred through the Ukrainian response from June 2022 through June 2023 
• Expedited confirmation of total reimbursement. Waiting until December to confirm retroactive funding at an unknown cost-share ratio creates a disincentive for municipalities to open more beds to accommodate growing needs.
• The introduction of a federally-funded reception centre for refugee claimants at Pearson International Airport, as requested by Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow, to provide centralized services and manage housing referrals throughout the province.
• The introduction of proactive and sustained housing funding to Canadian cities that matches the projected impacts of national refugee and immigration policies.

As always, we stand ready to collaborate to ensure the needs of refugees and asylum seekers are met here in Hamilton and beyond. With greater commitment from the federal government in terms of cost sharing and funded support services, our city is ready to do more. 

But without a significant evolution in how cities are funded, and an urgent collaboration of federal and provincial governments to address this issue, Canada will not be able to honor its commitment to care for its most vulnerable citizens and those who come to Canada for a better life.

I look forward to your speedy response to this matter.

Andrea Horwath
Mayor

CC:  

Hon. Chrystia Freeland, Minister of Finance 
Hon. Filomena Tassi, Member of Parliament Hamilton West-Ancaster Dundas 
Chad Collins, Member of Parliament, Hamilton East-Stoney Creek 
Lisa Hepfner, Member of Parliament Hamilton Mountain 
Matthew Green, Member of Parliament Hamilton Centre 
Dan Muys, Member of Parliament, Flamborough-Glanbrook 
Olivia Chow, Mayor, City of Toronto 
Janette Smith, City Manager, City of Hamilton