Bill C-5 · 38th Parliament · Paul Martin
Canada Education Savings Act
An Act to provide financial assistance for post-secondary education savings
Government bill. Became law.
- IntroducedOct. 8, 2004
- Debated in principleOct. 14, 2004
- Studied by a committeeDone
- Passed its first chamberDec. 7, 2004
- Passed the second chamberDec. 12, 2004
- Became lawDec. 15, 2004
Leading supporters
Ranked by the part each played: who is responsible for the bill, who carried it, and who spoke for it most.
- Paul MartinPrime Minister
Who carries this bill
Arrows run from the person responsible to those who answer to them on this bill. The critic leads the Senate’s scrutiny and answers to no one on it.
Where members stand
Votes and debate for this bill have not been read yet.
How it changed on the way
71% of the text as introduced was changed or removed by the time it became law (4,929 words introduced, 5,052 passed).
substantial changeintent mostly kept
The core grant formulas, eligibility rules, and Canada Learning Bond provisions remained intact from introduction to royal assent. Parliament added a ministerial duty to promote the program, a waiver clause, and minor wording expansions while removing some structural headings.
- Added a new section requiring the Minister to inform Canadians about the grants and bonds.
After: “sary to carry out the purpose set out in section 3, including making known to Canadians, through informational and promotional activities, the existence of CES grants and Canada Learning Bonds and any terms and conditions.”
- Expanded who may make contributions eligible for a grant.
Before: “by a subscriber under the plan”
After: “by or on behalf of a subscriber under the plan”
- Inserted new short title and assent details at the start of the enacted law.
After: “STATUTES OF CANADA 2004 CHAPTER 26 An Act to provide financial assistance for post-secondary education savings ASSENTED TO 15th DECEMBER, 2004”
How precisely it is written
mostly preciseChallenging the law: HardDisputing a charge: Moderate
The Act sets out exact formulas, dollar thresholds, age cut-offs and indexing rules for CES grants and Canada Learning Bonds. Some key payment conditions and information-sharing decisions remain open to ministerial specification or reasonable-opinion tests.
Open to argument
“on any terms and conditions that the Minister may specify by agreement”
Leaves the content of binding conditions to future ministerial choice rather than fixed statutory rules.“if it can reasonably be regarded as necessary for the purposes”
Subjective standard that invites argument over what information sharing is justified.
Clear-cut
“Not more than $7,200 in CES grants may be paid in respect of a beneficiary during their lifetime”
Clear lifetime numerical ceiling.“ferred to in subsection (4) are to be adjusted for each year that is after 2004 in the manner set out in section 117.1 of the Income Tax Act”
Objective statutory indexing mechanism.
Discretion. Ministers may set terms of trustee agreements, approve information disclosures they consider reasonably necessary, waive conditions for mental impairment, and make regulations on eligibility and reporting.
Challenging the law itself. The provisions confer spending powers and benefits rather than prohibitions, so vagueness or overbreadth claims under s. 7 of the Charter would face high hurdles.
Disputing a charge under it. Disputes would centre on whether a specific contribution met the statutory formula or whether the Minister’s chosen agreement terms were met, which the detailed definitions make contestable but not open-ended.
Read by a language model from the royal assent text; every quoted phrase appears in the bill. A reading of the drafting, not legal advice.
Did it work?
partly effective
Departmental evaluations find the Canada Education Savings Program (under the 2004 Act) has increased RESP savings and boosted post-secondary enrolment/completion rates by 30 and 7 percentage points respectively for beneficiaries, though low-income families remain less likely to participate. An Auditor General audit noted incomplete prior impact assessment, but subsequent evaluations confirm positive effects with persistent equity gaps.
- Canada Education Savings Program (CESP): Summative Evaluation ReportevaluationThe program has been effective in encouraging savings, leading to $40.5 billion in RESP assets by 2013 and increased take-up among low-income families.
- Canada Education Savings Program part 2: Final evaluation reportevaluationCESG take-up rose to 55.1% by 2021; beneficiaries show 30 pp higher PSE enrolment and 7 pp higher completion rates, but low-income families benefit less.
- Report 2—Student Financial Assistance (Auditor General of Canada)auditESDC had not fully assessed the combined impact of CESP on post-secondary access prior to 2020, though later evaluations addressed this.
- Evaluation of the Canada Education Savings Program: Part 1evaluationThe program incentivizes savings for PSE including for low- and middle-income families, with CLB and CESG payments increasing substantially since 2010.
Who lobbied on it
No lobbying registration naming this bill is loaded.
Stages and dates from LEGISinfo.