An Act to amend the Federal-Provincial Fiscal Arrangements Act and the Income Tax Act

How it changed on the way

44% of the text as introduced was changed or removed by the time it became law (1,559 words introduced, 1,046 passed).

substantial changeintent mostly kept

The core purpose of authorizing extra provincial transfers and doubling the January 2023 GST/HST credit payment remained unchanged. Parliament replaced the March royal recommendation, added a May version, and made technical updates to cross-references in the Income Tax Act assessment and liability sections.

• Replaced the March royal recommendation with a May version carrying the same wording.

  Before: “3 2023 3 29 DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER AND MINISTER OF FINANCE 91143 RECOMMENDATION Her Excellency the Governor General recommends to the House of Commons the appropriation of public revenue under the circumstances, in the manner and for the purposes set out in a measure entitled " An Act to amend the Federal-Provincial Fiscal Arrangements Act and the Income Tax Act ".”

  After: “3 2023 5 11 11 2023 91143 RECOMMENDATION Her Excellency the Governor General recommends to the House of Commons the appropriation of public revenue under the circumstances, in the manner and for the purposes set out in a measure entitled " An Act to amend the Federal-Provincial Fiscal Arrangements Act and the Income Tax Act ".”

• Updated subsection 152(1.2) to include the new credit subsection (3.003) in the list of deemed payments.

  Before: “(b) redetermine the amount, if any, deemed by any of subsections 120(2) or (2.2), 122.5(3) to (3.003) , 122.51(2), 122.7(2) or (3), 122.8(4), 122.9(2), 122.91(1), 127.1(1), 127.41(3) or 210.2(3) or (4) to be paid on account of the taxpayer's tax payable under this Part for the year or deemed by subsection 122.61(1) to be an overpayment on account of the taxpayer's liability under this Part for the year.”

  After: “(b) redetermine the amount, if any, deemed by any of subsections 120(2) or (2.2), 122.5(3) to (3.003), 122.51(2), 122.7(2) or (3), 122.8(4), 122.9(2), 122.91(1), 127.1(1), 127.41(3) or 210.2(3) or (4) to be paid on account of the taxpayer's tax payable under this Part for the year or deemed by subsection 122.61(1) to be an overpayment on account of the taxpayer's liability under this Part for the year.”

How precisely it is written

preciseChallenging the law: HardDisputing a charge: Hard

The bill sets fixed dollar amounts for each province and territory and uses detailed numerical formulas with exact thresholds and percentages to calculate the extra GST/HST credit. All key elements are objective and mechanical with no subjective standards or open-ended discretion.

Clear-cut

• “for Ontario, $776,262,000;”

  Exact dollar figure leaves no room for interpretation on the amount.

• “0.25 × (A − B) − C where A is the total of (a) $918, (b) $918 for the qualified relation”

  Fully specified arithmetic formula with concrete dollar values and defined inputs.

• “the month specified in subsection (3.003) is January 2023 and the taxation year is the 2021 taxation year.”

  Concrete calendar and tax-year references eliminate any timing ambiguity.

Discretion. The Minister may pay the listed provincial amounts but has no power to alter the figures or add conditions.

Challenging the law itself. The provisions create fiscal entitlements rather than restrictions on conduct, so no obvious Charter rights such as expression or liberty are engaged.

Disputing a charge under it. Compliance turns on arithmetic application of fixed formulas to tax-return data, leaving little factual dispute.

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.