BC Budget 2026: Staving off debt; no new funding
DABC’s Statement on the 2025 BC Budget
February 17, 2026
BC Budget 2026: Staving off debt; no new funding
The BC Budget for the 2026/2027 fiscal year was announced at the legislative assembly in Victoria on February 17, 2026. Helaine Boyd, Disability Alliance BC (DABC)’s Executive Director, was invited to attend the announcement and review the budget materials.
In June 2025, DABC submitted our recommendations for the 2026 Budget, and in August 2026, the Select Standing Committee on Finance released their Report on Budget 2026 Consultation. Our Statement in response to this report can be found here.
Our top recommendations for the 2026 BC Budget were:
- Indexing Disability Assistance rates to inflation, and removing clawbacks from employment insurance income and spousal income for people on Disability Assistance.
- Streamlining the provincial bus pass program for people with disabilities to include HandyDART rides.
- Build more affordable, accessible housing that includes two, three, and four-bedroom units.
All three recommendations were highlighted in the Select Standing Committee on Finance’s budget 2026 report; however, none resulted in new funding or initiatives within the Budget 2026 announcement today.
Budget 2026 may be considered one of the more austere budgets tabled in the past decade. Due to rising debt, the BC Government focused on measures to retain core services and find ways to increase revenue, rather than announce any new initiatives or investments into new services.
New Child and Youth Disability Benefit and Supplement
This Budget includes the new BC Children and Youth Disability Benefit (CYDB), which was announced by the Province last week. The CYDB replaces the existing autism funding for children with disabilities, as administered by the Ministry of Children and Family Development (MCFD). We wrote about this in an initial post on our website here.
Overall DABC’s reaction to this new benefit is mixed. One the one hand, we are pleased to see that this new CYDB includes eligibility across the disability spectrum. On the other hand, we note that the amount provided under this benefit is still a reduction from the previous autism funding of $22k a year.
The Province’s announcement of the CYDB last week did not provide much detail, so this Budget gave DABC the opportunity to clarify eligibility and policy information with MCFD. This is what we learned:
Families can receive either $6,500 or $17,000 for each child with a disability. The amount that families can receive is based on the disability-related needs of the child. It is not clear how MCFD will decide what disabilities count as more “significant” than others, and therefore how families can access the maximum amount of $17,000 per year.
DABC is concerned that this range in amount will create a hierarchical system under which certain families who care for children with disabilities will receive more than other children with disabilities. Understanding that this is a new program, DABC cautions MCFD not to create a system that pits families with children with disabilities against each other. All people with disabilities, regardless of age or type of disability, deserve to have their needs met!
DABC has further learned that there will be two ways for MCFD to assess a child’s eligibility of the CYDB:
1) Families can present a diagnosis of their child from a medical practitioner. MCFD clarified that diagnoses presented through this option would be the more “common” type of “significant” disabilities; autism and down syndrome were given as examples. DABC is concerned that this option may leave some families ineligible if their child doesn’t have a diagnosis, or a diagnosis that isn’t considered “common” or “significant” enough. DABC also notes that families may pay out of pocket to receive a diagnosis if their child’s disability is not supported through the traditional healthcare system. We have already seen this occurring in the autism community, where the provincially subsidized public autism assessment for children under the age of 18 can be carried out free of charge to the family, however the waitlist is very long and many families opt to go the private route so that they can start receiving funding from MCFD. DABC worries that this bottleneck will occur with other types of disability assessments, creating a barrier for families with children with disabilities in getting the funding they need for their child’s care.
2) The other way that MCFD can assess a child’s eligibility of the CYDB is where families apply through a “needs-based pathway” in which clinical experts “in collaboration with” MCFD will adjudicate on applications. To DABC, this option seems similar to the PWD application process, in that a person’s disability will need to be proved “severe” enough in order to access funding. DABC has also seen clinical experts being used to effectively restrict access to funding, rather than to benefit the applicant. For instance, when people on PWD need medical equipment, they submit a medical equipment supplement form to the Ministry of Social Development and Poverty Reduction (SDPR) in which SDPR uses clinical experts to adjudicate on those applications. DABC has witnessed that these clinical experts may disagree with the applicant’s need for medical equipment, and instead approve cheaper alternatives that may not fully meet the needs of the individual. Therefore, DABC is concerned that this application pathway may result in certain children with disabilities being excluded from funding because a clinical expert has deemed that their disability isn’t “significant” enough.
As the CYDB is a new program, DABC advocates that MCFD collaborate in community with families and children with disabilities to develop equitable access to this funding.
DABC notes that the CYDB is not income-tested, which we are happy to see, and we call upon the Provincial Government to make all provincial disability benefits (such as PWD) fair by removing income testing for all.
In addition to the CYDB, families can also receive the new Child and Youth Disability Supplement, which is provided at a max of $6,000 (depending on income) per each child with disability, and tied to eligibility with the Disability Tax Credit. This supplement is through the tax system and is for funding to support aids for children with disabilities.
Spousal Cap
This Budget also included an acknowledgement of changes to the PWD spousal cap, as noted in our statement here. No new changes to the spousal cap were announced. DABC continues to advocate for the full removal of the spousal cap, as noted in our joint-letter here.
Income taxes
This Budget presents two changes to income taxes:
- Income tax brackets will not change from 2027-2030. Historically, income tax brackets have increased to adjust for inflation. As income tax brackets will not change, this means that any tax credit amounts will also not change.
- The lowest income tax bracket tax rate will increase from 5.06% to 5.6%. For those on low income, they will be able to utilize the BC Tax Reduction Credit, which is not a new credit, but it will increase by $115 to offset the increase in taxes owed.
DABC notes that the Province has increased the tax rate in order to maintain inflationary costs for core services, and to reduce the overall debt level incurred by the Province. However, we question why the BC Government has chosen to increase the tax rate for the lowest income tax bracket in order to cover costs, rather than focusing on higher income tax brackets.
Reduction in Public Service
The Budget includes a reduction in BC Government staff jobs in the public sector to reduce costs. DABC advocates for these job cuts to not affect the front-line staff who are supporting income assistance and disability assistance applicants and recipients, as these case workers are sorely needed. As shown from this January 2026 report from the office of the BC Ombudsperson, the amount of time that people wait on hold to speak to a case work at SDPR is already shockingly long.
Involuntary Care
The BC Budget announced: “New investments of $131 million will support intensive, specialized mental health and addictions treatment for people with concurrent challenges of complex mental illness, addictions and acquired brain injuries. It will also fund involuntary treatment beds in Prince George, Maple Ridge and Surrey.”
DABC finds it concerning that this Budget, which has few new initiatives, chose to dedicate funding to increasing beds for involuntary care, when further focus should be put on protecting the rights of those who have been involuntarily held, and to provide supports to these individuals so that they can receive care in community.
Long-Term Care
The BC Budget does not announce new investment to long-term care, instead “re-pacing” current slated projects for building long-term care facilities in future years. While increasing the amount of residential units for long-term care may be needed due to our aging population, DABC advocates for the Province to also focus funding on home care services so that people can age in place in their homes, and be part of their community.
Further Budget Announcements to Note:
- A $167-million investment in the Classroom Enhancement Fund will result in more teachers for everyone, as well as special education teachers and teacher psychologists and counsellors for children with disabilities.
- Another $653 million in federal funding will expand public coverage to include free medications for diabetes and enhanced coverage for menopausal hormone therapy.
Overall Assessment
This budget does very little to support individuals and families on low income struggling with the affordability gap. There are no new tax credits or incentives for British Columbians.
DABC does not see this budget making any real difference in the lives of the disability community, with the exception of the new Child and Youth Disability Benefit. We have empathy for children with autism and their families who must now navigate a whole new system for support at MCFD that is less than what they could have accessed under the previous autism funding system, but we ultimately hope that this new benefit will provide broader support to children with all disabilities. Ultimately, the aim is to ensure that everyone’s needs are met, whether they are a child or an adult with a disability, and regardless of their type of disability. The Province has work to do to ensure that their income systems are equitable and fair, and that’s where individuals and families who are most affected can advocate for change.
There was no mention of poverty reduction in Budget 2026 whatsoever. It seems that the Province have sacrificed any advancement in their poverty reduction efforts in the wake of rising debt; it is unfortunate to see that the people most affected by rising cost of living are left with very little to take from this budget.
DABC will continue to advocate for changes that will increase dignity, independence, and equal and full participation for people with disabilities in our province.
