Finance committee  Yes. Division 1 of part 3 of the budget implementation act introduces the federal balanced budget act. The act is consistent with balanced budgets during normal economic times and requires concrete timelines for returning to balance in the event of a deficit. It is consistent wit

Finance committee  The legislation is quite unique. It's not modelled after what most other jurisdictions have in terms of balanced budget legislation. We had a look at the balanced budget acts of many European countries. We found them largely to be rather opaque and the targets not easily verifiab

Finance committee  It doesn't specifically outlaw a deficit, but it is meant not to be procyclical. It focuses on the bottom line and the budgetary balance, but in order to avoid any procyclicality in terms of fiscal—

Finance committee  That is cutting spending or raising taxes during a recession.

Finance committee  In completing our analysis, we ran through a lot of scenarios, in terms of things that could arise when this legislation is in place. Again, overall we're not implementing anything that's really new here. We're enshrining in law the practice that the government has already been f

Finance committee  In the past, in order to provide protection to the budgetary balance outside of a recession, for example, the government has made it its practice to include a set-aside for contingency. Including such a set-aside would protect you from more minor fluctuations in the budgetary bal

Finance committee  I believe that would depend on the circumstance, and it would be up to the government at that time.

Finance committee  It's true.

Finance committee  There are two situations. There could be a recession or an extraordinary circumstance, in fact. In the case of a recession, the proposed act indicates that the recession ends when Statistics Canada reports the second quarter of economic growth. In the case of an extraordinary cir

Finance committee  No. In fact, the legislation lists specifically the—

Finance committee  I'm the senior chief of expenditure analysis and forecasting.

Finance committee  Yes. Exactly.

Finance committee  I think the—

Finance committee  Yes. Absolutely.

Finance committee  I can mention exactly what it is. It's only the one line. It repeals the Federal Balanced Budget Act, or proposes a repeal to the Federal Balanced Budget Act, deeming it to never have come into force.