ACORN Canada | Uniting Communities for Justice

CBC: What new Canadians should know about the tax system

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Article Information

Category: Financial Literacy and Free Tax Prep

Created on Monday, 30 April 2012 16:34

When Tahir Mazari arrived in Canada in 1999 from Afghanistan, filing his taxes for the first time was a challenging task. "At the beginning it was difficult for me [knowing] what to do, but some of my friends helped me," he said. "We [didn’t have] that system in our country. It was very new to us."

Mazari now volunteers in Ottawa at ACORN Canada to help new Canadians with their taxes come tax time.

"Usually they come to file their taxes, but they are not familiar with the documents," he said.

Canadians who have lived in the country all their lives struggle every year to file their taxes, but new immigrants not familiar with the system may face even greater challenges. 

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Local Grassroots Action for Remittance Justice

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Article Information

Category: Payday Lending & Remittances

Created on Friday, 20 April 2012 17:44

Below is an email from ACORN Canada President Kay Bisnath that went out to many of our supporters last night about our campaign to regulate the remittance industry.  

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From: Kay Bisnath, ACORN Canada < This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. >
Subject: Local grassroots action

I know you’re busy - between work or school, taking out the trash, watching the kids - you probably don’t get to think about ACORN Canada or our campaigns all that much.

That’s why I wanted to reach out today, because we have big plans for this spring & summer and I don’t want you to miss it.

We want to take our campaign for remittance justice local - with grassroots actions across the country.

Our 20+ chapters are planning local actions to win legislation that would cap the maximum rates that can be charged on overseas remittances.

But we can only run as many grassroots actions as we can fund on our limited budget. To ramp up for local actions across Canada we need to raise $5,000 by the end of the month. Can you chip in?

Chip in $5 to help hold big banks and remittance providers accountable. 

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New Westminster News Leader: ACORN Canada holds New Westminster protest of money sending fees

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Article Information

Category: Payday Lending & Remittances

Created on Wednesday, 29 February 2012 20:01

A small group took to the windy, cold streets of Downtown New Westminster during the noon hour Tuesday to protest fees charged by Western Union and financial institutions for sending money overseas.

ACORN Canada spokeswoman Nancy Anemba led about eight people in a rally in front of the Scotiabank at Columbia and Begbie streets. They want the bank to put pressure on Western Union to reduce remittance fees charged to those wiring money back home to five per cent. Acorn says most of its clients have low-income jobs and send on average only $150 at a time. That often means the fees accumulate to 18 per cent or more for the sender.

Like many other immigrants and refugees in New Westminster, Anemba said she has been sending money to family in Nairobi, Kenya ever since arriving in Canada a little over five years ago. Most of the money she wired went to her daughter until she joined Anemba here five months ago. Now it goes to her parents. Western Union provides the money-sending service through banks, payday loan outlets and convenience stores. 

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Ottawa EMC: Ottawa ACORN calls for cap on money transfer chrarges

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Article Information

Category: Payday Lending & Remittances

Created on Wednesday, 25 January 2012 16:05

Michelle Walrond said she's tired of paying high fees to send money to her family overseas.

The Ottawa resident and ACORN Canada member was among those who turned up for a rally to protest high fees outside the Money Mart on the corner of Bronson and Gladstone Avenues on Jan. 10.

"If you don't use the remittance system, you don't know," said Walrond, who was one of roughly 20 members who came out on the cold day to protest.

Some cars passing down Bronson Avenue honked in support as the organization held signs and marched to try and gain attention to the issue.

Walrond and the members of ACORN were calling on Western Union to cap their charges at five per cent. In addition to the rally, members from ACORN Canada are collecting signatures from across the country as part of a petition. If they reach 5,000 signatures, it will get sent to Western Union's chief executive in Colorado.

Western Union had yet to respond to a request for comment at press time.

Walrond said people who sent money to family overseas are struggling themselves, and are in a tough position because they have to send money to family who are also poor.

"People are dying and they need money," she said.

She said she hoped that remittance fees would soon be capped at five per cent.

According to ACORN Canada and ACORN International, the average remittance fee charged can be as high as 20 per cent. For more information on ACORN Canada, visit their website at: www.acorncanada.org .

Original Article available at: http://www.emcottawawest.ca/20120119/news/ACORN+Ottawa+calls+for+cap+on+money+transfer+charges

Toronto Star: TTC approves 10-cent fare hike

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Article Information

Category: Save the TTC

Created on Monday, 19 December 2011 18:10

A 10-cent fare hike effective Jan. 1 and restoration of full bus service on some busy routes like Finch, Dufferin and Don Mills have been approved by the Toronto Transit Commission.

The commission on Wednesday okayed a compromise plan from the TTC chair, Councillor Karen Stintz, that uses about $5 million in expected 2012 diesel fuel savings to continue bus service.

“The TTC management will go back and give us a breakdown on which routes will be maintained,” Stintz said. “And they would likely be the busiest routes like Finch, like Don Mills, like Dufferin. But the exact details are still being worked out.”

TTC chief general manager Gary Webster said the money would restore half the rush-hour bus service that had been on the chopping block. Transit advocates vowed to keep pushing council — which meets in mid-January to pass the city’s budget — to come up with $14 million to keep current bus service operating.

“It’s up to councillors now to find the remaining money to avoid service cuts in the TTC,” said Jamie Kilpatrick, of the Toronto Environmental Alliance.

The 10-cent fare hike, the first since January, 2010, when fares went up 25 cents, will increase the adult token to $2.60. The cash fare remains at $3.

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National Post: TTC to raise fares by 10¢ in new year

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Article Information

Category: Save the TTC

Created on Monday, 19 December 2011 18:06

 

TTC fares will go up by 10¢ on New Year's Day, but it remains City Council's call as to whether the commission will move forward with controversial plans to dramatically cut back its service.

Cash fares will remain stable at $3 for adults and $2 for students and seniors, but tokens will increase from $2.50 to $2.60, and Metropasses will increase by $5 per month.

The commission also agreed in principle to usher in 10¢ increases in 2013, 2014 and 2015. "We need to bring in some predictability ... and get out of this annual cycle of how we are going to make ends meet," TTC chairwoman Karen Stintz said.

This year, the commission voted to reduce service on 56 bus and six streetcar routes in order to meet a budget target set by Mayor Rob Ford's administration; some of those cuts have been avoided by an 11th-hour discovery of $5-million in extra funding.

The $5-million was originally budgeted for diesel fuel, which staff now believe will not cost as much. More than $1-million of the money will be used to maintain service levels at full capacity in January. The remainder will be put toward relieving peak hours the rest of the year.

Of course, to keep 2012 service anywhere near where it was in 2011, the commission is counting an influx of cash from City Council.

"We need to find $45-million to buy new buses to keep the service levels as they currently are, and that will be a decision for council in January," said Ms. Stintz before Wednesday's meeting.

 

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