The Ford government is queuing up $1 billion in support for companies that being gouged the most by U.S. tariffs.
Finance minister Peter Bethlenfalvy and Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade minister Vic Fedeli rolled out the Protect Ontario Financing Program, Aug. 13 in Toronto.
It’s geared to aid vulnerable sectors in Ontario hit by tariffs under the Trump administration’s Section 232 of the U.S. Trade Expansion Act, specifically the steel, aluminum and auto industries.
Algoma Steel, one of three major steel producers in Ontario, is being hit with 50 per cent tariffs by U.S. government. More than half of the Sault Ste. Marie steelmaker’s production goes south of the border.
Fedeli said this emergency loan program is designed to help companies “who are weathering this unprecedented storm” and are retooling their production lines and capabilities in searching for new customers in Canada and abroad.
Bethlenfalvy said to think of this as bridge funding to provide liquidity for companies to stay in business while they transition to new opportunities.
Eligible companies must have exhausted all assistance available from federal support programs, he said, have a minimum of 10 employees and minimum annual revenues of $2 million.
Available loan amounts will range between $250,000 and $40 million Funds can be used for working capital in payroll, lease and utility payments.
Bethlenfalvy said they hope to get program funding out to businesses within “days and weeks.” Once an inquiry is made, he said government officials should get the process started within five days.
“We want to be timely, we want to be thorough,” he said.
As billions in public money is being injected into the economy, Bethlenfalvy insisted during the Wednesday news conference that they’ve built in preventative measures in the program to discourage incidents of fraud, as experienced during the pandemic and pointed out by the provincial auditor general.
“I think we’ve incorporated a lot of those lessons learned.”
Independent oversight will done through some “top rate consulting firms” experienced in risk management and fraud protection. He did not disclose the identities of those firms that the government is working with.
