Senators aim to pass grocery rebate, health transfer Bill C-46 by May 12

For those wondering when they may be receiving their so-called 'grocery rebate' payments from the federal government, a plan has been proposed in the Senate that would see the bill implementing the benefit pass by May 12.

For those wondering when they may be receiving their so-called "grocery rebate" payments from the federal government, a plan has been proposed in the Senate that would see the bill implementing the benefit pass by May 12.

However, it could be several weeks after the bill passes before payments start landing in eligible Canadians' bank accounts.

Bill C-46, billed as the "Cost of Living Relief Act, No. 3," passed second reading in the Senate on Wednesday and now is on track for an expedited finance committee study with support from all groups in the upper chamber.

This bill was tabled in late March and MPs unanimously agreed to fast-track it through all stages in the House of Commons in one fell swoop on April 19. When the original GST tax credit boost was advanced in the fall, it also received all-party backing.

In addition to enacting the $2.5 billion in one-time ‘grocery rebate’ payments to eligible low-and modest-income Canadians proposed in the 2023 federal budget, Bill C-46 rolls out the $2 billion in urgent and "unconditional" health-care top-up funding to the provinces and territories that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau promised to inject into the Canada Health Transfer as part of his cross-country health deals.

According to the office of Sen. Marc Gold, the government's representative in the Senate, the anticipation is that Bill C-46 will be able to receive royal assent—the final legislative step before a bill becomes law—by May 12, a timeline the Conservatives have agreed to.

Gold's office said this date is "critical" to ensure the $4.5 billion in new spending can be sent to the provinces "without delay" and to allow the CRA to begin administering the rebate cheques, "as of July 1st."