Thousands of military members to be cut off as Ottawa introduces expanded housing benefit

After working on it for almost a decade and a half, the Department of National Defence (DND) is rolling out a new benefit to help military members deal with the high cost of housing — but it's not going over very well with everyone.

Military members learned at a virtual town hall Tuesday that a new, highly-anticipated housing benefit is coming in July. It's meant to help lower-ranking members cope with steep housing costs in dozens of additional Canadian locations.

But not everyone is getting it. The military estimates the new policy will mean roughly 7,700 military members who have been receiving a monthly housing allowance will soon be cut off. That news sparked an angry online backlash from those who say they will receive less than before.

Brig.-Gen. Virginia Tattersall, the military's director general of compensation and benefits, said that more members overall will receive the housing benefit under the new taxable benefit policy.

While she said she's "sympathetic" to those no longer eligible, Tattersall added the math shows those losing the housing benefit "are able to afford" housing or can live in military housing with protected rental rates.

"They will feel that they have lost, but we have delivered a benefit that is equitable, that is endeavouring to help those that need it the most," Tattersall told CBC News.

A series of military families contacted CBC News saying losing the benefit couldn't have come at a worse time due to inflation. Some families living on bases in military housing are "reeling" from the news, one person said. 

The family members did not want to be named citing a fear of reprisal to their spouses or children serving in the Canadian Armed Forces. Military members need authorization by their chain of command to do media interviews. 

DND and the Treasury Board negotiated the new benefit for 14 years after the military housing allowance was frozen in 2009, Tattersall said.

The new taxable benefit can be used for rent or mortgage payments.The benefit varies according to income and location. For example, said Tattersall, members in Vancouver can receive $600 to $2,500 per month,

Chief of Defence Staff Gen. Wayne Eyre said last year that the main concern he hears from military members when he's travelling across Canada is the rising cost of living.

In Comox, B.C., some military members were told by email last year to consider contacting the charity Habitat for Humanity if they can't find affordable housing.

In Borden, Ont., the shortage of housing has some military families doubling up and sharing homes, said Tattersall. 

In Ottawa — where military members were not eligible for housing allowances before the new benefit is introduced — junior members were struggling to pay for accommodation while training, she said.