SENATEAT2NDREADING

Private Member's Bill

45th Parliament · Session 1

Bill C-230: An Act to amend the Financial Administration Act and to make consequential amendments to other Acts (debt forgiveness registry)

Introduced

September 19, 2025

Current Stage

SenateAt2ndReading

Last Updated

May 26, 2026

Sponsor

Adam Chambers

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Bill C-230

Tue May 26 2026

An Act to amend the Financial Administration Act and to make consequential amendments to other Acts (debt forgiveness registry)

Impact Rating

2/5

Short Summary

Creates a mandatory public website listing any corporation that has had a government debt of $1 million or more forgiven or written off.

Transparency

Corporate Debt

Accountability

Taxpayer Money

Business

Detailed Analysis

This bill requires the federal government to create a public, searchable online registry listing any time a corporation, trust, or partnership has a debt of $1 million or more forgiven by the government. Currently, when the government writes off bad loans or unpaid taxes owed by companies, the details can be difficult for the public to find. This bill aims to make that information easily accessible to taxpayers.

Why does this bill exist?

Origin (Platform Promise)

This represents a push for 'open government' and fiscal responsibility, likely driven by Opposition concerns over government spending transparency.

Key Points

Establishes a public, searchable online database managed by the Treasury Board.
Applies strictly to debts, obligations, or claims of $1,000,000 or more.
Target entities are corporations, trust companies, and partnerships (not individual citizens).
Triggers when a debt is waived, written off, or forgiven by the federal government.
Amends privacy sections of tax laws (like the Income Tax Act) to legally allow this specific data to be published.
The registry must list the company name, the amount forgiven, and which law the debt fell under.

Impact By Group

Large Corporations

(Harder)

If they negotiate a debt write-off with the government, it will become public knowledge, potentially causing PR issues.

Journalists

(Easier)

Will no longer need to file Access to Information requests to find out about major corporate debt forgiveness.

Everyday Citizens

(Neutral)

No direct impact on daily life, but provides a tool to see how tax dollars are handled.

Provincial Impact

None (Purely Federal) Interaction

This applies only to debts owed to the Federal Government (His Majesty in right of Canada).

Benefits & Pros

Increases transparency regarding how the government manages public funds and corporate loans.

Allows taxpayers and journalists to see which companies are receiving financial breaks.

May discourage the government from forgiving debts based on political favoritism.

Provides a clear record of corporate welfare or failed government investments.

Beneficiaries

Taxpayers (Information access)

Journalists/Researchers

Opposition Parties

Risks & Cons

Could damage the reputation of companies that had debts forgiven for legitimate reasons (e.g., avoiding bankruptcy to save jobs).

Creates a small administrative cost to build and maintain the database.

Does not apply to debts under $1 million, meaning smaller instances of forgiveness remain less visible.

Affected Groups

Large Corporations (Reputational risk)

Lobbyists

Before & After

Currently: The government lends $5 million to a tech company. The company fails, and the government writes off the loan. This information is buried in complex annual reports (Public Accounts) that are hard to read. Under this Bill: You could search the company's name on a government website and immediately see an entry stating: 'Company X: $5,000,000 debt forgiven'.

Real World Scenario

Currently: A large manufacturing firm negotiates with the CRA to pay only 50% of a large tax bill to avoid closing a factory. The public might never know the details. Under this Bill: If the forgiven amount is over $1 million, the firm's name and the amount saved would be listed online for anyone to see.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will my student loan forgiveness appear on this list?

Why would the government forgive a debt?

Does this reveal private tax information?

Sponsor

Adam Chambers

Member of Parliament

House of Commons

First reading

Completed on September 19, 2025

Second reading

Completed on February 9, 2026

Consideration in committee

Completed on April 13, 2026

Report stage

Completed on May 7, 2026

Third reading

Completed on May 7, 2026

Senate

First reading

Completed on May 26, 2026

Second reading

Not yet started

Third reading

Not yet started

Abuse Potential

The abuse potential is low for the government, but there is a risk of 'context collapse' for businesses. A company might appear on this list and face public backlash even if the debt forgiveness was part of a standard legal settlement, a bankruptcy proceeding where the government recovered what it could, or a clerical error correction. Without context, the registry could be used to politically attack businesses regardless of the circumstances.

Financial Impact

Administrative change only. There will be a small cost to build and host the website, but no new taxes or direct costs to citizens.

Implementation Risk

Low. The technology to create a searchable database is standard. The only risk is ensuring data accuracy from various departments.

Broad Economic Impact

Indirect. Greater scrutiny might make the government more hesitant to write off corporate loans, potentially saving tax dollars.

Everyday Life

Minimal impact. It is a transparency tool for those interested in government finance.

Admin Burden

Low. Government staff will need to input data into the registry.

Timeline

The registry would be established shortly after the bill receives Royal Assent.

Bill Text Versions

3 Versions

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Summary

This enactment amends the Financial Administration Act to require that the President of the Treasury Board establish and maintain a public registry of large debts and obligations owed by certain entities to His Majesty, as well as claims by His Majesty against such entities, that have been remitted, forgiven, written off or waived. It also makes consequential amendments to other Acts.

Full Text

R.S., c. F- 11 Financial Administration Act 1 The Financial Administration Act is amended by adding the following after section 25: Public registry 25.1 (1) The President of the Treasury Board must establish and maintain a public registry in the form of an online, searchable database containing information relating to any debt or obligation owed by a corporation, trust company or partnership to His Majesty — and to any claim by His Majesty against a corporation, trust company or partnership — that was, in whole or in part, remitted, forgiven, written off or waived, under this or any other Act of Parliament, in an amount of $2,000,000 or more. Contents of registry (2) The registry must include the following information in relation to each debt, obligation or claim: (a) the name, as well as any business name, of the corporation, trust company or partnership; (b) the amount that was remitted, forgiven, written off or waived; (c) an indication of whether the debt, obligation or claim was remitted, forgiven, written off or waived; (d) the fiscal year in which the debt, obligation or claim was remitted, forgiven, written off or waived; (e) the Act of Parliament or agreement, arrangement, contract or other instrument or act under which the debt, obligation or claim arose; (f) the Act of Parliament under which the debt, obligation or claim was remitted, forgiven, written off or waived; and (g) any other information that the President of the Treasury Board considers appropriate. Exception (3) Despite subsection (2), the President of the Treasury Board may exclude from the registry any information that, in their opinion, would be inappropriate to make publicly accessible for reasons related to the protection of confidential, personal or sensitive information. Reasons for exclusion (3.1) If any information is excluded from the registry under subsection (3), the President of the Treasury Board must identify in the registry whether the information was excluded for reasons relating to the protection of confidential information, personal information or sensitive information. Establishment of registry (4) The registry must be established within 18 months after the day on which this section comes into force and, on the day that it is established, must include information relating to each debt, obligation or claim referred to in subsection (1) that was remitted, forgiven, written off or waived — after the day on which this section comes into force — during the fiscal year to which the Public Accounts most recently tabled in the House of Commons relate. Maintenance of registry (5) Within 90 days after the day on which the Public Accounts are tabled in the House of Commons, the President of the Treasury Board must update the registry to include information relating to each debt, obligation or claim referred to in subsection (1) that was remitted, forgiven, written off or waived during the fiscal year to which the tabled Public Accounts relate. For greater certainty (6) For greater certainty, for the purposes of this section, a debt or obligation owed to a Crown corporation is not a debt or obligation owed to His Majesty and a claim by a Crown corporation is not a claim by His Majesty. Consequential Amendments R.S., c. 1 (5th Supp.) Income Tax Act 2 Paragraph 241(4)(f) of the Income Tax Act is replaced by the following: (f) provide taxpayer information solely for the purposes of sections 23 to 25.1 of the Financial Administration Act ; R.S., c. E- 15 Excise Tax Act 3 Paragraph 295(5)(e) of the Excise Tax Act is replaced by the following: (e) provide confidential information solely for the purposes of sections 23 to 25.1 of the Financial Administration Act ; 2002, c. 22 Excise Act, 2001 4 Paragraph 211(6)(f) of the Excise Act, 2001 is replaced by the following: (f) provide confidential information solely for the purposes of sections 23 to 25.1 of the Financial Administration Act ; 2006, c. 13 Softwood Lumber Products Export Charge Act, 2006 5 Paragraph 84(6)(f) of the Softwood Lumber Products Export Charge Act, 2006 is replaced by the following: (f) provide confidential information solely for the purposes of sections 23 to 25.1 of the Financial Administration Act ; 2024, c. 15, s. 96 Digital Services Tax Act 6 Paragraph 108(6)(f) of the Digital Services Tax Act is replaced by the following: (f) provide confidential information solely for the purposes of sections 23 to 25.1 of the Financial Administration Act ; 2024, c. 17, s. 81 Global Minimum Tax Act 7 Paragraph 123(6)(f) of the Global Minimum Tax Act is replaced by the following: (f) provide confidential information solely for the purposes of sections 23 to 25.1 of the Financial Administration Act ; Coordinating Amendments Bill C-15 8 (1) Subsections (2) and (3) apply if Bill C-15, introduced in the 1st session of the 45th Parliament and entitled Budget 2025 Implementation Act, No. 1 (in this section referred to as the “other Act”), receives royal assent. (2) If subsection 126(2) of the other Act comes into force before section 6 of this Act, then that section 6 is deemed never to have come into force and is repealed. (3) If subsection 126(2) of the other Act comes into force on the same day as section 6 of this Act, then that section 6 is deemed never to have come into force and is repealed.

Version History

May 8, 2026 at 11:03 PM

Doc ID: 14089832

April 13, 2026 at 11:03 PM

Doc ID: 14008356

September 20, 2025 at 03:24 AM

Doc ID: 13596735