Canada's 2026 federal budget sets out $50 billion for Indigenous communities | Daily Hive

Canada's 2026 federal budget sets out $50 billion for Indigenous communities over 10 years

First Nation pole in the Cowichan Valley. (Andrea C. Miller/Shutterstock)

From building homes and repairing water systems to paying for health care and education, Prime Minister Mark Carney’s 2026 federal budget sets aside roughly $50 billion in funding for Indigenous communities over 10 years.

This continues a pattern of substantially elevated federal spending on Indigenous communities and services since the federal Liberals formed government more than a decade ago.

The largest component is about $32 billion over a decade for First Nations housing and infrastructure. Other major commitments cover shorter periods, including funding for schools, children’s services, health benefits, and policing. Several measures would renew or extend existing programs.

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The Government of Canada’s new budget announced this past Thursday notes that longer funding commitments would give First Nations communities more flexibility and room to carry out planning.

“For First Nations partners on reserve, long-term funding will lead to stronger, more reliable essential services by enabling communities to plan ahead, retain skilled workers, and make investments based on long-term needs rather than short-term pressures,” reads the budget document.

“It will also reduce the time and resources spent navigating short-term funding, allowing more of every dollar to go directly to delivering results.”

The brand-new First Nations On-Reserve Infrastructure Program would receive $18.5 billion over 10 years, beginning in the 2027/2028 fiscal year. It would pay for construction and upkeep of facilities such as roads, bridges, schools, and health centres, along with water and wastewater infrastructure.

The federal government would also consider bringing existing infrastructure programs together, giving communities more flexibility to decide when projects should proceed and how different improvements should fit together.

For housing, the federal budget provides $11 billion over 10 years, starting in 2027/2028. This would help maintain 119,000 existing homes, build more than 6,900 new homes, and renovate more than 10,900 homes.

Another $1.7 billion over five years, also starting in 2027/2028, would help move housing projects that are ready for construction ahead more quickly on First Nations reserves.

The housing and infrastructure package also includes about $658 million over 10 years to test different ways of financing projects and helping First Nations individuals become homeowners.

Of that $658-million amount, $500 million over a decade would support a pilot project using federal funding to secure financing upfront, allowing communities to begin infrastructure work sooner instead of waiting for funding to arrive over time.

A further $150 million over five years would go to the First Nation-led Yänonhchia’ Revolving Housing Finance Fund, which works with Indigenous financial institutions to provide housing loans. The budget estimates this would support 825 loans across 60 to 100 First Nations communities.

Beyond buildings and infrastructure, education accounts for a substantial share of the funding.

The federal budget provides $5.8 billion over five years, beginning in 2027/2028, for the Elementary and Secondary Education Program on reserve. This includes renewing targeted support for adult education. A separate $4378 million over the same period would support First Nations students pursuing post-secondary education.

Children’s services would receive more, including $6 billion over six years. Health benefits are another major expense, with $2.9 billion over three years, starting in 2027/2028, for the Non-Insured Health Benefits Program. It helps cover costs for First Nations and Inuit people, including medications, travel for medical care, and mental health services.

An additional $291 million over four years would renew support for public health workers and initiatives in Indigenous communities, including preventing infectious diseases and responding to outbreaks.

For policing, Carney’s administration has budgeted $634 million over four years, starting in 2027/2028, followed by $251 million in ongoing annual funding for the First Nations and Inuit Policing Program. This money would support officers, facilities such as police stations, and community safety services.

“Building a strong and united Canada also means continuing the important work of reconciliation. It means ensuring Indigenous communities have the same foundations that every community needs to thrive: safe housing, clean water, good schools, reliable infrastructure, stable and culturally responsive policing services, and the ability to shape their own future,” said François-Philippe Champagne, the federal minister of finance and national revenue, during his budget address on Thursday.

“Budget 2026 will make major new investments in First Nations housing and infrastructure and provide greater funding certainty so communities can plan for the long term. Because being masters of our destiny must mean having the tools to shape a better future.”

More than a decade ago, then-Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government increased funding for Indigenous communities while also changing Ottawa’s requirements to financial transparency.

In December 2015, the federal government stopped discretionary enforcement measures under the First Nations Financial Transparency Act, which requires First Nations to publicly disclose audited financial statements and chiefs’ and councillors’ pay and expenses. The federal government restored withheld funding and suspended court actions over non-compliance. The law technically remains in force, and Indigenous Services Canada’s funding agreements still require audited financial statements to be shared with community members and the federal government.

Meanwhile, some First Nations, including those represented by the St’át’imc Chiefs Council, are legally challenging Prime Minister Carney’s designation of the planned Pacific Link oil pipeline as a project of national interest, asserting inadequate consultation and risks to salmon and fishing rights. The federal government and the project’s proponents promote the oil pipeline as a way to expand overseas exports and generate additional revenue for the federal government and the provincial governments of Alberta and British Columbia.

Indigenous communities would also be offered the opportunity to purchase a combined ownership stake of at least 10 per cent, supported by federal and Alberta Indigenous loan guarantee programs.

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