Local MP Brian Masse is supporting a move to adjust rules when it comes to the Canadian Emergency Response Benefit (CERB).
The New Democrat was part of a joint announcement with Legal Assistance Windsor at Charles Clark Square Friday. Masse says the government gave CERB to some residents that have an income that surpasses the monthly maximum and they're expected to pay it back.
He says many of those people are supporting families that are barely above the poverty line and genuinely needed the money.
"We've asked for forgiveness for low-income Canadians that got CERB payments because they were given this guidance by the government," he says. "Now, to try and get the money back when they can barely scrape by is an incredible amount of stress."
Masse is asking the Liberals to adjust the rules to account for those who are financially vulnerable.
"To make sure the people that have children and those that are just single dependants who are often seniors or persons with disabilities — people who have precarious employment that hasn't lasted — that they're not going to be basically subjected into years of poverty," he added.
He says the CERB repayment could be the last straw for resident in Windsor-Essex whose finances are already strained.
"With our rates of poverty and people on the brink, the housing crisis in regards to increased costs and lower amounts of units, we just can't be playing around with this," he says. "We need to make sure we're actually going to be supported."
Legal Assistance of Windsor says a lack of clarity surrounding CERB eligibility and repayment has made it challenging to advise clients.
Masse says he's raised the issue on Parliament Hill, but hasn't seen much support on the other side of the isle.