Appropriation Act No. 3, 2025-26

Summary#

Bill C-17 is titled the Appropriation Act No. 3, 2025–26. The supplied text would authorize payments from the Consolidated Revenue Fund of up to $10,848,320,356 for federal public administration expenses in the fiscal year ending March 31, 2026, as listed in Supplementary Estimates (B). Its stated purpose is to cover expenses not otherwise provided for; the text does not establish whether the bill has become law.

• The money could be paid only for the purposes and on the terms set out for each item in Schedules 1 and 2.
• Transfers of appropriations listed in the Estimates would be treated as authorized from April 1, 2025. Each item’s provisions would also be treated as taking effect from that date.
• The bill sets rules for making certain non-payment accounting adjustments after the relevant fiscal year ends.
• Schedule 2 amounts could be paid and applied through March 31, 2027, subject to rules on which appropriation must be used first. Unused balances would lapse at the end of that following fiscal year, subject to specified accounting adjustments.

What it means for you#

• Taxpayers: If enacted, this would authorize federal payments up to the stated limit. The supplied text does not identify the individual programs or departments receiving the amounts.
• Federal departments and public services: The available text does not show which departments or services would receive funding, or what changes people might notice. The bill does not itself set out a new public-facing service, benefit, tax, or fee.
• General public: This is an authorization to pay money for listed purposes, not a requirement to spend the full amount.

Money#

The bill would authorize up to $10,848,320,356 in payments; that is a spending limit, not an estimate of how much will actually be paid.

• Payments must follow the purposes and terms for each item in Schedules 1 and 2.
• Schedule 1 and Schedule 2 allow certain charges after a fiscal year ends for accounting adjustments that do not require payments from the Consolidated Revenue Fund.
• No estimate of actual spending, or breakdown by recipient or purpose, is available in the supplied material.

What is unclear#

• The supplied material does not include Schedules 1 and 2, so the recipients, amounts by item, purposes, and conditions cannot be checked.
• No publicly available information is supplied about whether the bill has passed or is in force.
• The text does not say how much of the authorized amount will actually be paid.
• The treatment of overlap with other appropriations cannot be assessed without the schedules and the other relevant appropriation details.

Case for#

• A possible argument for the bill is that it would provide legal authority to pay listed federal expenses that are not otherwise provided for.
• The item-by-item purpose and terms limit what the authorized money may be used for.
• The accounting and payment rules could allow the government to complete specified adjustments and use Schedule 2 amounts within the stated time limit.

Case against#

• Without the schedules, readers cannot assess which programs or departments would receive the money or whether the conditions on each item are clear.
• The bill authorizes a large maximum amount, but the supplied material does not show expected spending or explain what services or results the spending would support.
• Schedule 2 amounts may be paid through March 31, 2027, so not all authorized payments are limited to the fiscal year ending March 31, 2026.