Warbus presented a petition to B.C. Legislature Thursday, February 25, urging her colleagues to raise current disability shelter allowances to match market conditions. (Image Credit: Chilliwack-Cultus Lake MLA Á’a:líya Warbus)

By Alyssa Conti

Raising the Roof

Chilliwack-Cultus Lake MLA tables petition to increase PWD shelter allowance

Feb 27, 2026 | 9:10 AM

CHILLIWACK — The official opposition house leader in British Columbia has called on her peers to increase shelter aid for people with disabilities (PWD).

Chilliwack-Cultus Lake MLA Á’a:líya Warbus has tabled a petition in the B.C. Legislature Thursday, February 26, calling for urgent action to match PWD shelter allowances to current market rates.

The petition was started by local advocate Mary-Jean Belanger, who herself had been disabled in her 50s.

“These are real people who feel the consequences of this government’s choices,” said Warbus. “Rent remains far beyond what the PWD shelter allowance covers, and the gap continues to grow.”

The maximum monthly shelter rate for one PWD, last updated in 2023, is $500, with a total of $1483 for a single recipient.

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The average one-bedroom apartment in B.C. is $1,685 as of October 2025, according to the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation. In Chilliwack, where Belanger resided, that same one-bedroom goes up to an average of $1,933.

Chilliwack apartment rental rates from October 2022 to 2025. (Image Credit: CMHC)

“I worked full-time for over 30 years, paying taxes, thinking my tax dollars were helping the most vulnerable, the disabled people that can’t work and support themselves,” wrote Belanger in the petition. “No one can survive on $1483 a month in B.C. Why should disabled people, who have no option to work, have to?”

Warbus argued that only 25 per cent of PWD recipients have access to low-income housing and criticized the current B.C. government on the issue.

“This government has demonstrated it can find funding when it aligns with its political interests. But when it comes to people living with disabilities, they continue to be overlooked,” Warbus added. “You cannot pick winners and losers in an affordability crisis, especially when the people affected are the most vulnerable.”

The petition had 1,621 signatures at the time of presentation.