The FACT Task Force
Driving long-term economic and trade resilience for Canada's transit manufacturing sector.
A national breakthrough
A milestone for Canadian transit procurement
Following an intense, coordinated 18-month advocacy campaign spearheaded by the FACT Task Force, the Ministry of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities Canada (HICC) officially adopted CUTRIC's core framework. HICC has launched its inaugural Buy Canadian Policy for grant and contribution programming — moving transit funding away from a "lowest-cost" transactional model toward long-term domestic investments.
Procurement advantage
Allocates 25% of total procurement evaluation scores to Canadian Value-Added (CVA) requirements.
Price incentive
Eligible Canadian suppliers receive a 10% price reduction credit for evaluation purposes.
Value recognition
Eligible CVA content now rewards domestic spend on R&D, local engineering, and after-sales service.
Material protections
Mandatory Canadian steel, aluminum and wood rules for project material orders exceeding $250,000.
About the Task Force
All of Canada's transit manufacturers, at one table.
The FACT Task Force brings together bus, coach, school bus and rail manufacturers to confront the 25% U.S. tariffs on Canadian imports. Our ongoing mandate centres on the implementation and execution phase of the new federal framework — the Task Force will continue to run parallel consultation cycles, surveys, and case studies to directly guide municipal bus, rail, and depot procurements.
How it began · Press release
The origins of the FACT Task Force
CUTRIC Launches Foreign Affairs, Commerce & Trade Task Force to Combat U.S. Tariffs Threatening Canadian Transit Sector
CUTRIC launched the FACT Task Force as a first-of-its-kind, direct response to the 25 per cent tariffs imposed by the United States on Canadian imports — a threat to the economic stability of Canada's transit manufacturing sector. The Task Force set out to:
- Secure tariff exemptions for Canadian transit manufacturers and their supply chains.
- Win a seat for Canada's transit sector at the U.S.–Canada Trade Relations Council.
- Protect an estimated 10,000 direct and 50,000–80,000 indirect manufacturing jobs.
Calendar
2026 Task Force meetings
The 2026 meeting series has wrapped
Dates for the next round of FACT Task Force meetings will be posted here as soon as they are confirmed. Get in touch to be added to the invitation list.
Ask about upcoming datesLeadership
Who leads the FACT Task Force
Paul Lalonde
Paul Lalonde is a premier procurement and trade lawyer. He leads Dentons' legal contributions to the Task Force, steering our technical methodologies for quantifying Canadian Content and navigating international trade carve-outs.
Jessica Hanson
Jessica leads CUTRIC's government relations file, managing the strategic feedback loop between frontline industry insights and active federal policy deployment.
Participating Organizations
Advocacy Participation
How to take part in our advocacy
Fully included in your membership
Full participation in FACT Task Force meetings, policy consultation sessions, and direct government advocacy days is fully included in your annual membership fee.
✓ Included — no additional costJoin via the GR portfolio
To participate in our direct government engagement days and ongoing policy consultation sessions, enrolment in our Government Relations portfolio via the GR portfolio buy-in fee is required.
GR portfolio buy-in fee appliesHelp shape Canada's transit
procurement future.
Take part in CUTRIC's government engagement days, policy consultation sessions, and FACT Task Force meetings — and help shape how Canada's new procurement framework is implemented.
