Submitted by the CLMA's president & CEO, Erin Benjamin, the organization's budget submission provides recommendations to “position Ontario as a leader in live music, tourism and cultural development.”
The Canadian Live Music Association has ideas for investment in the live music scene in Ontario.
According to the organization, “key elements” of the province's current policy — specifically the Ontario Music Investment Fund (OMIF) and Experience Ontario (EO) — are “not fully keeping pace” with the ever-growing landscape of the province’s music industry.
In a 2026 budget submission, submitted by Erin Benjamin, the homegrown live music organization’s president & CEO, is presenting three priority recommendations for the provincial government to modernize their policies, which can help to “unlock jobs, boost visitor spending, tax revenue and cultural competitiveness” while creating opportunities for Ontario’s artists to continue to elevate their careers.
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"Our budget submission is about supporting our CLMA members — the venues, festivals and promoters who make live music thrive — while unlocking opportunities for artists and driving music tourism across Ontario and beyond," Benjamin tells Billboard Canada.
“Live music is one of the few places where Canadians still gather to tell our own stories, in our own voices, in real time. The investments we’re proposing recognize that live music infrastructure is cultural infrastructure — supporting community, creativity, and a distinctly Canadian cultural presence that connects cities and regions across the country."
Concerts attract millions of attendees annually, boosting the economy. In the CLMA’s first-ever Hear & Now report, they found that the Canadian live music industry contributed $10.92 billion in GDP, generated over 101,640 jobs and contributed over $3.7 billion in tax revenues nationally back in 2023.
But the CLMA says that the Ontario Music Investment Fund (OMIF) isn’t keeping up. After a nearly $8 million reduction in 2019, the fund pours approximately $7 million into the industry, highlighting a significant disparity between what the live music industry is bringing in and the resources that are being distributed. In addition, they found that only around 24% of the fund is allocated to live music activities.
This includes the program’s “Live Music Stream,” which increases performance opportunities for local artists, and by default, raises the calibre of live music experiences, expanding employment for promoters and technical crews, while driving economic and tourism impacts.
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The CLMA is proposing that the fund double its current offerings to $15 million between 2026-27, with a multi-year plan to reach $25 million by 2029-30. In addition, 35-40% of any new OMIF resources will permanently be allocated to the Live Music Stream. It would be a major top-up to the current funding.
A Boost to Music Tourism
Music tourism is a growing sector. This year, the city of Toronto reported that Taylor Swift’s six Eras Tour dates amassed an estimated $39.7 million from direct and indirect spending and garnered an economic impact of an estimated $282 million for the city.
Experience Ontario(EO), a program that provides support for festivals and events with a tourism economic impact to motivate visitors to discover the province, played a key role in that success, CLMA says.
The concept of music tourism is taking off stateside, too. In 2024, the U.S. government advanced the Music Tourism Act, directing federal authorities to promote music tourism strategically and nationally. Across the globe, a Dublin research group estimated that the global music-tourism market brings in billions of dollars, with projected annual growth consistently hitting above 10%.
“Festivals, concerts and live music events have demonstrated the ability to produce high-impact visitor spending and rapid economic returns,” CLMA's submission claims. “Businesses in the travel, tourism, hospitality and accommodation sectors benefit directly from increased music tourism, generating additional local economic activity beyond ticket sales.”
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The submission notes that EO’s budget was reduced from $50 million — a COVID-era high — to approximately $20 million, which has “limited program impact despite strong industry demand and measurable economic returns,” for the live music scene, including reaching out-of-province visitors.
To keep up with the demand, Benjamin suggests the program bump up their funding to a “stable minimum” of $30 million, create a dedicated music tourism stream within EO designed for events with high visitation potential and invest in promoters and presenters.
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Modernizing Live Music Infrastructure
While an on-stage performance can often be transformative for fans, what happens off-stage is equally important.
Last December, the Tourism Industry Association of Ontario (TIAO) introduced the Tourism Capital Investment Tax Credit (TCITC) as a strategic tool, inviting private-sector investors to recognize live music infrastructure as an eligible category of investment.
“Live music infrastructure — including venues, festivals, production assets and touring-enabling facilities — is a core component of Ontario’s visitor economy,” the submission reads. “These assets drive visitation, extend length of stay and generate significant downstream spending in hospitality, transportation and local services.”
From rising construction costs and capital project delivery fees to extended development timelines, it's often tough to keep live music infrastructure financially feasible,
A 10–20% refundable tax credit, as proposed by the province’s tourism industry association, would reduce upfront risk for live music operators, the report says. Enhanced credits would be allocated for projects in northern, rural, Indigenous and underserved regions — leveraging resources outside of major cities.
Creating a Model for the Entire Country
In the coming months, the music industry will receive a boost — thanks to the recently-renewed Canada Music Fund. $48 million will be allocated over the next three years to the fund in the first federal budget tabled by Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne. It extends the $16 million annual boost that was announced as a temporary two-year top-up in 2024, with another $16 million for the next three years.
Now, Benjamin says, there should be another major investment in live music.
“Live music isn’t a collection of isolated markets — it’s a national ecosystem," she says. "When Ontario invests in its venues, festivals, and the workforce behind them, it strengthens touring networks, job pathways and the sustainability of the entire Canadian industry.”
