Get It Done Act, Keeping Energy Costs Down Act, CMHC Housing Data, Seniors Active Living Centres Regulations
Bill 162: Get It Done Act, 2024
On February 20, the provincial government tabled the Get it Done Act, that if passed, would make a number of changes to streamline processes for infrastructure and transportation, notably automate licence plate renewals, make changes to official plans and clarify acquiring land as part of the environmental assessment process.
Proposed Changes to Ontario Highway Act
Under the proposal, eligible vehicle permits will automatically review for fines, outstanding tolls or insurance issues and renew on a one-year basis. Renewal will not proceed automatically if a plate has any issues (e.g., outstanding fines). The proposed new plate renewal process will not change the way municipalities collect unpaid fines.
AMO looks forward to future engagement with MTO on the rollout of this proposed program, including the importance of maintaining address integrity to prevent the disruption of unpaid fines.
Proposed Changes to Official Plan Adjustment Act
The proposed changes follow the Planning Statute Law Amendment Act which reversed ministry-initiated changes to Official Plans. These changes and are the outcome of the province’s consultation with individual municipalities about any Official Plan changes that should be retained, or new ones that are necessary to support ongoing work.
In previous submissions to the province, AMO has urged the government to use Ministerial planning authorities, such as Municipal Zoning Orders (MZOs) only in collaboration with municipalities and in situations of extraordinary urgency. AMO is pleased that the government is making these changes in consultation with municipalities.
Proposed Changes to Environmental Assessment Act
Ontario is proposing a minor change to the Environmental Assessment Act that would make it clearer that expropriation is one of the ways property can be acquired for a project before the Environmental Assessment (EA) process is completed.
Bill 165: Keeping Energy Costs Down Act, 2024
On February 22 the provincial government tabled the Keeping Energy Costs Down Act which makes amendments to the Ontario Energy Board Act to address the cost of new connects to natural gas infrastructure.
AMO has recently called on the province to provide clear leadership on determining and communicating the role of natural gas in Ontario’s energy future power grid as part of ongoing energy procurements across Ontario.
The legislation, if passed, would reverse a December 2023 decision by the Ontario Energy Board (OEB) that requires consumers to pay the cost of connecting a new home to natural gas infrastructure up front instead of over a period of 40 years.
The proposed legislation would also increase the OEB’s Leave to Consult threshold from $2 million to $10 million, requiring fewer energy projects would need OEB orders to construct a new pipeline. AMO welcomes changes to this threshold which could help streamline projects and focus OEB approvals on larger, more complex projects.
Understanding CMHC Housing Data
This week, the province updated its tracker to include additional housing data. Housing performance against provincial targets for the purpose of Building Faster Fund allocations relies primarily on Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) data. To help municipalities better understand CMHC methodology, AMO brought together municipal officials with the CMHC for a webinar. You can find the CMHC’s presentation here and a recording of the webinar here.
There continues to be many questions and concerns regarding the way that housing targets are being measured. AMO is working closely with the province, municipalities and the CMHC to improve data to maximize municipal Building Faster Fund allocations.
Consultation on proposed regulations under the Seniors Active Living Centres Act, 2017
The Ministry of Seniors and Accessibility is currently consulting on a proposed regulation that aims to broaden access to its Seniors Active Living Centres (SALC) Program. The SALC program can help build healthier and safe communities while addressing the long-term growth and needs of an aging population. The proposed regulation would prescribe entities that could provide the required 20% contribution (i.e., in addition to municipalities) towards a SALC program’s operational costs. This is intended to help reduce barriers for community organizations to run SALC programs.
AMO has worked with the Ministry to hold focus groups that informed the development of this proposed regulation. Municipalities are encouraged to provide comments and feedback on the proposed regulation by March 22, 2024. Please contact seniorspolicyunit@ontario.ca for any questions.
