Plan to Protect Ontario Act (Budget Measures), 2025

RÉSUMÉ DU REGISTRE OFFICIEL

Ce qu'il faut savoir

SCHEDULE 1 ASSESSMENT ACT The Assessment Act is amended to provide for a set of standard rules governing the manner in which notices under the Act are to be provided by the assessment corporation, which, in addition to personal delivery and delivery by mail, contemplate sending notices by electronic means. Consequential amendments are made to the City of Toronto Act, 2006 and to the Municipal Act, 2001 . In addition, section 53 of the Act is amended. Subsection 53 (3) of the Act currently permits the assessment corporation to make available to certain entities the information sufficient to meet their planning requirements. That subsection is amended to permit the assessment corporation to also make available information sufficient for a purpose that the Minister has prescribed by regulation. New subsection 53 (4.0.1) of the Act also authorizes the Minister to make regulations governing the disclosure, by those entities, of information made available to them under subsection 53 (3) of the Act. SCHEDULE 2 CITY OF TORONTO ACT, 2006 Currently, section 41 of the City of Toronto Act, 2006 provides that the City may not designate, operate and maintain a highway as a toll highway until a regulation is made that applies to the proposed toll highway. The section is re-enacted to provide that the City does not have the power to designate, operate or maintain a highway as a toll highway. The related regulation-making power in section 116 is repealed. Subsection 267 (2) of the Act is amended to provide that the City is not authorized to impose a tax on individuals in respect of the issuance or validation of a permit under the Highway Traffic Act for certain motor vehicles. SCHEDULE 3 COMMODITY FUTURES ACT The Schedule amends the Commodity Futures Act . The Act is amended by adding sections 21.4.1 to 21.4.10, which empower the Chief Executive Officer of the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO) to appoint employees of CIRO to conduct investigations. The new sections confer investigative powers on these employees and establish rules about the confidentiality of information about an investigation. Finally, sections 21.4.9 and 21.4.10 provide that current or former directors, officers, employees or agents of CIRO are not subject to personal liability for good faith conduct. Currently, subsection 55 (1) of the Act makes it an offence to, among other things, contravene Ontario commodity futures law. Subsection 55 (3) of the Act makes it an offence for directors or officers to permit or acquiesce in the commission of an offence under subsection 55 (1). Both of these provisions are amended to increase the maximum amount of the fine that may be imposed by a court on conviction from $5 million to $10 million. Currently, the Capital Markets Tribunal may make an order requiring a person or company who has not complied with Ontario commodity futures law to pay an administrative penalty of not more than $1 million for each failure to comply. Paragraph 9 of subsection 60 (1) of the Act is amended to increase that amount to not more than $5 million for each failure to comply. SCHEDULE 4 EMPLOYER HEALTH TAX ACT The Schedule amends the Employer Health Tax Act . Section 29 of the Act is amended to expand the means by which the Minister may send notices of assessment under the Act, including by allowing for them to be sent electronically or by any other means that the Minister prescribes by regulation. Other minor amendments are made to the Act. SCHEDULE 5 FINANCIAL ADMINISTRATION ACT Subsection 3 (1) of the Financial Administration Act , which governs the Minister of Finance’s investments powers, is amended to include bond forward agreements as a type of investment the Minister is permitted to purchase, acquire, hold or enter into. SCHEDULE 6 FUEL TAX ACT The definition of “fuel” in the Fuel Tax Act is amended to reflect that propane is no longer taxable under the Gasoline Tax Act . The Act is also amended to set a new tax rate for clear fuel. Various spent provisions are repealed. SCHEDULE 7 GASOLINE TAX ACT The Gasoline Tax Act is amended to eliminate the taxation of propane under the Act, beginning July 1, 2025. The Act is also amended to set the tax rates for gasoline and leaded gasoline. A technical amendment is made to correct a French translation error and various spent provisions are repealed. SCHEDULE 8 HIGHWAY 407 EAST ACT, 2012 The Schedule repeals the Highway 407 East Act, 2012 and makes consequential amendments to the Highway Traffic Act . SCHEDULE 9 HIGHWAY TRAFFIC ACT