Regulation - LGIC
Consultation on Proposed Regulation under Rowan's Law (Concussion Safety), 2018
Regulation Number(s):
N/A
Instrument Type:
Regulation - LGIC
Bill or Act:
Rowan's Law (Concussion Safety), 2018
Summary of Proposal:
On March 7, 2018, Ontario enacted new legislation, Rowan's Law (Concussion Safety), 2018, (Rowan's Law) as well as amendments to the Education Act. The goal of Rowan's Law is to increase awareness and minimize the risk of concussion, and to change conversations on the field, at school, in communities and in our homes so that we can create a world class amateur sport system in which athletes and Ontarians can participate safely. The Act establishes mandatory requirements for:
• Annual review of Concussion Awareness Resources by athletes, coaches, and parents/guardians before registering or serving with a in a sport organization;
• Sport organizations to establish Removal-from-Sport and Return-to-Sport protocols, to ensure that an athlete is immediately removed from sport if they are suspected of having sustained a concussion; and
• A Concussion Code of Conduct that would set out rules of behaviour to minimize concussions while playing sport.
When Rowan's Law received Royal Assent on March 7, 2018, the one section that was proclaimed was an annual "Rowan's Law Day". The first Rowan's Law Day was celebrated on September 26, 2018.
The requirements set out in Rowan's Law were informed by a report of an expert Advisory Committee that was asked to provide recommendations about measures to increase awareness and improve prevention, detection and management of concussions in amateur sport. The Rowan's Law Advisory Committee was created in the name of Rowan Stringer, a 17-year-old high school student who died as a result of concussions she suffered playing rugby. The Committee's report "Creating Rowan's Law: Report of the Rowan's Law Advisory Committee" was tabled in the Ontario Legislature in September, 2017.
The Ontario government is now seeking your feedback through a Consultation Paper on the proposed regulation under Rowan's Law. The proposed regulation is intended to provide details and clarity about the requirements set out in the legislation.
• Annual review of Concussion Awareness Resources by athletes, coaches, and parents/guardians before registering or serving with a in a sport organization;
• Sport organizations to establish Removal-from-Sport and Return-to-Sport protocols, to ensure that an athlete is immediately removed from sport if they are suspected of having sustained a concussion; and
• A Concussion Code of Conduct that would set out rules of behaviour to minimize concussions while playing sport.
When Rowan's Law received Royal Assent on March 7, 2018, the one section that was proclaimed was an annual "Rowan's Law Day". The first Rowan's Law Day was celebrated on September 26, 2018.
The requirements set out in Rowan's Law were informed by a report of an expert Advisory Committee that was asked to provide recommendations about measures to increase awareness and improve prevention, detection and management of concussions in amateur sport. The Rowan's Law Advisory Committee was created in the name of Rowan Stringer, a 17-year-old high school student who died as a result of concussions she suffered playing rugby. The Committee's report "Creating Rowan's Law: Report of the Rowan's Law Advisory Committee" was tabled in the Ontario Legislature in September, 2017.
The Ontario government is now seeking your feedback through a Consultation Paper on the proposed regulation under Rowan's Law. The proposed regulation is intended to provide details and clarity about the requirements set out in the legislation.
Analysis of Regulatory Impact:
All ministries are subject to requirements set out in the Reducing Regulatory Cost for Business Act, 2017 (RRCBA), which came into force January 1, 2018. As part of its obligations under the RRCBA, the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport is conducting a Regulatory Impact Analysis (RIA) of the proposed regulation under Rowan's Law, which includes identifying and assessing the benefits and costs to business in Ontario. The Ministry anticipates that the proposed regulation under Rowan's Law may result in some minor administrative costs associated with new recordkeeping requirements and learning requirements for businesses to acclimatize themselves with the regulation.
Specifically, the Ministry estimates an average annual administrative cost of approximately $443,300 across the sport sector. These estimated average annual costs across the entire sport sector include professional sport businesses that would not impacted by the regulations under Rowan's Law. In 2010, the sport sector contributed $2.1 billion to Ontario's GDP (Statistics Canada, 2015).
The Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport will mitigate these administrative costs to businesses by providing a package of resources and sample templates (Concussions Awareness Resources, Concussion Code of Conduct Templates, and Concussion Removal and Return-to-Sport Protocols) on an official government website, to support learning and recordkeeping, and enable cost-efficient implementation and compliance by for-profit businesses.
The ministry is seeking your comments and feedback on the anticipated time commitments and labour costs of the anticipated administrative activities, such as learning and recordkeeping. This information will be considered as the Ministry finalizes the regulation and Regulatory Impact Analysis for future publication following consultation.
Specifically, the Ministry estimates an average annual administrative cost of approximately $443,300 across the sport sector. These estimated average annual costs across the entire sport sector include professional sport businesses that would not impacted by the regulations under Rowan's Law. In 2010, the sport sector contributed $2.1 billion to Ontario's GDP (Statistics Canada, 2015).
The Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport will mitigate these administrative costs to businesses by providing a package of resources and sample templates (Concussions Awareness Resources, Concussion Code of Conduct Templates, and Concussion Removal and Return-to-Sport Protocols) on an official government website, to support learning and recordkeeping, and enable cost-efficient implementation and compliance by for-profit businesses.
The ministry is seeking your comments and feedback on the anticipated time commitments and labour costs of the anticipated administrative activities, such as learning and recordkeeping. This information will be considered as the Ministry finalizes the regulation and Regulatory Impact Analysis for future publication following consultation.
Further Information:
Rowan's Law (Concussion Safety), 2018, S.O. 2018
Rowan's Law Consultation Draft Feedback Form
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General Regulation for Consultation
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Proposal Number:
18-MTCS002
Posting Date:
March 27, 2019
Comments Due Date:
April 18, 2019
Contact Address:
Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport
Sport, Recreation & Community Programs Division
777 Bay Street, 18th Floor, Toronto Ontario, M7A 1S5
Sport, Recreation & Community Programs Division
777 Bay Street, 18th Floor, Toronto Ontario, M7A 1S5