Act
Proposed new Legislation: At Your Service Act, 2022
Regulation Number(s):
N/A
Instrument Type:
Act
Bill or Act:
At Your Service Act, 2022
Summary of Decision:
The Ontario Government has passed legislation proposed by the Ministry of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade (MEDJCT) that creates an enabling framework and the necessary conditions to improve the overall business experience when seeking government approvals for applications, permits, and licenses, including more transparent processes and reduced approval times.
This legislation received Royal Assent March 3, 2022 and came into force the same day.
This legislation received Royal Assent March 3, 2022 and came into force the same day.
Analysis of Regulatory Impact:
The legislative framework only imposes requirements on the Ontario Government to improve service and enhance transparency and accountability and will impose no compliance costs on for-profit business, not-for-profit organizations, or the broader public sector. Additionally, there are no expected additional costs to government.
The legislative framework will set out the foundation for:
• Greater predictability and transparency around service standards will help businesses better deal with uncertainties created by the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Providing businesses with realistic service standards in a centralized public location for approvals, permits, licences, with more added annually.
• Providing businesses with a central location for finding relevant information and interacting with the government
• Increasing predictability for businesses and keep government accountable for the established service standards and guarantees.
In summary, the legislative framework does not create any direct costs or cost savings for any regulated entity; the proposed legislation gives the authority to create regulations that establish the criteria for whether a service standard/guarantee is captured by the Act. Setting out these criteria will not result in any costs or cost-savings directly, however, it will create the necessary framework to incentivize ministries and/or prescribed entities to improve transparency, accountability, and service standards themselves, over time.
The legislative framework will set out the foundation for:
• Greater predictability and transparency around service standards will help businesses better deal with uncertainties created by the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Providing businesses with realistic service standards in a centralized public location for approvals, permits, licences, with more added annually.
• Providing businesses with a central location for finding relevant information and interacting with the government
• Increasing predictability for businesses and keep government accountable for the established service standards and guarantees.
In summary, the legislative framework does not create any direct costs or cost savings for any regulated entity; the proposed legislation gives the authority to create regulations that establish the criteria for whether a service standard/guarantee is captured by the Act. Setting out these criteria will not result in any costs or cost-savings directly, however, it will create the necessary framework to incentivize ministries and/or prescribed entities to improve transparency, accountability, and service standards themselves, over time.
Further Information:
Proposal Number:
22-MEDJCT001
Posting Date:
February 22, 2022
Summary of Proposal:
Businesses should be able to access the information and services they need in a single place, making it easier to get the approvals they need in a timely way. In support of this vision, the Ministry of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade (MEDJCT), is proposing legislation that will create an enabling framework and the necessary conditions to make processes more transparent, reduce approval times, and improve the overall business experience when seeking government approvals for applications, permits, and licences.
The At Your Service Act, 2022 would:
• Require the Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade to create the Business Service Standard (BSS);
• Require ministries to comply with service standards and/or service guarantees as defined under the legislation;
• Establish ministry and provincial government public reporting obligations and related regulation-making authority; and
• Create a mechanism for redress where guaranteed service standards are not met.
The proposed framework will create the conditions to improve government transparency with realistic service standards on some approvals, permits, licenses, with more added annually. Further, it will increase predictability for businesses while also keeping government accountable for established service standards and guarantees.
Increasing the number, transparency, and accountability of service commitments will support the vision outlined above, as well as the core objective of making Ontario a leader in North America for how easily and quickly businesses can get up and running or access the tools they need to grow.
The At Your Service Act, 2022 would:
• Require the Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade to create the Business Service Standard (BSS);
• Require ministries to comply with service standards and/or service guarantees as defined under the legislation;
• Establish ministry and provincial government public reporting obligations and related regulation-making authority; and
• Create a mechanism for redress where guaranteed service standards are not met.
The proposed framework will create the conditions to improve government transparency with realistic service standards on some approvals, permits, licenses, with more added annually. Further, it will increase predictability for businesses while also keeping government accountable for established service standards and guarantees.
Increasing the number, transparency, and accountability of service commitments will support the vision outlined above, as well as the core objective of making Ontario a leader in North America for how easily and quickly businesses can get up and running or access the tools they need to grow.
Contact Address:
Ministry of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade
Policy Planning Unit
56 Wellesley St. W.
Toronto, Ontario
M5S 2S3
Policy Planning Unit
56 Wellesley St. W.
Toronto, Ontario
M5S 2S3
Royal Assent Date:
March 3, 2022
Decision:
Approved