Bill 17, Protect Ontario by Building Faster and Smarter Act, 2025 - New Planning Legislation Ordered for Second Reading
On May 12, 2025, the Province introduced Bill 17, Protect Ontario by Building Faster and Smarter Act, 2025. The Bill 17 Summary Page can be accessed here.
As of the date of this blog post, the Bill has been ordered for a second reading. We are currently reviewing this new Bill, which introduces amendments to the following Acts:
Building Code Act, 1992;
Building Transit Faster Act, 2020;
City of Toronto Act, 2006;
Development Charges Act, 1997;
Metrolinx Act, 2006;
Ministry of Infrastructure Act, 2011;
Planning Act; and
Transit-Oriented Communities Act, 2020
Source: Province of Ontario
We have included a high-level summary of key changes proposed to the Planning Act, the City of Toronto Act, the Development Charges Act, and the Building Code Act, below.
Proposed Amendments to the Planning Act and City of Toronto Act
Complete Application Requirements
Restrict municipalities from adopting an official plan amendment to add, amend or revoke existing “complete application requirements” for OPA, ZBA, Site Plan, Subdivision, and Consent applications. Any new requirements will require the approval of the Minister.
This new restriction also applies to an official plan amendment that would impose new complete application requirements for site plan approval under Section 114 of the City of Toronto Act.
Any official plan amendment to existing complete application requirements that is adopted after May 12, 2025 without first obtaining the approval of the Minister is deemed not to have been adopted.
Provide the Minister with the authority to pass regulations to govern the information or material that may be required in support of a complete application for OPA, ZBA, SPA, draft plan of subdivision approval or consent, which includes the authority to specify information or material that may or may not be required, and providing that such requirements or prohibitions prevail over any requirements in an official plan.
Prescribe by regulation certain professions who will be able to certify that their reports are complete when submitting applications.
Setbacks
Prescribe by regulation that certain minimum zoning setbacks can be modified by a certain percentage (this has been characterized as eliminating the need for minor variance applications in applicable circumstances). We note there are no proposed changes to Section 45 of the Act (minor variance) itself.
The authority to modify minimum zoning setbacks by regulation does not apply to a building or structure in the Greenbelt Area, on land that is not urban residential land, or such other lands that may be prescribed.
School Sites
Remove official plan and zoning restrictions for elementary schools or secondary schools of a school board, or any ancillary uses to such schools, as a permitted use on urban residential land.
Eliminate certain restrictions on portable classrooms under the site plan provisions of the Planning Act and the City of Toronto Act.
Ministerial Zoning Orders (MZOs)
The Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing is authorized to attach conditions to an MZO that are, in the opinion of the Minister, reasonable.
When a condition is imposed, the Minister may require an owner of land to enter into an agreement in respect of the condition either with the Minister or with the municipality in which the land is situate. The agreement may be registered on title and thereafter run with the subject lands.
If a condition is imposed, the MZO is suspended until the Minister is satisfied that the condition has been or will be fulfilled. If the Minister is satisfied that the condition has or will be fulfilled, the Minister shall provide notice to the clerk of the local municipality.
Proposed Amendments to the Development Charges Act
Exempt long-term care homes from DCs.
Authorize the use of regulations to limit what may be included as a capital cost in determining the amount of development charges.
Allow for changes to development charges by-laws (e.g. reducing charges, repealing indexing provisions or otherwise amending such provisions to provide that a development charge shall not be indexed) without requiring a public amending process.
Amend Section 26.1 to add residential development other than rental housing as a type of development where DCs may be paid at the time of occupancy.
Limit the authority to charge interest on instalments payable for development charges up to the date that the amendment introduced under Bill 17 comes into force, but only to the extent that the interest charged had accrued before that day.
Authorize early payment of development charges without requiring an agreement under Section 27 of the Act.
An amendment is also proposed to Section 26.2 that would entitle an owner to the development charge in-force on the day it is payable if that charge is less than the amount that would be payable by the owner based on the development charge in-force on the lock-in date (submission of a site plan application, or, where that does not apply, submission of a rezoning application) including interest that would be payable from the lock-in date.
Allow a regulation to combine eligible services for the determination of available credits, potentially allowing a developer to receive credit for work across a broader range of categories.
Authorize the determination by way of regulation of what constitutes a “local service”, being those services that the approval authority may impose a charge or require an owner of land to construct as a condition of draft plan of subdivision approval or a consent.
Proposed Amendments to the Building Code Act
Section 35 is proposed to be amended to add greater certainty that the general (omnibus) provisions in the Municipal Act and the City of Toronto Act that otherwise confer broad authority to a municipality (and the City of Toronto in particular) do not authorize the passing of by-laws respecting the construction or demolition of buildings.
We note that the above is not a complete summary of the amendments being proposed through Bill 17, and we continue to review this legislation. A technical briefing has also been released on the Province's newsroom, accessible at this link.
Amendment to IZ Regulation
Relatedly, while Bill 17 itself does not contain any provisions regarding inclusionary zoning (IZ), the Province has also issued a final decision on amendments to O.Reg. 232/18, the IZ Regulation, which can be accessed here.
The amendments to the Regulation establish:
A maximum 25-year period during which IZ units must be maintained as affordable; and
An upper limit on the number of units that can be required to be set aside as affordable, set at 5% of the total number of units or 5% of the total gross floor area, not including common areas.
The changes to the IZ Regulation came into effect upon the filing of the Regulation (May 12, 2025). The changes apply to IZ units of both rental and ownership tenure. The Province is not proceeding with a market-based definition “affordable residential unit” as previously proposed. Instead, the definition will be as per the Development Charges Act, 1997.
Overland LLP will continue to monitor Bill 17 as it progresses through the legislature and will provide periodic updates. Should you have any questions or require further insight, please contact us.
Disclaimer: This document is for information purposes only and does not constitute legal advice to any party. The contents of this document reflect our firm’s general review and observations concerning legislative and regulatory instruments, which are subject to change. Please seek professional legal advice on matters of direct concern to you.