• We welcome the…

• We welcome the modernization of the Planning Act to facilitate electronic submission of information and materials to approval authorities.
• We encourage the province to take care in the design an delivery of online submission systems to ensure they have straightforward user interface, minimal duplication of effort, and are adaptable to system changes.
• We have previously commented on discussion questions in ERO 025-1099 regarding submission of official plan materials to the province through a portal, which are relevant to this posting:

• Do you support the move toward allowing submission of official plan information and documents through an online portal? Why or why not?

Support would be conditional on the portal representing significant value relative to the required investment.

For example, if it would result in the Ministry being more responsive in its approvals and was straightforward for staff to use, and if it was connected to the MTO portal for applications that relate to corridor management.

• What benefits and/or risks do you foresee from transitioning to submission through an online portal?

The portal could reduce administration time by provincial staff in their intake of files and related materials but increase the administrative burden for municipal staff.

If the portal is used for every official plan matter (including site-specific amendment requests) then staff could be uploading documents to MMAH through its portal and MTO through its portal, and potentially later in the process to the OLT through its portal.

If the MMAH portal is only for major amendments and new plans, it may be used infrequently by local municipalities and require training materials, updates, etc. to reflect changing provincial expectations for submissions.