Bill 17, Protect Ontario by…

Bill 17, Protect Ontario by Building Faster and Smarter Act, 2025, marks the first major legislative move on housing post provincial election. The bill proposes several regulatory changes that are aligned with Toronto Region Board of Trade (Board) priorities including: the need to accelerate transit delivery, support Transit-Oriented Communities (TOCs), address the structural fiscal challenges facing municipalities, the need to streamline regulatory and policy barriers to enable more housing quickly; and address the question of development charges and how the costs of enabling infrastructure for new housing will be shared.

While no silver bullet exists that will solve the housing supply and affordability issues that impact the Toronto region’s long-term competitiveness - the Board appreciates the opportunity to provide input on these proposed policy changes. We look forward to working closely with the province to ensure that the resulting regulations and policies deliver real results in accelerating the delivery of all housing types.

• The Board supports streamlining development approvals and permitting processes, while also encouraging continued efforts to strengthen coordination between the province and municipalities. As these initiatives progress alongside the expanded use of Minister’s Zoning Orders, clearly defined roles and responsibilities – paired with demonstrated provincial capacity – will be essential to prevent confusion, reinforce oversight, and ensure municipalities have confidence that provincial decisions are backed by appropriate accountability mechanisms.

• As planning responsibilities shift for regional governments such as Peel, Durham, and York, there is an important opportunity for the province to articulate a clear regional framework to guide housing delivery. Establishing this framework will be essential to addressing current challenges in the market-driven housing sector and to supporting the successful implementation of Transit-Oriented Communities led by provincial agencies such as Infrastructure Ontario and Metrolinx.

• These comments can also be applied to ERO-025-0462: Proposed Regulations – Complete Application and ERO-025-0463: Proposed Regulation – As-of-right Variations from Setback Requirements.