Shortly into its new term, the Province Government of Ontario (the "Province") has proposed more new legislation which seeks to "protect" Ontario, and which will directly impact Ontario's construction and development industry. On May 12th, 2025, the Province introduced Bill 17: Protect Ontario by Building Faster and Smarter Act ("Bill 17"). Bill 17 follows closely after the Province's introduction of Bill 2: Protect Ontario Through Free Trade Within Canada Act, 2025 ("Bill 2") (see our summary of Bill 2 here), and Bill 5: Protect Ontario by Unleashing Our Economy Act, 2025 ("Bill 5") (see our summary of Bill 5 here). The Province's technical briefing on Bill 17 can be found here.
The third bill in the "Protect" trilogy, Bill 17 aims to speed up development approvals and "remove unnecessary barriers to building so Ontario can get shovels in the ground faster" by introducing amendments to Ontario's land use planning regime, as per the Province's technical briefing.1 Bill 17 proposes amendments to 8 pieces of development-related legislation including the Planning Act, the City of Toronto Act, 2006, the Development Charges Act, 1997, and the Building Code Act, as well as introduces new proposed regulations. The key amendments are summarized below.
Most changes proposed under Bill 17 are intended to come into force and effect upon the bill receiving Royal Assent. As of the date of this bulletin, Bill 17 remains in second reading, and concurrently remains open for public consultation on the Environmental Registry of Ontario ("ERO") in respect of various amendments as set out further below.
Planning Act and City of Toronto Act, 2006
Complete Applications: Sticking to the theme of "cutting red tape", Bill 17 proposes to facilitate and speed up the processing of development applications (official plan amendments, zoning by-law amendments, site plan approval, draft plans of subdivision or consents) by municipalities. Proposed revisions to the Planning Act and City of Toronto Act, 2006 would provide that such applications are "deemed" to meet the requirements of a complete application if the accompanying material is prepared by a "person authorized to practise a prescribed profession."2 Amendments to those statutes would also require written approval from the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing before municipalities could adopt amendments to an official plan that change or add to the complete application requirements.3
The proposed regulation would establish what a "prescribed profession" is and what topics may not be required as part of a complete application process (such as sun/shadow, wind, urban design, and lighting).4 The Province is currently seeking feedback on the content of the proposed regulation, including what should constitute a "prescribed profession", and is open for public consultation on the ERO until June 26, 2025, which is available here.
As-of-Right Setback Variations: Bill 17 proposes amendments to the Planning Act which would create "as-of-right" setback variations on urban residential lands. The proposed amendments to the Planning Act would create a new subsection 34(1.4) to permit a minimum setback distance based on a "prescribed percentage of the setback distance"5 for residential lands in urban areas. This change aims to reduce the number of applications for minor variances. The Province is considering whether a similar provision could be added in respect of other performance standards (e.g., building height or lot coverage). A separate ERO posting is open for public consultation until June 26, 2025, on a proposed regulation to regulate such as-of-right setback variations.
Inclusionary Zoning: Inclusionary zoning policies, which require certain new residential developments to allocate a portion of new units to be maintained as "affordable", were introduced by the Promoting Affordable Housing Act, 2016 and Ontario Regulation 232/18, and came into force in 2018. The inclusionary zoning framework was later amended by the much-debated Bill 23: The More Homes Built Faster Act, 2022, which provided that the regulations would be amended to introduce a 5% limit on the total number of residential units that may be required in a development to be maintained as "affordable" for a maximum period of 25 years as part of inclusionary zoning. Together with Bill 17, the Province has now introduced new Ontario Regulation 54/25, which amends Ontario Regulation 232/18 and imposes the above-noted 5% cap and 25-year limit on requiring residential units to be maintained as "affordable" as part of inclusionary zoning policies. Ontario Regulation 54/25 is in force as of May 12, 2025.
Development Charges Act
Developmental Charge Freeze: The Development Charges Act, 1997 currently provides for a freeze on the amount of development charges ("DCs") payable under Section 26.1, from the date that a site plan or zoning by-law amendment application is made for a period of 18 months.6 Bill 17 would amend Section 26.2 such that the freeze would not apply if the total amount of DCs plus any interest exceeds the total amount that would be otherwise payable had the freeze not applied.7
Changes to Process for Amending DC By-laws: Bill 17 introduces further administrative rules respecting the administration of DC By-laws, building on the Cutting Red Tape to Build More Homes Act, 2024. These administrative amendments would hold municipalities to a stringent process to amend a DC by-law.8 The changes would, however, also streamline the processes where a proposed amendment to a DC By-law is to repeal a provision providing for the indexing of a DC, to no longer provide for indexing of DCs, or to decrease the amount of a DC that is payable.
Deferral of DCs and Changes to Applicability of DC Credits: The proposed amendments would allow non-rental residential developments to defer their DC payments until first occupancy, instead of paying upon issuance of the first building permit as is currently required.9 In addition, the Province may permit municipalities to require developers to provide financial security to ensure payment at occupancy, in specific circumstances to be outlined in future regulations.10 In addition to this new deferral, Bill 17 proposes increased flexibility in the use of DC credits by combining relating services to which a DC credit may apply on a go-forward basis (i.e., not applicable to any DC that was payable prior to Bill 17 coming into effect.11
The DC Exemption for Long-term Care Homes: Bill 17 proposes to exempt long-term care homes from DCs).12
Bill 17's proposed amendments to the Development Charges Act, 1997 should increase cost certainty by reducing upfront costs, deferring payment of DCs to first occupancy and incentivize development by exempting additional projects from DCs and offering greater flexibility in applying DC credits.
Building Code Act, 1992
The proposed amendments to the Building Code Act add new restrictions on the powers of the Building Materials Evaluation Commission (a regulatory agency authorized under the Building Code Act, 1992) in authorizing approvals for innovative construction products when the Canadian Construction Materials Centre has examined or has expressed its intention to examine an innovative material, system or building design.13 These proposed changes are expected to streamline the introduction of innovative construction materials by removing the need to obtain a second approval for the manufacturers.
A new section 35(1.1) has been proposed by Bill 17 to remove authority of municipalities under the Municipal Act and the City of Toronto Act, 2006, to pass by-laws respecting the construction or demolition of buildings.14 This could have significant impact on developers, removing the local requirements which often further limit and sometimes conflict with the restrictions set out in the Building Code Act, 1992 (for example, "green standards" as have been instituted by a number of large municipalities).
Other Amendments of Note
Amendments have been proposed to the Building Transit Faster Act. The current legislation exempts "priority transit projects" such as the Ontario Line from certain procedural expropriation processes, and Bill 17 would broaden these exemptions to "provincial transit projects,"15 allowing more transit projects to benefit from procedural reliefs. The proposed amendments to the Building Transit Faster Act are open for public consultation on the ERO until June 11, 2025, and the ERO posting can be found here.
Additional amendments to the Metrolinx Act, the Transit-Oriented Communities Act and the Ministry of Infrastructure Act, which focus on supporting the development of transit-oriented communities through a variety of measures, including permitting the Minister of Infrastructure to delegate powers to additional actors16. The proposed legislative amendments focused on streamlining the planning and delivery of transit-oriented communities are open for public consultation on a separate ERO posting, which will remain open until June 12, 2025 and can be found here.
While amendments to the Building Transit Faster Act, Metrolinx Act, Ministry of Infrastructure Act and Transit-Oriented Communities Act may not receive as much attention as amendments to the "core" land use planning legislation including the Planning Act, Development Charges Act or Building Code Act, these amendments reflect the Province's ongoing goal of building 1.5 million homes in Ontario by 2031, with a focus on building these homes in major-transit station areas. Amendments to the planning regime, together with amendments to infrastructure-related legislation could create additional incentives to develop in new higher-transit areas, and potentially unlock previously under-served areas by introducing new transit options.
Conclusion
To make sure you have all the important details on these ever-changing areas of legislation regulating the development industry McMillan will continue to monitor the status of Bill 2, Bill 5 and Bill 17.
Footnotes
1. Protect Ontario by Building Faster and Smarter Act, 2025
2. Bill 17, Schedule 7, Sections 3(2), 4(3), 9(2), 10(2); Bill 17, Schedule 3, Section 1(3)
3. Bill 17, Schedule 7, Section 2(1)
4. Proposed Regulations – Complete Application
5. Bill 17, Schedule 7, Section 4(1)
6. Development Charges Act, 1997, Section 26.1
7. Bill 17, Schedule 4, Section 5
8. Bill 17, Schedule 4, Section 1
9. Bill 17, Schedule 4, Section 4(3)
10. Bill 17, Schedule 4, Section 4(3)
11. Bill 17, Schedule 4, Section 17
12. Bill 17, Schedule 4, Section 1
13. Bill 17, Schedule 1, Section 1
14. Bill 17, Schedule 1, Section 4
15. Bill 17, Schedule 2
16. Bill 17, Schedule 5, Section 2; Bill 17, Schedule 8, Section 2; Bill 17, Schedule 6, Section 2.
The foregoing provides only an overview and does not constitute legal advice. Readers are cautioned against making any decisions based on this material alone. Rather, specific legal advice should be obtained.
© McMillan LLP 2025
