Skip to main content
Back to Bills
OntarioDid not become law (session ended)40th Parliament, 1st Session

Bill 109 explained in plain English

Transparency in Government Bills Act, 2012

Ontario legislature bill summary, status, timeline, sponsor, votes, and official sources.

At a glance

Jurisdiction
Ontario Legislature
Legislature / Parliament
Legislative Assembly of Ontario
Session
40th Parliament, 1st Session
Bill number
Bill 109
Full title
Transparency in Government Bills Act, 2012
Current status
Did not become law (session ended)
Latest event
Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs
Last updated
Sep 13, 2012

Official Legislative Assembly of Ontario snapshot for 40th Parliament, 1st Session. Representative vote breakdowns appear when the Assembly publishes an Ayes and Nays page for the bill.

Chamber
Legislative Assembly of Ontario
Current Stage
Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs
Latest Activity
Sep 13, 2012
Plain-language explanation
In plain English (our explanation)

Our plain-language take, written for civic education.

Source: By PoliticalData.ca

AI-assisted, reviewed before publishing
Short Version

The Transparency in Government Bills Act, 2012, mandates the Ontario government to table detailed information about government bills in the Legislative Assembly upon their introduction.

What It Means

This Ontario bill, called the Transparency in Government Bills Act, 2012, requires the Ontario government to provide specific information to the Legislative Assembly when introducing a government bill. This information includes details about the problem the bill aims to solve, its public policy goals, financial costs to various groups, potential impacts on economic competition and Ontario's global competitiveness, its relationship with other Ontario laws, and any overlap with municipal by-laws or federal laws. If relevant, it also requires a science-based assessment of the bill's impact on the environment or human health. This information must be posted on the Legislative Assembly's website.

What This Bill Does
  • Requires the Ontario government to provide specific information when introducing a government bill.
  • Mandates that this information include a description of the problem the bill addresses.
  • Requires a statement of the public policy goals the bill aims to achieve.
  • Mandates a detailed summary of the financial costs the bill would impose on the government, municipalities, the public, and affected industries or businesses.
  • Requires a description of how the bill's public policy goals justify limiting competition, if applicable.
  • Requires an assessment of the bill's relationship with other Ontario legislation.
  • Requires a detailed description of any potential overlap between the bill and municipal by-laws or federal legislation.
  • Requires a description of how the bill will affect Ontario's global competitiveness, if applicable.
  • Requires a science-based assessment of the bill's impact on the environment or human health, if applicable.
  • Requires this information to be posted on the Legislative Assembly website as soon as possible after the bill is introduced.
Who Is Affected
  • The Ontario government
  • The Legislative Assembly of Ontario
  • Municipalities
  • The public
  • Industries and businesses affected by government bills
Rights, Duties, Or Obligations
  • The obligation for the government to table specific information when introducing a bill.
  • The right for the public to access this information on the Assembly website.
Important Dates
  • The Act came into force on the day it received Royal Assent.
Financial Or Tax Impacts
  • The bill requires a detailed summary of the financial costs that the bill would have on the government, municipalities, the public, and any affected industries or businesses.
Uncertainties Or Limits
  • The bill does not specify what happens if the required information is not provided or is incomplete.
  • The bill does not define 'as soon as possible' for posting information on the Assembly website.
Laws Or Regulations Affected
Transparency in Government Bills Act, 2012
enacted

This Act establishes new requirements for information that must be provided by the government when introducing bills.

Source: Section 1

Commencement provision
commencement

This Act came into force on the day it received Royal Assent.

Source: Section 2

Generated using AI from official bill text. Not legal advice. It is written by PoliticalData.ca for civic education, automatically checked and spot-reviewed before publishing.

Official text

Process Snapshot

Step 1
First reading
Jun 12, 2012
Step 2
Second reading
Sep 13, 2012
Step 3
Committee review
Sep 13, 2012
Step 4
Third reading
Not reached yet
Step 5
Royal assent
Not reached yet

Vote Summary

No published recorded division

This bill is still active. We only show vote counts after the legislature publishes a recorded division.

Sponsor
Michael Harris
Sponsor party or district not listed
Jurisdiction
Ontario Legislature

No published representative vote breakdown

This bill is still moving through the process. When a recorded division is published, representative positions can be listed here.

Official sources

Status, sponsor, votes, and timeline on this page are drawn from these official legislative sources and public records. Each summary above is attributed to its own source.

How this data is sourced