Bill 104 explained in plain English
Université de l'Ontario français Act, 2015
Ontario legislature bill summary, status, timeline, sponsor, votes, and official sources.
At a glance
Official Legislative Assembly of Ontario snapshot for 41st Parliament, 1st Session. Representative vote breakdowns appear when the Assembly publishes an Ayes and Nays page for the bill.
Our plain-language take, written for civic education.
Source: By PoliticalData.ca
This bill establishes the Université de l’Ontario français to provide a comprehensive range of university degrees and programs in French for Franco-Ontarian students.
Bill 104, the Université de l’Ontario français Act, 2015, establishes a new French-language university in Ontario. Its main purpose is to offer a full range of university degrees and programs in French, ensuring that French-speaking students can complete all their studies in French. The university will be a corporation without share capital. The Act also outlines the university's special mission, its objects, the powers of its board of governors, the composition and duties of the board, the establishment of an academic council, and the roles of the chancellor and president. It details the rules for meetings, by-laws, property, investments, borrowing, and audits. The Act also specifies that the official language of the university is French and that all exams must be given in French unless the board decides otherwise. The board members must be proficient in French.
- Establishes the Université de l’Ontario français as a corporation without share capital.
- Defines the special mission of the university to offer degrees and programs in French.
- Outlines the objects of the university, including advancing French-language learning and research, contributing to the Franco-Ontarian community, and facilitating access to French-language studies.
- Grants the university powers necessary to achieve its objects.
- Allows the university to confer degrees, honorary degrees, certificates, and diplomas.
- Establishes French as the official language of the university.
- Requires that all university exams be given in French, with possible exceptions approved by the board.
- Permits the university to affiliate with other institutions.
- Establishes a board of governors responsible for governing and managing the university's affairs.
- Specifies the composition, appointment, and terms of office for board members, requiring proficiency in French.
- Establishes an academic council to make recommendations to the board on academic standards and policies.
- Appoints a chancellor and a president with specific duties and responsibilities.
- Establishes rules for board and committee meetings, which are generally open to the public.
- Provides for the university's property, including exemption from provincial and municipal taxes and protection from expropriation.
- Allows the university to invest funds and borrow money.
- Requires annual audits and financial reports to the Minister.
- Empowers the Lieutenant Governor in Council to define regions of Ontario for the purposes of the Act.
- States that the Act comes into force on the day it receives Royal Assent.
- French-speaking students in Ontario
- The Franco-Ontarian community
- Potential faculty and staff of the Université de l’Ontario français
- Members of the board of governors
- Members of the academic council
- The Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities (or equivalent)
- The Lieutenant Governor in Council
- The Crown
- Providers of public accounting services
- The university has a special mission to offer a full range of degrees and programs in French.
- French is the official language of the university.
- All university exams must be in French unless the board authorizes otherwise.
- Board members must be proficient in French.
- The board is responsible for governing and managing the university's affairs.
- The university must conduct its affairs in French.
- The university must consult with the academic council on certain academic matters.
- The university must appoint auditors and submit financial reports annually.
- The university's property is exempt from provincial and municipal taxes and development charges.
- The Act comes into force on the day it receives Royal Assent.
- Land vested in or leased by the university is exempt from provincial and municipal taxes and development charges, provided it is used for the university's objects.
- The university may establish and collect fees for tuition and other services.
- The university may borrow money and issue bonds or debentures.
- The specific boundaries of the regions of Ontario for the purposes of the Act are to be prescribed by regulation.
- The exact number of members for certain categories on the board of governors (appointed by the board) will be set out in the university's by-laws.
- Details regarding the election procedures and eligibility for student and employee board members will be determined by by-laws.
- The Act does not specify the initial funding for the university.
This Act comes into force on the day it receives Royal Assent.
Source: Section 19
The Lieutenant Governor in Council may make regulations prescribing the boundaries of, or otherwise describing, specific regions of Ontario (The Far North, The Near North, The East, The Centre, The Southwest) for the purposes of this Act.
Source: Section 18
In case of conflict, this Act prevails over the Corporations Act.
Source: Section 2(3)
The university's accounts, trust funds, and transactions must be audited at least annually by one or more public accountants licensed under this Act.
Source: Section 17(1)
Property vested in the university is deemed to be vested in the Crown for the public uses of Ontario for the purposes of this Act.
Source: Section 16(4)
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 textProcess Snapshot
Vote Summary
This bill is still active. We only show vote counts after the legislature publishes a recorded division.
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