Bill 259 explained in plain English
Viewer Discretion Act (Images of Fetuses), 2021
Ontario legislature bill summary, status, timeline, sponsor, votes, and official sources.
At a glance
Official Legislative Assembly of Ontario snapshot for 42nd 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 Ontario Act regulates the mailing and distribution of images of fetuses by requiring opaque envelopes with clear descriptions and sender identification, and sets a penalty for violations.
This Ontario Act, the Viewer Discretion Act (Images of Fetuses), 2021, sets rules for sending images of fetuses through the mail or distributing them otherwise. It requires that such images must be sent in an opaque envelope with a description of the contents and the sender's name clearly visible on the exterior. Anyone who violates these rules can be fined $100 per image.
- Prohibits the mailing or distribution of graphic images of a fetus unless specific conditions are met.
- Requires that graphic images of a fetus must be enclosed in an opaque envelope.
- Requires that the exterior of the envelope must describe the contents.
- Requires that the exterior of the envelope must clearly identify the sender.
- Establishes an offence for violating these mailing conditions.
- Sets a fine of $100 per image for anyone convicted of an offence.
- States that the Act comes into force on the day it receives Royal Assent.
- Individuals or entities who mail or distribute graphic images of fetuses.
- The obligation to enclose graphic images of fetuses in an opaque envelope when mailing or distributing.
- The obligation to include a description of the contents on the exterior of the envelope.
- The obligation to clearly identify the sender on the exterior of the envelope.
- The right to mail or distribute graphic images of fetuses if these conditions are met.
- The Act came into force on the day it received Royal Assent (Section 3).
- A fine of $100 per image mailed or distributed is established for violations (Section 2).
- Anyone who violates section 1 is guilty of an offence and liable to a fine of $100 per image mailed or otherwise distributed (Section 2).
- The bill text does not specify which provincial or federal law enforcement bodies are responsible for enforcing this Act or prosecuting offences.
- The bill text does not define 'graphic image of an aborted or otherwise non-viable fetus', which could lead to interpretation issues.
- The bill text does not specify the process for a 'conviction' leading to the fine.
This Act establishes new rules and penalties for mailing or distributing images of fetuses.
Source: Sections 1, 2, 3, 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.
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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