Bill 16 explained in plain English
Racial Equity in the Education System Act, 2022
Ontario legislature bill summary, status, timeline, sponsor, votes, and official sources.
At a glance
Official Legislative Assembly of Ontario snapshot for 43rd 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
The Racial Equity in the Education System Act, 2022, amends various Ontario laws to enhance racial equity in education by introducing new training requirements, policy mandates, and accountability measures.
This bill, titled the Racial Equity in the Education System Act, 2022, amends several Ontario laws to promote racial equity within the education system. It introduces new definitions for 'anti-racism' and 'racism', requires anti-racism training for teachers and staff, mandates the development of racial equity plans by school boards, and adds 'anti-Asian racism' to the types of systemic racism identified in the Anti-Racism Act. The bill also includes provisions for holding individuals accountable for racist language or activities in schools and outlines new requirements for colleges and universities regarding anti-racism policies and data collection.
- Amends the Education Act to include definitions for 'anti-racism' and 'racism', require anti-racism and racial equity training for new teachers, establish protocols for addressing racism in schools, and make racial equity plans mandatory for school boards.
- Introduces penalties for individuals who disrupt school proceedings with racist language or activities.
- Amends the Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario Act, 2005, to ensure council members have expertise in racial equity and to require anti-racism training for members lacking a proven commitment to racial equity.
- Amends the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities Act to establish anti-racism and racial equity requirements for publicly funded colleges and universities.
- Amends the Ontario College of Teachers Act, 1996, to require anti-racism training and examinations for teacher certification.
- Amends the Ontario Colleges of Applied Arts and Technology Act, 2002, to include anti-racist education and training in college activities and to mandate anti-racism policies for colleges and their subsidiaries.
- Amends the Anti-Racism Act, 2017, to include 'anti-Asian racism' in its examples of systemic racism and makes other related definitional and operational changes.
- Establishes that the bill comes into force on the day it receives Royal Assent.
- Students in Ontario's education system (from primary to post-secondary)
- Teachers and other school staff in Ontario
- School boards in Ontario
- Colleges of applied arts and technology and universities in Ontario
- The Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario
- The Ontario College of Teachers
- The Minister of Education
- The Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities
- Individuals who disrupt school proceedings with racist language or activities
- School boards must develop and implement racial equity plans.
- Teachers and staff must receive annual professional development programs on promoting racial equity.
- Teachers' performance appraisals must include competencies related to anti-racism awareness.
- Colleges and universities must have an anti-racism policy and incorporate student, faculty, and staff input.
- Individuals seeking teacher certification must complete anti-racism training and examinations.
- The Minister of Education is required to establish policies and guidelines for promoting racial equity in schools.
- The Act comes into force on the day it receives Royal Assent.
- Individuals who disrupt or attempt to disrupt school proceedings through racist language or activities may be liable for a fine of not more than $200 upon conviction.
- The specific content of 'prescribed examinations and training in anti-racism' for teacher certification is not detailed in the bill text and would be set by regulation.
- Details regarding the 'regulations' for anti-racism policies in colleges and universities, including specific processes, elements, and other requirements, are not provided in the bill and will be established through future regulations.
- The bill refers to 'anti-racism accountability report' and 'new teacher induction program' in relation to the Minister's direction to school boards, but the specific content and requirements of these are not fully detailed within the provided text.
Introduces new definitions for 'anti-racism' and 'racism', mandates anti-racism and racial equity training for new teachers, establishes protocols for recognizing and responding to incidents of racism, requires school boards to develop and implement racial equity plans, and makes racial equity a stated objective for schools. It also adds provisions for fines for disrupting school proceedings with racist language or activities, and requires teachers' performance appraisals to include competencies related to anti-racism awareness and efforts to promote racial equity.
Source: Sections 1, 2, 4, 5, 8, 10, 13, 14, 15
Adds definitions for 'anti-racism' and 'racism'. It requires that at least one member of the Council have expertise in racial equity in the post-secondary education sector. It also mandates that members without a proven commitment to racial equity must undergo anti-racism training. The Council's objects and functions are expanded to include assisting the Minister in promoting racial equity and combating racism in the post-secondary sector, and it must include data on racism and racial equity initiatives in its annual report.
Source: Sections 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21
Introduces new requirements for colleges and universities that receive public operating funds. These institutions must develop and implement an anti-racism policy, address racism involving students, faculty, and staff, and establish processes for responding to complaints. They are also required to collect and provide data to the Minister regarding racism, anti-racism initiatives, and support services, and to conduct or participate in surveys on the effectiveness of their anti-racism efforts.
Source: Section 22
Requires individuals seeking a certificate of qualification and registration to successfully complete any prescribed examinations and training in anti-racism.
Source: Section 23
Adds 'anti-racist education and training' as an object for colleges. It requires colleges and their subsidiaries to develop and implement an anti-racism policy, developed and reviewed with input from students, faculty, and staff. It also stipulates that at least one member of the board of governors and one member of the board of directors must have expertise in racial equity in the education sector, and those without a proven commitment must undergo anti-racism training.
Source: Sections 25, 26, 27, 29, 30, 31
Adds 'anti-Asian racism' to the list of examples of systemic racism in the Act's preamble and within the Act itself. It also updates definitions for 'anti-racism' and 'racism' consistent with other amended acts.
Source: Sections 32, 33, 34, 35
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