Ontario Overhauls Emergency Response and Powers

Summary#

• Bill 25 updates Ontario’s emergency laws and gives the province clearer tools to prepare for, respond to, and recover from emergencies. It also lets the Minister of Community and Social Services issue binding directions to certain publicly funded social service providers during extraordinary situations.

• The bill’s main goals are to clarify who is in charge, improve coordination across governments and sectors, and make emergency plans more consistent and transparent.

• Key changes:

  • Sets a clear purpose for emergency management and defines “emergency management” in law; renames “emergency plans” to “emergency management plans.”
  • Puts the Minister of Emergency Preparedness and Response in charge of provincial coordination, with a public, regularly updated strategy and annual reports.
  • Keeps and strengthens the Commissioner of Emergency Management, creates a provincial emergency management organization, and formalizes a cabinet advisory committee.
  • Creates “Ontario Corps,” a coordinated pool of people, services, equipment, and facilities the Commissioner can deploy to support emergencies.
  • Requires a provincial planning framework that all emergency management plans must follow, covering coordination, continuity of government, and who does what during emergencies (including nuclear and radiological).
  • Tightens municipal emergency rules: consult the plan before declaring, give regular public updates, report to council every 30 days, and send a report to the Minister after it ends.
  • Lets the Minister require changes to municipal and provincial plans and issue public guidelines. Plans must be filed with the Minister.
  • Allows the Province to require operators of critical infrastructure (like power, water, transportation, communications) to have programs and plans.
  • Lets a municipality or the Crown recover costs from a person who caused an emergency.
  • Authorizes binding directives to certain funded community and social services during extraordinary matters, with compliance orders, possible funding cuts, and fines for knowingly ignoring an order.

What it means for you#

• Residents

  • During a declared local emergency, you should get regular public updates until it ends.
  • The province aims for faster, better-coordinated response, which can mean quicker support and clearer communication.
  • If someone causes an emergency (for example, a spill), the municipality or Province can try to recover its costs from them.

• Municipalities

  • Must adopt an emergency management program and plan by by-law, following provincial rules and the new provincial planning framework. Neighboring municipalities can choose joint programs or plans if allowed by regulation.
  • Must consult the plan before declaring an emergency and report publicly during the emergency and to council every 30 days. A written report to the Minister is required after the emergency ends.
  • Must file plans with the Minister and make changes if directed. You can still request provincial help without declaring an emergency.

• Provincial ministries and designated government entities

  • Must keep emergency management programs and plans that match the provincial planning framework and meet new requirements set in regulation.
  • At least one ministry or designated entity must be assigned nuclear and radiological emergency planning.
  • Must provide information and updates to the Commissioner if requested.

• Critical infrastructure operators

  • If prescribed by regulation, you will need an emergency management program and/or plan, meet set content and training requirements, and align plans with the provincial planning framework.

• Community and social service providers funded by the Province

  • If prescribed by regulation, you may receive binding directives from the Minister in extraordinary situations about how services should be provided.
  • If you do not comply with a compliance order, your funding may be reduced or ended, and knowingly ignoring an order can result in fines.
  • Directives and summaries of compliance orders will be made public.

• Indigenous communities and other partners

  • Named as partners in coordination. The bill does not add specific new duties, but aims to improve inclusion in planning and response.

Expenses#

• No publicly available information.

Proponents' View#

• Clarifies who is in charge and improves coordination across municipalities, ministries, Indigenous communities, and private operators.
• Sets a consistent provincial planning framework so plans work together and roles are clear, including for nuclear and radiological events.
• Increases transparency: public strategy and reports, public guidelines, regular public updates during municipal emergencies, and post-emergency reporting.
• Builds a ready pool of people and resources (“Ontario Corps”) to support faster, more organized responses.
• Protects critical infrastructure by requiring plans and training where needed.
• Keeps essential community and social services running in extraordinary situations through enforceable directives.
• Helps taxpayers by allowing recovery of costs from those who cause emergencies.

Opponents' View#

• Centralizes power with the Minister and Cabinet, which could reduce local flexibility and agency autonomy, especially for community and social services.
• “Extraordinary matters” and which entities are “prescribed” will be set by regulation, which some say is too broad or vague until details are published.
• The provincial strategy and planning framework are not regulations, so they may face less formal legislative scrutiny.
• New filing, planning, and training rules could add administrative workload and costs for municipalities, ministries, and infrastructure operators.
• Making plans or summaries public may raise security or privacy concerns if sensitive details are exposed (even with exclusions).
• Funding cuts and fines for social service providers that fail to comply could disrupt services or punish organizations acting in good faith during complex events.