STILES DEMANDS ANSWERS FOR FARMERS TOLD TO GIVE UP LAND

‘“Bill 162: The Get It Done Act

Partners at Aird & Berlis LLP, a leading Canadian law firm that has extensive expertise in local government and municipal law addressed Bill 162 in this February 29, 2024 article.

https://www.airdberlis.com/insights/publications/publication/ontario-introduces-bill-162-the-i-get-it-done-act-2024-i

As mentioned in the March 4 2024 video at the 3:23:00 mark from the Wilmot council meeting video on YouTube, council clearly discusses “Bill 162”
(Agenda Item 14.3 as introduced by Mayor Salonen with staff referencing ROPA 6) and “the Get it Done Act”
(Councillor Cressman references it as the “Get It Done” Bill at the 3:29:34 mark of the council meeting video on YouTube)

A leaked letter dated November 2, 2023
obtained by Environmental Defence from Ontario’s Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing,
Paul Calandra was directly sent to heads of council (mayors) of single and lower tier municipalities,.

The letter, which includes Calandra’s signature,
instructs towns and cities that mayors can unilaterally propose land use blueprints they wish to pursue,
without any public consideration or council vote if desired.
Following this secretive November 2nd letter to mayors and previous to introducing Bill 162,
last fall on November 16, 2023, the Ontario government introduced Bill 150:

the Planning Statute Law Amendment Act, 2023 to wind back certain land use planning decisions as we are now seeing in Wilmot.
Bill 150 aimed to reverse certain provincial decisions on official plans affecting twelve municipalities of which Waterloo Region’s Official Plan Amendment 6 (ROPA 6) was one.

Wilmot council clearly addresses this in their November 27, 2023 meeting where Councillor Cressman references “the property I’m not supposed to speak about”
Additional modifications detailed in Bill 162, are proposed to the Official plan amendment 6 adopted by the Region of Waterloo pursuant to By-law No. 22-038.

Bill 162 was crafted to enact amendments regionally where expropriation is permitted as one of the ways that property can be acquired by a municipality for a project.

A horrific plan’ — Wilmot farmers and their supporters rally to fight region and township
Premier Doug Ford is expected to use his majority government at Queen’s Park to give third and final reading

to Bill 162 — the Get It Done Act — opening thousands of acres of land to developers

https://www.therecord.com/news/waterloo-region/a-horrific-plan-wilmot-farmers-and-their-supporters-rally-to-fight-region-and-township/article_f9521bd2-fe12-56dc-b77c-8a7b9ac3493f.html

Bill 162, Get It Done Act, 2024

https://www.ola.org/en/legislative-business/bills/parliament-43/session-1/bill-162

Bill 162
An Act to enact the Protecting Against Carbon Taxes Act, 2024
and amend various Acts

https://www.ola.org/sites/default/files/node-files/bill/document/pdf/2024/2024-04/b162rep_e.pdf

Wilmot Township farmers prepare to fight back after Region of Waterloo plans to expropriate land

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/kitchener-waterloo/wilmot-township-farmland-expropriation-region-waterloo-1.7153008

OREGON URGENTLY SHUTS DOWN SMALL FARMS EN MASSE “To Protect The People"

https://rumble.com/v4m9p25-oregon-urgently-shuts-down-small-farms-en-masse-to-protect-the-people.html

Key Proposed Measures
Changes to the Environmental Assessment Act to clarify that expropriation is one of the ways that property can be acquired for a project before the environmental assessment process is completed; and
Changes to the Official Plan Adjustments Act, 2023

https://www.ontario.ca/laws/statute/23o24

to modify a number of official plans and official plan amendments and to retroactively
re-enact these changes.

Clarification of Property Acquisition Methods Under the Environmental Assessment Act

Ontario Plans to Revoke Municipal Class EA and Replace It With Municipal Project Assessment Process Regulation

https://www.airdberlis.com/insights/publications/publication/ontario-plans-to-revoke-municipal-class-ea-and-replace-it-with-municipal-project-assessment-process-regulation

Bill 162 proposes to amend section 1 of the Environmental Assessment Act by adding the following subsection:

Acquisition of Property

(7) For greater certainty, under this Act, a reference to acquiring property or rights in property is a reference to acquiring the property or rights in property by purchase, lease, expropriation or otherwise.

The Environmental Assessment Act

https://www.ontario.ca/laws/statute/90e18

currently permits property to be acquired for a project before a proponent is authorized to proceed.
The amendment is proposed to provide greater certainty to municipalities and other proponents as they plan for future projects.

The proposed amendment also relates to the province’s ongoing efforts to simplify the existing environmental assessment (“EA”) process. As part of its announcement of Bill 162, the province advised that it is set to begin consultations with municipal partners on a new EA process for certain municipal water, shoreline and sewage system projects.

The proposed process is intended to streamline and accelerate project planning by providing a regulated timeline of six months.

As part of these efforts, the province proposes to revoke the Municipal Class EA (MCEA) and make a streamlined EA regulation for “higher-risk” municipal infrastructure projects. Our analysis of the proposed “Municipal Project Assessment Process Regulation” can be found here.

Modifying the Amendments Introduced by the Official Plan Adjustments Act

On December 6, 2023,
the Planning Statute Law Amendment Act, 2023 (“Bill 150”) received royal assent.

Schedule 1 of Bill 150 enacted the Official Plan Adjustments Act, 2023 (the “OPAA”), which retroactively reversed certain provincial decisions on official plans (“OPs”) affecting 12 municipalities: the cities of Barrie, Belleville, Guelph, Hamilton, Ottawa, Peterborough, Wellington County and the regional municipalities of Halton, Niagara, Peel, Waterloo and York.

Our previous article discussing Bill 150 is available here.

https://www.airdberlis.com/insights/publications/publication/ontario-introduces-legislation-to-reverse-certain-provincial-planning-decisions

The result of the OPAA was that provincial modifications which were previously made to those OPs and official plan amendments (“OPAs”) were retroactively removed.

The modifications left intact following the OPAA generally related to protecting the Greenbelt, strengthening Indigenous relations, industrial land use compatibility, protecting safe drinking water and preparing for Highway 413.

Ontario Introduces Legislation to Reverse Certain Provincial Planning Decisions

original link found on Marit Stiles

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DuId80z-lnQ