Proposed Amendments to Ontario Works Act Regulations
1. Why is the ministry proposing amendments to Ontario Works Act Regulations?
The government is taking an important step to expand its role in centralized intake for Ontario Works to reduce administrative burden for municipalities.
In August 2023, the Lieutenant Governor proclaimed amendments to the Ontario Works Act, 1997. These amendments enable the ministry to move forward with regulatory changes to become designated as a delivery agent in specific geographic areas. These regulatory changes will give the ministry the legal authority and flexibility to deliver components of Ontario Works where it is designated as the delivery agent.
The proposed regulatory changes will authorize the ministry to make eligibility decisions where it is designated as a delivery agent. This helps to further reduce administrative burden for municipal partners as the province manages more Ontario Works applications, municipalities will be able to provide more support to clients.
Please note that these changes do not impact First Nations Ontario Works delivery.
2. Why are the proposed amendments being posted on Ontario’s Regulatory Registry?
The changes being proposed by the ministry to Ontario Works regulations are posted on Ontario’s Regulatory Registry for public feedback for 30 days.
Public posting of regulatory amendments helps government to understand how proposed changes to regulations could impact municipalities.
3. What amendments are being proposed to Ontario Works Act Regulations?
Ontario Regulation 136/98: Designation of Geographic Areas and Delivery Agent
The ministry is proposing amendments to Ontario Regulation 136/98: Designation of Geographic Areas and Delivery Agents. The amendments would designate the ministry as the delivery agent in the following three geographic areas and correspondingly designate those areas as the first delivery partners:
• The District Municipality of Muskoka;
• The County of Peterborough and City of Peterborough; and,
• The Regional Municipality of York.
An overview of the powers and duties of the delivery agent and the delivery partner will also be explained in the proposed amendments.
Ontario Regulation 135/98: Administration and Cost Sharing
The ministry is also proposing technical changes to Ontario Regulation 135/98: Administration and Cost Sharing to reflect the new term of delivery partner. The change will maintain the cost-sharing relationship that currently exists between the ministry and these geographic areas. There will be no impact at this time to cost sharing or funding arrangements as a result of the proposed regulation. Cost sharing will be reviewed at a later date, once the ministry has refined the new program structure.
Please note that these changes do not impact First Nations Ontario Works delivery.
4. Will there be changes to funding amounts and how costs are shared between the province and delivery partners, as a result of the changes to Ontario Regulation 135/98: Administration and Cost Sharing?
No. The change to the regulation will maintain the cost-sharing relationship that currently exists between the ministry and these geographic areas. There will be no impact at this time to cost sharing or funding arrangements as a result of the proposed amendments.
5. Will there be changes to funding amounts and how costs are shared between the province and delivery agents, as a result of the changes to Ontario Regulation 135/98: Administration and Cost Sharing?
No. The changes to the regulation are technical in nature and will only apply to the first three geographic areas.
6. Who will be impacted by these changes?
If approved, the proposed regulatory amendments will apply to the following geographic areas:
• The District Municipality of Muskoka;
• The County of Peterborough and City of Peterborough; and,
• The Regional Municipality of York.
What we learn from these sites will inform the province’s longer-term plans, which include extending these regulatory changes to all Consolidated Municipal Service Managers and District Social Services Administration Boards.
As this is the first phase of the ministry’s plan to expand its role in centralized intake, we encourage all Consolidated Municipal Service Managers and District Social Services Administration Boards to provide feedback on the proposed regulatory amendments, which are posted on Ontario’s Regulatory Registry. This input will help us to understand how the proposed changes could impact municipalities in the future.
While these changes do not impact First Nations Ontario Works delivery, First Nations Ontario Works Administrators and First Nations partners may also wish to review the posting and provide their feedback.
7. How and when will the regulatory changes be implemented in other geographic areas?
Once the new program structure has been rolled-out to the first three geographic sites, the ministry will begin evaluation of its implementation, working with the delivery partners to refine the model. This collaborative process will help to inform the next phase of centralized intake.
The implementation plan for the new model to go-live in other sites will depend on the lessons learned from the initial implementation.
8. Will there be impacts on First Nations Delivery Agents?
These changes do not impact First Nations Ontario Works delivery. The proposed regulatory amendments to Ontario Regulation 136/98: Designation of Geographic Areas and Delivery Agent and Ontario Regulation 135/98: Administration and Cost Sharing will only impact:
• The District Municipality of Muskoka;
• The County of Peterborough and City of Peterborough; and,
• The Regional Municipality of York.
As the province expands its role in centralized intake these regulatory changes will be extended to include to all Consolidated Municipal Service Managers and District Social Services Administration Boards.
