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Bill 122, Ontario Consumer Watchdog Act, 2023

Rakocevic, Tom

Karpoche, Bhutila

Fife, Catherine

Begum, Doly

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Status

Debates

Original

Bill 122 Original (PDF)

EXPLANATORY

NOTE

The Bill enacts the Ontario

Consumer Watchdog Act, 2023 . The Act requires the Minister, in

consultation with relevant stakeholders and the public, to develop and

implement a plan to establish an independent consumer watchdog organization

that is responsible for overseeing consumer protection matters in Ontario. The

Act provides that the plan shall include the steps the Minister intends to take

to establish the organization, the powers and duties of the organization, the

role of the organization in relation to other regulatory bodies and such other

matters as the Minister considers advisable. The Minister must publish the plan

on a Government of Ontario website as well as prepare and table a progress

report on the plan in the Legislative Assembly.

Bill 122 2023

Act to provide for the development and implementation of a plan to establish a

consumer watchdog organization

Preamble

Consumers

should expect to be treated with fairness and honesty by the businesses and

other entities that interact with them. However, anti-consumer activities or

practices on the part of some businesses and other entities is a real and

serious problem in Ontario. Challenges to consumers include price gouging and

other forms of unfair treatment, a lack of transparency in the marketplace,

products and services that fall short of expectations in terms of value for

money and quality and consumer protection information and remedies that are not

available, accessible or reliable.

Consumers

must be confident and aware of what protections are available to them when

making purchases. Businesses and other entities must help to maintain a fair

marketplace for consumers. To ensure both consumers and businesses and other

entities know their respective rights and responsibilities, it may be necessary

to put certain processes in place including investigating potential predatory

and illegal behaviours of businesses and other entities, providing for a

consumer complaints process, imposing penalties and other remedies on bad

actors and maintaining a public website on consumer protection matters.

The

current level of consumer protection in Ontario is not adequate. The

establishment of a consumer watchdog organization may fill that gap by serving

as a comprehensive consumer protection organization that is dedicated to

consumers and that will provide consumers with the confidence that their rights

are protected. A consumer watchdog organization of this type has never existed

previously in Ontario and now is the time to establish one.

Therefore,

His Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of

the Province of Ontario, enacts as follows:

Interpretation

this Act,

“Minister”

means the Minister of Public and Business Service Delivery or such other member

of the Executive Council as may be assigned the administration of this Act

under the Executive Council Act .

Plan

for establishing a consumer watchdog organization

The

Minister shall develop and implement a plan to establish a consumer watchdog

organization that is,

(

a) independent

of government;

(

b) responsible

for overseeing consumer protection matters in Ontario; and

(

c) established

in consultation with relevant stakeholders and the public.

Content

of plan

The

plan to establish the consumer watchdog organization referred to in

section 2

shall include the following:

1. The

steps the Minister intends to take in order to establish the consumer watchdog organization.

2. The

powers and duties of the consumer watchdog organization, including:

i. Investigating

businesses or other entities to determine compliance with consumer protection

laws or practices.

ii. Investigating

and reporting on the unfair activities or practices of sectors or groups of

businesses or other entities.

iii. Investigating

consumer complaints against businesses or other entities submitted to the

organization.

iv. Administering

penalties to businesses or other entities, determining remedies for consumers

or otherwise addressing the failure of businesses or other entities to comply

with consumer protection laws or practices.

v. Publishing

the number of consumer complaints against businesses or other entities

submitted to the organization, the number of consumer complaints investigated

by the organization and the results of the organization’s investigations.

vi. Publishing

public reports on consumer protection matters.

vii. Determining whether existing

legislation is no longer serving consumers as a result of the legislation being

outdated or poorly enforced.

viii. Reporting

to the Legislative Assembly, relevant committees and ministries regarding

matters that directly affect consumers.

ix. Educating

the public on consumer protection and on how consumers can best exercise their

rights and responsibilities.

x. Any

powers or duties under any other Acts, including the Consumer

Protection Act, 2002 , that should be assumed under the organization.

3. The

role of the consumer watchdog organization in relation to other regulatory

bodies, including a plan to allow decisions of the organization to prevail over

decisions of other regulatory bodies in specified sectors or with respect to

specified groups of business or other entities.

4. Such

other matters as the Minister considers advisable.

Publication

of plan

The

Minister shall publish the plan on a Government of Ontario website.

Progress

report

(1) Within

six months after the plan to establish a consumer watchdog organization is

developed, the Minister shall prepare a progress report on the plan and table

the progress report in the Legislative Assembly.

Same

(2) The

progress report shall include the Minister’s progress in establishing the

consumer watchdog organization.

Commencement

This Act comes into force on the day it receives Royal Assent.

Short

title

The

short title of this Act is the Ontario Consumer

Watchdog Act, 2023 .

Date Bill stage Event Outcome Committee

June 6, 2023

First Reading

Ordered for Second Reading

June 6, 2023

First Reading

Vote

Carried

First Reading

June 6, 2023

Carried

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