The Government of Ontario Continues to Undermine Local Decision-making and Democratic Accountability

TORONTO, May 14, 2026 /CNW/ - This fall, eligible voters will head to the polls for municipal elections across Ontario. The question is, will municipal Councillors have any power left to shape our communities?

Laurel Creek Conservation Area © Carl Hiebert / Grand River Conservation Authority (CNW Group/Ontario Nature)

On May 7, the Government of Ontario passed Bill 100, Better Regional Governance Act. Despite its name, this bill continues a pattern of centralizing provincial control and undermining local decision-making power. Most egregiously, it allows the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing to appoint or remove the heads of councils for regional municipalities in Durham, Halton, Muskoka, Niagara, Peel, Waterloo, York and Simcoe County. This will let provincial appointees overrule democratically elected councils.

At the end of April, the Government of Ontario also passed Bill 97, Plan to Protect Ontario Act (Budget Measures), 2026. Buried in this sweeping omnibus bill are the legislative changes to retroactively shield the Premier and Ministers from freedom of information requests. Bill 97 also enables the significant consolidation of the 36 Conservation Authorities into just nine, creating a new provincial oversight agency and further undermining local decision-making.

This is part of a larger pattern where the current Government of Ontario is concentrating power in the hands of Ministers, while limiting or removing municipal decision-making powers. These legislative changes are being rushed through the provincial legislature without the usual committee hearings that allow for public input.

"We need more democratic accountability, not less, and a government willing to listen to experts to ensure liveable and sustainable communities." – Tony Morris, Conservation Policy and Campaigns Director, Ontario Nature

"Ontarians deserve a voice in decisions affecting their communities, affordability, and natural heritage. Merging Ontario's Conservation Authorities under the guise of speeding up housing and infrastructure approvals will increase costs, weaken planning and emergency response, and undermine environmental collaboration. Watershed management must be guided by science and local realities--not politics. We call on Ontarians to contact their MPP and demand responsible, science-based watershed management." – Janet Stavinga, Spokesperson for the Watershed Conservation Coalition and former Chair, Mississippi-Rideau Source Protection Committee, Vice-Chair, Rideau Valley Conservation Authority, Mayor of Goulbourn Township and Ottawa City Councillor

The Government of Ontario claims these changes are necessary to accelerate housing development. Yet, housing starts in Ontario remain in a slump. Nor does this explain why records from the Premier and his Ministers are now secret. As democracy wanes globally, Ontario's democratic institutions are regressing significantly. Local decision-makers are closest to our day-to-day lives. They need to be empowered to build smart communities. The Government of Ontario must restore local decision-making powers, cancel the planned consolidation of the conservation authorities and rescind the legislative changes related to freedom of information laws.

We acknowledge that there are 46 treaties and other agreements that cover the territory, now called Ontario, and our roles and responsibilities as Treaty partners. We recognize the inherent rights and responsibilities of Indigenous Nations, who have cared for and governed Turtle Island since time immemorial.

Background

• Media release and backgrounder regarding the Conservation Authority consolidation.
• Tracked Changes: The Decline of Ontario's Legal Protections for Nature since 2018.
• Ontario Nature protects wild species and wild spaces through conservation, education and public engagement. A charitable organization, it represents 9,500 members, 130,000 supporters and 150 member groups from across Ontario.
• Watershed Conservation Coalition is a newly established group of seventy-four dedicated and concerned professionals who have given decades of service to guide and support local science-based and watershed resource management. These professionals have come together in response to the province's proposed sweeping changes to our Conservation Authorities.

SOURCE Ontario Nature

John Hassell | Communications and Engagement Director, Ontario Nature | [email protected] | 416-786-2171