Today the Ontario Government announced that it will be expanding strong mayor powers to the heads of council of an additional 169 municipalities effective May 1, 2025. This represents single and lower tier municipalities with municipal councils of six members or more.
This change will be made through a regulatory amendment to O. Reg. 530/22 which is available for comment until April 16. Unlike previous expansions of the regulation, it does not appear that municipalities will be required to commit to a housing pledge in order to be granted the powers.
While the government continues to justify the expansion of strong mayor powers as a tool to build housing, there is no evidence to suggest this legislation has any impact on the number of housing starts in municipalities that have been granted the powers.
Alternatively, our research indicates that strong mayor powers have blurred the political-administrative authority between the roles of head of council and chief administrative officers (CAOs), threatening the neutrality of the public service and politicizing local government leadership. As an Association, we continue to voice our opposition to strong mayor legislation, calling specifically for the removal of the authority of heads of council to directly hire or terminate any municipal staff, including the CAO.
We know that this announcement represents additional administrative and operational burden for our members. Our policy and advocacy team will be continuing to monitor the expansion of this legislation and its impacts on affected municipalities and staff across the province. As an Association, we are committed to providing support to you, our members, and those municipal staff who may be affected. Please stay tuned for further information to come.
For more information or questions, please contact our advocacy team.