Restoring Trust, Transparency and Accountability Act, 2018

What happened · Jan 13, 2020

Bill 57 as passed requires the Ombudsman to appoint a Deputy Ombudsman known as the French Language Services Commissioner, and Kelly Burke was appointed to the post in January 2020.

The November 2018 fall economic statement had abolished the independent French Language Services Commissioner and moved its duties to the Ombudsman. After backlash, Ford's office promised on November 23, 2018 to re-create the commissioner position inside the Ombudsman's office. Bill 57 received Royal Assent and added section 12.9 to the Ombudsman Act: "The Ombudsman shall appoint a Deputy Ombudsman who shall be known as the French Language Services Commissioner." The Ombudsman took over French-language services oversight on May 1, 2019. On January 13, 2020, Ombudsman Paul Dubé appointed Kelly Burke as French Language Services Commissioner and Deputy Ombudsman. The post is now an Ombudsman employee rather than a separate officer of the Legislature, the downgrade critics objected to in 2018.

What happened · Dec 6, 2018

The Low-income Individuals and Families Tax (LIFT) credit was passed in Bill 57 (Royal Assent December 6, 2018) and took effect January 1, 2019. The government said a single person working full time at minimum wage (nearly $30,000) would pay no Ontario personal income tax.

The 2018 Fall Economic Statement announced the LIFT credit: up to $850 off Ontario personal income tax, or $1,700 for couples. It was enacted in Bill 57, the Restoring Trust, Transparency and Accountability Act, 2018, Royal Assent December 6, 2018, and took effect January 1, 2019. The government said a single person working full time at minimum wage (nearly $30,000) would pay no Ontario personal income tax. That excludes the Ontario Health Premium, and federal income tax still applies. The FAO estimated LIFT would remove Ontario income tax for 590,000 people earning under $30,000. It also found LIFT gave less total benefit than the cancelled raise of the minimum wage to $15. In 2022 the credit grew to a maximum of $875, with the phase-out starting at $32,500.

What happened · Dec 6, 2018

Schedule 2 of Bill 57 (Royal Assent December 6, 2018) added Legion memorial homes, clubhouses and athletic grounds to the Assessment Act's property tax exemptions, effective January 1, 2019.

On November 5, 2018, Ford told a veterans' luncheon in Oakville that the government would make sure Legion halls 'pay no property tax'. Schedule 2 of Bill 57, the Restoring Trust, Transparency and Accountability Act, 2018, amended the Assessment Act to exempt land used as a memorial home, clubhouse or athletic grounds by an Ontario branch of the Royal Canadian Legion. The bill received Royal Assent on December 6, 2018, and the schedule took effect January 1, 2019. Before this, many Legion halls were already exempt through their municipalities.

What happened · Nov 15, 2018

Six months after the election, the government exempted all units first occupied after November 15, 2018 from rent control, rolling back the 2017 expansion it had said it would leave in place.

On May 15, 2018, the PCs said they would not roll back the expanded rent control the Wynne Liberals brought in in 2017, which covered all private rental units. In the November 15, 2018 fall economic statement, the government announced that units first occupied after that date would be exempt from rent control. It legislated the change through Bill 57, which received Royal Assent on December 6, 2018 (S.O. 2018, c. 17). Tenancies that existed on November 15, 2018 kept rent control.

What happened · Nov 27, 2025

Instead of eliminating the per-vote subsidy, the Ford government extended it in 2021 and 2024 and made it permanent in Bill 68, which received Royal Assent on November 27, 2025.

Bill 57 (Royal Assent December 6, 2018) set the quarterly per-vote allowance to phase out by January 1, 2022. Bill 254, the Protecting Ontario Elections Act, 2021 (Royal Assent April 19, 2021), instead continued the allowances until January 1, 2025 and raised the rate to $0.636 per vote. Bill 220 (Royal Assent November 19, 2024), passed with all-party agreement, extended them through December 31, 2026. Bill 68, the Plan to Protect Ontario Act (Budget Measures), 2025 (No. 2) (Royal Assent November 27, 2025), repealed the not-yet-in-force phase-out and made the allowance permanent; the government said this followed a Chief Electoral Officer recommendation.

Who benefited

• Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario · $1,373,162.16 per quarter (2026)

  Elections Ontario lists the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario as a recipient of the quarterly per-vote allowance Ford promised in 2018 to eliminate. Bill 68 (Royal Assent Nov 27, 2025) repealed the provision that would have ended payments, so the allowance continues.

  Source: Quarterly Allowances — Elections Ontario, Ontario announces unexpected extension to per-vote subsidy for political parties — Global News (Nov 2024)

• Ontario Liberal Party · $957,239.15 per quarter (2026)

  Elections Ontario lists the Ontario Liberal Party as a recipient of the quarterly per-vote allowance, which Bill 68 kept in place after Ford promised in 2018 to eliminate it. All parties supported the extension (Global News).

  Source: Quarterly Allowances — Elections Ontario, Ontario announces unexpected extension to per-vote subsidy for political parties — Global News (Nov 2024)

• New Democratic Party of Ontario · $592,126.18 per quarter (2026)

  Elections Ontario lists the New Democratic Party of Ontario as a recipient of the quarterly per-vote allowance, which Bill 68 kept in place after Ford promised in 2018 to eliminate it. All parties supported the extension (Global News).

  Source: Quarterly Allowances — Elections Ontario, Ontario announces unexpected extension to per-vote subsidy for political parties — Global News (Nov 2024)

• Green Party of Ontario · $154,115.52 per quarter (2026)

  Elections Ontario lists the Green Party of Ontario as a recipient of the quarterly per-vote allowance, which Bill 68 kept in place after Ford promised in 2018 to eliminate it. All parties supported the extension (Global News).

  Source: Quarterly Allowances — Elections Ontario, Ontario announces unexpected extension to per-vote subsidy for political parties — Global News (Nov 2024)