Potential Annual Regulatory Modernization Bill amendments (closed)

Introduced in the 2018 Fall Economic Statement, the ARMB initiative is intended to be a recurring bill that serves to help keep the regulatory system relevant and up to date. The ARMB is used to make regular, common-sense updates to existing legislation (not regulations), that have negative impacts on the regulatory environment. These changes are intended to facilitate innovation and business competitiveness, while continuing to protect the health and safety of Canadians and the environment.

Regulation vs. legislation

Legislation refers to laws that are passed by a legislative body that have been subject to scrutiny by Members of Parliament from all political parties as well as Senators. Canadian laws are introduced as bills and must pass in both the House of Commons and Senate to become law.

Once legislation is passed by Parliament, regulators (government organizations) create more detailed rules and enforce compliance with those rules; these rules are called regulations. Specific regulations can govern all of industry, certain sectors of the economy or the public at-large. One way of understanding the difference between legislation and regulation is that legislation provides broad, high-level principles for how the government can deal with issues in a certain area, but regulations provide details on how specific issues will be dealt with. Within a single piece of legislation, there can be multiple sets of regulations setting out rules for distinct parts of that area. Unlike legislation, regulations are not introduced in Parliament. Instead, they are subject to a different process, generally involving a challenge and oversight function by the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat, public consultations, and approval from the Governor-in-Council (which is made up of Treasury Board Ministers advising the Governor General), as outlined in the Cabinet Directive on Regulation.

The ARMB serves to make the regulatory system more responsive by making multiple legislative amendments all at once. This means that the ARMB does not amend regulations themselves but adjusts the legislation, in situations where regulatory issues are a result of the legislation being too specific, inflexible or contains language that could deter innovation. Grouping multiple, minor legislative amendments together helps to save time and resources required compared to making each amendment separately.

Share your thoughts

We are seeking your input on legislative proposals for future versions of the ARMB. Note that the types of changes introduced through the ARMB must be non-urgent, as it is anticipated that amendments may take up to 2-3 years to implement. Urgent issues should be addressed by contacting the responsible department or agency.

For assistance

Visit the Let’s Talk Federal Regulations 101 page to learn how:

  • to use the platform
  • to register and provide comments
  • your feedback will be reported back

For technical assistance, visit the Technical Support page.

Introduced in the 2018 Fall Economic Statement, the ARMB initiative is intended to be a recurring bill that serves to help keep the regulatory system relevant and up to date. The ARMB is used to make regular, common-sense updates to existing legislation (not regulations), that have negative impacts on the regulatory environment. These changes are intended to facilitate innovation and business competitiveness, while continuing to protect the health and safety of Canadians and the environment.

Regulation vs. legislation

Legislation refers to laws that are passed by a legislative body that have been subject to scrutiny by Members of Parliament from all political parties as well as Senators. Canadian laws are introduced as bills and must pass in both the House of Commons and Senate to become law.

Once legislation is passed by Parliament, regulators (government organizations) create more detailed rules and enforce compliance with those rules; these rules are called regulations. Specific regulations can govern all of industry, certain sectors of the economy or the public at-large. One way of understanding the difference between legislation and regulation is that legislation provides broad, high-level principles for how the government can deal with issues in a certain area, but regulations provide details on how specific issues will be dealt with. Within a single piece of legislation, there can be multiple sets of regulations setting out rules for distinct parts of that area. Unlike legislation, regulations are not introduced in Parliament. Instead, they are subject to a different process, generally involving a challenge and oversight function by the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat, public consultations, and approval from the Governor-in-Council (which is made up of Treasury Board Ministers advising the Governor General), as outlined in the Cabinet Directive on Regulation.

The ARMB serves to make the regulatory system more responsive by making multiple legislative amendments all at once. This means that the ARMB does not amend regulations themselves but adjusts the legislation, in situations where regulatory issues are a result of the legislation being too specific, inflexible or contains language that could deter innovation. Grouping multiple, minor legislative amendments together helps to save time and resources required compared to making each amendment separately.

Share your thoughts

We are seeking your input on legislative proposals for future versions of the ARMB. Note that the types of changes introduced through the ARMB must be non-urgent, as it is anticipated that amendments may take up to 2-3 years to implement. Urgent issues should be addressed by contacting the responsible department or agency.

For assistance

Visit the Let’s Talk Federal Regulations 101 page to learn how:

  • to use the platform
  • to register and provide comments
  • your feedback will be reported back

For technical assistance, visit the Technical Support page.

Discussions: All (3) Open (0)

  • Barriers to efficiency

    about 1 year ago
    CLOSED: This discussion has concluded.

    You need to be signed in to add your comment.

    Legislative barriers that stand in the way of modernizing regulatory processes. Examples include: 

    • Instances where remote inspections or other digital tools and processes (e.g., electronic signatures) are prohibited;  
    • Temporary measures introduced during the COVID-19 pandemic that could be made permanent through legislative changes.


    Provide your proposals that fall within this category, including references to the specific legislation(s) that would need to be modified.

    Go to discussion
    Replies Closed

  • Overly restrictive legislation

    about 1 year ago
    1 Response
    CLOSED: This discussion has concluded.

    You need to be signed in to add your comment.

    Legislative provisions that are overly restrictive including those that limit research and development or prevent them from bringing new products to market. Examples include: 

    • Overly prescriptive legislation that doesn’t allow regulations to be flexible for research and development purposes or introduction of new products; or   
    • Restricting how compliance can be demonstrated, such as specifying one test method to be used even though other equivalent or newer tests are available.


    Provide your proposals that fall within this category, including references to the specific legislation(s) that would need to be modified.


    Go to discussion
    Replies Closed

  • Unnecessary requirements

    about 1 year ago
    1 Response
    CLOSED: This discussion has concluded.

    You need to be signed in to add your comment.

    Unnecessary and/or out-of-date legislative requirements that induce burden or create inconsistency in the regulatory environment. Examples include: 

    • Outdated or unnecessary reporting requirements, such as paper-based information collection; 
    • Duplicative or poorly defined requirements that create confusion; or 
    • Requiring the same information to be provided to multiple organizations, instead of allowing those organizations to share information internally/automatically.  


    Provide your proposals that fall within this category, including references to the specific legislation(s) that would need to be modified.


    Go to discussion
    Replies Closed
Page last updated: 03 May 2024, 11:35 AM