ONTARIO regulation 339/01

made under the

Social Housing reform act, 2000

Made: August 28, 2001
Filed: August 30, 2001
Printed in The Ontario Gazette: September 15, 2001

housing projects
subject to Part VI of the Act

Contents

PART I
APPLICATION AND INTERPRETATION
1. / Application
2. / Interpretation
PART II
CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
3. / Corporate requirements
4. / Conflict of interest
5. / Replacement of conflict of interest rules
6. / Expenses and remuneration, directors
PART III
OPERATION OF HOUSING PROJECTS
7. / Management of housing project
8. / Property management
PART IV
SELECTION OF HOUSEHOLDS FOR UNITS
9. / Provision of information to the public
10. / Before centralized waiting list established
11. / Internal transfers
12. / Waiting list, rent-geared-to-income units
13. / Waiting list, special needs housing
14. / Selection of households
15. / Alternative housing provider
16. / Selection of households, supportive housing provider
17. / Notice of decision
18. / Refusal to offer
19. / Record of refusal to offer
20. / Internal review of refusal
PART V
LEASES AND OCCUPANCY AGREEMENTS
21. / Requirements
22. / Rent
23. / Occupancy standards
PART VI
CAPITAL RESERVE
24. / Capital reserve requirements
25. / Investments
26. / Exception, investments
PART VII
SUBSIDIES
27. / Definitions
28. / Market rent index
29. / Operating reserve
30. / Revenue and operating costs
31. / Benchmark amounts
32. / Section 106 housing providers
33. / Change in economic conditions
34. / Additional subsidy
PART VIII
ADMINISTRATION
35. / Records
36. / Annual report
37. / Insurance
38. / Mortgage renewals
PART IX
LOCAL HOUSING CORPORATIONS
39. / Transitional
PART X
COMMENCEMENT
40. / Commencement

PART I
APPLICATION AND INTERPRETATION

Application

1.This Regulation applies as follows:

1. To every housing provider in respect of a transferred housing project referred to in section 92 of the Act that is subject to Part VI of the Act, commencing on the date in Table 1 opposite the name of the service manager for the service area in which the housing project is located.

2. To local housing corporations in the manner required by section 32 of the Act and Part IX.

Interpretation

2.(1)In this Regulation,

“centralized waiting list” means the waiting list established under section 35 of Ontario Regulation 298/01;

“eligible capital expenditure” means an expenditure made by a housing provider on the capital account for the construction, renovation or repair of a housing project and includes reasonable expenditures incurred by the housing provider in planning and budgeting for those expenditures;

“internal transfer” means, in respect of a household residing in a housing project of a housing provider,

(a) the transfer of the household from one rent-geared-to-income unit to another rent-geared-to-income unit in the same or another housing project of the housing provider, or

(b) the transfer of the household from one special needs housing to another special needs housing in the same or another housing project of the housing provider;

“mandate” means, in respect of a housing provider, its mandate established under section 99 of the Act;

“rent” means,

(a) in relation to a unit of a non-profit housing co-operative that is occupied by a member of the co-operative, housing charges as defined in the Co-operative Corporations Act, other than a pro-rated portion of the annual amount, if any, payable by the cooperative to the Co-operative Housing Federation of Canada and initial membership fees, or

(b) in all other cases, rent as defined in the Tenant Protection Act, 1997;

“subsidiary waiting list” means, in respect of a housing project, the subsidiary waiting list for the housing project referred to in section 36 of Ontario Regulation 298/01;

“targeting plan” means, in respect of a housing provider, its targeting plan established under section 98 of the Act;

(2)Unless otherwise indicated by the context, a reference in this Regulation to a service manager, in relation to a housing provider or housing project, means the service manager for the service area in which the housing provider’s housing project is located.

PART II
CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

Corporate requirements

3.(1)Every housing provider shall ensure that it is a non-profit corporation or a non-profit co-operative corporation in good standing under one of the following statutes by the end of six months after its operating agreement is terminated under section 91 of the Act and shall ensure that it continues to be in good standing as long as it is subject to Part VI of the Act.

1. Business Corporations Act.

2. Corporations Act.

3. Co-operative Corporations Act.

4. Canada Business Corporations Act.

(2)A housing provider shall continue to do the following:

1. Provide rent-geared-to-income housing or special needs housing as part of its regular activities.

2. Operate only as a charity registered under the Income Tax Act (Canada) or as a non-profit corporation exempt from tax under Part I of that Act.

(3)A housing provider shall not amend its articles, amalgamate with another corporation or take action to voluntarily wind-up or dissolve the corporation without the prior written consent of the service managers for all service areas in which its housing projects are located.

(4)Despite subsection (3), a housing provider’s articles must require that upon the winding-up or dissolution of the corporation, all of its assets, after discharging all outstanding liabilities, must be distributed to one or more of the following entities:

1. A registered charity, within the meaning of the Income Tax Act (Canada), that operates only in Canada.

2. Another housing provider under the Act.

3. A local housing corporation.

(5)The board of directors of a housing provider shall meet at least four times each year.

Conflict of interest

4.(1)This section applies to a housing provider in addition to the provisions of the Act listed in subsection 3 (1) to which the housing provider is subject.

(2)A conflict of interest exists if any of the following situations occur:

1. The personal or business interests of a director, officer, agent or employee of a housing provider are in conflict with the interests of the housing provider.

2. A personal gain, benefit, advantage or privilege is directly or indirectly given to or received by a director, officer, agent or employee of the housing provider or a person related to one of them as a result of a decision by the housing provider.

(3)A director, officer, agent or employee of the housing provider shall not enter into any situation, arrangement or agreement which results in a conflict of interest.

(4)Directors, officers, agents and employees of the housing provider must notify the chair of the board of directors of the housing provider of every potential or actual conflict of interest no later than the first meeting of the board after the director, officer, agent or employee becomes aware that he or she has entered into a situation, arrangement or agreement that results in or may result in a conflict of interest.

(5)The board of directors shall consider the notice given under subsection (4) no later than the second meeting of the board after the notice is given and consideration of the notice must be reflected in the minutes of the meeting.

(6)The chair of the board shall notify the service manager in writing of the receipt of every notice under subsection (4) and the board of directors shall resolve every conflict of interest or potential conflict of interest to the satisfaction of the service manager.

(7)Despite subsection (3), a director, officer, agent or employee or a person related to one of them may directly or indirectly receive a gain, benefit, advantage, privilege or remuneration from the housing provider if all of the following conditions are satisfied:

1. A notice of the conflict of interest or potential conflict of interest is given in accordance with subsection (4).

2. The service manager agrees that there is no reasonable alternative for the housing provider other than entering into the situation, arrangement or agreement that results in or may result in the conflict of interest.

(8)For the purposes of this section, a person related to a director, officer, agent or employee includes a parent, spouse, same-sex partner, child, household member, sibling, uncle, aunt, nephew, niece, mother-in-law, father-in-law sister-in-law, brother-in-law or grandparent, or a person with whom the director, officer, agent or employee has a business relationship.

(9)In this section,

“child”, in relation to an individual, means a child of the individual born within or outside marriage (unless that child has been adopted by one or more other individuals in Ontario or according to the law of another jurisdiction), a child adopted by the individual in Ontario or according to the law of another jurisdiction, and a child whom the individual has demonstrated a settled intention to treat as a child of his or her family, but does not include a child placed in the individual’s home as a foster child for consideration by another person having lawful custody;

“parent”, in relation to an individual, means a natural parent of the individual (unless the individual has been adopted by one or more other persons in Ontario or according to the law of another jurisdiction), an adoptive parent of the individual who has adopted the individual in Ontario or according to the law of another jurisdiction, and a person who has demonstrated a settled intention to treat the individual as a child of his or her family, but does not include a person in whose home the individual has been placed as a foster child for consideration by another person having lawful custody;

“same-sex partner”, in relation to a person, means,

(a) an individual of the same sex as the person, if the individual and the person have together advised the housing provider that they are same-sex partners, or

(b) an individual of the same sex as the person who resides in the same dwelling place as the person, if the social and familial aspects of the relationship between the individual and the person amount to cohabitation and,

(i) the individual is providing financial support to the person,

(ii) the person is providing financial support to the individual, or

(iii) the individual and the person have a mutual agreement or arrangement regarding their financial affairs;

“spouse”, in relation to a person, means,

(a) an individual of the opposite sex to the person, if the individual and the person have together advised the housing provider that they are spouses, or

(b) an individual of the opposite sex to the person who is residing in the same dwelling place as the person, if the social and familial aspects of the relationship between the individual and the person amount to cohabitation and,

(i) the individual is providing financial support to the person,

(ii) the person is providing financial support to the individual, or

(iii) the individual and the person have a mutual agreement or arrangement regarding their financial affairs.

Replacement of conflict of interest rules

5.The conflict of interest provisions set out in section 4 may be replaced for a housing provider by rules agreed to by the housing provider and the service managers for all areas in which its housing projects are located, in accordance with subsection 93 (3) of the Act.

Expenses and remuneration, directors

6.(1)A housing provider shall not pay remuneration to a director other than amounts to reimburse the director for reasonable expenses incurred in the performance of the director’s duties as a director.

(2)A housing provider may employ a director if,

(a) the director resides in the housing provider’s housing project and is employed by the housing provider on a part-time or temporary basis; or

(b) the director does not reside in the housing provider’s housing project and is employed by the housing provider to carry out functions of a non-supervisory and non-managerial nature and the housing provider has,

(i) five or fewer directors and no other director is employed by the housing provider to carry out the same functions, or

(ii) more than five directors and not more than one-fifth of the directors are employed by the housing provider to carry out the same functions.

(3)Despite subsection (1), a housing provider may pay reasonable remuneration to a director employed in accordance with subsection (2) in respect of his or her employment functions.

PART III
OPERATION OF HOUSING PROJECTS

Management of housing project

7.(1)A housing provider shall ensure that its housing projects are well managed, are maintained in a satisfactory state of repair and are fit for occupancy.

(2)Subject to the provisions of any mortgage guaranteed by the Province of Ontario or the Ontario Housing Corporation to which the housing project is subject, a housing provider shall proceed diligently to repair, restore and make habitable any unit in a housing project that is damaged to such an extent that it is uninhabitable.

Property management

8.(1)Subject to subsection (4), a housing provider shall establish and follow open and competitive practices in hiring its employees, subject to the provisions of any collective bargaining agreement to which the housing provider is a party, and in retaining persons to provide property management services for its housing projects.

(2)A contract for property management services for a housing project must be in writing and must satisfy the following requirements:

1. The term of the contract must not exceed three years.

2. The contract must not be renewable.

3. The contract must be capable of termination by the housing provider on 60 days written notice any time during the term of the contract and on 30 days written notice if the termination is for breach of the contract, unless the parties to the contract agree to shorter notice periods.

4. The contract must specifically identify and describe the nature of the goods and services provided under the contract and the consideration to be paid by the housing provider.

5. The contract must be non-assignable.

(3)Every corporation providing management services for a housing project shall give notice to the housing provider of the housing project of any change in control of the corporation.

(4)A housing provider is not required to follow open and competitive practices in retaining persons to provide property management services if the service manager is satisfied that open and competitive practices are not appropriate in the circumstances in order for the housing provider to obtain a reasonable level of property management services at a reasonable cost.