On September 14, 2017, Ontario’s Bill 154 was introduced as an omnibus bill in the Legislature. Among the numerous proposals introduced in Bill 154, many of which impact charities and not-for-profits (see Charity & NFP Law Bulletin No. 406 on corporate changes to the Corporations Act), the proposed changes to the Charities Accounting Act (“CAA”) permitting “social investments” by charities justify special attention. The CAA applies to all charities in Ontario and provides in section 10.1 that sections 27 to 31 of the Trustee Act, dealing with investment powers by trustees, apply to trustees and charitable corporations holding property for charitable purposes. Schedule 2 of Bill 154 (a copy of which is attached to this Bulletin as Schedule “A” for ease of reference) proposes to amend the CAA by adding sections 10.2 to 10.4 to permit “social investments” by trustees and charitable corporations holding property for charitable purposes and to exclude the application of the Trustee Act (with minor exceptions) with regard to “social investments.” This Bulletin provides an overview of the draft legislation in Bill 154 permitting “social investments,” and raises a number of questions about the practical impact of the draft legislation on the powers and duties of trustees and charitable corporations in the event that the provisions in Bill 154 on “social investments” come into force.
For the balance of this Bulletin, please see Charity & NFP Law Bulletin No. 407.