Ontario bill providing for license suspensions for drug-impaired drivers ready for third reading

The Ontario legislature has adopted a committee report on a bill that, if passed into law, would increase the maximum fine for distracted driving to $1,000, introduce licence suspensions for drug impairment and change the branding program for vehicles written off due to a collision for flood.

Bill 31, the Transportation Statute Law Amendment Act (Making Ontario’s Roads Safer), was subject to hearings last month before the Standing Committee on General Government and is now ready for third reading. The legislature voted March 31 to adopt a committee report on the bill.

“Under impaired driving, Ontario is one of only three jurisdictions in Canada that currently has no sanctions for drug-impaired driving,” said Bob Bailey, Progressive Conservative MPP for Sarnia-Lambton, last December during debates on Bill 31.

If passed into law, the bill would “expand existing alcohol-impaired sanctions to drivers who are impaired by drugs,” Transportation Minister Steve Del Duca said at the time.

Bill 31 would change the Highway Traffic Act to include a section on short-term administrative licence suspensions for drug or drug and alcohol impairment. That section would stipulate that a police officer can request that a driver surrender his or her licence if the driver “is impaired by a drug or by a combination of a drug and alcohol.”

Impaired driving was a topic of discussion during committee hearings on the bill.

“I think the next frontier, in terms of impaired driving and drugs, is roadside testing,” said Scott Watson, manager of government relations for Parachute – a national charity focused on injury prevention – during a committee hearing in March, in reply to a question from Jeff Yurek, PC MPP for Elgin-Middlesex London. “I know working with our partners at MTO, there are a couple of things in the pipeline that will help our officers administer roadside tests for drug-impaired driving. I hope there’s an emphasis on that going forward, in terms of something that will stand up harder in court. Right now, this bill gives a little more discretion, in terms of determining impairedness, but I think that’s the way to go, in terms of quantifying an impaired drugged driver.”

Bill 31 also proposes to increase the range of fines for distracted driving to $300 to $1,000. The current range is $60 to $500.

Related: Ontario politicians send road safety bill to committee

“Currently, the fine in Ontario for distracted driving is relatively minor in comparison to other enforcement tools used across Canada,” said Elliott Silverstein, manager of government relations for CAA South Central Ontario, during committee hearings. “Despite the efforts, distracted driving has become more prevalent on Ontario’s roads, putting motorists, passengers, cyclists and pedestrians at risk.”

Bill 31 also changes the section of the Highway Traffic Act on irreparable, rebuilt and salvage vehicles, so that the “right to make a submission respecting a classification is limited to the person who held the vehicle portion of the permit at the time of the event that led to the vehicle’s classification and who continues to hold it.”

That change would “improve the Mandatory Vehicle Branding Program to prevent vehicle fraud and protect consumers who buy used vehicles,” Del Duca said in 2014 when he tabled bill 31 for first reading. “Vehicle owners can make a written appeal to challenge the accuracy of their vehicle’s brand. Currently, many requests are submitted by individuals who have knowingly purchased an irreparable or a salvage vehicle and appeal the brand based on fraudulent motives.”

PHOTO COURTESY OF THE YORK REGIONAL POLICE