The Ford government has unveiled sweeping new legislation that will change how Niagara Region is governed and will strengthen the power of appointed regional chairs.
The Better Regional Governance Act, 2026 was unveiled by Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing Rob Flack on Thursday.
The first major change affecting Niagara Region will see the size of Niagara Regional Council shrink to just 13 members, including all of the region’s local mayors and a chair, while eliminating all elected regional councillor positions. This smaller regional council will use weighted voting, with each mayor having a vote weighted based on his or her lower-tier municipality’s population.
Currently, there are 19 elected regional councillors that sit on Niagara Regional Council.
Former Niagara regional chair Bob Gale had previously floated the idea of eliminating the elected regional councillor positions and using weighted voting before he resigned from his position last month.
Simcoe is the other region that will see a reduction in its regional council size, dropping from 31 members to 17. Like in Niagara, this will include just the heads of all 16 lower-tier municipalities and the regional chair, referred to in Simcoe as the warden.
The second major change in this legislation that will impact Niagara is the government’s decision to continue to appoint regional chairs. Under previous legislation, the minister of municipal affairs only had the power to appoint chairs in Niagara, Peel, and York regions for the 2022 to 2026 council term. The legislation proposes making that permanent, as well as allowing the minister to appoint regional chairs in Durham, Halton, Muskoka, and Waterloo.
Regional chairs will also be given so-called “strong chair” powers, in line with strong mayor powers that have been granted to most mayors across the province. This will empower regional chairs, particularly when it comes to the budget process, as well as delivering on other provincial priorities. Two in particular the province is pointing to is housing and infrastructure.
Specific “strong chair” powers also include being able to appoint or fire the chief administrative officer and division heads; create council committees; bring forward matters tied to provincial priorities for consideration; appoint the chairs and vice-chairs of local boards; direct staff; and veto certain by-laws.
All of this, says the Ford government, is designed to make the system more efficient and effective and will be brought into effect ahead of the new council session following October’s elections.
“We will always support our municipal partners, both lower- and upper-tier, in delivering locally led solutions that offer better value for taxpayers and speed up decision-making,” said Flack. “These changes provide the necessary tools for local leadership to advance our shared priorities and better serve our communities, including by expediting housing and infrastructure development.”
Niagara West MPP Sam Oosterhoff, as well as Niagara Falls Mayor Jim Diodati, Welland Mayor Frank Campion, and Lincoln Mayor Sandra Easton all issued statements of support in conjunction with Flack’s announcement.
“Change is long overdue in Niagara and the status quo is not an option,” said Diodati. “Taxes are too high because of duplication and inefficiencies and we need to streamline. No elected official will vote him or herself out of a job. We need this bold move from the Ontario government.”
“I was pleased to hear today’s announcement on governance reform in Niagara. I am grateful to Premier Ford and Minister Flack for taking meaningful steps to address the challenges facing our region and to improve effective, efficient governance. Today’s decision is encouraging and helps map a path forward for continued progress among Niagara’s municipalities.” said Campion via Welland’s Facebook page.
It is not yet clear whether the Ford government will seek to appoint another regional chair for Niagara before October’s elections following Gale’s resignation last month.
Jay Goldberg is the Canadian Affairs Manager at the Consumer Choice Center. He previously served as the Ontario Director at the Canadian Taxpayers Federation and a policy fellow at the Munk School of Public Policy and Global Affairs. Jay holds a Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Toronto.
