Wow. What a night.
In front of a group of dedicated REALTORS®, Bill 145 the Trust in Real Estate Services Act, 2019 passed second reading after only two and half hours of debate.
The passage of the Bill tonight is a testament to the strength of the REALTOR® voice at Queen’s Park and the great job you all have done speaking up for higher professional standards, better consumer protection and tax fairness for REALTORS®.
Minister Lisa Thompson and NDP Critic Tom Rakocevic spoke on behalf of their respective Parties and were very complimentary of the commitment of OREA and REALTORS® for the work we have put into improving the Act.
Thank you to Sean Morrison, Mike Stahls, Johnmark Roberts, Mike Douglas, Tehreem Kamal, Cathy Polan, Natasha Huzinga, Don McColl, Sandra Smith, James Milonas, Roger Bouma and Kim Gazo for attending the debate that went to almost 9:00pm – it was so impactful to have REALTORS® in the gallery.
So What Happens Next?
Bill 145 was referred to the Standing Committee on General Government and will be called for hearings sometime likely next week. OREA will liaise with the Minister’s Office to find out the details of the Committee hearings to ensure REALTORS® are well represented.
After committee hearings, the Bill will get called back for 3rd and Final Reading and then Royal Assent. We think it will receive Royal Assent before Christmas.
It doesn’t mean, however, we can take our foot off the gas when it comes to our advocacy. If anything, we need to encourage more REALTORS® to contact their MPP.
The NDP still has to do a technical briefing on the Bill and they could try to amend the Bill at Committee.
To encourage more action, OREA will track participation and the top Boards for total emails & percentage of Members emailing their MPP will win an extra pass each to ORPC 2020.
Here is the link where members can take action www.REBBAReform.ca/action.html
Stay tuned for more updates so and congrats everyone! We are almost there.
Sincerely,
Matthew Thornton
Vice President, Public Affairs & Communications
Brampton Real Estate Board 