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Ontario Introduces Amendments to Support a Permanent Framework for Target Benefit Pension Plans

April 15, 2024

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Written By Benjamin Sissons and Jordan Fremont

On March 26, 2024, the Ontario government published their 2024 Budget, in which it was announced that draft regulations to Ontario’s Pension Benefits Act (PBA) would be introduced for review in the summer of 2024, with the intention of implementing a permanent target benefit framework to the PBA effective January 1, 2025. This follows an industry consultation, discussed in our previous blog, Ontario Initiates Consultation on Permanent Framework for Target Benefit Pension Plans, which the Ontario Ministry of Finance had initiated with the aim of replacing existing temporary solvency funding regulations for multi-employer pension plans (MEPPs) that are able to reduce accrued benefits.

Setting the Stage for a Permanent Target Benefit Framework

In anticipation of the arrival of a permanent target benefit framework, the Ontario government also introduced Bill 180, Building a Better Ontario Act (Budget Measures), 2024 (Bill 180), which proposes to modify certain existing unproclaimed provisions of the PBA relevant to target benefits, and to add several new provisions.

Modifications to Existing Unproclaimed Provisions

New Provisions

Takeaways

The introduction of Bill 180 reaffirms the Ontario government’s commitment to establishing a permanent target benefit framework in the province. Administrators of MEPPs should continue to monitor the status of Bill 180 and subsequent legislation set to be introduced this summer.

We will continue to monitor the progress of Bill 180 and all subsequent legislation related to the permanent target benefit framework in Ontario. Members of the Bennett Jones Pension & Benefits group would be pleased to discuss any questions respecting the proposed regulations or to answer any other questions you may have.

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