About the Proposed Changes

Background

The College is seeking comments on proposed changes to its bylaws to update registration-related fees.

Why are fees being changed?

The College is mandated by law to serve and protect the public interest. It delivers programs and services to fulfill that mandate. The College needs to ensure it has adequate resources to deliver those programs and services.

The College’s main source of income is fees collected from registrants to maintain their certificates of registration and other administrative fees related to registration services.

The College monitors its financial health closely to ensure that it has enough funds to deliver programs and services in the current year, and that it has enough funds in reserve to support unexpected expenses.

In the last few years, the College had significant funds in reserve. As such, the College decreased the fee for an Independent Practice Certificate twice since 2015. The registration fee was reduced from $635 to $595 as of fiscal year 2015-2016 and reduced again to $575 as of fiscal year 2020-2021.

The financial position of the College has changed since that time. There has been a consistent increase in demand for services, particularly in terms of complaints and concerns being brought forward. Other costs have also increased in line with the cost of living.

Based on current projections, if registration fees remained the same, the College’s reserve would fall below the required minimum level by the end of fiscal year 2024-2025.

After careful consideration by the Finance Committee and Executive Committee, and discussion at Council, Council is proposing an increase of the Independent Practice Certificate registration fee to $635 and all other registration-related fees by 10.5% effective April 1, 2023.

Council believes that the proposed fee increases balance the need to maintain adequate resources for the College to fulfill its mandate, while not imposing undue financial hardship on registrants.