College Board and OSPG approve revisions to College bylaws
The College’s governing Board and the Office of the Superintendent of Professional Governance have approved revisions to the College’s bylaws.
Revisions primarily address administrative changes such as correcting drafting errors and clarifying references. However, notable changes include: requiring members of statutory committees to be practicing and in good standing; technical changes such as creating a vice chair position for statutory committees; and the removal of the Student category.
The College has prepared an FAQ to provide additional context for the changes, which are in effect as of June 23, 2025.
General
Why did the College choose to revise the bylaws in 2025?
As a best management practice the College reviews and revises its bylaws annually to address any unintended issues in their application. The process includes working with the College’s legal counsel and the Office of the Superintendent to ensure compliance with the provisions in the Professional Governance Act.
Are there any other notable changes to the bylaws in 2025 other than those mentioned in the preamble?
Yes, Part 9 of the bylaws has been revised to remove the requirement for the Registrar to post publicly complaints that are dismissed. As the complaint process respects the confidentiality of both the complainant and the respondent if no non-compliance is determined by the Investigation Committee, there is little value in posting dismissals. The Registrar still may post a rationale if the dismissal, once anonymized, still has information that is pertinent for the public or for registrants. Information regarding non-compliances will continue to be posted on the College’s website.
As well, Principle 8 of the Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct now includes avoiding injuring the reputation of “members of the public”.
Will any further revisions be made to the bylaws?
Yes. The College is committed to continuous improvement and will continue to review and improve its bylaws, standards and policies as required.
Cessation of registration for Student designation
Why has the College ended registration in the Student category?
Registration in a student category was not contemplated by the Professional Governance Act (PGA) or any subsequent statute and was instead a legacy of the College of Applied Biology Act. The PGA only authorizes the College to regulate in-training, practicing, on leave and retired registrants; the student category does not fulfill the requirements of any of those areas.
What will happen to current members in the Student category?
Current members of the Student category will continue to be members of the College until the end of the current registration year. Their membership will not be renewed after this date. Those individuals will maintain their profile in the College’s portal.
Refunds on the application fee will be provided for members of the Student category who only joined in 2025.
Statutory committees
What areas of the bylaws regarding statutory committees have changed?
The bylaws have been revised to refine the eligibility requirements for registrants to participate on statutory committees. Primarily, the language has been clarified that registrants who are practicing are eligible, which is consistent with Board member criteria. Registrants that are in-training or retired will still be eligible to participate on working groups and task forces.
Another revision that has been applied among statutory committees is the authority for a committee to designate a vice chair from its number should the chair not be available, which provides redundancy. As statutory committees are decision-making bodies, there needs to be flexibility for quorum to make timely decisions even if the chair is not available.
Finally, should a Discipline Panel need to be convened to adjudicate a hearing, panel members will no longer be drawn from the Discipline Committee.
Any questions regarding the bylaw revisions or the bylaws themselves can be referred to the College office.
