Legislation in Focus
Bill 101: Putting Student Achievement First Act, 2026
Introduced April 13, 2026 and passed under closure on May 6, 2026, Bill 101 received Royal Assent on May 7, 2026. It amends the Education Act, the School Boards Collective Bargaining Act, and three other statutes. The legislation further concentrates authority over school boards in the Minister of Education while removing elected trustees from collective bargaining entirely.
Bill 101 is the second major Ontario education reform in three years, following Bill 98 (2023). Where Bill 98 introduced trustee codes of conduct and expanded Ministerial powers over curriculum and school property, Bill 101 goes further: it restructures board governance, removes trustees from labour negotiations, and gives the Minister direct control over board budgets, land acquisitions, and public communications. Both bills passed under closure motions that limited debate.
Schedule 2 and Schedule 5
Reduced Trustee Authority
Bill 101 makes significant structural changes to the role of elected trustees in English-language district school boards. Several of these changes shift decision-making authority from elected trustees to appointed administrators or the Minister.
Board Size Reduced by Regulation
The number of trustees on a district school board is now set by regulation, with the Act specifying the number must be between 5 and 12. This allows the government to reduce board sizes without further legislative debate (s. 58.1(10)).
Director of Education Becomes CEO
In English-language district school boards, the director of education is now designated the chief executive officer of the board and must be referred to as such in all public communications. The director sits as a board member but cannot exercise a binding vote (s. 283.0.1, s. 283.0.2).
Board Resolutions Require Confirmation
The Minister may prescribe circumstances in which a resolution or motion passed by an English-language district school board is not effective unless confirmed by the chair, the director of education, or another prescribed official. A resolution that does not receive the required confirmation has no legal effect (s. 283.0.3).
Trustees Removed from Collective Bargaining
The Ontario Public School Boards' Association (OPSBA) and the Ontario Catholic School Trustees' Association (OCSTA) are replaced by the Council of Ontario Directors of Education (CODE) as the employer bargaining agency for all English-language school boards. Elected trustees no longer represent boards at the central bargaining table (Schedule 5, s. 21).
Trustee Communications Controlled
The Minister may establish policies governing all board public communications, including communications made by board members acting as representatives of the board. Boards must comply with these policies (s. 8(1)(27.4)).
Board Estimates Require Ministerial Approval
Boards must obtain the Minister's approval of their annual estimates in prescribed circumstances. Estimates approved by the Minister are deemed approved by the board. The Minister may attach conditions to the approval (s. 232(5.1)-(5.2)).
Schedule 2 -- Education Act
Further Expanded Ministerial Powers
Bill 101 builds on the powers granted to the Minister under Bill 98 (2023), adding new authority over board finances, land, and governance structures.
Land Acquisition Requires Approval
Before a board may acquire a school site or any other land, it must submit a request for the Minister's approval. The Minister must approve or refuse within a prescribed period. Boards must also obtain approval before making additions, alterations, improvements, or repairs to buildings (s. 195(1), s. 195(1.1)).
Minister May Direct Building Management
If the Minister believes a board has not complied or is unlikely to comply with policies on school property, the Minister may give directions to the board or appoint a person or body to take control of the management of any building project. The board must co-operate and may be required to pay the costs (s. 195.0.1).
Student Achievement Policies
The Minister may establish policies and guidelines for the assessment of student achievement and require all boards to comply. This extends Ministerial authority over how student performance is measured and reported (s. 8(1)(3.3)).
Educational Materials Controlled
The Minister may set policies governing the use of approved educational materials in instruction, including rules for how boards select and use textbooks and other learning materials, including digital materials (s. 8(1)(7.1)).
School Climate Surveys Eliminated
The Act repeals the Minister's power to require boards to conduct school climate surveys and removes the requirement that boards use such surveys to collect information from pupils, staff, parents, and guardians (s. 169.1(2.1)-(2.2) repealed).
Board Expense Policies Prescribed
The Minister may establish policies governing board expense policies, including specifying what expenses trustees and staff may be reimbursed for and prohibiting reimbursement for specified persons or purposes (s. 8(1)(3.7)).
Implications for Families
What Bill 101 Means for Parents
Bill 101 does not introduce new rights for parents. The removal of school climate surveys eliminates one mechanism through which boards were required to collect feedback from parents and guardians. The shift of collective bargaining authority from elected trustees to appointed directors further reduces the accountability of the bargaining process to local communities.
School Climate Surveys Removed
The requirement for boards to conduct school climate surveys -- which collected information from pupils, staff, parents, and guardians -- is repealed. Parents lose a formal channel through which their views on school climate were required to be gathered (s. 169.1(2.1)-(2.2) repealed).
Trustees No Longer Bargain on Parents' Behalf
Elected trustees previously represented school boards at the central collective bargaining table through OPSBA and OCSTA. Under Bill 101, that role passes to the Council of Ontario Directors of Education (CODE), whose members are appointed administrators, not elected representatives.
Board Resolutions May Be Vetoed
The new confirmation requirement means that a resolution passed by elected trustees may be rendered ineffective by the chair, the director of education, or another prescribed official. Parents who advocate for a board decision through their elected trustees cannot be certain that decision will take effect.
Related Legislation
Bill 101 builds on Bill 98 (2023), which introduced trustee codes of conduct, integrity commissioner sanctions, and expanded Ministerial powers over curriculum and school property.