As announced on January 30, it is anticipated that the AIBC will be officially under the authority of the Professional Governance Act (PGA) on February 10, 2023.
On this date, registrants and the public will notice changes to key regulatory documents and the website, including new material, revised content, and in some cases, documents that have been repealed or completely removed. Readers may also find out-of-date references, as the AIBC is taking a phased approach to updating content.
To assist registrants and the public with understanding, navigating, and finding regulatory resources after the AIBC has transitioned to the PGA, an overview of the new regulatory authority hierarchy and transition plan for the AIBC suite of documents, has been outlined below:
Regulatory Authority Overview
1) Professional Governance Act
The Professional Governance Act (PGA) is broad and general legislation designed to modernize professional regulation and provide oversight of several regulatory bodies in British Columbia. It is the legislation that is replacing the Architects Act.
The PGA modernizes and clarifies the role of regulatory bodies, and also establishes the Office of the Superintendent of Professional Governance. The Act sets standard requirements for key elements of professional governance, such as council composition and bylaw creation. Currently, the PGA focuses on the natural and built environment, with five other regulators and professions, including engineering, already under its authority. Learn more about the PGA.
2) Regulations
The ‘Regulations’ to the Professional Governance Act are often referred to as delegated or subordinated legislation, but they have the same binding effect as statutes. Unlike statutes such as the PGA, they are not made or amended by the legislature, but by the Lieutenant Governor in Council (the Cabinet). While there were no regulations under the Architects Act, the PGA has regulations for each of the regulatory bodies/professions designated by the statute. A new Architects Regulation will come into force that addresses some transitional elements, such as continuing the current Council, and elements that were previously in the Architects Act, such as establishing the “reserved practice” for architects (formerly Section 60 ‘exceptions’) and setting reserved titles, such as architect and intern architect. Other regulations to the PGA include a General Regulation that covers a variety of subjects, including the nomination process for councillors and requirements for public disclosure of certain regulatory information. Registrants may be interested in viewing an example of Regulations – the Engineers and Geoscientists Regulations can be found here.
NOTE: Regulations will not reflect the architectural profession until after the anticipated transition date.
3) Bylaws
The new AIBC Bylaw document will be a more comprehensive, single-source document for the regulation of the architectural profession in B.C., alleviating the need to refer to multiple regulatory documents. This is significantly different than how AIBC bylaws and related documents are currently structured under the Architects Act. Registrants can expect to see the full document on the AIBC website on February 10. Of note, the bylaw document will continue to be refined as we move through the first stages of implementation.
4) Schedules
Schedules are regulatory documents authorized in the Bylaws that can be found at the end of the new AIBC Bylaws. They include the Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct, a number of Council Rules, and Administrative Guidelines regarding specific AIBC requirements and programs. For example, Internship in Architecture Program registration requirements and Fees (previously Bulletin 1:Fees, Fines and Charges) are Schedules.
5) Council Policy
Council Policy is essentially remaining as-is, until updates can be made. Council policy will continue to be aligned with the Policy Governance model in relation to the operations of Council, limitations Council places on CEO performance, and the relationship between Council and the CEO.
Transition Plan for Current AIBC Documents
The AIBC has been diligently working on updating the AIBC’s suite of documents and resources, including bylaws and the Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct, as noted above. Updated material (such as content on aibc.ca and practice resources) will be published in a phased approach: key regulatory documents will be revised and available on the day of transition, with other documents not being updated until after the transition date. The AIBC will clearly indicate which documents have been updated, and which have not.
Below is a summary of the transition plan for key regulatory resources:
- Bylaws
As mentioned above, the new AIBC Bylaw document will be available on the day of transition. It will be a comprehensive, single-source document, including ‘Schedules’. AIBC registrants are encouraged to review and reference this document thoroughly, once available. - Council Rules
Council Rules authorized under the Architects Act will be repealed. Updated Council Rules authorized under the new AIBC Bylaws will be found as Schedules to the new AIBC Bylaws. - Bulletins
Bulletins will be reviewed and updated in a phased approach. This means that some bulletins will still be available on the website after the transition date. The information contained in bulletins is being reallocated to other regulatory and practice resources, including: Bylaws and their Schedules, as well as Practice Guidelines. - Practice Guidelines
Practice Guidelines will be remaining on the AIBC website. Some edits may be made to the documents to be reflective of terminology changes and PGA requirements.
As mentioned, not everything will be updated by the day of transition – some AIBC documents, webpages, information, and processes on the website may not yet be reflective of the new legislation. On February 10, registrants should look to the Professional Governance Act and its Regulations, as well as the new AIBC Bylaw document. It is important to note that registrants and the public are also encouraged to contact the AIBC with questions through pga@aibc.ca or practiceadvice@aibc.ca. The AIBC is committed to assisting registrants navigate the transition, including where to find regulatory requirements and professional standards.
The AIBC will continue to update resources, as well as further modernize and refine published documents, throughout 2023.