b'Reflections on the F E A T U R ECommunity Safety& Policing Act (CSPA)N obodysaidmodernizingpolicinglegis- the changes, we are now able to take a step back, reflect By Sharon Wilmot, Peel Regional Police, and Jason Fraser, York Regional PolicelationinOntariowasgoingtobeeasy.and evaluate the impacts of some of the changes that The provinces Future of Policing Advisorycame about on April 1.Committee(FPAC)wasestablishedinTHE GOOD NEWS2013 to develop a plan for the effective, efficient and sustainable delivering of police services. TheThe good news is that many aspects of the CSPA remain FPAC informed the Strategy for a Safer Ontario, and thissimilar to the PSA. Although, in some regards, that is also ultimately led to the 2018 passage of the Safer Ontario Actthe bad news. Some of the issues that police desperately (SOA). By the end of 2018 following a provincial election,neededclarityandpositivechangeonhaveremained theSOAwasretracted,andinFebruaryof2019,newlargelythesame.Somechangesthatstakeholders policing legislation superseded the SOA. believed would be highly problematic ended up being After years of discussions, stakeholder consultations,non-issues, while on the other hand, some changes came commissioned reviews and many fiery debates, the futureas great surprises and left police services scrambling for of policing is finally here with the repeal of the Policestrategies as to how to make them work. Finally, some Services Act and the implementation of the Communityissues remain outstanding and still need clarification. In thatregard,advocacyonoutstandingissuescontinues Safety and Policing Act, 2019 (CSPA) on April 1, 2024. Thebehind the scenes.CSPA promises to transform the governance frameworkOne of the main goals of the CSPA has always been to for policing with a focus on modernization, accountabilityfind efficiency and streamline police oversight, while still and transparency, and finding efficiencies in the policingensuring robust transparency and accountability mechan-sector through a community safety and well-being lens. isms. In many ways, this has been achieved through the As April 1 came and went, so too did the implemen- new discipline procedures, which allow chiefs to imple-tation of the CSPA. The sky has not fallen, and Ontarioment discipline up to and including punitive suspensions police services are working out some of the challengeswithout pay for a period not exceeding 30 days without and assessing the actual effects of the new legislation. Asholding a hearing. This empowers chiefs to deal with a police services have had an opportunity to operationalizelarge proportion of disciplinary matters efficiently, whichThe Official Publication of the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police11'