Ontario Regulation 100/26 under the Education Act introduces several significant changes to the rules governing the composition and electoral representation of Ontario district school boards. The amendments focus on reducing the size of school boards, simplifying representation rules, and establishing transitional procedures to ensure timely implementation before the upcoming election cycle.

One of the most important changes is the replacement of the existing formula for determining the number of trustees on a school board. The new section 2.1 states that, for regular elections, the number of members on a board will be the lesser of 12 or the number of members that board had for the 2022 regular election. This effectively creates a province-wide cap of 12 trustees for district school boards. Boards that previously had more than 12 members will therefore be required to reduce their representation before the 2026 election. The amendment is intended to standardize governance structures and potentially reduce administrative costs and complexity across school boards.

The regulation also removes several earlier provisions that dealt with calculations related to board representation. Specifically, the definitions of “board area” and “density” in subsection 1(1) are revoked, and sections 2.1, 3, and 3.1 of the previous regulation are repealed and replaced. These changes suggest a move away from more complicated geographic or population-density-based considerations in determining trustee distribution. In addition, Tables 1 to 6 of the regulation are revoked entirely, eliminating older representation schedules or formulas that had previously guided trustee allocation among municipalities and electoral groups.

Another major aspect of the amendment concerns reporting obligations. The heading preceding section 9 is changed to “Report on Distribution,” and the revised subsection 9(1) sets out detailed reporting requirements after trustee positions are distributed. Boards must now prepare a report that includes the results of the distribution process, identification of the municipality with the largest population in cases where an electoral group spans multiple municipalities, and all supporting data and calculations used to determine representation. This change increases transparency and creates a clear administrative record showing how trustee positions were allocated.

The regulation also creates a special transitional framework for boards affected by the reduction in trustee numbers for the 2026 election. New sections 12 through 15 establish mandatory timelines and procedures. Boards whose membership is reduced must redistribute trustee positions within five business days after the regulation comes into force. After completing the redistribution, boards must notify the Minister and prepare a report containing the results and supporting calculations. Within one business day after the deadline, copies of the report must be sent to the Minister, municipal election clerks within the board’s jurisdiction, and neighbouring boards whose jurisdictions overlap.

Ontario (100/2026) May 5, 2026
Disclaimer: Insights are for informational purposes only and does not reflect RRI’s official position or constitute legal opinion.