NEW – ON: Industry to be consulted on hazardous and special products 2022 fees

The Resource Productivity and Recovery Authority (RPRA), the Registrar responsible for the Hazardous and Special Products Regulation (O. Reg 449/21), is consulting the industry on the proposed fee schedule for 2022.  

Producers obligated under the HSP Regulation are required to pay fees to the Authority to fund its operations, including the costs related to building and operating the Registry, and compliance and enforcement activities. Category E propane marketers have only two obligations under the HSP regulation: register with the Authority and collect and manage refillable propane cylinders they market in the province.

The CPA successfully advocated for significantly lower fees for Category E (refillable propane cylinder) producers/marketers when the RPRA consulted on the initial fee schedule for obligated producers under the province’s new recycling regime in 2021.

As a result of this effort, impacted propane businesses paid $1,000 to register with the Authority; a significant reduction from the $7,500 fee the RPRA first proposed. The Association also pressed the regulator to add a flat fee for small category E producers as provided by other program participants. Shortly after, the RPRA added a flat fee of $75 for propane marketers with less than $2 million in Ontario revenues.

Regardless of these revisions, the CPA continues to oppose the large fee amount charged for program registration, given the limited role of the sector and the restricted work of the Authority administering Category E producers.

The RPRA proposes to maintain the $1,000 fee for Category E producers in 2022, while increasing the flat fee for Category E producers with annual revenues less than $2 million in Ontario, from $75 to $100.

In March 2022, the RPRA conducted stakeholder consultations on their proposed 2022 fees. An RPRA Board Committee is now seeking greater input into proposed 2022 fees from industry associations and other impacted groups. The CPA will focus on the significant fees paid into this program over the past year by an industry whose over 90% recycling rate is enviable and should be considered a best-practice in its remarks on Thursday, April 21.

CPA Director of Government Relations for Ontario, Marcelline Riddell, will continue to press for substantial fee reductions for propane producers at this forum and report back to members on the outcome of the discussion and final 2022 program fees.

Click here to review the Authority’s proposed 2022 fees.