What other factors have gone into this year’s increase in dues?

All regulators under the Professional Governance Act (PGA) have had to evaluate, revise and expand their statutorily mandated activities to maintain compliance with the requirements in both the PGA and the International Credentials Recognition Act (ICRA). Examples of investments and improvements include:

• Ongoing investments in technology to allow for better access for registrants including online CPD reporting, in-house Learning Management System, and the online application portal
• Increased investments in compliance activities related to unlawful use of title and/or unlawful practice (practice infringement) as per the definition in the Applied Biologists Regulation
• Revamped internal operating procedures
• Further development of the self-evaluation to evaluate the College’s compliance with the Office of the Superintendent of Professional Governance’s (OSPG) Standards of Good Regulation (a performance review by the OSPG is scheduled for 2026)
• Coming into compliance with the 2024 International Credentials Recognition Act
• A substantive increase in complaints resulting in an increase in compliance activities including investigations, review of professional work product by subject matter experts, and when necessary, disciplinary actions.

Ongoing costs will include:

• Increased capacity to support the required practice guidance program
• Increased support for statutory committees (Nominations, Credentials, Audit & Practice Review, Investigations, Discipline)
• Bylaw updates and amendments
• Increased costs in adequately funding the Complaints and Discipline process
• Increased reporting functions as required through by International Credentials Recognition Act (ICRA)
• Increased reporting functions as required through the OSPG’s Standards of Good Regulation
• Increased OSPG information requests and annual reporting requirements
• Expansion of compliance work regarding unlawful Title and Reserved Practice infringement
• Ongoing collaboration with other regulators on alignments and intersections of reserved practice, and overlaps in regulated practice
• Continued investments in technology
• Ongoing outreach activities with registrants, employers, academic institutions and training providers, all levels of government (Federal, Provincial, First Nations, Municipal), other regulators, and the public at larg