Email this pageIndoor Marijuana Grow Operations

The Law Enforcement and Forfeited Property Management Statute Law Amendment Act, 2005, formerly Bill 128, will help combat the threat to community safety posed by illegal marijuana grow operations.

The act amends several provincial statutes to help protect Ontario communities from the hazards of grow operations. The legislation was developed in consultation with police, firefighters, municipalities, electricity distributors and representatives from the banking, insurance and real estate sectors.

The act amends

• The Building Code Act, 1992, to double the existing maximum penalties for infractions to $50,000 for an individual and $100,000 for a corporation (see Building Code Act, 1992)
  
  
• The Municipal Act, 2001 to require that a local municipality ensure a building is inspected if notified by police that the building housed a marijuana grow operation.  The official conducting the inspection is required to take whatever actions they are authorized by law to take to make the building safe and otherwise protect the public. 

View the Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services' sample Notification Protocol.

You may refer to Bill 128 by visiting e-Laws.

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ON BILL 128

When does the Law Enforcement and Forfeited Property Management Statute Law Amendment Act, 2005, Bill 128, come into effect?

Most of the requirements in the Law Enforcement and Forfeited Property Management Statute Law Amendment Act, 2005 came into force upon Royal Assent on December 15, 2005.  The remaining requirements came into force on August 1, 2006 and include

• Amendments to the Municipal Act, 2001, requiring municipal officials to inspect a property after notification from police that the property had been used to grow marijuana.  If municipal officials determine the property is unsafe, they would order remedial work to make the building safe 
  
  
• Amendments to the Crown Attorney’s Act, providing for the appointment of a Director of Asset Management responsible for holding, managing or disposing of property restrained by or forfeited to the Crown in right of Ontario under the Criminal Code.

How will this legislation be effective in the fight against grow operations in Ontario?

The Law Enforcement and Forfeited Property Management Statute Law Amendment Act, 2005:

• Doubles the fines under the Building Code Act, 1992
• Doubles the fines under the Fire Protection and Prevention Act,1997
• Mandates, under authority of the Municipal Act, 2001, that an inspection of the building is conducted when police notify the municipal clerk in writing that a building contained a marijuana grow operation
• Protects the province's electricity distribution system
• Makes it easier to recover the proceeds of criminal activity.

What will police do when they find a marijuana grow operation?

When a marijuana grow operation is discovered in a premise, building or structure on a property, the police:

• Will conduct an investigation into the illicit marijuana grow operation
• May notify the municipal clerk in writing that the property contained a marijuana grow operation, if the building is in an area of municipal jurisdiction.  The police will dismantle the grow operation and remove obvious hazards and booby traps prior to the entry of the premises by qualified officials from the municipality.

How will municipalities learn of a police discovery of a marijuana grow operation?

The clerk of the municipality may be notified by police of a property that contained a marijuana grow operation. 

The Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services has developed a sample Notification Protocol that may be used by police and municipalities. A copy of the protocol may be found here.

Once police and municipalities agree on the form and use of the Notification Protocol, it may be used by police to notify municipal clerks.

What is a municipality’s responsibility when notified of a marijuana grow operation by police? 

When the municipal clerk is notified in writing of a marijuana grow operation, the municipality shall ensure that an inspection of the building is conducted within a reasonable time after the clerk has been notified. Upon conclusion of the inspection, the official who conducted the inspection shall take whatever actions he or she is authorized by law to take in order to make the building safe and otherwise protect the public.

How will a municipality know which municipal official should inspect a marijuana grow operation?

The Law Enforcement and Forfeited Property Management Statute Law Amendment Act, 2005 allows for an inspection to be conducted by either:

• a bylaw enforcement officer of any municipality or of any local board of any municipality
• an officer, employee or agent of any municipality or of any local board of any municipality whose responsibilities include the enforcement of a bylaw, an act or a regulation.

The municipality may therefore choose the most appropriate department or official of that municipality or a local board to conduct the inspection.

In an area with two tiers of municipal governance, which municipal government is responsible for ensuring that inspections are carried out?

When a lower-tier municipality is notified by police in writing that a building contained a marijuana grow operation, the lower-tier municipality may forward a copy of the police notice to the clerk of the appropriate upper-tier municipality, if the lower-tier municipality deems it appropriate to do so.  Once the clerk of the upper-tier municipality is notified, the obligation to inspect rests with both the upper- and lower-tier municipality.

What precautions against chemicals, structural instability or booby traps are necessary to protect the health and safety of municipal officials conducting inspections?

The Municipal Health and Safety Association of Ontario (MHSAO) will be providing awareness and entry training for those who will be inspecting marijuana grow operations. The Ontario Police College advised the MHSAO on the design of the training program.

Further information about this training can be obtained from Dave Carter, Manager Police Services, MHSAO at: (905) 434-7570 or dcarter@mhsao.com.

Are municipal officials required to accompany police on raids?

No. Municipal officials are not compelled by Bill 128 to accompany police on any raids or criminal investigations into a marijuana grow operation.  The amendments to the Municipal Act, 2001, resulting from this legislation, require municipal officials to inspect the property after being notified by police that the residence was used as a marijuana grow operation.

What if a municipal official finds that the building does not meet health and /or safety standards during the inspection?

Upon conclusion of the inspection, the official who conducted the inspection shall take whatever actions he or she is authorized by law to take in order to make the building safe and otherwise protect the public, including ordering any remedial work needed to make the building safe.