Thirty-five years after it started, the Prince Edward Island Regulatory and Appeals Commission (IRAC) is being dismantled and replaced with two specialized groups. The P.E.I. government said it would end the IRAC’s single structure following an interim independent review that found the organization’s model has been overwhelmed by complexity. The review, which was the first of its kind since IRAC started in 1991, started last May and held more than 40 meetings with community groups. Its interim report calls for a “complete restructuring” of the organization, which regulates petroleum pricing, wastewater utilities and administration of the Lands Protection Act. “The question we were asked is whether IRAC is still fit for purpose,” said review commissioner Rory Francis in a news release. “For more than three decades it has served Island residents, and we found capable, hard-working people who care about getting decisions right. “The challenge is to build a structure that better equips those people, and their successors, to perform increasingly complex regulatory, appellate and administrative functions.” Following the review’s recommendations, the provincial government said it would establish the PEI Energy and Utilities Board, and the PEI Land and Appeals Board. “This is an interim report, and we respect that the review still has work to do before the final report is made available,” said Premier Rob Lantz. “But our government is not waiting on the final report to start the work that needs to be done. “Where a recommendation is ours to act on, it doesn’t need a final report to be published, and Islanders don’t need to wait any longer for a regulatory and appeals system that is more transparent, more focused, and more accountable to the people they are intended to serve.” The final review will be submitted on Nov. 1. For more P.E.I. news, visit our dedicated provincial page.
