Chamber
commons
Stage
2nd Reading
Introduced
Sep 22, 2025
Progress
This bill requires the federal government to develop a national strategy for coordinating flood and drought forecasting across Canada.
Key Changes
- Requires the Minister of Environment to develop a national flood and drought forecasting strategy within two years
- Mandates consultation with provinces, municipalities, Indigenous governing bodies, universities, civil society, and industry including insurers
- Requires an assessment of the need for national coordination, new investment, and new technologies in forecasting
- Requires a proposal for a cooperative national hydrological and water resources forecasting service
- Requires a follow-up effectiveness report to Parliament within five years of the strategy being tabled
- Requires the strategy and follow-up report to be published on a Government of Canada website
Gotchas
- The bill only requires the development of a strategy and reports — it does not create or fund an actual national forecasting service, leaving implementation to future decisions
- No funding or budget is specified in the bill, meaning the strategy's recommendations may require separate legislation or appropriations to act on
- The five-year window for the effectiveness report means meaningful accountability could be delayed up to seven years after the bill becomes law
- The bill references the federal-provincial distributed model of the National Hydrological Service as a template, suggesting a cooperative rather than centralized approach
- Inclusion of the insurance industry as a named stakeholder in consultations is notable, as insurers have a financial interest in flood risk data and mapping
Who's Affected
- Federal government departments (Environment, Agriculture, Infrastructure, Natural Resources, Public Safety)
- Provincial and municipal governments
- Indigenous communities and governing bodies
- Farmers and the agricultural industry
- Insurance industry
- Canadian universities with water forecasting expertise
- Homeowners and communities in flood-prone or drought-prone areas
Vibes
0 responses
Gotchas
- The bill only requires the development of a strategy and reports — it does not create or fund an actual national forecasting service, leaving implementation to future decisions
- No funding or budget is specified in the bill, meaning the strategy's recommendations may require separate legislation or appropriations to act on
- The five-year window for the effectiveness report means meaningful accountability could be delayed up to seven years after the bill becomes law
- The bill references the federal-provincial distributed model of the National Hydrological Service as a template, suggesting a cooperative rather than centralized approach
- Inclusion of the insurance industry as a named stakeholder in consultations is notable, as insurers have a financial interest in flood risk data and mapping
Summary
Bill C-241 directs the Minister of Environment, working with four other federal ministers, to create a national strategy for flood and drought forecasting. Right now, each province handles its own forecasting with little coordination or federal support. This bill aims to fix that by bringing together governments, Indigenous communities, universities, and industries to plan a better, more unified system. The strategy must assess what new investments and technologies are needed, identify properties and infrastructure at risk from floods, and explore how a national forecasting service could serve provinces, municipalities, Indigenous communities, and industries like farming and insurance. The bill notes that Canada already has world-class water forecasting models developed at universities, and that most other advanced countries already have national flood forecasting services. The Minister must table the completed strategy in Parliament within two years of the bill becoming law, and then report on how well the strategy is working within five years after that. This bill was introduced as a private member's bill on September 22, 2025.
Automatically generated from bill text using Claude
Vibes
0 responses
Recorded Votes
| Date | Description | Yeas | Nays | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 3, 2025 | 2nd reading of Bill C-241, An Act to establish a national strategy respecting flood and drought forecasting | 303 | 22 | Agreed To |