The Professional Governance Act (PGA)
The Agrologists Act was repealed with the PGA in effect on February 5, 2021. The PGA and its regulations, including the Agrologists Regulation can be viewed on the BC government bylaws website.
"The Professional Governance Act (PGA) was created in response to recommendations made in the independent Final Report of the Professional Reliance Review submitted to the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy in June 2018. The PGA implements two of the Review’s recommendations by legislating best practices for professional governance and establishing the Office of the Superintendent of Professional Governance (OSPG) for consistent and independent oversight of the professional regulators. The PGA received Royal Assent on November 27, 2018.
"The PGA enables regulatory bodies to establish protected titles for their professions as well as reserved or protected areas of practice for their professions. The PGA also provides authority for regulatory bodies to regulate firms as Registrants." ~ Excerpts from the OSPG website
The PGA provides a consistent governance framework for self-regulating professions in BC that incorporates best practices of professional governance. The PGA currently governs the five regulatory bodies overseeing agrologists, applied biologists, applied science technologists and technicians, engineers and geoscientists, and forest professionals.
Office of the Superintendent of Professional Governance (OSPG)
The PGA also strengthens government oversight by establishing a statutory Office of the Superintendent of Professional Governance (OSPG) in the Ministry of Attorney General in June 2019. The OSPG is responsible for administering the PGA and for ensuring that best practices for professional governance are implemented. The establishment of the OSPG simplifies and standardizes how professions governed by the PGA are regulated by government. The OSPG strengthens government oversight while being independent of the ministries that regulate the sectors in which professionals practice. The OSPG provides the impartiality needed to create an effective and trusted framework for professional governance.
Office of the Superintendent of Professional Governance Resources and Others:
BCIA Bylaws
The Professional Governance Act stipulates that regulatory bodies must create bylaws to govern their organizations. These bylaws are approved by the Board and the OSPG. Schedule A of the bylaws is the Code of Ethics, Schedule B is the Oath of Office.
Click here to read the BCIA bylaws
The Professional Governance Act (2018) provides the mandate and the legal structure that creates BCIA and provides for the creation of agrology as a self-governing profession in British Columbia. In addition, BCIA has put in place the bylaws and policies that provide organizational structure.
Agreements
The Institute has committed to other agreements, including:
Policies & Procedures
BCIA policies and procedures are available to registered agrologists for downloading. They are meant to provide the Board, branch executives, committees, and staff with the necessary guidance to carry out key functions of the Institute. They are a beginning, versus an end, and should be considered a first step in articulating policies and practices required to meet BCIA’s regulatory mandate, as well as to guide the organization as a business.