Bill C-15 (Budget 2025 Implementation Act, No. 1) includes contentious amendments to the federal Expropriation Act designed to fast-track land acquisition for high-speed rail and infrastructure projects. These changes simplify, and remove, procedures for consultation, compensation, and owner objection, allowing for accelerated, direct expropriation by the government.
Bill C-15 Makes it easier for the government to take your land!
Bill C-15
What you can do now;
Contact senators as many as you can:
Call them, leave messages, email them. Have your friends and family do the same. Be vocal about what you don't support.
Include specifics when contacting your senators like:
Key talking points Bill C-15:
1 - Fast-Tracked Expropriation: If the Minister of Transport deems land necessary for high-speed rail, the Crown can skip preliminary negotiations and proceed immediately to expropriation.
2 - Reduced Owner Rights: Amendments limit the ability of landowners to challenge or appeal the seizure of their property, reducing traditional checks and balances. We have good laws in Canada for expropriation, use those.
3 - Concerns Over Compensation: the bill does not guarantee compensation based on independent, fair market value appraisals. We have good expropriation laws in Canada, USE THE ONES WE HAVE!
4 - Impact on Indigenous Lands: Concerns exist that the legislation could allow federal overreach, bypassing the duty to consult and accommodate First Nations on expropriation matters.
5 - Environmental Concerns: the amendments "streamline" or bypass necessary environmental assessments during land acquisition. If this project is supposed to be environmentally friendly or beneficial, why is our government afraid of environmental impact assessments?
You can find Senator information at https://sencanada.ca/en/senators/?v=contact
What you can do now;
Sign and circulate the petition
MAKE SURE YOU CHECK YOUR EMAIL AND CLICK THE VERIFY EMAIL for the signature to count!