The Keeping the Promise for a Strong Economy Act (Budget Measures), 2002, also known as Bill 198, was an Ontario legislative bill effective April 7, 2003,[1] which provides for regulation of securities issued in the province of Ontario.
It is perhaps best known for clauses that provide equivalent legislation to the U.S. Sarbanes–Oxley Act (SarbOx) to protect investors by improving the accuracy and reliability of corporate disclosures.
In October 2002, Janet Ecker, as Minister of Finance, introduced an omnibus bill in the legislature entitled Keeping the Promise for a Strong Economy Act (Budget Measures), 2002, now simply referred to as Bill 198.
Provisions included measures about corporate disclosure, auto insurance and tax.
In June 2003, all Canadian securities commissions (except the British Columbia Securities Commission) issued three regulations for public comment designed to build on Bill 198: MI 52-109 has been agreed to by the Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) and covers additional SarbOx issues.