The Professional Governance Act (PGA) provides a governance framework for self-regulating professions. The professional regulators governed by the PGA, listed below, are referred to as regulatory bodies. The PGA also strengthens government oversight by establishing a statutory Office of the Superintendent of Professional Governance (OSPG) in the Ministry of Attorney General. OSPG is responsible for administering the PGA and ensuring that best practices for professional governance are implemented. The establishment of OSPG simplifies and standardizes how professions governed by the PGA are regulated by government.
In February 2021, the Applied Science Technologists and Technicians (ASTT) Act was repealed and ASTTBC was brought under the Professional Governance Act (PGA).
Code of Ethics and Conduct
ASTTBC’s new Standards of Competence & Code of Ethics, established in 2021, sets out rules that protect the public by ensuring that ASTTBC registrants practise competently, honestly, and with integrity.
After reviewing the existing Codes of Ethics of all five regulatory bodies operating under the PGA and comparing those Codes of Ethics to the twelve principles in the Professional Governance Act, the OSPG made recommendations on how ASTTBC and the four other regulatory bodies could strengthen their alignment to the legislation. This included a recommendation that each body revise their Code of Ethics.