Ontario IPC and OHRC Issue Joint AI Principles for Public Sector Use, January 21, 2026

On January 21, 2026, the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario (IPC) and the Ontario Human Rights Commission (OHRC) jointly published a set of principles titled "Principles for the Responsible Use of Artificial Intelligence." The document is directed at Ontario public sector bodies — including provincial ministries, agencies, municipalities, school boards, and health-care institutions — that deploy or procure AI systems affecting individuals. The publication is a joint guidance document, not a statute or regulation, and carries no independent legislative force.

The principles draw their authority from the IPC's mandate under the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FIPPA), R.S.O. 1990, c. F.31, and the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (MFIPPA), R.S.O. 1990, c. M.56, as well as the OHRC's mandate under the Ontario Human Rights Code, R.S.O. 1990, c. H.19. The document identifies nine principles: lawfulness and authority; fairness and non-discrimination; privacy by design; transparency and explainability; accountability; accuracy and reliability; security; limited use and data minimization; and human oversight. The IPC and OHRC state that AI use must comply with existing obligations under FIPPA, MFIPPA, and the Human Rights Code; the principles do not create new legal obligations beyond those statutes.

Ontario public sector bodies procuring or deploying AI tools — including automated decision-support systems, predictive analytics, facial recognition, and generative AI platforms — must now weigh these principles when designing procurement terms, data-sharing agreements, and algorithmic impact assessments. The transparency and explainability principle requires that affected individuals be informed when AI is used to make or materially inform decisions about them. The human oversight principle requires that AI-generated outputs be subject to meaningful review by an accountable human decision-maker before they produce legal or significant practical effects on individuals.

The document is guidance only; the IPC and OHRC have not announced any new enforcement mechanism tied specifically to the principles. Enforcement continues under existing FIPPA/MFIPPA complaint and order powers held by the IPC, and under the Ontario Human Rights Tribunal's jurisdiction over Code complaints. The principles do not address private-sector AI use, federal government AI systems, or AI systems regulated under the proposed federal Artificial Intelligence and Data Act (AIDA), which remains before Parliament as of March 3, 2026.

Source: Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario and Ontario Human Rights Commission, "Principles for the Responsible Use of Artificial Intelligence" (January 21, 2026), https://www.ipc.on.ca/en/resources/principles-responsible-use-artificial-intelligence. Confirmed: March 3, 2026.

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