VOTING PROCESS
Important: If your industry returns to Standard Pricing, whether due to a failed vote or insufficient participation, it cannot simply request another vote the following year. A minimum of three years must pass before another poll or re-poll can occur.
Understanding the ICP Vote
All employers in the municipal industry will be asked to vote Yes or No on whether the industry should continue participating in ICP or return to Standard Pricing.
Who Votes: Every employer in the industry receives a ballot. The outcome is determined by employer votes weighted according to assessable earnings (industry payroll).
Industry-Wide Decision: If employers representing greater than 50% of the industry's total assessable earnings vote in favour, the outcome applies to all employers in the industry, regardless of how they voted.
What You Decide:
- Yes = Continue participating in ICP: A Yes vote means you support your industry continuing to participate in the ICP option being voted on. If employers representing 50.01% or greater of the industry's assessable earnings vote in favour, the industry will continue participating in that ICP option beginning in the 2027 premium rate year.
- No = Return to Standard Pricing: A No vote means you support your industry returning to Standard Pricing. If employers representing 50.01% or less of the industry's assessable earnings vote in favour of continuing participation in the ICP option being voted on, the industry will return to Standard Pricing beginning in the 2027 premium rate year.
Key Point: If you do not submit a vote, it will be considered a vote to return to Standard Pricing. Make sure to cast your vote before the deadline so your voice counts in the outcome.
If you do not submit a vote, it will be considered a vote to return to Standard Pricing.
Step-by-Step: How to Vote
Check the Ballot
You’ll receive information from WCB about the ICP vote, including instructions.
Review the Details
Understand your industry's ICP option and what your vote means.
Cast Your Vote
Submit your Yes or No vote before the deadline.
MEET THE Deadlines
Votes must be submitted by the deadline indicated in the voting materials.
OUTCOMe ANNOUNCED
WCB will determine the outcome based on votes weighted by assessable earnings and notify the industry of the result.
When Changes Take Effect
Voting results do not take effect immediately. Any decision made through an ICP poll or re-poll is implemented in the next premium rate year, giving employers time to prepare for any changes.
For example, if a municipal industry is re-polled in 2026 and employers representing greater than 50% of the industry's assessable earnings vote in favour of remaining in ICP, the outcome would take effect in the 2027 premium rate year.
The change would take effect in 2027, not during the 2026 rate year. This approach provides stability and gives employers time to prepare for any changes to their pricing program.
Whether the industry chooses to:
- Remain in ICP
- Exit ICP and return to Standard Pricing
The outcome would take effect in the 2027 premium rate year.
Key takeaway: A vote held in 2026 determines whether the industry will continue participating in ICP or return to Standard Pricing in 2027. Any approved changes take effect in the next premium rate year, not immediately after the vote.