Fireworks bylaw that introduced tougher penalties to be reviewed in Mississauga

Mississauga is reviewing its new fireworks bylaw that late last year introduced significantly steeper fines that could cost the worst offenders anywhere from $5,000 to $100,000.

Mayor Carolyn Parrish, with support from city council, has directed senior municipal staff to study the beefed-up City of Mississauga fireworks bylaw with an eye toward recommending if any additional changes should be made.

The bylaw in its current form was enacted in October 2023 after Ward 8 Coun. Matt Mahoney pushed for more teeth in the rules when dealing with the most egregious offenders.

“This is targeting the illegal fireworks that we, as a municipality, have been dealing with for years,” Mahoney told his colleagues in October 2023 shortly before his motion passed. “I think the $100,000 fine is really something that just shows people who are breaking the rules that we’re not going to stand for it any longer.”

The previous bylaw on the books in Mississauga with respect to fireworks allowed for a maximum fine of $5,000 to be imposed on those who set them off illegally. Effective Dec. 1, 2023, that figure was increased to $100,000 and, in special cases, Mahoney noted at the time, the penalty could be even steeper, as much as $200,000.

Ward 8 Coun. Matt Mahoney, also the city’s deputy mayor, pushed for a tougher fireworks bylaw in Mississauga that was enacted in late 2023.

In a letter dated last Friday, Parrish directed city staff to study the updated bylaw and return with a report to include, among other things:

• a review of the 2023 Fireworks Report that refined regulations governing the sale of and use of home fireworks on five approved holidays in Mississauga (Victoria Day, Canada Day, Diwali, Lunar New Year and New Year’s Eve) with a focus on the effectiveness of those regulations
• a comparison of number of complaints to 311 (the city’s information line), Peel Regional Police and councillors’ offices including follow-up investigations and any anecdotal reports from city wards
• interviews with Peel police regarding preparations and monitoring of expected and actual events in “hot spots” in the city and the costs of police overtime, regular duty police and other logistics
• cost of using city bylaw enforcement officers to monitor public behaviour related to fireworks
• updated information from Brampton and Caledon, where personal use of fireworks has been nearly completely banned since 2022
• cost of hosting Canada Day fireworks in the City Centre

The Brampton ban prohibits the use and sale of fireworks, with the film industry and city-run events excluded from the ban.