Lawrence Nault – Civic Sketches – Page 2 – Draft policy proposals on technology, environment, occupational health, and democratic governance

Democratic Governance

Direct Representation, Remote Attendance, and Public Cost Accountability Act
ByLawrence Nault July 16, 2026July 16, 2026

When representatives are physically removed from their ridings for long stretches of time, a disconnect forms. Constituents become scheduled appointments instead of daily surroundings. Local concerns become briefing notes instead of lived realities. The capital becomes the centre of political gravity, while the riding becomes a place to visit, campaign in, and occasionally report back to.This policy concept asks a simple question: if modern technology is good enough for corporations, courts, public agencies, and international institutions, why is it not good enough to keep elected officials closer to the people they represent?

Read the proposal → Direct Representation, Remote Attendance, and Public Cost Accountability Act
Environmental Policy | Housing & Community

Renewable-Ready Construction and Grid Relief Policy
ByLawrence Nault July 16, 2026July 16, 2026

This proposal does not require every new structure to power itself completely. That would be unrealistic in many cases. What it does require is that every new building include some form of renewable energy supply or demand-reduction system — solar, wind, geothermal, solar thermal, or an approved equivalent — so that new construction provides at least some relief to the grid it depends on.

Read the proposal → Renewable-Ready Construction and Grid Relief Policy
Democratic Governance | Housing & Community

Homes First Residential Ownership Act
ByLawrence Nault July 16, 2026July 16, 2026

The Homes First Residential Ownership Act, is built around a simple distinction: purpose-built apartment buildings can and should remain part of the rental housing system, but single-family homes, duplexes, townhouses, and other family-scale housing should not be quietly converted into corporate portfolios.

Read the proposal → Homes First Residential Ownership Act
Privacy & Data Rights | Technology Governance

Public Use of Camera-Capable Wearable Technology and Personal Data Protection Act
ByLawrence Nault July 16, 2026July 16, 2026

The companion policy proposal, companion to this one, looked at what happens when businesses, public bodies, employers, contractors, institutions, and service providers use camera-capable wearable technology in places where people are asked to expose sensitive information.

Read the proposal → Public Use of Camera-Capable Wearable Technology and Personal Data Protection Act
Privacy & Data Rights | Technology Governance

Camera-Capable Wearable Technology and Sensitive Information Protection Act
ByLawrence Nault July 16, 2026July 16, 2026

If an organization requires you to show sensitive information, it has a duty to protect that information from unnecessary recording, whether by staff, contractors, wearable devices, background software, or nearby third parties.

Privacy cannot depend on whether someone notices a tiny light on a pair of glasses.

Read the proposal → Camera-Capable Wearable Technology and Sensitive Information Protection Act
Food Security | Technology Governance

The Food Affordability and Grocery Transparency Act
ByLawrence Nault July 16, 2026July 16, 2026

This proposal is designed to ensure that Canadians can see when products have been quietly reduced in size, weight, volume, or content; that governments can measure where grocery profit is actually being taken across the entire supply chain; that essential food prices are not personalized through surveillance-based pricing; and that loyalty-program members can see how their data is being collected, shared, and monetized.

Read the proposal → The Food Affordability and Grocery Transparency Act
Democratic Governance | Labour Market & Employment Policy

The Jobs Reporting Act
ByLawrence Nault July 16, 2026July 16, 2026

Download the PDF A proposal to make governments report job creation honestly: short-term jobs, long-term jobs, and long-term jobs that actually pay enough to live on. Governments love job numbers. A project is announced, a subsidy is justified, a ribbon is cut, and the public is told that hundreds or thousands of jobs will be…

Read the proposal → The Jobs Reporting Act
Labour Market & Employment Policy | Privacy & Data Rights | Technology Governance

Truth in Job Advertising and Applicant Data Protection Framework
ByLawrence Nault July 16, 2026July 16, 2026

Download the PDF Every job posting asks something of the applicant. It asks for time, attention, employment history, education history, references, contact information, salary expectations, and often enough personal detail to build a profile of a person’s working life. That exchange should come with obligations. If a job is not real, not active, already filled,…

Read the proposal → Truth in Job Advertising and Applicant Data Protection Framework
Privacy & Data Rights | Technology Governance

The AI Upload Consent and Data Authority Act
ByLawrence Nault July 16, 2026July 16, 2026

The AI Upload Consent and Data Authority Act is a proposal to create clear rules, visible warnings, meaningful consent, platform accountability, and enforceable consequences before people hand someone else’s work or private documents to systems that may store, share, analyze, or train on them.

Read the proposal → The AI Upload Consent and Data Authority Act
Food Security | Housing & Community

The Productive Farmland Protection and Valuation Act
ByLawrence Nault July 16, 2026July 16, 2026

The Productive Farmland Protection and Valuation Act is a proposal to protect family farms, support food affordability, reduce speculative pressure on agricultural land, and recognize farmland as food-system infrastructure rather than just another real estate asset.

Read the proposal → The Productive Farmland Protection and Valuation Act