Vol. 151, No. 14 — July 12, 2017

Registration

SOR/2017-136 June 20, 2017

CONTRAVENTIONS ACT

Regulations Amending the Application of Provincial Laws Regulations

P.C. 2017-788 June 20, 2017

His Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of Justice, pursuant to subsection 65.1(1) (see footnote a) of the Contraventions Act (see footnote b), makes the annexed Regulations Amending the Application of Provincial Laws Regulations.

Regulations Amending the Application of Provincial Laws Regulations

Amendments

1 (1) Subsection 1(1) of Part IV of the schedule to the Application of Provincial Laws Regulations (see footnote 1) is replaced by the following:

1 (1) Subject to subsection (2), the following enactments apply in respect of contraventions alleged to have been committed in Manitoba or within the territorial jurisdiction of the courts of Manitoba:

(2) Paragraphs 1(2)(c) and (d) of Part IV of the schedule to the Regulations are replaced by the following:

2 Section 2 of Part IV of the schedule to the Regulations is replaced by the following:

2 Sections 3 and 4 of The Provincial Offences Act of Manitoba do not apply in respect of the prosecution of a contravention.

3 The heading of Part VI of the schedule to the Regulations is replaced by the following:

Province of Newfoundland and Labrador

4 (1) Subsection 1(1) of Part VI of the schedule to the Regulations is replaced by the following:

1 (1) Subject to subsection (2), the following enactments apply in respect of contraventions alleged to have been committed, on or after March 31, 2017, in Newfoundland and Labrador or within the territorial jurisdiction of the courts of Newfoundland and Labrador:

(2) Paragraphs 1(2)(a) to (c) of Part VI of the schedule to the Regulations are replaced by the following:

5 Sections 2 and 3 of Part VI of the schedule to the Regulations are replaced by the following:

2 Section 5, subsection 32.4(2) and section 40 of the Provincial Offences Act of Newfoundland and Labrador do not apply in respect of the prosecution of a contravention.

3 Contraventions are deemed to be offences for which a complaint may be laid and a summons issued by means of a ticket under the Provincial Offences Act of Newfoundland and Labrador.

4 The enactments made applicable by this Part shall be read as if sections 530 and 530.1 of the Criminal Code, with any modifications that the circumstances require, were contained in those enactments.

6 Subsection 1(4) of Part VIII of the schedule to the Regulations is replaced by the following:

(4) A reference to the “Assistant Deputy Attorney General, Criminal Justice Branch” in sections 18 and 18.1 of the Offence Act of British Columbia shall be read as a reference to the “Chief Federal Prosecutor, Public Prosecution Service of Canada, Regional Office of British Columbia”.

Coming into Force

7 These Regulations come into force on the day on which they are registered.

REGULATORY IMPACT ANALYSIS STATEMENT

(This statement is not part of the Regulations.)

Issues

Amendments to three parts of the Application of Provincial Laws Regulations were required to allow proper administration and enforcement of the Contraventions Act in accordance with the existing ticketing schemes of the provinces of Manitoba, Newfoundland and Labrador and British Columbia.

Amendments to Part IV of the schedule to the Application of Provincial Laws Regulations (Province of Manitoba) were required in order to reflect amendments made by the Province of Manitoba to the Provincial Offences Act.

Following discussions between the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador and the Department of Justice, further amendments to Part VI of the schedule to the Application of Provincial Laws Regulations (Province of Newfoundland and Labrador) were required to reflect the current state of the applicable provincial law in order to move forward with the creation of a complete legal framework for the administration and enforcement of federal contraventions in the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador.

Finally, an amendment to Part VIII of the schedule to the Application of Provincial Laws Regulations (Province of British Columbia) was required in order to reflect a new function title.

Background

In October 1992, Parliament passed the Contraventions Act to establish an alternative to the summary conviction procedure set out in Part XXVII of the Criminal Code for prosecuting certain federal offences. The Contraventions Act was amended in 1996 to provide the Governor in Council the authority to make regulations to allow federal contraventions to be prosecuted in accordance with the existing ticketing scheme of each province and territory, thus making use of the procedures of each of these systems.

The Application of Provincial Laws Regulations adopted on August 1, 1996, identify, in their schedule, the laws of each province that apply and incorporate those laws by reference. The Application of Provincial Laws Regulations provide for some equivalency of terminology between the terms used in the Contraventions Act and the terms used in provincial statutes and exclude, in each of these provincial legislations, any provision that comes in conflict with the principles set out in the Contraventions Act. For example, any provision in provincial legislation that stipulates that an offender prosecuted by means of a ticket could also be imposed a jail term as a penalty is excluded. Under section 42 of the Contraventions Act, an offender who is found guilty of a contravention can only be sentenced to a fine. The incorporation by reference of provincial laws by way of regulations accommodates practical requirements of flexibility and effectiveness and ensures useful bridging between the federal and provincial legislation.

The Contraventions Act was also amended in 1996 to provide the Minister of Justice with the authority to enter into an agreement with the government of a province or territory respecting the administration and enforcement of the Act, covering in particular the prosecution process, the enforcement of fines, as well as the sharing of fines and fees imposed as a result of the Act and shared as compensation to the jurisdiction.

In practical terms, federal enforcement officers can start using a provincial ticketing scheme when both the following legal requirements are met: the incorporation by reference of the provincial legislation has been completed in accordance with the Application of Provincial Laws Regulations; and an agreement has been signed with the provincial government in conformity with the Contraventions Act. In the absence of either one of these two conditions, federal offences designated as contraventions continue to be enforced using warnings or prosecuted under the Criminal Code summary conviction process. Three parts of the Application of Provincial Laws Regulations required amendments to allow proper administration and enforcement of the Act in accordance with the existing ticketing schemes of the provinces of Manitoba, Newfoundland and Labrador and British Columbia.

Objectives

The amendments ensure that, once an agreement is signed with the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador, the existing ticketing scheme of the province applies integrally and adequately to federal contraventions committed within the jurisdiction of that province, excluding provincial provisions which are incompatible with the letter and spirit of the Contraventions Act.

The amendments also reflect amendments recently made by the Province of Manitoba to its applicable provincial legislation to federal contraventions and ensure that the existing provincial ticketing scheme is applied adequately.

Finally, the amendments involving the Province of British Columbia reflect a new function title.

Description

Part IV (Province of Manitoba)

The amendments to Part IV of the schedule to the Application of Provincial Laws Regulations reflect amendments made by the Province of Manitoba to the Provincial Offences Act, involving repeals and change of vocabulary. For example, paragraph 1(2)(c) of this Part of the Schedule to the Application of Provincial Laws Regulations was repealed, as there was no longer reference to “offence notice” in the new Provincial Offences Act.

Part VI (Province of Newfoundland and Labrador)

The amendments to Part VI of the schedule to the Application of Provincial Laws Regulations add provincial enactments which apply to the enforcement of federal contraventions (Young Persons Offences Act, R.S.N.L. 1990, c. Y-1 and Victims of Crime Services Act, R.S.N.L. 1990 c. V-5), identify the equivalency of terminology between the terms used in the Contraventions Act and the terms used in the provincial statutes and finally, exclude provisions that came in conflict with the principles set out in the Contraventions Act. For example, they exclude subsection 32.4(2) of the Provincial Offences Act for being contrary to subsection 42(2) of the Contraventions Act, as it notes the power of a judge to incarcerate a person who has failed to comply with a conviction.

Part VIII (Province of British Columbia)

The amendments to Part VIII of the schedule to the Application of Provincial Laws Regulations simply replace the title “Group Head, Federal Prosecution Service, Regional Office of British Columbia” in subsection 1(4) by “Chief Federal Prosecutor, Public Prosecution Service of Canada, Regional Office of British Columbia.”

“One-for-One” Rule

The “One-for-One” Rule does not apply to this initiative because there is no change in administrative costs to business.

Small business lens

The small business lens does not apply because this initiative has no cost implications for small business.

Consultation

As the amendments to the parts of the Application of Provincial Laws Regulations were technical and in part in relation to agreements signed with the provinces, no public consultations were conducted. With regard to the amendments to Part IV of the schedule to the Application of Provincial Laws Regulations, the Department of Justice Canada was notified by provincial counterparts that amendments would be needed in order to continue reliance on the provincial legal framework to apply the Contraventions Regime in Manitoba. As for the amendments to Part VI of the schedule to the Application of Provincial Laws Regulations, the amendments were shared with representatives of the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador. Finally, the amendments to part VIII to the Application of Provincial Laws Regulations were made at the request of representatives from the Public Prosecution Service of Canada, in the Province of British Columbia.

Rationale

The amendments ensure that, once an agreement is signed with the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador, the existing ticketing scheme of the Province applies integrally and adequately to federal contraventions committed within the jurisdiction of that Province, excluding provincial provisions which are incompatible with the letter and spirit of the Act.

The amendments also ensure that the existing ticketing schemes of the provinces of Manitoba and British Columbia continue to apply adequately reflecting amendments performed by the Province of Manitoba to its applicable legislation and, in the case of British Columbia, new function title.

The amendments made to the schedule to the Application of Provincial Laws Regulations do not generate any new costs for Canadians: they take into consideration amendments made by the provinces and reflect new function title.

Implementation, enforcement and service standards

These Regulations come into force on the day on which they are registered.

The amendments involving Part VI were shared with representatives of the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador while the Province of Manitoba notified the Department of Justice regarding the amendments required to Part IV. The amendments to Part VIII were made at the request of representatives from the Public Prosecution Service of Canada, in the Province of British Columbia.

Contact

Marie-Claude Gervais
Counsel
Implementation of the Contraventions Regime
Innovations, Analysis and Integration Directorate
Policy Sector
Department of Justice Canada
284 Wellington Street
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0H8
Telephone: 613-946-3872