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Bill C-24

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    (j) a statement of the commercial value of goods or services provided and of funds transferred to the candidate from a registered party, a registered association or a nomination contestant; and

(6) Section 451 of the Act is amended by adding the following after subsection (2):

Supporting documents

(2.1) Together with the electoral campaign return, the official agent of a candidate shall provide to the Chief Electoral Officer documents evidencing transactions set out in the return, including bank statements, deposit slips, cancelled cheques, any statements and declarations provided to the official agent by virtue of paragraph 405.3(2)(c) and subsection 405.3(4) and the candidate's written statement concerning personal expenses referred to in subsection 456(1).

Order for additional supporting documents

(2.2) If the Chief Electoral Officer is of the opinion that the documents provided under subsection (2.1) are not sufficient, the Chief Electoral Officer may require the official agent to provide by a specified date any additional documents that are necessary to comply with that subsection.

45. Paragraph 452(b) of the Act is replaced by the following:

    (b) the name of the contributor of a contribution of more than $10, the name or the address of the contributor having made contributions of a total amount of more than $200 or the name of the chief executive officer or president of a contributor referred to in paragraph 451(2)(h.1) is not known.

46. Subsection 453(1) of the Act is replaced by the following:

Auditor's report on return on election expenses

453. (1) As soon as practicable after an election, the auditor of a candidate shall report to the candidate's official agent on the electoral campaign return referred to in paragraph 451(1)(a) and shall, in accordance with generally accepted auditing standards , make any examination that will enable the auditor to give an opinion in the report as to whether the return presents fairly the information contained in the financial records on which it is based.

47. The portion of section 461 of the Act before paragraph (a) is replaced by the following:

Recourse of candidate for fault of official agent

461. A candidate may apply to a judge who is competent to conduct a recount for an order that relieves the candidate from any liability or consequence under this or any other Act in relation to an act or omission of the candidate's official agent, if the candidate establishes that

48. (1) Paragraph 464(1)(b) of the Act is replaced by the following:

    (b) the name of any candidate who received 10% or more of the number of valid votes cast; and

(2) Subsection 464(2) of the Act is replaced by the following:

Payment of partial reimbursemen t

(2) On receipt of the certificate, the Receiver General shall pay the amount set out in it out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund to the official agent of any candidate named in the certificate as partial reimbursement for the candidate's election expenses and personal expenses. The payment may be made to the person designated by the official agent.

49. Subsection 465(3) of the Act is replaced by the following:

Payment of final instalment

(3) On receipt of the certificate, the Receiver General shall pay the amount set out in it out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund to the official agent of the candidate. The payment may be made to the person designated by the official agent.

2001, c. 21, s. 23(F)

50. Sections 466 and 467 of the Act are replaced by the following:

Reimburseme nt of auditor's fees

466. On receipt of the documents referred to in subsection 451(1) and, if it applies, subsection 455(1), including the auditor's report, and a copy of the auditor's invoice for that report in an amount of $250 or more, the Chief Electoral Officer shall provide the Receiver General with a certificate that sets out the amount of the expenses incurred for the audit, up to a maximum of the lesser of 3% of the candidate's election expenses and $1,500.

Payment

467. On receipt of the certificate, the Receiver General shall pay the amount set out in it to the auditor out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund.

51. Subsection 468(2) of the Act is replaced by the following:

Payment

(2) On receipt of the certificate, the Receiver General shall pay out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund the amount of each listed candidate's nomination deposit to his or her official agent. The payment may be made to the person designated by the official agent.

52. Paragraph 469(a) of the Act is replaced by the following:

    (a) he or she is deemed for the purpose of section 464 to receive 10% of the valid votes cast in the electoral district in which he or she was a candidate; and

53. (1) Paragraph 470(1)(b) of the Act is replaced by the following:

    (b) each candidate is deemed to have obtained 10% of the votes that would have been validly cast at that deemed election; and

(2) The portion of paragraph 470(1)(c) of the Act before subparagraph (i) is replaced by the following:

    (c) on receipt of a certificate referred to in section 464 or 465, the Receiver General shall pay out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund to the candidate's official agent - or may alternatively pay to the person designated by the agent - the lesser of

54. Paragraphs 471(3)(a) and (b) of the Act are replaced by the following:

    (a) any funds that the candidate transfers, during the election, to a registered party or a registered association ; and

    (b) any amount of a reimbursement referred to in paragraphs (2)(b) and (c) that the candidate transfers to that registered party.

55. Paragraph 473(2)(a) of the Act is replaced by the following:

    (a) in the case of a candidate who was endorsed by a registered party, to that party or to the registered association of that party in the candidate's electoral district; or

56. Section 476 of the Act is replaced by the following:

Prohibition - transfer of contributions

476. No registered agent of a registered party, financial agent of a registered association or financial agent of a nomination contestant shall transfer funds to a candidate after polling day except to pay claims related to the candidate's electoral campaign.

57. The Act is amended by adding the following after section 478:

Division 5

Nomination Contest Report and Financial Administration of Nomination Contestants

Nomination Contest Report

Definitions

478.01 The definitions in this section apply in this Division.

``personal expenses''
« dépense personnelle »

``personal expenses'' means the expenses that are reasonably incurred by or on behalf of a nomination contestant in relation to a nomination campaign and include

      (a) travel and living expenses;

      (b) childcare expenses;

      (c) expenses relating to the provision of care for a person with a physical or mental incapacity for whom the contestant normally provides such care; and

      (d) in the case of a contestant who has a disability, additional personal expenses that are related to the disability.

``selection date''
« date de désignation »

``selection date'' means the date on which a nomination contest is decided.

Notice of nomination contest

478.02 (1) When a nomination contest is held, the registered party, or the registered association if the contest was held by the registered association, shall, within 30 days after the selection date, file with the Chief Electoral Officer a report setting out

    (a) the name of the electoral district, the registered association and the registered party that the nomination contest concerns;

    (b) the date on which the nomination contest began and the selection date;

    (c) the name and address of each nomination contestant as of the selection date and of his or her financial agent; and

    (d) the name of the person selected in the nomination contest.

Notice

(2) The Chief Electoral Officer shall, in the manner that he or she considers appropriate, communicate to each nomination contestant the information related to that contestant that was reported under subsection (1).

Publication

(3) The Chief Electoral Officer shall, in the manner that he or she considers appropriate, publish a notice containing the information referred to in subsection (1).

Deeming

478.03 For the purposes of this Part, a nomination contestant is deemed to have been a nomination contestant from the time he or she accepts a contribution or incurs a nomination campaign expense.

Duty to appoint financial agent

478.04 No nomination contestant shall, in relation to his or her nomination campaign, accept contributions or incur nomination campaign expenses unless he or she has appointed a financial agent.

Agents - ineligible persons

478.05 The following persons are not eligible to be the financial agent of a nomination contestant:

    (a) an election officer or a member of the staff of a returning officer;

    (b) a candidate or a nomination contestant;

    (c) an auditor appointed as required by this Act;

    (d) a person who is not an elector;

    (e) an undischarged bankrupt; and

    (f) a person who does not have the capacity to enter into contracts in the province in which the person ordinarily resides.

Consent

478.06 A nomination contestant shall obtain from the financial agent, on appointment, their signed consent to so act.

Replacement of financial agent

478.07 In the event of the death, incapacity, resignation or revocation of the appointment of the financial agent, a nomination contestant shall without delay appoint a replacement.

Only one financial agent

478.08 A nomination contestant shall have no more than one financial agent at a time.

Prohibition - agents

478.09 No person who is not eligible to be the financial agent of a nomination contestant shall so act.

Changes in reported information

478.1 (1) Within 30 days after a change in the information referred to in paragraph 478.02(1)(c), a nomination contestant shall report the change in writing to the Chief Electoral Officer.

New financial agent

(2) A report under subsection (1) that involves the replacement of the financial agent of the nomination contestant must include a copy of the signed consent under section 478.06.

Financial Administration of Nomination Contestants

Powers, Duties and Functions of Financial Agent

Duty of financial agent

478.11 The financial agent of a nomination contestant is responsible for administering the contestant's financial transactions for his or her nomination campaign and for reporting on those transactions in accordance with the provisions of this Act.

Bank account

478.12 (1) The financial agent of a nomination contestant shall open, for the sole purpose of the contestant's nomination campaign, a separate bank account in a Canadian financial institution as defined in section 2 of the Bank Act, or in an authorized foreign bank as defined in that section, that is not subject to the restrictions and requirements referred to in subsection 524(2) of that Act.

Account holder name

(2) The account must name the account holder as follows: ``(name of financial agent), financial agent''.

Payments and receipts

(3) All financial transactions of the nomination contestant in relation to the contestant's nomination campaign that involve the payment or receipt of money are to be paid from or deposited to the account.

Closure of bank account

(4) After the selection date, the financial agent of a nomination contestant shall close the account once any unpaid claims or surplus nomination campaign funds have been dealt with in accordance with this Act.

Final statement of bank account

(5) The financial agent shall, on closing the account, provide the Chief Electoral Officer with the final statement of the account.

Prohibition - accepting contributions

478.13 (1) No person, other than the financial agent of a nomination contestant, shall accept contributions to the contestant's nomination campaign.

Accepting certain contributions prohibited

(2) No financial agent of a nomination contestant shall accept a transfer from a registered party or registered association.

Prohibition - paying nomination campaign expenses

(3) No person or entity, other than the financial agent of a nomination contestant, shall pay nomination campaign expenses, other than personal expenses, of the contestant.

Prohibition - incurring nomination campaign expenses

(4) No person or entity, other than a nomination contestant or his or her financial agent, shall incur nomination campaign expenses of the contestant.

Prohibition - contestant's personal expenses

(5) No person, other than a nomination contestant or his or her financial agent, shall pay the contestant's personal expenses.

Limits on expenses

478.14 The nomination campaign expenses limit that is allowed for a nomination contestant in an electoral district is the amount

    (a) that is 50% of the limit that was allowed under section 440 for a candidate's election expenses in that electoral district during the immediately preceding general election, if the boundaries for the electoral district have not changed since then; or

    (b) that the Chief Electoral Officer determines, in any other case.

Prohibition - expenses more than maximum

478.15 (1) No nomination contestant or financial agent of a nomination contestant shall incur nomination campaign expenses in an amount that is more than the nomination campaign expenses limit allowed for that electoral district under section 478.14.

Prohibition - collusion

(2) No person or entity shall

    (a) circumvent, or attempt to circumvent, the nomination campaign expenses limit referred to in section 478.14; or

    (b) act in collusion with another person or entity for that purpose.

Recovery of Claims

Claim for payment

478.16 (1) A person who has a claim to be paid for an expense in relation to a nomination campaign shall send the invoice or other document evidencing the claim to