Bill C-15

Cost Recovery

142.01 (1) For the federal Minister to recover costs incurred in the course of an environmental assessment, an environmental impact review or an examination — carried out by a review panel, or a joint panel, established jointly by the Review Board and any other person or body — that stands in lieu of an environmental impact review, the person or body that proposes to carry out the development shall pay to the federal Minister

(a) any amounts that are prescribed by the regulations and that are related to the exercise of the powers and performance of the duties and functions of the Review Board or its members or of members of the Review Board’s review panels or of a review panel or a joint panel;

(b) any costs incurred by the Review Board for services that are prescribed by the regulations and that are provided to it by a third party; and

(c) any amounts that are prescribed by the regulations and that are related to the exercise of the powers and performance of the duties and functions of the federal Minister.

(2) For the purposes of subsection (1), the services, powers, duties or functions described in that subsection are limited to those provided, exercised or performed

(a) during the period that begins when a proposed development is referred to the Review Board under section 125, or when a person or body that proposes to carry out a development is given notice under subsection 126(5), and ends when a copy of the final decision under the process set out in this Part is issued to that person or body; or

(b) during any period prescribed by the regulations that is within the period referred to in paragraph (a).

(3) The costs and amounts that a person or body that proposes to carry out a development must pay under subsection (1) constitute a debt due to Her Majesty in right of Canada and may be recovered as such in any court of competent jurisdiction.

(2) The Act is amended by adding the following after section 142:

Public Register

142.1 (1) The Review Board shall maintain at its main office a register convenient for use by the public in which shall be entered the following:

(a) all documents that are produced, collected or received by the Review Board, a review panel of the Review Board, a review panel or a joint panel established jointly by the Review Board and any other person or body in relation to any environmental assessment or environmental impact review;

(b) any notice it receives under subsection 124(1) or (2); and

(c) any report it receives under paragraph 125(1)(a) or (2)(a).

(2) The register shall be open to inspection by any person during the Review Board’s normal business hours, subject to the payment of any fee prescribed by the regulations.

(3) The Review Board shall, on request and on payment of any fee prescribed by the regulations, make available copies of information contained in the register.

(4) The register shall also be made accessible to the public via the Internet.

(5) Despite any other provision of this Act, the register shall contain information only if

(a) it has otherwise been made publicly available; or

(b) in the case of a record, the Review Board

(i) determines that it would have been disclosed to the public in accordance with the Access to Information Act if a request had been made in respect of that record under that Act at the time the record came under the control of the Review Board, including any record that would be disclosed in the public interest under subsection 20(6) of that Act, or

(ii) has reasonable grounds to believe that it would be in the public interest to disclose the record because it is required for the public to participate effectively in a preliminary screening, environmental assessment or environmental impact review, other than any record whose disclosure would be prohibited under section 20 of the Access to Information Act.

(6) Sections 27, 28 and 44 of the Access to Information Act apply to any information described in subsection 27(1) of that Act that the Review Board intends to be included in the register with any necessary modifications, including the following:

(a) the information is deemed to be a record that the head of a government institution intends to disclose; and

(b) any reference to the person who requested access shall be disregarded.

Policy Directions

142.2 (1) The federal Minister may, after consultation with the Review Board and the Tlicho Government, give written policy directions that are binding on the Review Board or its review panels with respect to the exercise of any of their functions under this Act.

(2) Policy directions do not apply in respect of a proposal for a development that, at the time the directions are given, is before the Review Board or one of its review panels.

(3) If there is a conflict between policy directions given under this section and the provisions of any Act of Parliament, any regulations made under an Act of Parliament or any territorial law, those provisions prevail to the extent of the conflict.

(3) The Act is amended by adding the following after section 142.2:

Amendment of Certificate

142.21 (1) With the approval of the federal Minister, the Review Board may, on its own initiative or at the request of the person or body to which a development certificate was issued under section 131.3 or 137.4 or any interested person, examine the conditions of that certificate if

(a) the conditions are not achieving their intended purpose or are having effects that are significantly different from those anticipated at the time the certificate was issued;

(b) the circumstances relating to the development are significantly different from those anticipated at the time the certificate was issued; or

(c) technological developments or new information provides a more efficient method of achieving the intended purpose of the conditions.

(2) The Review Board shall examine the conditions set out in a development certificate that it has issued if the federal Minister is of the opinion that any of paragraphs (1)(a) to (c) applies and so advises the Review Board.

(3) The Review Board shall notify the person or body and the federal Minister in writing of an examination undertaken under subsection (1) or the person or body of an examination undertaken under subsection (2).

(4) The Review Board may conduct its examination of the conditions in the manner that it considers appropriate in the circumstances.

(5) Within five months after the day on which the federal Minister gives the Review Board his or her approval under subsection (1) or advises the Review Board of his or her opinion under subsection (2), the Review Board shall submit a written report to the federal Minister that contains

(a) an assessment of the conditions in force; and

(b) its recommendations as to the conditions that should apply in respect of the development.

(6) The federal Minister may, at the request of the Review Board, extend the time limit referred to in subsection (5) by a maximum of two months to take into account circumstances that are specific to the development.

(7) The Governor in Council may, on the recommendation of the federal Minister, further extend the time limit extended under subsection (6) any number of times.

(8) If the Review Board requires the person or body to which the development certificate in question was issued to provide information, or collect information or undertake a study with respect to the development, then the period that is taken by that person or body, in the Review Board’s opinion, to comply with the requirement is not included in the calculation of the time limit or of its extension.

(9) The federal Minister shall distribute the Review Board’s report to every responsible minister.

(10) The federal Minister and the responsible ministers may agree, in respect of each recommendation in that report, either to

(a) accept it;

(b) refer it back to the Review Board for further consideration; or

(c) after consulting the Review Board, adopt it with modifications.

(11) The federal Minister shall distribute a decision made under subsection (10) to the Review Board and to every first nation, local government, regulatory authority and department and agency of the federal or territorial government affected by the decision.

(12) The federal Minister shall distribute a decision made under this section within three months after the day on which the federal Minister receives the Review Board’s report under subsection (5).

(13) The federal Minister may extend the time limit referred to in subsection (12) by a maximum of two months to take into account circumstances that are specific to the development.

(14) The Governor in Council may, on the recommendation of the federal Minister, further extend the time limit extended under subsection (13) any number of times.

(15) If a recommendation is referred back to the Review Board for further consideration under paragraph (10)(b), the time taken for that referral and consideration is included in the calculation of the time limit set out in subsection (12) or of its extension.

(16) If the federal Minister or the Review Board requires the person or body to which the development certificate in question was issued to provide information, or collect information or undertake a study with respect to the development, then the period that is taken by that person or body, in the federal Minister’s or the Review Board’s opinion, as the case may be, to comply with the requirement is not included in the calculation of the time limit under subsection (12) or of its extension.

(17) Within 30 days after the day on which the Review Board receives the decision under subsection (10), it shall issue an amended development certificate that sets out the conditions contained in that decision.

(18) Subsections 131.3(2), (6) and (7) or subsections 137.4(2), (6) and (7) apply, as the case may be, to an amended development certificate.

142.22 Each regulatory authority shall, to the extent of its authority to do so, incorporate the conditions referred to in subsection 142.21(17) into any licence, permit or other authorization that it issues, amends or renews.

Developments Not Carried Out

142.23 (1) A development certificate issued under section 131.3 or 137.4 ceases to be valid five years after the day on which it is issued, if the proposed development for which that certificate is issued is not commenced within those five years.

(2) An amended development certificate issued under subsection 142.21(17) expires five years after the day on which the development certificate in relation to that development is issued under section 131.3 or 137.4, as the case may be, if the proposed development for which the certificate is issued is not commenced within those five years.

(3) It is prohibited to carry out a proposed development, in whole or in part, if the development certificate or amended development certificate issued in relation to it has ceased to be valid.

(4) If a development certificate or amended development certificate has ceased to be valid, the person or body that proposes to carry out the development may make a request to the Review Board that it conduct a new environmental assessment of the proposed development and, in that case, the proposal is deemed to be referred to the Review Board under section 125.

(5) In conducting the new environmental assessment, the Review Board shall consider, and may rely on, any assessment activities previously carried out under this Part in respect of the proposed development.

Administration and Enforcement

Designation

142.24 The federal Minister may designate qualified persons, or classes of qualified persons, as inspectors to exercise powers relating to verifying compliance or preventing non-compliance with this Part or orders made under section 142.29.

Powers

142.25 (1) An inspector may, for the purpose of verifying compliance or preventing non-compliance with this Part or orders made under section 142.29, enter a place in which they have reasonable grounds to believe that a development is being carried out or a document or any thing relating to a development is located.

(2) The inspector may, for the purposes referred to in subsection (1),

(a) examine anything in the place;

(b) use any means of communication in the place or cause it to be used;

(c) use any computer system in the place or cause it to be used to examine data contained in or available to that system;

(d) prepare a document or cause one to be prepared based on the data;

(e) use any copying equipment in the place or cause it to be used;

(f) remove anything from the place for examination or copying;

(g) take photographs and make recordings or sketches;

(h) order the owner or person in charge of the place or any person at the place to establish their identity to the inspector’s satisfaction or to stop or start an activity;

(i) order the owner or person having possession, care or control of anything in the place to not move it or to restrict its movement for as long as, in the inspector’s opinion, is necessary;

(j) direct any person to put any machinery, vehicle or equipment in the place into operation or to cease operating it; and

(k) prohibit or limit access to all or part of the place.

(3) The federal Minister shall provide every inspector with a certificate of designation. On entering any place, the inspector shall, if so requested, produce the certificate to the occupant or person in charge of the place.

(4) The owner or person in charge of the place and every person in it shall give all assistance that is reasonably required to enable the inspector to verify compliance or prevent non-compliance with this Part or orders made under section 142.29 and shall provide any documents, data or information that are reasonably required for that purpose.

(5) If an inspector considers it reasonable to do so, an inspector shall give the Gwich’in or Sahtu First Nation prior notice of entry by the inspector on its first nation lands.

(6) An inspector shall, if it is reasonable to do so, give the Tlicho Government prior notice of entry by the inspector on Tlicho lands.

142.26 (1) If the place referred to in subsection 142.25(1) is a dwelling-house, the inspector may only enter it with the occupant’s consent or under the authority of a warrant issued under subsection (2).

(2) On ex parte application, a justice of the peace may issue a warrant authorizing the inspector who is named in it to enter a dwelling-house, subject to any conditions spec-ified in the warrant, if the justice of the peace is satisfied by information on oath that

(a) the dwelling-house is a place referred to in subsection 142.25(1);

(b) entry to the dwelling-house is necessary for the purpose of verifying compliance or preventing non-compliance with this Part or orders made under section 142.29; and

(c) entry was refused by the occupant or there are reasonable grounds to believe that entry will be refused or that consent to entry cannot be obtained from the occupant.

142.27 (1) For the purpose of gaining entry to a place referred to in subsection 142.25(1), an inspector may enter and pass through private property. For greater certainty, no person has a right to object to that use of the property and no warrant is required for the entry, unless the property is a dwelling-house.

(2) A person may, at the inspector’s request, accompany the inspector to assist them in gaining entry to the place referred to in subsection 142.25(1) and is not liable for doing so.

142.28 In executing a warrant to enter a dwelling-house, an inspector shall not use force unless the use of force has been specifically authorized in the warrant and the inspector is accompanied by a peace officer.

Orders

142.29 (1) If an inspector has reasonable grounds to believe that there is a contravention of this Part, they may, among other things, order a person to

(a) stop doing something that is in contravention of this Part or cause it to be stopped; or

(b) take any measure that is necessary in order for the person to comply with this Part or to mitigate the effects of the contravention.

(2) The order shall be provided in the form of a written notice and shall include

(a) a statement of the reasons for the order; and

(b) the time and manner in which the order is to be carried out.

142.3 (1) If a person does not comply with an order made under section 142.29 within the time specified, the inspector may, on their own initiative, take the measures specified in the order.

(2) Any portion of the reasonable costs incurred by Her Majesty in right of Canada in the taking of measures under subsection (1) constitutes a debt due to Her Majesty recoverable from the person in a court of competent jurisdiction.

Coordination

142.31 An inspector shall coordinate their activities with those of any inspector designated under Part 3 and any person designated for the purposes of verifying compliance or preventing non-compliance with any other Act of Parliament or territorial law so as to ensure efficiency and avoid duplication.

225. Subsection 142.25(5) of the Act is replaced by the following:

(5) An inspector shall, if it is reasonable to do so, give the Gwich’in or Sahtu First Nation prior notice of entry by the inspector on its first nation lands.

226. (1) Paragraph 143(1)(d) of the Act is replaced by the following:

(d) prescribing the form of the register to be maintained by the Review Board under section 142.1 and the information to be entered in it, and respecting the fees, if any, to be paid to examine the register or to obtain copies from it;

(2) Subsection 143(1) of the Act is amended by striking out “and” at the end of paragraph (f) and by adding the following after paragraph (g):

(h) respecting any consultation with a first nation, the Tlicho First Nation, the Tlicho Government or an aboriginal people who use an area outside the Mackenzie Valley that may occur under this Part, including the manner in which it is to be conducted, and providing for the delegation of certain procedural aspects of such consultation; and

(i) respecting the recovery of amounts and costs for the purposes of section 142.01, including prescribing anything that is to be prescribed by that section and exempting any class of person or body that proposes to carry out the development from the application of that section.

(3) Subsection 143(2) of the Act is replaced by the following:

(2) Regulations may only be made or amended under paragraph (1)(a), (d), (e), (f), (g), (h) or (i) or amended under paragraph (1)(b) or (c), following consultation by the federal Minister with the Review Board.

(2.1) In addition to the consultation referred to in subsection (2), the federal Minister shall consult the Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board before making or amending any regulations under paragraph (1)(h) that relate to a preliminary screening by that Board.

(4) Subsection 143(3) of the Act is replaced by the following:

(3) No development is to be exempted for a reason set out in paragraph 124(1)(b) if it is a designated project or belongs to a class of designated projects, within the meaning of the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act, 2012, by virtue of regulations made under paragraph 84(a) of that Act.

(5) Section 143 of the Act is amended by adding the following after subsection (3):

(4) A regulation made under this Part may incorporate by reference documents that are produced by a person other than the federal Minister or a body.

(5) A regulation made under this Part may incorporate by reference documents that the federal Minister reproduces or translates from documents produced by a body or person other than the federal Minister

(a) with any adaptations of form and reference that will facilitate their incorporation into the regulation; or

(b) in a form that sets out only the parts of them that apply for the purposes of the regulation.

(6) A regulation made under this Part may incorporate by reference documents that the federal Minister produces jointly with another government for the purpose of harmonizing the regulation with other laws.

(7) A regulation made under this Part may incorporate by reference technical or explanatory documents that the federal Minister produces, including

(a) specifications, classifications, illustrations, graphs or other information of a technical nature; and

(b) test methods, procedures, operational standards, safety standards or performance standards of a technical nature.

(8) Documents may be incorporated by reference as amended from time to time.

(9) Subsections (4) to (8) are for greater certainty and do not limit any authority to make regulations incorporating material by reference that exists apart from those subsections.

(10) The federal Minister shall ensure that any document that is incorporated by reference in the regulation is accessible.

(11) A person is not liable to be found guilty of an offence or subjected to an administrative sanction for any contravention in respect of which a document that is incorporated by reference in the regulation is relevant unless, at the time of the alleged contravention, the document was accessible as required by subsection (10) or it was otherwise accessible to the person.

(12) For greater certainty, a document that is incorporated by reference in the regulation is not required to be transmitted for registration or published in the Canada Gazette by reason only that it is incorporated by reference.

227. Subsection 144(1) of the Act is replaced by the following:

144. (1) The Governor in Council may, by regulations made following consultation by the federal Minister with the territorial Minister, the Review Board, the first nations and the Tlicho Government, amend the schedule by adding, or by deleting, the name of any agency, other than the Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board, that exercises regulatory powers under territorial or federal laws and that is not subject to specific control or direction by a minister of the federal or territorial government or the Governor in Council.

228. The Act is amended by adding the following after section 144:

Prohibitions, Offences and Punishment

144.01 It is prohibited to knowingly obstruct or hinder an inspector who is exercising their powers or performing their duties and functions under this Part.

144.02 It is prohibited to knowingly make a false or misleading statement or knowingly provide false or misleading information in connection with any matter under this Part to any person who is exercising their powers or performing their duties and functions under this Part.

144.03 (1) Every person or body that proposes to carry out a development and that contravenes section 117.1 and every person who contravenes subsection 142.23(3) or an order made under subsection 142.29(1) is guilty of an offence and is liable on summary conviction

(a) for a first offence, to a fine not exceeding $250,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year, or to both; and

(b) for a second or subsequent offence, to a fine not exceeding $500,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year, or to both.

(2) Every person who contravenes section 144.01 or 144.02 is guilty of an offence and is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding $250,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year, or to both.

(3) An offence under subsection (1) that is committed or continued on more than one day constitutes a separate offence for each day on which it is committed or continued.

(4) No one is to be convicted of an offence under subsection (1) if they establish that they exercised due diligence to prevent the commission of the offence.

144.04 No proceedings in respect of an offence under this Part are to be instituted more than five years after the day on which the federal Minister becomes aware of the acts or omissions that constitute the alleged offence.

144.05 (1) In proceedings for an offence under this Part, a certificate, report or other document of the federal Minister, the Review Board, a regulatory authority, a designated regulatory agency or an inspector that is purported to have been signed by that person, board or authority is admissible in evidence without proof of the signature or official character of the person appearing to have signed it and, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, is proof of the matters asserted in it.

(2) In proceedings for an offence under this Part, a copy of or an extract from any document that is made by the federal Minister, the Review Board, a regulatory authority, a designated regulatory agency or an inspector that appears to have been certified under the signature of that person, board or authority as a true copy or extract is admissible in evidence without proof of the signature or official character of the person appearing to have signed it and, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, has the same probative force as the original would have if it were proved in the ordinary way.

(3) A document referred to in this section is, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, presumed to have been issued on the date that it bears.

(4) No document referred to in this section is to be received in evidence unless the party intending to produce it has provided reasonable notice of that intention to the party against whom it is intended to be produced together with a copy of the document.

229. The Act is amended by adding the following after section 144:

PART 5.1

REGIONAL STUDIES

144.1 (1) The federal Minister may establish a committee to conduct a study of the effects of existing or future physical activities carried out in a region of the Mackenzie Valley.

(2) If the federal Minister establishes a committee, he or she shall establish its terms of reference and appoint as a member of the committee one or more persons.

144.2 Before establishing the committee’s terms of reference, the federal Minister shall seek and consider the advice of the territorial government, any affected first nation and, if the study affects the Tlicho First Nation, the Tlicho Government.

144.3 The federal Minister, if he or she considers it appropriate, may enter into an agreement or arrangement with any person or body with relevant knowledge or expertise with respect to their participation in the committee’s study.

144.4 If the federal Minister is of the opinion that it is appropriate to conduct a study of the effects of existing or future physical activities carried out in a region of the Mackenzie Valley and in a region contiguous to it, the federal Minister may enter into an agreement or arrangement with an authority responsible for the examination of environmental effects in that region respecting the joint establishment of a committee to conduct the study and the manner in which the study is to be conducted.

144.5 In conducting its study, the committee shall consider any traditional knowledge and scientific information that is made available to it.

144.6 Subject to any other federal or territorial law, a committee may obtain, from any board established or continued by this Act or from any department or agency of the federal or territorial government, any information in the possession of the board, department or agency that is required for it to conduct its study.

144.7 On completion of its study, the com-mittee established under subsection 144.1(1) or under an agreement or arrangement entered into under section 144.4 shall provide a report to the federal Minister, who shall make it available to the public.

144.8 The Gwich’in Land Use Planning Board, the Sahtu Land Use Planning Board, the Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board, the Mackenzie Valley Environmental Impact Review Board, its review panels, a review panel, or a joint panel established jointly by the Mackenzie Valley Environmental Impact Review Board and any other person or body, and any body conducting a preliminary screening of a proposal for a development under section 124 shall consider any report referred to in section 144.7.

144.9 (1) A member of a committee shall not participate in a study if that participation would place the member in a material conflict of interest.

(2) A member of a committee is not placed in a material conflict of interest merely because of any status or entitlement conferred on the member under the Gwich’in Agreement, the Sahtu Agreement, the Tlicho Agreement or any other agreement between a first nation and Her Majesty in right of Canada for the settlement of a land claim.

230. Section 149 of the Act is replaced by the following:

149. Subject to any other federal or territorial law, a responsible authority or a person or body that performs an environmental audit may obtain, from any board established by or continued under this Act or from any department or agency of the federal or territorial government, any information in the possession of the board, department or agency that is required for the performance of the functions of the responsible authority or person under this Part.

231. The Act is amended by adding the following after section 150:

PART 6.1

ADMINISTRATIVE MONETARY PENALTIES

Interpretation

150.01 The following definitions apply in this Part.

“Board” has the same meaning as in section 51.

“inspector” means a person designated as an inspector under section 84 or 142.24.

“penalty” means an administrative monetary penalty imposed under this Part for a violation.

“review body” means

(a) in respect of a violation relating to Part 3, the Board; and

(b) in respect of a violation relating to Part 5, the federal Minister.

Federal Minister’s Powers

150.02 (1) The federal Minister may, with the approval of the Governor in Council, make regulations for the purposes of sections 150.03 to 150.23, including regulations

(a) designating as a violation that may be proceeded with in accordance with this Act

(i) the contravention of any specified provision of this Act or of any of its regulations,

(ii) the contravention of any order, direction or decision — or of any order, direction or decision of any specified class — made or given under this Act, or

(iii) the failure to comply with a term or condition of any licence, permit or other authorization or development certificate issued under this Act or a term or condition of a specified class of licences, permits or other authorizations;

(b) respecting the determination of or the method of determining the amount payable as the penalty, which may be different for individuals and other persons, for each violation;

(c) establishing the form and content of notices of violations;

(d) respecting the service of documents required or authorized under this Act, including the manner and proof of service and the circumstances under which documents are considered to be served;

(e) respecting reviews by the review body in respect of a notice of violation; and

(f) respecting the publication of the nature of a violation, the name of the person who committed it and the amount of the penalty.

(2) The amount that may be determined under any regulations made under paragraph (1)(b) as the penalty for each violation shall not be more than $25,000, in the case of an individual, and $100,000 in the case of any other person.

Violations

150.03 Inspectors are authorized to issue notices of violation.

150.04 (1) Every person who contravenes or fails to comply with a provision, order, direction, decision, term or condition designated under paragraph 150.02(1)(a) commits a violation and is liable to a penalty in the amount that is determined in accordance with the regulations.

(2) The purpose of the penalty is to promote compliance with this Act and not to punish.

150.05 If a corporation commits a violation, any director, officer or agent or mandatary of the corporation who directed, authorized, assented to, acquiesced in or participated in the commission of the violation is a party to the violation and is liable to a penalty in the amount that is determined in accordance with the regulations, whether or not the corporation has been proceeded against in accordance with this Act.

150.06 In any proceedings under this Act against a person in relation to a violation, it is sufficient proof of the violation to establish that it was committed by an employee or agent or mandatary of the person, whether or not the employee or the agent or mandatary is identified or proceeded against in accordance with this Act.

150.07 (1) If an inspector has reasonable grounds to believe that a person has committed a violation, the inspector may issue a notice of violation and cause it to be served on the person.

(2) The notice of violation shall

(a) name the person that is believed to have committed the violation;

(b) set out the relevant facts surrounding the violation;

(c) set out the amount of the penalty;

(d) inform the person of their right to request a review with respect to the violation or the amount of the penalty, and of the period within which that right shall be exercised;

(e) inform the person of the time and manner of paying the penalty; and

(f) inform the person that, if they do not pay the penalty or exercise their right referred to in paragraph (d), they are considered to have committed the violation and are liable to the penalty.

(3) The inspector shall, without delay after issuing the notice of violation, provide a copy to the Board and the federal Minister.

Rules About Violations

150.08 (1) A person named in a notice of violation does not have a defence by reason that the person

(a) exercised due diligence to prevent the commission of the violation; or

(b) reasonably and honestly believed in the existence of facts that, if true, would exonerate the person.

(2) Every rule and principle of the common law that renders any circumstance a justification or excuse in relation to a charge for an offence under this Act applies in respect of a violation to the extent that it is not inconsistent with this Act.

150.09 A violation that is committed or continued on more than one day constitutes a separate violation for each day on which it is committed or continued.

150.1 (1) Proceeding with any act or omission as a violation under this Act precludes proceeding with it as an offence under this Act, and proceeding with it as an offence under this Act precludes proceeding with it as a violation under this Act.

(2) For greater certainty, a violation is not an offence and, accordingly, section 126 of the Criminal Code does not apply in respect of a violation.

150.11 No notice of violation is to be issued more than two years after the day on which the federal Minister becomes aware of the acts or omissions that constitute the alleged violation.

Reviews

150.12 A person who is served with a notice of violation may, within 30 days after the notice is served or within any longer period prescribed by the regulations, make a request to the review body for a review of the amount of the penalty or the facts of the violation, or both.

150.13 At any time before a request for a review in respect of a notice of violation is received by the review body, an inspector may cancel the notice of violation or correct an error in it.

150.14 On receipt of a request for a review in respect of a notice of violation, the review body shall conduct the review.

150.15 (1) When conducting a review, the Board may summon any person to appear as a witness and may order the witness to give evidence orally or in writing and produce any documents and things that the Board considers necessary for the purpose of the review.

(2) Any summons issued or order made under subsection (1) may be made a summons or an order of the Federal Court or of the superior court of a province and is enforceable in the same manner as a summons or an order of that court.

(3) To make a summons issued or an order made under subsection (1) a summons or an order of the Federal Court or of the superior court of a province, the usual practice and procedure of the court in such matters may be followed or a certified copy of the summons or order may be filed with the court’s registrar and the summons or order then becomes a summons or an order of that court.

(4) A witness who is served with a summons is entitled to receive the fees and allowances to which persons who are summoned to appear as witnesses before the Federal Court are entitled.

150.16 (1) The review body shall determine, as the case may be, whether the amount of the penalty for the violation was determined in accordance with the regulations or whether the person committed the violation, or both.

(2) The review body shall render a determination in writing and cause the person who requested the review to be served with a copy of the determination, with reasons. A copy of the determination, with reasons, shall also be provided without delay to the federal Minister in the case of a violation relating to Part 3 or to the Board in the case of a violation relating to Part 5.

(3) If the review body determines that the amount of the penalty for the violation was not determined in accordance with the regulations, the review body shall correct it.

(4) If the review body determines that the person who requested the review committed the violation, the person who requested the review is liable to the penalty as set out in the determination.

(5) A determination made under this section is final and binding and, except for judicial review under the Federal Courts Act, is not subject to appeal or to review by any court.

150.17 If the facts of a violation are reviewed, the inspector who issued the notice of violation shall establish, on a balance of probabilities, that the person named in it committed the violation identified in it.

Responsibility

150.18 If a person pays the penalty set out in a notice of violation, the person is considered to have committed the violation and proceedings in respect of it are ended.

150.19 A person that neither pays the penalty within the period set out in the notice of violation — nor requests a review within the period referred to in section 150.12 — is considered to have committed the violation and is liable to the penalty.

Recovery of Penalties

150.2 (1) A penalty constitutes a debt due to Her Majesty in right of Canada and may be recovered in any court of competent jurisdiction.

(2) No proceedings to recover the debt are to be instituted more than five years after the day on which the debt becomes payable.

150.21 (1) The federal Minister may issue a certificate of non-payment certifying the unpaid amount of any debt referred to in subsection 150.2(1).

(2) Registration in other court of competent jurisdiction of a certificate of non-payment has the same effect as a judgment of that court for a debt of the amount specified in the certificate and all related registration costs.

General

150.22 In the absence of evidence to the contrary, a document that appears to be a notice issued under subsection 150.07(1) is presumed to be authentic and is proof of its contents in any proceeding in respect of a violation.

150.23 The Board may, subject to any regulations, make public the nature of a violation, the name of the person who committed it and the amount of the penalty.

232. Section 151 of the Act is repealed.

233. Sections 152 and 153 of the Act are replaced by the following:

152. Rights to the use of land under any lease, easement or other interest in land that was granted under the Territorial Lands Act or the regulations made under that Act, or under any territorial law, and that exist on December 22, 1998, with respect to a settlement area, or on March 31, 2000, with respect to any other portion of the Mackenzie Valley, continue in effect, subject to the terms and conditions of exercising those rights.

153. Licences issued under the Northwest Territories Waters Act respecting a use of waters or deposit of waste in a settlement area that exist on December 22, 1998 — and, respecting a use of waters or deposit of waste in another portion of the Mackenzie Valley, that exist on March 31, 2000 — continue in effect and are deemed to be licences within the meaning of Part 3.

234. Sections 154 to 156 of the Act are repealed.

235. Subsection 157(2) of the Act is repealed.

236. Sections 158 and 159 of the Act are repealed.

237. The schedule to the Act is amended by adding the following in alphabetical order:

Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission

Consequential Amendments

Access to Information Act

238. Schedule I to the Access to Information Act is amended by striking out the following under the heading “OTHER GOVERNMENT INSTITUTIONS”:

Gwich’in Land and Water Board

Sahtu Land and Water Board

Privacy Act

239. The schedule to the Privacy Act is amended by striking out the following under the heading “OTHER GOVERNMENT INSTITUTIONS”:

Gwich’in Land and Water Board

Sahtu Land and Water Board

Tlicho Land Claims and Self-Government Act

240. Section 95 of the Tlicho Land Claims and Self-Government Act is repealed.

Transitional Provisions

241. The following definitions apply in this section and in sections 242 to 252.

“other Act” means the Mackenzie Valley Resource Management Act.

“regional panels” means the Gwich’in Land and Water Board, the Sahtu Land and Water Board and the Wekeezhii Land and Water Board that are continued as regional panels of the Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board by subsections 99(2) and (2.1) of the other Act, as those subsections read immediately before the day on which section 193 comes into force.

242. (1) All licences, permits and other authorizations that are issued under Parts 3 and 4 of the other Act as those Parts read immediately before the day on which section 136 comes into force, are continued as licences, permits and other authorizations under Part 3 of the other Act, as that Part reads on that day, including any terms and conditions attached to them.

(2) For greater certainty, the Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board may exercise all its powers and perform all its duties and functions under Part 3 of the other Act, as that Part reads on the day on which section 136 comes into force, with respect to the licences, permits or other authorizations that are continued by subsection (1).

243. For greater certainty, the Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board is, on the day on which section 136 comes into force, seized of any application that a regional panel had been seized of immediately before that day.

244. (1) For greater certainty, persons that were said to be employed, and agents, advisers and experts that were said to be engaged, by the regional panels before the day on which section 136 comes into force are, on the day on which that section comes into force, employed and engaged by the Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board.

(2) For greater certainty, all rights and property that were said to be held by or in the name of the regional panels before the day on which section 136 comes into force are, on the day on which that section comes into force, the rights and property of the Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board.

245. The members of the Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board, including members of the regional panels, who held office immediately before the day on which section 136 comes into force cease to hold office on that day, but are eligible to be appointed to the Board in accordance with section 11 or 12, as the case may be, and subsection 54(2) of the other Act, as those provisions read on that day.

246. (1) Despite section 245, a member of the Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board, including a member of a regional panel, who is not re-appointed as of the day on which section 136 comes into force is deemed to continue as a member of the Board until a final decision is made in respect of an application, or until the applicant withdraws an application, that is pending before the Board or the regional panel if, before the day on which section 136 comes into force, that member had been designated to dispose of that application and

(a) that member has considered all the evidence produced in relation to it; or

(b) a notice of hearing has been published in relation to it.

(2) A deemed member may exercise only the powers, and perform only the functions and duties, of a member that are necessary to dispose of the application in relation to which they are designated.

(3) The members and deemed members of the Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board who, immediately before the day on which section 136 comes into force, are designated to dispose of an application that is pending are deemed, as of that day, to be designated under section 56 of the other Act, as that section reads on that day, to dispose of that application.

247. Any person who, immediately before the day on which section 177 comes into force, is designated as an inspector or analyst under subsection 35(1) of the Northwest Territories Waters Act, is deemed, as of that day, to be designated as an inspector or analyst under section 84(1) or (2), respectively, of the other Act, as that subsection reads on that day.

248. Any direction that was given by an inspector under subsection 37(1) of the Northwest Territories Waters Act immediately before the day on which section 177 comes into force, and that is in respect of lands in the Mackenzie Valley that are in a federal area as defined in section 51 of the other Act as that section reads on that day, is deemed on that day to be an order made under subsection 86.1(1) of the other Act, as that subsection reads on that day.

249. (1) Any order that was made by the Governor in Council under subsection 34(1) of the Northwest Territories Waters Act, before the day on which section 185 comes into force, and that is in respect of interests in lands in the Mackenzie Valley that are in a federal area as defined in section 51 of the other Act as it reads on that day, is deemed, on that day, to be an order made under subsection 91.1(1) of the other Act, as enacted by that section 185.

(2) Any order that was made by the Governor in Council under subsection 34(2) of the Northwest Territories Waters Act, before the day on which section 185 comes into force, and that was in respect of lands in the Mackenzie Valley that are in a federal area, as defined in section 51 of the other Act as it reads on that day, is deemed, on that day, to be an order made under subsection 91.1(2) of the other Act, as enacted by that section 185.

250. Any time limit that is applicable — on the day on which section 206 comes into force — to the exercise of a power or the performance of a duty or function, under Part 5 of the other Act, as it reads on that day, in relation to a proposal for a development, as defined in section 111 of the other Act, that was being undertaken immediately before the day on which that section 206 comes into force, is counted from that day.

251. Part 5 of the other Act, as it read immediately before the day on which section 211 comes into force, continues to apply to a proposal for development, as defined in section 111 of the other Act, that, immediately before that day, was being considered by any of the following:

(a) a designated regulatory agency, as defined in that section 111, for the purposes of sections 131 and 137 of the other Act, as those sections 131 and 137 read immediately before that day;

(b) the Tlicho Government, as defined in section 2 of the other Act, for the purposes of sections 131.1 and 137.1 of the other Act, as those sections 131.1 and 137.1 read immediately before that day;

(c) the federal Minister and the responsible minister, as defined in that section 111;

(d) the Mackenzie Valley Environmental Impact Review Board or one of its panels; or

(e) a joint panel established under subsection 140(2), paragraph 141(2)(b) or (3)(a) of the other Act or a review panel referred to in subsection 41(2) of the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act, 2012.

252. The provisions of the Northwest Territories Waters Regulations, that are made under the Northwest Territories Waters Act, chapter 39 of the Statutes of Canada, 1992, that are in force immediately before the day on which section 182 comes into force, are deemed, as of that day, to have been made under the other Act and shall remain in force, to the extent that they are not inconsistent with the other Act, as it reads on that day, until they are repealed or replaced.

Coming into Force

253. (1) Sections 113, 116, 125 and 126, subsection 128(3), section 130, subsections 132(2) and (4) and 135(1), sections 139 and 140, subsections 141(1) and 142(2), sections 145 and 163, subsections 173(2), 174(1) and 175(3), sections 177, 182 and 185, subsection 187(2), sections 188 and 189, subsection 190(2), sections 192 and 194 to 198 and subsection 213(1) come into force on a day to be fixed by order of the Governor in Council.

(2) Section 112, subsection 115(2), sections 118 to 122 and 127, subsections 128(2) and (4) and 132(1) and (3), sections 133 and 134, subsection 135(2), sections 136 and 137, subsection 142(1), sections 143, 144, 146 to 162 and 164 to 172, subsections 174(2) and 175(2), sections 176, 179 to 181, 183, 184, 186, 191, 193 and 200, subsections 204(2), 224(1) and 226(2), (3) and (5), sections 227, 229, 230 and 238 to 240 come into force on a day to be fixed by order of the Governor in Council that is made not earlier than one day after the day on which an order is made under subsection (1).

(3) Section 117, subsections 141(2) and 199(2), section 203, subsection 204(1), sections 205 and 207, subsections 208(5) and 209(2), sections 210 and 211, subsections 214(1) and (4) and 215(2), sections 216 and 218, subsections 219(3), 222(4), 223(6) and 224(3) and sections 228 and 231 come into force on a day to be fixed by order of the Governor in Council that is made not earlier than one day after the day on which an order is made under subsection (2).

(4) Sections 178 and 225 come into force on a day to be fixed by order of the Governor in Council that is made not earlier than one day after the day on which an order is made under subsection (3).