Bill C-660

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First Reading

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2nd Session, 41st Parliament,

62-63-64 Elizabeth II, 2013-2014-2015

house of commons of canada

BILL C-660

An Act to amend the Financial Administration Act (balanced budget and public debt repayment)

Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate and House of Commons of Canada, enacts as follows:

SHORT TITLE

Short title

1. This Act may be cited as the Balanced Budget and Debt Repayment Act.

R.S., c. F-11

FINANCIAL ADMINISTRATION ACT

2. Section 30 of the Financial Administration Act is amended by adding the following after subsection (4):

Balanced budget and debt repayment

(5) The Minister shall, within fifteen days after the commencement of the next ensuing session of Parliament, report to the House of Commons with respect to any special warrant issued under this section that has made it impossible to achieve a balanced budget for the fiscal year in question.

3. Subsection 49(1) of the Act is replaced by the following:

Report on debt management

49. (1) After the Public Accounts are tabled in the House of Commons, the Minister shall cause to be tabled in each House of Parliament, within the first 30 days on which that House is sitting after the Public Accounts are tabled in the House of Commons, a report on the activities of the Minister in relation to the following:

(a) the money borrowed under section 43.1 in the fiscal year to which the Public Accounts relate;

(b) the management of the public debt in the fiscal year to which the Public Accounts relate; and

4. The Act is amended by adding the following after section 60.2:

PART IV.2

BALANCED BUDGET AND DEBT REPAYMENT

Balanced budget

60.3 (1) The Minister shall not present a budget for a fiscal year that proposes expenditures in excess of the amount that the Minister estimates will be available in the Consolidated Revenue Fund for that fiscal year.

Cushion

(2) The budget for a fiscal year may include an amount set aside for contingencies that is not greater than 3.5% of the estimated revenue for that fiscal year.

Budget content

(3) The budget for a fiscal year shall include:

(a) the major economic assumptions that the Minister made in preparing the estimates;

(b) the forecast amount of revenue from corporate income tax payable under the Income Tax Act, which amount shall be not more than the lower of

(i) 90% of the forecast amount of revenue from corporate income tax for the fiscal year, and

(ii) the average annual amount of revenue from corporate income tax during the five most recent fiscal years immediately before that fiscal year for which the amounts of revenue from corporate income tax have been reported in the Public Accounts.

Exception — presentation of budget

(4) Despite subsection (1), the Minister may present a budget for a fiscal year that proposes expenditures in excess of the amount that the Minister estimates will be available in the Consolidated Revenue Fund for that fiscal year if such excess expenditures are necessary because of exceptional circumstances and are in the public interest.

Exception — during fiscal year

(5) During a fiscal year, the Minister may propose expenditures in excess of the estimated amount in the budget for that fiscal year that make it impossible to achieve a balanced budget for the fiscal year in question if such excess expenditures are necessary because of exceptional circumstances and are in the public interest.

Report to the House of Commons

(6) Before presenting a budget under subsection (4) or proposing expenditures under subsection (5), the Minister shall make a statement to the House of Commons

(a) informing the members of the House of his or her intention to present such a budget or propose such expenditures; and

(b) describing the nature of the exceptional circumstances and explaining why such a budget or such expenditures are in the public interest.

Repayment of public debt

60.4 (1) Any surplus declared at the end of a fiscal year shall be applied to the reduction of the public debt as follows:

(a) for the fiscal year beginning after March 31, 2015, 50% of the surplus shall be applied to the public debt;

(b) for the fiscal year beginning after March 31, 2016, 50% of the surplus shall be applied to the public debt;

(d) for the fiscal year beginning after March 31, 2018, 75% of the surplus shall be applied to the public debt; and

(e) for the fiscal year beginning after March 31, 2019, and for every fiscal year after that, 100% of the surplus shall be applied to the public debt.

Exception

(2) Subsection (1) does not apply if the repayment of the public debt is impossible because of exceptional circumstances and the public interest justifies the Minister’s decision, and if the Minister has made a statement to the House of Commons informing the members of the House of his or her intention, describing the nature of the exceptional circumstances and explaining why this decision is in the public interest.

Definition of “exceptional circumstances”

60.5 For the purposes of this Part, “exceptional circumstances” refers to an urgent and critical situation that

(a) is caused by drought, earthquake, fire, flood, storm, act of intimidation or coercion, threat to the security of Canada, real or imminent use of force or violence, war, armed conflict, accident or other occurrence;

(b) is so severe, or of such severity in its effect on life, property, the economy of Canada or one of its regions or the environment, as to constitute a matter of serious national concern; and

Annual Report

60.6 The Standing Committee on Public Accounts of the House of Commons shall report to the House of Commons at least once every fiscal year on the progress made by the Government towards repaying the public debt.

5. (1) Subsection 64(2) of the Act is amended by adding the following after paragraph (a):

(a.1) a statement setting out the public debt;

(2) Section 64 of the Act is amended by adding the following after subsection (2):

Report of the Auditor General

(3) In auditing the Public Accounts, the Auditor General shall examine the statement referred to in paragraph (2)(a.1) and shall give an opinion, with any reservations that the Auditor General may have, as to whether the statement fairly presents information in accordance with the stated accounting policies of the federal government on a basis consistent with that of the preceding year.

Published under authority of the Speaker of the House of Commons