Bill C-28 · 37th Parliament · Jean Chrétien
An Act to amend the Parliament of Canada Act, the Members of Parliament Retiring Allowances Act and the Salaries Act
Government bill. Became law.
- IntroducedJune 4, 2001
- Debated in principleJune 5, 2001
- Studied by a committeeDone
- Passed its first chamberJune 7, 2001
- Passed the second chamberJune 12, 2001
- Became lawJune 13, 2001
Leading supporters
Ranked by the part each played: who is responsible for the bill, who carried it, and who spoke for it most.
- Jean ChrétienPrime Minister
Who carries this bill
Arrows run from the person responsible to those who answer to them on this bill. The critic leads the Senate’s scrutiny and answers to no one on it.
Where members stand
Votes and debate for this bill have not been read yet.
How it changed on the way
83% of the text as introduced was changed or removed by the time it became law (15,606 words introduced, 8,453 passed).
transformative changeintent mostly kept
The bill saw extensive revisions, with 83% of the introduced text altered or replaced before royal assent. Core salary, allowance, and disability provisions were retained but refined with added assent details and adjusted pension language.
How precisely it is written
mixedChallenging the law: ModerateDisputing a charge: Hard
The bill sets exact percentages, dollar amounts, reference salaries and age cut-offs for most pay and allowances. Disability severance and the new allowance, however, turn on subjective medical opinions and broad regulatory powers.
Open to argument
“by reason of any permanent illness or infirmity by which the person is, in the opinion of the Speaker of the House, disabled from performing the person's duties”
Uses Speaker's subjective opinion rather than an objective medical test.“is incapable, because of the disability, of performing the member's duties”
Undefined standard of incapacity invites argument over degree of impairment.“The Governor in Council may make regulations respecting disability allowances, including regulations respecting (a) the determination of eligibility for disability allowances and medical ex”
Open-ended power to define eligibility and exams after enactment.
Clear-cut
“to members of the House of Commons is equal to 50 per cent of the remuneration reference amount referred to in section 54.1”
Ties allowance directly to a publicly known external salary with a fixed multiplier.“if at the time of resignation the member (a) is 65 years of age or over;”
Bright-line age requirement leaves no interpretive room.
Discretion. The Governor in Council holds wide power to set eligibility rules, medical-examination requirements, election procedures and retroactive effects for the disability allowance under section 71.1(4) and (5).
Challenging the law itself. The phrases 'in the opinion of the Speaker' and 'incapable because of the disability' could be attacked under Charter s. 7 for vagueness or overbreadth.
Disputing a charge under it. Most salary and allowance formulas are mechanical arithmetic once the reference amount is known, leaving little factual dispute.
Read by a language model from the royal assent text; every quoted phrase appears in the bill. A reading of the drafting, not legal advice.
Did it work?
no evaluation found
Who lobbied on it
No lobbying registration naming this bill is loaded.
Stages and dates from LEGISinfo.