Bill C-377 · 41th Parliament · Stephen Harper
An Act to amend the Income Tax Act (requirements for labour organizations)
Private member’s bill. Became law.
- IntroducedDone
- Debated in principleDone
- Studied by a committeeDone
- Passed its first chamberDone
- Passed the second chamberJune 29, 2015
- Became lawJune 29, 2015
Leading supporters
Ranked by the part each played: who is responsible for the bill, who carried it, and who spoke for it most.
- Ghislain MaltaisSenate · Sponsor in the Senate
- Senator DagenaisSenate · SenatorCarries the bill as sponsor in the Senate.
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.
What the Senate tried to change
- narrows scopeSenator BellemareExclude labour organizations and trusts whose activities are not within federal legislative authority or that do not benefit federal labour organizations.Voted down · June 22, 2015 · Senate record
- technicalSenator CowanFurther amend Bellemare's amendment by deleting 'and' and replacing line 36 with 'of which are limited to the'.Voted down · June 22, 2015 · Senate record
- delays or defersPierrette RinguetteRefer the subamendment and amendment to Committee of the Whole for consideration and report on the second sitting day following adoption.Voted down · June 22, 2015 · Senate record
- technicalSenator MooreChange 'second' to 'first' in Ringuette's motion regarding the sitting day for Committee of the Whole.Voted down · June 22, 2015 · Senate record
How it changed on the way
The texts have not been compared yet.
How precisely it is written
mostly preciseChallenging the law: ModerateDisputing a charge: Moderate
The bill relies on defined terms, fixed dollar thresholds and an enumerated list of required statements, which allows most compliance questions to be answered by direct reference to the text. A few phrases introduce subjective judgment that could generate argument over scope.
Open to argument
“persons in positions of authority who would reasonably be expected to have, in the ordinary course, access to material information”
Uses a reasonableness standard that requires case-by-case judgment rather than an objective test.“a reasonable estimate of the percentage of time dedi”
Leaves the method and accuracy of the estimate to the filer’s discretion without further statutory guidance.“activities other than those that are primarily carried on for members”
The word 'primarily' creates a factual line-drawing exercise open to differing interpretations.
Clear-cut
“the cumulative value of which in respect of a particular payer or payee for the period is greater than $5,000”
Supplies a clear numeric threshold that determines when separate disclosure is required.“liable on summary conviction to a fine of $1,000 for each day that it fails to comply with that section, to a maximum of $25,000”
States an exact daily penalty and absolute cap with no discretionary range.“within six months from the end of each fiscal period”
Fixes a precise filing deadline measured from an objective event.
Discretion. Extensive use of 'prescribed form', 'prescribed information' and 'prescribed statements' delegates the exact content and format of returns to ministerial regulations.
Challenging the law itself. A vagueness or overbreadth claim under s. 2(d) of the Charter could be advanced because the broad definition of labour organization and the public-disclosure mandate reach many internal activities, though the detailed lists reduce the scope for successful argument.
Disputing a charge under it. Most violations turn on whether a specific dollar threshold or enumerated category was met, but the 'reasonable estimate' and 'reasonably be expected' language allows factual disputes over classification of time or personnel.
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?
The evidence has not been searched yet.
Who lobbied on it
No lobbying registration naming this bill is loaded.
Stages and dates from LEGISinfo.