Online News Act (S.C. 2023, c. 23)

Marginal note:Regulations

76 The Governor in Council may make regulations

• (a) providing for exceptions to paragraph 60(1)(a) or (b);

• (b) increasing the penalty amounts set out in subsection 61(1);

• (c) for the purpose of paragraph 61(2)(f), establishing other factors to be considered in determining the amount of the penalty;

• (d) respecting undertakings referred to in section 65;

• (e) respecting the service of documents required or authorized to be served under sections 60 to 75, including the manner and proof of service and the circumstances under which documents are to be considered to be served; and

• (f) generally, for carrying out the purposes and provisions of sections 60 to 75.

Other Provisions

Marginal note:Judicial powers

77 In a proceeding under this Act, the Commission has the powers of a superior court with respect to the attendance and examination of witnesses and the production and examination of documents or things.

Marginal note:Sections 126 and 127 of Criminal Code

78 Sections 126 and 127 of the Criminal Code do not apply in respect of any contravention of a provision of this Act, a provision of the regulations or an order made under this Act.

Financial Provisions

Marginal note:Fees for services

• 79 (1) The Commission may make regulations respecting fees to be paid for the provision of services — including dealing with a complaint or providing regulatory processes — under this Act, including regulations

  • (a) fixing those fees or setting out the manner of calculating them;

  • (b) establishing classes of operators and of news businesses and groups of news businesses for the purposes of paragraph (a);

  • (c) respecting the payment of those fees, including the time and manner of payment; and

  • (d) respecting the interest payable in respect of overdue fees.

• Marginal note:Commission assistance

  (2) For greater certainty, subsection (1) permits the making of regulations respecting the recovery of the Commission’s costs for providing assistance to an arbitration panel under section 36.

• Marginal note:Amount not to exceed cost

  (3) Fees that are payable under regulations made under subsection (1) must not in the aggregate exceed the costs that the Commission determines to be attributable to providing the service.

• Marginal note:Criteria

  (4) Regulations made under subsection (1) may provide for fees to be calculated by reference to any criteria that the Commission considers appropriate, including

  • (a) the revenues of the operator, the news business or the group of news businesses; or

  • (b) the market served by the operator’s digital news intermediary or by the news outlets operated by the news business or by the members of the group of news businesses.

Marginal note:Costs apportioned by Commission

• 80 (1) The Commission may, by order, apportion the costs related to the bargaining process, other than those related to final offer arbitration, including fees payable under regulations made under subsection 79(1), between the parties, if the parties cannot agree, within a period that the Commission considers reasonable, on how to share the costs.

• Marginal note:Factors

  (2) In making an order, the Commission must take into account each party’s ability to pay, their conduct during bargaining and mediation sessions and any other factor that it considers appropriate.

• Marginal note:Statutory Instruments Act

  (3) For greater certainty, the Statutory Instruments Act does not apply in respect of an order made under subsection (1).

Marginal note:Cost recovery

• 81 (1) With the approval of the Treasury Board, the Commission may make regulations respecting the charges payable by operators in respect of the recovery, in whole or in part, of costs that are incurred in relation to the administration of this Act, including regulations

  • (a) setting out the manner of calculating those charges;

  • (b) providing for the establishment of classes of operators for the purposes of paragraph (a);

  • (c) providing for the payment of any charge payable, including the time and manner of payment; and

  • (d) respecting the interest payable in respect of any overdue charge.

• Marginal note:Amount not to exceed cost

  (2) Charges payable under regulations made under subsection (1) must not exceed the costs that the Commission determines to be attributable to exercising its powers and carrying out its duties and functions under this Act and that are not recovered under regulations made under subsection 79(1).

• Marginal note:Criteria

  (3) Regulations made under subsection (1) may provide for charges to be calculated by reference to any criteria that the Commission considers appropriate, including

  • (a) the revenues of the operator; or

  • (b) the market served by the operator’s digital news intermediary.

Marginal note:Debt due to Her Majesty

• 82 (1) Fees and charges payable under regulations made under subsections 79(1) and 81(1), and any interest on them, constitute a debt due to Her Majesty in right of Canada and may be recovered as such in any court of competent jurisdiction.

• Marginal note:Deduction, set-off and compensation

  (2) Debts due to Her Majesty in right of Canada under regulations made under subsections 79(1) and 81(1) may be recovered at any time by way of deduction from, set-off against or compensation against any sum of money that may be due or payable by Her Majesty in right of Canada to the individual or entity responsible for the debt.

Marginal note:Spending

83 Subject to any conditions imposed by the Treasury Board, the Commission may spend revenues that are received under regulations made under subsections 79(1) and 81(1) for the purposes of exercising its powers and carrying out its duties and functions under this Act. If the Commission spends the revenues, it must do so in the fiscal year in which they are received or, unless an appropriation Act provides otherwise, in the next fiscal year.

Regulations

Marginal note:Regulations — Governor in Council

84 The Governor in Council may make regulations

• (a) respecting the factors set out in section 6;

• (b) respecting the time at which or the period within which an operator must notify the Commission under subsection 7(1);

• (c) respecting how the Commission is to interpret subparagraphs 11(1)(a)(i) to (viii);

• (d) setting out conditions for the purposes of paragraph 11(1)(b); and

• (e) setting out conditions in respect of a provincial public broadcaster for the purposes of section 28, if the provincial minister responsible for that broadcaster has made a request to the Minister.

Marginal note:Regulations — Commission

85 The Commission may make regulations

• (a) respecting requests for orders referred to in subsection 11(1);

• (b) respecting the bargaining process set out in sections 18 to 44;

• (c) respecting requests for designations referred to in subsection 27(1);

• (d) establishing the code of conduct referred to in section 49;

• (e) respecting complaints referred to in section 52;

• (f) respecting the manner in which groups of eligible news businesses are to be structured and the manner in which they are to exercise their rights or privileges and carry out their obligations under this Act;

• (g) respecting the provision of information by groups of eligible news businesses to the Commission respecting their structure;

• (h) respecting the exercise by any person appointed under section 8 of the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission Act of any of the powers — other than the power to make regulations — or the carrying out of any of the duties or functions, of the Commission under this Act; and

• (i) respecting the Commission’s practices and procedures in relation to this Act.

Independent Review

Marginal note:Annual report — independent auditor

• 86 (1) The Commission must cause an independent auditor to prepare an annual auditor’s report in respect of the impact of this Act on the Canadian digital news marketplace.

• Marginal note:Contents

  (2) The report must set out an analysis of the impact of the agreements entered into under this Act on the Canadian digital news marketplace and include the following:

  • (a) information relating to the total commercial value of the agreements entered into under this Act;

  • (b) information relating to the distribution of the commercial value of those agreements among eligible news businesses, including relative to the expenditures of those businesses on their newsrooms;

  • (c) information relating to the effect of the agreements on those expenditures;

  • (c.01) information relating to the impact of this Act on news outlets that produce news content primarily for diverse populations, including local and regional markets in every province and territory, anglophone and francophone communities and Black and other racialized communities;

  • (c.02) information relating to the total number of those agreements that involve Indigenous news outlets and to the portion of the commercial value of those agreements that benefits these news outlets;

  • (c.03) information relating to the total number of those agreements that involve official language minority community news outlets and to the portion of the commercial value of those agreements that benefits these news outlets;

  • (c.1) if the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation has provided an annual report under section 53.1 in the 12 months preceding the preparation of the auditor’s report, information related to that annual report; and

  • (d) any other element that, in the opinion of the auditor, supports the transparency of the impact of this Act on the Canadian digital news marketplace.

• Marginal note:Confidential information

  (3) The report must not contain any information that is likely to reveal information designated as confidential under subsection 55(1).

• Marginal note:Publication of report

  (4) The Commission must publish the report on its website within 30 days after the day on which it receives it.

Review of Act

Marginal note:Review

87 Before the fifth anniversary of the day on which this section comes into force, the Minister must cause a review of this Act and its operation to be conducted and cause a report on the review to be laid before each House of Parliament.

Related Amendments

R.S., c. A-1Access to Information Act

88 [Amendments]

R.S., c. C-22Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission Act

89 [Amendments]

90 [Amendments]

1991, c. 11Broadcasting Act

91 [Amendments]

1993, c. 38Telecommunications Act

92 [Amendments]

Coming into Force

Marginal note:Order in council

• 93 Footnote ^*(1) Section 6 comes into force on a day to be fixed by order of the Governor in Council, but that day must not be before the day on which the first regulations made under paragraph 84(a) come into force.

  • Return to footnote ^*[Note: Section 6 in force December 19, 2023.]

• Marginal note:Order in council

  Footnote ^*(2) Sections 7, 8, 11 to 17, 20, 27 to 31, 53.1 and 59 and subsection 60(2) come into force on a day to be fixed by order of the Governor in Council, but that day must not be before the latest of

  • (a) the day fixed in accordance with subsection (1),

  • (b) the day on which the first regulations made under paragraph 84(b) come into force, and

  • (c) the day on which the first regulations made under paragraph 84(c) come into force.

  • Return to footnote ^*[Note: Sections 7, 8, 11 to 17, 20, 27 to 31, 53.1 and 59 and subsection 60(2) in force December 19, 2023.]

• Marginal note:Order in council

  Footnote ^*(3) Sections 18, 19, 21, 22 and 32 to 44 come into force on a day to be fixed by order of the Governor in Council, but that day must not be before the day fixed in accordance with subsection (2).

  • Return to footnote ^*[Note: Sections 18, 19, 21, 22 and 32 to 44 in force December 19, 2023.]

• Marginal note:Order in council

  Footnote ^*(4) Sections 49 to 52 and 68 come into force on a day to be fixed by order of the Governor in Council, but that day must not be before the day fixed in accordance with subsection (3).

  • Return to footnote ^*[Note: Sections 49 to 52 and 68 in force December 19, 2023.]

• Marginal note:Order in council

  Footnote ^*(5) Sections 79 to 83, 86, 87 and 90 come into force on a day or days to be fixed by order of the Governor in Council.

  • Return to footnote ^*[Note: Sections 79 to 83, 86, 87 and 90 in force December 19, 2023.]

• Marginal note:180 days after royal assent

  (6) Despite subsections (1) to (5), any provision of this Act that does not come into force by order before the 180th day following the day on which this Act receives royal assent comes into force 180 days after the day on which this Act receives royal assent.