General

Marginal note:Protection of information

• 108. (1) Except for the purpose of communicating information in accordance with the conditions of an agreement made under section 106, for the conduct of a prosecution under this Act or for the purposes of subsection (2),

  • (a) no person, other than a person employed by, or under contract to, the Institute and sworn or affirmed under section 103, shall be permitted to examine any identifiable individ­ual return made for the purposes of this Part; and

  • (b) no person who has been sworn or affirmed under section 103 shall knowingly disclose any information obtained by the Institute that can be related to any identifiable individual, first nation, business or organization.

• Marginal note:Permissible disclosure

  (2) The First Nations Chief Statistician may authorize the following information to be disclosed:

  • (a) information collected by persons, first nations, organizations or departments for their own purposes and communicated to the Institute, subject to the same secrecy requirements applicable to it when it was collected, and in the manner and to the extent agreed on by its collector and the First Nations Chief Statistician;

  • (b) information relating to a person, first nation, business or organization in respect of which disclosure is consented to in writing by that person, first nation, business or organization;

  • (c) information available to the public under an Act of Parliament or of the legislature of a province;

  • (d) information relating to a hospital, institution for individuals with a mental health disability, library, educational institution or other similar non-commercial institution that cannot be related to an individual to whom services were or are provided by that institution; and

  • (e) a list of businesses, showing

    • (i) their names and addresses,

    • (ii) the telephone numbers at which they may be reached in relation to statistical matters,

    • (iii) the official language in which they prefer to be addressed in relation to statistical matters,

    • (iv) the products they produce, transport, store, purchase or sell, or the services they provide, in the course of their business, or

    • (v) the number of persons they employ, as a specified range.

Marginal note:Information privileged

• 109. (1) Except for the purpose of conducting a prosecution under this Act, information obtained by the Institute that can be related to any identifiable individual, business, organization or first nation is privileged and shall not be used as evidence in a legal proceeding.

• Marginal note:No compulsion to produce

  (2) No person referred to in section 103 shall be required by an order of a court, tribunal or other body to give testimony in respect of any information referred to in subsection (1).

Marginal note:Powers of Statistics Canada

110. Nothing in this Act shall be construed so as to limit the powers and duties of Statistics Canada under the Statistics Act.

Offences

Marginal note:Offence

111. Every person who, after making an oath or solemn affirmation under section 103,

• (a) wilfully makes a false declaration, statement or return in the performance of his or her duties,

• (b) in the pretended performance of his or her duties, obtains or seeks to obtain information that the person is not authorized to obtain, or

• (c) contravenes section 108

is guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding $1,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months, or to both.

Marginal note:Secret information

112. Every person who, after making an oath or solemn affirmation under section 103,

• (a) wilfully discloses, directly or indirectly, information obtained in the course of his or her duties that might affect the market value of a security or commodity, including any information referred to in subsection 108(2), to any person who has not been sworn or affirmed under section 103, or

• (b) uses any information described in paragraph (a) for the purpose of speculating in a security or commodity

is guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding the aggregate of $5,000 and double the amount of any benefit obtained from speculation referred to in paragraph (b) or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years, or to both.

Regulations

Marginal note:Regulations

113. The Governor in Council may, on the recommendation of the Minister made having regard to any representations by the Institute, make regulations prescribing anything to be prescribed under paragraph 105(2)(q) or subsection 107(1).

PART 6FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT AND CONTROL

Marginal note:Definitions

114. The following definitions apply in this Part.

“board of directors”

« conseil d’administra­tion »

“board of directors” includes

• (a) in respect of the First Nations Tax Commission, the commissioners referred to in section 17; and

• (b) in respect of the First Nations Financial Management Board, the directors referred to in section 38.

“institution”

« institution »

“institution” means the First Nations Tax Commission or the First Nations Financial Management Board.

Marginal note:Exclusion from public service

• 115. (1) The officers and employees of an institution are not part of the public service of Canada.

• Marginal note:No guarantees

  (2) No person shall give a guarantee on behalf of Her Majesty for the discharge of an obligation or liability of an institution.

Marginal note:Financial year

116. The financial year of each institution is the period from April 1 to March 31, unless otherwise prescribed by regulation.

Marginal note:Expenditure of revenues

117. Subject to any terms and conditions that the Treasury Board may direct, for the purposes of the institution, an institution may expend, during a financial year or the following year, any revenues that it receives in that financial year through the conduct of its operations.

Marginal note:Corporate plans

• 118. (1) Each institution shall, in accordance with any directions given by the Minister, establish a corporate plan and budget for each financial year and submit them to the Minister for approval.

• Marginal note:Scope and contents of corporate plan

  (2) The corporate plan of each institution shall encompass all of the businesses and activities of the institution and include a statement of

  • (a) the objects or purposes of the institution;

  • (b) the institution’s objectives for the financial year and the strategy it intends to employ to achieve those objectives; and

  • (c) the institution’s expected performance for the financial year as compared to its objectives for that year as set out in the last corporate plan.

• Marginal note:Contents of budget

  (3) The budget of each institution must include a statement of the institution’s projected revenues and expenses for the financial year on account of capital and operations.

• Marginal note:Form of corporate plan

  (4) The corporate plan of each institution shall be prepared in a form that clearly sets out information according to the major businesses or activities of the institution.

• Marginal note:Restriction on business or activity

  (5) No institution may carry on any business or activity in any financial year in a manner that is not consistent with its corporate plan for that year.

• Marginal note:Amendment

  (6) Any amendment by an institution to its corporate plan or budget shall be submitted to the Minister for approval.

Marginal note:Books and systems

• 119. (1) Each institution shall

  • (a) keep books of account and records in relation to them; and

  • (b) maintain financial and management control and information systems.

• Marginal note:Books and systems

  (2) The books, records and systems referred to in subsection (1) shall be kept and maintained in such a manner as will provide reasonable assurance that

  • (a) the institution’s assets are safeguarded and controlled;

  • (b) its transactions are in accordance with this Act;

  • (c) its financial, human and physical resources are managed economically and efficiently; and

  • (d) its operations are carried out effectively.

• Marginal note:Internal audit

  (3) An institution may cause internal audits to be conducted to assess compliance with subsections (1) and (2).

• Marginal note:Financial statements

  (4) Each institution shall annually prepare financial statements, in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, as supplemented by any directions given by the Minister under subsection (6).

• Marginal note:Form of financial statements

  (5) The financial statements of an institution shall be prepared in a form that clearly sets out information according to the major businesses or activities of the institution.

• Marginal note:Directions

  (6) The Minister may give directions respecting the preparation of financial statements, to supplement generally accepted accounting principles.

Marginal note:Annual auditor’s report

• 120. (1) Each institution shall cause an annual auditor’s report to be prepared in accordance with any directions of the Minister, on

  • (a) its financial statements; and

  • (b) any quantitative information required to be audited under subsection (3).

• Marginal note:Contents

  (2) A report under subsection (1) shall

  • (a) include separate statements as to whether in the auditor’s opinion

    • (i) the financial statements are presented fairly, in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, applied on a basis consistent with that of the preceding year,

    • (ii) the quantitative information is accurate in all material respects and, if applicable, was prepared on a basis consistent with that of the preceding year, and

    • (iii) the transactions of the institution that have come to the auditor’s notice in the course of his or her examination for the report were carried out in accordance with this Act; and

  • (b) call attention to any other matter falling within the scope of the auditor’s examination for the report that, in his or her opinion, should be brought to the attention of the institution or the Minister.

• Marginal note:Audit of quantitative information

  (3) The Minister may require that any quantitative information required to be included in an institution’s annual report pursuant to paragraph (2)(a) be audited.

• Marginal note:Presentation to Minister

  (4) Each institution shall submit its audited financial statements to the Minister at least 30 days before the day of its annual meeting.