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Elections Modernization Act (S.C. 2018, c. 31)

Full Document:  

Assented to 2018-12-13

2000, c. 9Canada Elections Act (continued)

  •  (1) Subsection 354(1) of the French version of the Act is replaced by the following:

    Marginal note:Nomination d’un agent financier

    • 354 (1) Le tiers tenu de s’enregistrer en application du paragraphe 353(1) doit nommer un agent financier; celui-ci peut être la personne autorisée à signer la demande d’enregistrement visée à ce paragraphe.

  • (2) Section 354 of the Act is amended by adding the following after subsection (1):

    • Marginal note:Exception — deemed appointment

      (1.1) If, at the end of the pre-election period before a general election referred to in paragraph 353(1)(a), a third party has a financial agent who was appointed under subsection 349.7(1), the financial agent is deemed to have been appointed under subsection (1).

  • (3) Paragraph 354(2)(c) of the English version of the Act is replaced by the following:

    • (c) an election officer or a member of the staff of a returning officer; and

  •  (1) Subsection 355(1) of the Act is replaced by the following:

    Marginal note:Requirement to appoint auditor

    • 355 (1) A third party that is required to register under subsection 353(1) shall appoint an auditor without delay if it incurs the following expenses in an aggregate amount of $10,000 or more:

      • (a) partisan activity expenses in respect of partisan activities that take place during an election period;

      • (b) election advertising expenses in respect of election advertising messages that are transmitted during that period; and

      • (c) election survey expenses in relation to that period.

    • Marginal note:Exception — deemed appointment

      (1.1) If, when the obligation under subsection (1) to appoint an auditor applies, a third party has an auditor who was appointed under subsection 349.8(1), the auditor is deemed to have been appointed under subsection (1).

  • (2) Paragraph 355(3)(c) of the Act is replaced by the following:

    • (c) an election officer or a member of the staff of a returning officer;

 Section 356 of the Act is repealed.

  •  (1) Subsection 357(1) of the Act is replaced by the following:

    Marginal note:Responsibilities of financial agent

    • 357 (1) Every contribution made during an election period to a registered third party for partisan activity, election advertising or election survey purposes shall be accepted by its financial agent, and every partisan activity expense, election advertising expense and election survey expense incurred during an election period on behalf of a registered third party shall be authorized by its financial agent.

  • (2) Subsection 357(2) of the English version of the Act is replaced by the following:

    • Marginal note:Delegation

      (2) A financial agent may authorize a person to accept contributions or to authorize the incurring of partisan activity expenses, election advertising expenses or election survey expenses, but that authorization does not limit the financial agent’s responsibility.

  • (3) Subsection 357(3) of the Act is repealed.

 The Act is amended by adding the following after section 357:

Marginal note:Interim third party expenses return

  • 357.01 (1) Every third party that is required to be registered in accordance with subsection 353(1) shall file an interim third-party expenses return in the prescribed form with the Chief Electoral Officer on the 21st day before polling day, if the third party

    • (a) was required to file an interim third-party expenses return with the Chief Electoral Officer under subsection 349.92(1);

    • (b) has incurred expenses referred to in subsection 349.1(1) or 350(1) in an aggregate amount of $10,000 or more during the period beginning on the day after polling day at the previous general election and ending on the 23rd day before polling day; or

    • (c) has received contributions in an aggregate amount of $10,000 or more for partisan activity, partisan advertising, election advertising or election survey purposes during the period referred to in paragraph (b).

  • Marginal note:Contents of return

    (2) The interim third-party expenses return shall contain

    • (a) in the case of a general election that is held on a day set in accordance with subsection 56.1(2) or section 56.2,

      • (i) a list of partisan activity expenses referred to in subsection 349.1(2) and the date and place of the partisan activities to which the expenses relate,

      • (ii) a list of partisan advertising expenses referred to in subsection 349.1(2) and the date and place of the transmission of the partisan advertising messages to which the expenses relate,

      • (iii) a list of election survey expenses referred to in subsection 349.1(2) and the date of the election surveys to which the expenses relate, and

      • (iv) a list of all partisan activity expenses, partisan advertising expenses and election survey expenses referred to in subsection 349.1(1) — other than those referred to in subparagraphs (i) to (iii) — and the date and place of the partisan activities to which the partisan activity expenses relate, the date and place of the transmission of the partisan advertising messages to which the partisan advertising expenses relate and the date of the election surveys to which the election survey expenses relate; and

    • (b) in the case of any general election,

      • (i) a list of partisan activity expenses referred to in subsection 350(2) and the date and place of the partisan activities to which the expenses relate,

      • (ii) a list of election advertising expenses referred to in subsection 350(2) and the date and place of the transmission of the election advertising messages to which the expenses relate,

      • (iii) a list of election survey expenses referred to in subsection 350(2) and the date of the election surveys to which the expenses relate, and

      • (iv) a list of all partisan activity expenses, election advertising expenses and election survey expenses referred to in subsection 350(1) other than those referred to in subparagraphs (i) to (iii) and the date and place of the partisan activities to which the partisan activity expenses relate, the date and place of the transmission of the election advertising messages to which the election advertising expenses relate and the date of the election surveys to which the election survey expenses relate.

  • Marginal note:When no expenses

    (3) If a third party has not incurred expenses referred to in subsection (2), that fact shall be indicated in its interim third-party expenses return.

  • Marginal note:Contributions

    (4) The interim third-party expenses return shall include

    • (a) the amount, by class of contributor, of contributions for partisan activity, partisan advertising, election advertising or election survey purposes that were received during the period referred to in paragraph (1)(b);

    • (b) subject to paragraph (c), for each contributor who made contributions of a total amount of more than $200 for partisan activity, partisan advertising, election advertising or election survey purposes during the period referred to in paragraph (1)(b), their name, address and class, and the amount and date of each contribution;

    • (c) in the case of a numbered company that is a contributor referred to in paragraph (b), the name of the chief executive officer or president of that company; and

    • (d) the amount, other than an amount of a contribution referred to in paragraph (a), that was paid out of the third party’s own funds during the period referred to in paragraph (1)(b) for partisan activity expenses, partisan advertising expenses, election advertising expenses or election survey expenses.

  • Marginal note:Exceptions

    (5) The interim third-party expenses return need not include any information referred to in subsections (2) and (4) that was included in a third-party expenses return that the third party previously filed

    • (a) under subsection 359(1) in respect of

      • (i) a by-election that was held after the general election referred to in paragraph (1)(b), or

      • (ii) a general election for which the third party incurred expenses or received contributions between the day fixed under paragraph 57(1.2)(c) for polling day at the general election and polling day in an electoral district in which the election was postponed under subsection 59(4) or 77(1); or

    • (b) under subsection 349.91(1) or 349.92(1).

  • Marginal note:Loans

    (6) For the purpose of subsection (4), a contribution includes a loan.

  • Marginal note:Categories

    (7) For the purposes of paragraphs (4)(a) and (b), the following are the classes of contributor:

    • (a) individuals;

    • (b) businesses;

    • (c) commercial organizations;

    • (d) governments;

    • (e) trade unions;

    • (f) corporations without share capital other than trade unions; and

    • (g) unincorporated organizations or associations other than trade unions.

  • Marginal note:Names to be provided

    (8) If the third party is unable to identify which contributions were received during the period referred to in paragraph (1)(b) for partisan activity, partisan advertising, election advertising or election survey purposes, the interim third-party expenses return shall include, subject to paragraph (4)(c), the names and addresses of every contributor who contributed a total of more than $200 to it during that period.

  • Marginal note:Declaration

    (9) The interim third-party expenses return shall include a declaration that the return is accurate signed by

    • (a) the third party’s financial agent; and

    • (b) if different from the financial agent, the person who signed the application made under subsection 349.6(2) or 353(2), as the case may be.

  • Marginal note:Supporting documents

    (10) A third party shall, at the request of the Chief Electoral Officer, provide documents evidencing expenses set out in the return that are in an amount of more than $50, including bank statements, deposit slips and cancelled cheques.

Marginal note:Interim third-party expenses return

  • 357.02 (1) Every third party that is required to be registered in accordance with subsection 353(1) shall file an interim third-party expenses return in the prescribed form with the Chief Electoral Officer on the 7th day before polling day, if the third party

    • (a) was required to file an interim third-party expenses return with the Chief Electoral Officer under subsection 349.92(1);

    • (b) has incurred expenses referred to in subsection 349.1(1) or 350(1) in an aggregate amount of $10,000 or more during the period beginning on the day after polling day at the previous general election and ending on the 9th day before polling day; or

    • (c) has received contributions in an aggregate amount of $10,000 or more for partisan activity, partisan advertising, election advertising or election survey purposes during the period referred to in paragraph (b).

  • Marginal note:Section 357.01 applies

    (2) Subsections 357.01(2) to (10) apply to the return under subsection (1), except that a reference to the period referred to in paragraph (1)(b) of section 357.01 shall be read as a reference to the period referred to in paragraph (1)(b) of this section.

  • Marginal note:Exception

    (3) In addition to the exceptions set out in subsection 357.01(5), the interim third-party expenses return need not include any information referred to in subsections 357.01(2) and (4) that was included in an interim third-party expenses return that the third party previously filed under subsection 357.01(1).

Marginal note:Prohibition — false, misleading or incomplete return

357.03 No third party shall file under subsection 357.01(1) or 357.02(1) an interim third-party expenses return that

  • (a) the third party knows or ought reasonably to know contains a material statement that is false or misleading; or

  • (b) does not substantially set out the information required under section 357.01 or 357.02, as the case may be.

Marginal note:Prohibition — use of certain contributions

357.1 No third party shall use a contribution for the purpose of any of the following if the third party does not know the name and address of the contributor or is otherwise unable to determine within which class of contributor referred to in subsection 359(6) the contributor falls:

  • (a) a partisan activity that is carried out during an election period;

  • (b) an election advertising message that is transmitted during that period; and

  • (c) an election survey that is conducted during that period and whose results the third party takes into account in its decisions concerning whether or not to organize and carry out partisan activities during that period or to transmit election advertising messages during that period.

 

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