Interpretation

1.  In this Act

"business" includes trade, enterprise, calling and undertaking;

"business enterprise" means an individual, partnership, corporation or other organization carrying on, in British Columbia, a business or preparing to do so as successor to or in replacement of an individual, partnership, corporation or other organization that formerly carried on the business;

"commissioner" means the Job Protection Commissioner appointed under this Act;

"economic plan" means a scheme approved by the commissioner that includes an authorization given by the commissioner for a business enterprise and a public body to enter into an agreement

(a) that an impost payable by the business enterprise to the public body shall, for not more than a 5 year period, be paid at a rate, or in an amount, or at a time or times, or in a manner different from that required or authorized under an Act listed in the Schedule, or

(b) for a permitted regulatory concession;

"impost" means a rate, charge, fee, tariff, rent, royalty, levy, tax or any other payment payable under, regulated under or subject to control or approval under an Act listed in the Schedule or payable at a rate or in an amount that is determined or calculated under an Act listed in the Schedule;

"interested party" includes

(a) savings institutions;

(b) trade unions;

(c) employee associations, and

(d) any other person, whether or not similar to the foregoing, whose cooperation may be conducive to the effective operation of a business enterprise;

"participant" means a business enterprise, interested party or public body that has agreed to establish an economic plan and, where the government of Canada has agreed to join in the establishment of an economic plan, includes the government of Canada;

"permitted regulatory concession" means a concession described in section 11;

"public body" includes

(a) the Crown in right of British Columbia;

(b) Crown corporations, commissions and agencies;

(c) municipalities;

(d) regulatory bodies, and

(e) any local or Provincial public authority or body designated by regulation of the Lieutenant Governor in Council;

"special commissioner" means an individual designated under section 6;

"strategic industry" means an industry designated under section 4 as a strategic industry or the part or class of an industry that is so designated.

Historical Note(s): 1991-4-1.

Objects

2.  The objects of this Act are

(a) to minimize job loss and the consequent destabilization of regional or local economies, particularly those mainly dependent on one industry, and

(b) to preserve, restore and enhance the competitiveness of business enterprises in British Columbia and in the global marketplace

by introducing temporary measures designed

(c) to encourage business enterprises to obtain management consulting and counselling services;

(d) to provide mediation services to business enterprises and interested parties in order to encourage cooperation conducive to the effective operation of the business enterprises, and

(e) to enable business enterprises and interested parties to establish, subject to this Act, economic plans.

Historical Note(s): 1991-4-2.

Job Protection Commissioner

3.  (1) The Lieutenant Governor in Council shall appoint a Job Protection Commissioner and may determine the commissioner's remuneration and the terms and conditions of the appointment.

(2) The commissioner shall be reimbursed for actual reasonable expenses necessarily incurred in the performance of the commissioner's duties.

Historical Note(s): 1991-4-3.

Strategic industries

4.  (1) The Lieutenant Governor in Council, with or without a recommendation under subsection (2), may designate the whole or any part or class of an industry as a strategic industry.

(2) Where the commissioner considers that an industry or a part or class of it should be designated as a strategic industry, the commissioner may submit a report and recommendation to that effect to the Lieutenant Governor in Council.

Historical Note(s): 1991-4-4.

Employees and consultants

5.  (1) The commissioner, notwithstanding the Public Service Act, may employ or retain persons the commissioner considers necessary for the purposes of this Act, for periods the commissioner considers necessary, and may determine their remuneration and duties and the terms and conditions of the employment or the retainers.

(2) The Labour Relations Code and the Public Service Labour Relations Act do not apply to persons employed or retained under this section.

(3) Where the Lieutenant Governor in Council so orders, the Pension (Public Service) Act applies to the commissioner or to employees of the commissioner.

Historical Note(s): 1991-4-5; 1992-82-165.

Special commissioners

6.  The commissioner may

(a) designate as a special commissioner anyone employed or retained under section 5, for the purpose of carrying out special assignments under this Act in relation to a particular business, industry, region or locality or to a class of any of them, and

(b) specify terms of reference for each of the special commissioners and the nature and scope of each special assignment.

Historical Note(s): 1991-4-6.

Commissioner's and special commissioner's duties

7.  (1) The commissioner shall administer this Act.

(2) In performing functions under this Act, the commissioner and each special commissioner shall have regard to

(a) the objects of this Act;

(b) the economic importance of a business enterprise to British Columbia or to a region or locality within British Columbia;

(c) the need to balance the interests of the business enterprise, interested parties and public bodies concerned in a fair and equitable manner by sharing the burden of preserving, restoring or enhancing the competitiveness of the business enterprise, and

(d) the impact of any proposed assistance to an applicant business enterprise under this Act on other business enterprises operating within the region or locality in which the applicant operates.

(3) Where the commissioner or a special commissioner provides services and assistance under this Act, the commissioner or a special commissioner may at any time make recommendations or withdraw the services and assistance.

Historical Note(s): 1991-4-7.

Assistance by commissioner

8.  (1) A business enterprise is eligible for assistance under this section, whether or not engaged in a strategic industry, if

(a) the commissioner or a special commissioner is satisfied that the business enterprise

(i)  is carrying on a business or, as successor to or in replacement of another business enterprise, will be carrying on a business that the commissioner or a special commissioner considers to be of economic importance to British Columbia or to a region or locality within British Columbia, and,

(ii)  employs or will employ at least the prescribed minimum number of individuals working in that business in the Greater Vancouver Regional District or at least the prescribed smaller minimum number of individuals working in that business in another region or locality in British Columbia, and

(b) the business enterprise or any of the employees, by application directed to the Job Protection Commissioner, applies for the assistance.

(2) Where the commissioner or a special commissioner considers that it is likely that the business enterprise and any interested parties and public bodies will be able to make arrangements or reach agreements conducive to the effective operation of the business enterprise, then the commissioner or a special commissioner may invite any interested parties and public bodies whose cooperation the commissioner or a special commissioner considers desirable to confer with him or her on the means by which the competitiveness of the business enterprise may be preserved, restored or enhanced.

(3) In carrying out functions under subsection (2), the commissioner or a special commissioner may provide any mediation and consultation services that he or she considers necessary to enable the business enterprise, interested parties and public bodies to make arrangements or reach agreements that will assist the effective operation of the business enterprise.

Historical Note(s): 1991-4-8.

Economic plans

9.  (1) If the commissioner is satisfied, either directly or on the basis of information reported by a special commissioner,

(a) that a business enterprise that is eligible for assistance under section 8 is, or will be, engaged with the requisite minimum number of employees under that section, in a strategic industry, and

(b) that agreements and arrangements referred to in section 8 should include special measures

(i)  with respect to an impost payable by the business enterprise, or,

(ii)  in the form of a permitted regulatory concession,

then the commissioner or a special commissioner may confer with the business enterprise, interested parties and public bodies and provide mediation and consultation services with a view to the formulation of an economic plan.

(2) If a special commissioner takes part in a conference under subsection (1) or in providing mediation and consultation services with a view to the formulation of an economic plan, the special commissioner shall report the outcome to the commissioner.

(3) No economic plan and no agreement entered into under an economic plan has any force or effect unless and until

(a) the plan is reduced to writing;

(b) the plan names every participant;

(c) the plan has been approved in writing by the Job Protection Commissioner, and

(d) every agreement required by the plan to be entered into by the participants has been reduced to writing and executed by the necessary parties to it, and contains all the terms and conditions specified by the commissioner under subsection (4).

(4) The commissioner may approve an economic plan subject to terms and conditions the commissioner specifies.

(5) A provision that affects an impost in a manner referred to in paragraph (a) of the definition of "economic plan" in section 1 and that is contained in an agreement entered into by participants in accordance with an economic plan has, where the requirements in subsection (3) have all been met, force and effect with respect to the impost, notwithstanding anything contained in any of the Acts listed in the Schedule.

(6) A provision for a permitted regulatory concession that is contained in an agreement entered into by participants in accordance with an economic plan has, where the requirements in subsection (3) have all been met, force and effect for the purposes of the Act to which the permitted regulatory concession relates, notwithstanding anything contained in that Act.

(7) The powers of the commissioner to approve an economic plan include the power to approve an economic plan formulated before this Act came into force.

(8) An agreement entered into under an economic plan approved under subsection (7) may be made effective on and after January 1, 1991 and a provision in it

(a) that affects an impost in a manner referred to in paragraph (a) of the definition of "economic plan" in section 1, or

(b) for a permitted regulatory concession

has force and effect on and after that date with respect to the impost, or to the Act to which the permitted regulatory concession relates, notwithstanding anything contained in any other Act, and subsection (7) and this subsection are retroactive to the extent necessary to confer that force and effect on and after that date.

Historical Note(s): 1991-4-9.

Participation voluntary

10.  Nothing in section 8 or 9 requires any person to

(a) confer with the commissioner or a special commissioner;

(b) make any arrangement, or

(c) execute any agreement.

Historical Note(s): 1991-4-10.

Permitted regulatory concessions

11.  (1) An agreement entered into under this Act by participants, in accordance with an economic plan, may provide for either of the following concessions:

(a) that a business enterprise that is a corporation and is named in the agreement shall be treated for all purposes under the Small Business Venture Capital Act as both a small business and as an eligible investment, notwithstanding

(i)  the definitions of "small business" and "eligible investment" in section 1 of that Act,

(ii)  sections 10 (1) (a), (b) and (c), 12 (1) (g), 13 and 15 of that Act, and

(iii)  any provisions of the regulations under that Act that are specified in the agreement,

but subject to compliance with the rest of that Act and those regulations;

(b) that a business enterprise that is a corporation and is named in the agreement shall be treated for all purposes under the Employee Investment Act as a corporation that meets the criteria set out in section 3 of that Act, notwithstanding

(i)  sections 3 (c) and (d) and 4 (1) (a) to (d) and (l) of that Act, and,

(ii)  any provisions of the regulations under that Act that are specified in the agreement,

but subject to compliance with the rest of that Act and those regulations; and, in deciding the registrability under section 2 of that Act of an employee share ownership plan of the business enterprise, the administrator shall disregard the provisions referred to in subparagraph (i) and any specified provisions referred to in subparagraph (ii).

(2) An agreement entered into under this Act by participants, in accordance with an economic plan, may provide for the concession set out in subsection (3) where, under section 56.01 of the Forest Act, the allowable annual cut specified by or under a forest licence or tree farm licence is reduced.

(3) The concession referred to in subsection (2) is as follows: that rights to harvest Crown timber under the Forest Act, in an annual volume not greater than the reduction referred to in subsection (2), may be granted to a business enterprise that is a party to the agreement under this Act without competition and, where section 27 of the Forest Act is applicable, without the public hearing referred to in that section, notwithstanding

(a) section 9 of that Act, or

(b) a requirement as to advertising or accepting applications from other persons under any of sections 11, 16, 16.1, 27 and 41 of that Act or as to holding a public hearing under section 27 of that Act;

but subject to compliance with the rest of that Act.

Historical Note(s): 1991-4-11.

Recommendations to public bodies

12.  To expedite any matter or business arising under this Act or to which this Act relates, the commissioner or a special commissioner may make to any public body or interested party any recommendation, respecting that body's or interested party's exercise of its powers and functions, that the commissioner or a special commissioner considers desirable.

Historical Note(s): 1991-4-12.

Participation by Canada

13.  The commissioner may invite the government of Canada and any of its agencies to join in consultations under this Act or to be a participant in an economic plan.

Historical Note(s): 1991-4-13.

Confidentiality

14.  The commissioner, a special commissioner and every person employed or retained under section 5 shall keep secret all information obtained during the course of the administration of this Act, except insofar as disclosure is necessary for the administration of this Act or insofar as the commissioner authorizes the release of the information.

Historical Note(s): 1991-4-14.

No testimony in civil action

15.  The commissioner, a special commissioner or a person employed or retained under section 5 shall not, in a civil action to which the commissioner is not a party, be required to testify or produce evidence about information obtained in the discharge of duties under this Act.

Historical Note(s): 1991-4-15.

Additions to Schedule

16.  The Lieutenant Governor in Council by regulation may amend the Schedule by adding to it any other Act.

Historical Note(s): 1991-4-16.

Report to Legislative Assembly

17.  (1) The commissioner, in each year, shall make to the Lieutenant Governor in Council a report of the activities of the commissioner for the preceding calendar year.

(2) The report shall be tabled before the Legislative Assembly as soon as practicable after it is submitted to the Lieutenant Governor in Council.

Historical Note(s): 1991-4-17.

Offence

18.  (1) A person who contravenes section 14 commits an offence.

(2) Section 5 of the Offence Act does not apply in respect of this Act or the regulations.

Historical Note(s): 1991-4-18.

Regulations

19.  The Lieutenant Governor in Council may make regulations he or she considers to be ancillary to the purposes of this Act and to be necessary or advisable.

Historical Note(s): 1991-4-19.

Sunset provision

20.  (1) This Act, except this section, is repealed on April 12, 1995.

(2) Notwithstanding the repeal effected by subsection (1), the repeal does not affect an economic plan or agreement that has force and effect under section 9, and this Act shall be deemed to remain in force to the extent necessary to give the economic plan and the agreement force and effect according to their tenor.

Historical Note(s): 1993-2-1.

Spent

21-25.  [Consequential amendments. Spent. 1991-4-21 to 25.]

Commencement

26.  This Act comes into force by regulation of the Lieutenant Governor in Council.

Historical Note(s): 1991-4-26.