HER MAJESTY, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of British Columbia, enacts as follows:

Balanced Budget and Ministerial Accountability Act

1 Section 5 (1) of the Balanced Budget and Ministerial Accountability Act, S.B.C. 2001, c. 28, is amended by striking out "section 6 (1.1) or (1.2)" and substituting "section 6 (1.1), (1.2) or (1.3)".

2 Section 6 is amended by adding the following subsection:

(1.3) If a reallocation of spending authority in relation to operating expenses occurs during a fiscal year among members of the Executive Council under a vote that authorizes spending by more than one member, within 90 days after the reallocation the minister must make public a statement of the information referred to in subsection (1) (a) in relation to that fiscal year, revised to reflect the reallocation.

Budget Transparency and Accountability Act

3 Section 6 of the Budget Transparency and Accountability Act, S.B.C. 2000, c. 23, is amended by adding the following subsection:

(3) Subsections (1) and (2) do not apply with respect to a replacement of or revision to the main estimates presented after the dates referred to in those subsections.

Carbon Tax Act

4 Section 1 (1) of the Carbon Tax Act, S.B.C. 2008, c. 40, is amended

(a) by adding the following definitions:

"biomethane" means methane produced from biomass;

"biomethane credit" means a credit provided under section 14.1; , and

(b) by repealing paragraph (b) in the definition of "fuel" and substituting the following:

(b) subject to section 13.1, biomethane; .

5 The following section is added to Part 3:

Calculation of tax for certain biomethane blends or mixtures

13.1  (1) If a mixture or blend contains a combined amount of a fuel and biomethane and the proportions of the fuel and biomethane in the combined amount cannot be determined,

(a) for the purpose of applying this Act and the regulations under this Act, the biomethane is deemed to be fuel of the same type or subcategory of a type of fuel as the fuel, and

(b) the total amount of tax payable for the fuel and the biomethane is to be determined by multiplying the rate of tax for the fuel under this Act by the combined amount of the fuel and the biomethane.

(2) If a mixture or blend contains a combined amount of natural gas, another fuel and biomethane, and the proportions of natural gas, the other fuel and biomethane in the combined amount cannot be determined,

(a) for the purpose of applying this Act and the regulations under this Act, the other fuel and the biomethane are deemed to be natural gas, and

(b) the total amount of tax payable for the natural gas, the other fuel and the biomethane is to be determined by multiplying the rate of tax for natural gas under this Act by the combined amount of the natural gas, the other fuel and the biomethane.

6 The heading to Part 4 is repealed and the following substituted:

Part 4 — Exemptions and Credits .

7 The following heading is added immediately before section 14:

Division 1 — Exemptions .

8 The following Division is added to Part 4:

Division 2 — Biomethane Credit

Biomethane credit

14.1  Subject to the regulations, a retail dealer of natural gas, on behalf of the government, must provide a credit to a purchaser at the prescribed time and in an amount determined in the prescribed manner.

Refund to retail dealer of natural gas

14.2  If the director is satisfied that

(a) a retail dealer of natural gas has provided a biomethane credit to a purchaser in respect of a sale,

(b) the retail dealer has remitted to the director the amount of tax payable in respect of the sale, without deduction for the biomethane credit, and

(c) the purchaser was entitled to receive the biomethane credit,

the director, subject to the regulations, must pay from the consolidated revenue fund to the retail dealer a refund of a portion of the tax remitted by the retail dealer in respect of the sale in an amount determined in the prescribed manner.

Recovery of amount by retail dealer of natural gas

14.3  If a retail dealer of natural gas

(a) provides a credit to a person in respect of a sale as if it were a biomethane credit, and

(b) does not receive a refund under section 14.2 because the person was not entitled to receive a biomethane credit in respect of the sale,

the retail dealer may by action in a court recover from the person the amount credited.

9 Section 36 is amended by adding the following subsection:

(3) If the director is satisfied that a retail dealer of natural gas has remitted to the director an amount as collected taxes that the retail dealer neither collected nor was required to collect under this Act, the director must refund the amount to the retail dealer from the consolidated revenue fund.

10 Section 56 (1) (a) is amended by adding "paid or remitted" after "tax".

11 Section 84 is amended

(a) in subsection (3) by adding the following paragraphs:

(o.1) respecting the provision of biomethane credits, including, without limitation, the following:

(i) limiting the retail dealers of natural gas or classes of retail dealers of natural gas, to whom section 14.1 applies;

(ii) limiting the purchasers or classes of purchasers, to whom section 14.1 applies;

(iii) establishing circumstances in which biomethane credits must or must not be provided;

(iv) setting conditions or limitations on the provision of biomethane credits;

(v) respecting the duties of retail dealers of natural gas who are required to provide biomethane credits;

(o.2) respecting refunds under section 14.2, including, without limitation, the following:

(i) establishing circumstances in which refunds must or must not be paid;

(ii) setting conditions or limitations on the payment of refunds;

(iii) respecting the repayment of refunds to the government by retail dealers of natural gas; , and

(b) by adding the following subsection:

(6.3) A regulation that relates to Division 2 of Part 4 made before December 31, 2011 under this section may be made retroactive to February 16, 2011 or a later date, and if made retroactive is deemed to have come into force on the specified date.

Financial Administration Act

12 Section 1 of the Financial Administration Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 138, is amended by repealing the definitions of "estimates" and "vote" and substituting the following:

"estimates" means the estimates of revenue and expenditure for a fiscal year presented to the Legislative Assembly, being

(a) the main estimates presented annually, and

(b) any supplementary estimates for the fiscal year,

and includes any replacement of or revision to the estimates made before passage by the Legislative Assembly of the final Supply Act that relates to those estimates;

"vote" means an appropriation under a Supply Act identified in the estimates as a vote.

Health Authorities Act

13 Section 15 (1) of the Health Authorities Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 180, is amended by striking out "Property vested" and substituting "Subject to any regulations under section 21 (2) (s), property vested" and by adding "by or on behalf of the board" after "is being used".

14 Section 21 (2) is amended by adding the following paragraph:

(s) to limit the exemption from property taxation under section 15 (1) or to impose conditions on that exemption.

Home Owner Grant Act

15 Section 17 of the Home Owner Grant Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 194, is amended

(a) by adding the following subsection:

(0.1) In this section:

"due date" means the due date stated on a notice of disentitlement under subsection (1) (b);

"notice of disentitlement" means a notification provided by the collector or grant administrator under subsection (1);

"notice recipient" means a person to whom a notice of disentitlement is provided under subsection (1);

"prescribed rate" means the rate of interest prescribed by the Lieutenant Governor in Council under section 11 (3) of the Taxation (Rural Area) Act;

"request for review" means a request for a review of a notice recipient's entitlement under subsection (1) (c). .

(b) by repealing subsection (1) (b) and substituting the following:

(b) that the person must pay to the Minister of Finance, on or before the due date stated on the notice of disentitlement, the amounts described in subsection (1.01) (a) and (b), .

(c) in subsection (1) (c) by striking out "stated on the notice of disentitlement",

(d) in subsection (1) (d) by striking out "or request a review by that date" and by striking out "subsections (4) and (7)." and substituting "subsections (4.1) and (5) or (7) and (8).",

(e) by adding the following subsection:

(1.01) Subject to subsection (12), a notice recipient must pay to the Minister of Finance, on or before the due date, the total of the following amounts:

(a) the amount, referred to in subsection (1), that the collector or grant administrator determined the notice recipient was not entitled to receive;

(b) interest on that amount at the prescribed rate from the date of approval of the grant or low-income grant supplement to the date of issue of the notice of disentitlement. .

(f) in subsection (1.1) by striking out "under subsection (1) (c)",

(g) in subsection (2) by striking out "the person" and substituting "the notice recipient",

(h) by repealing subsection (3) (a) and substituting the following:

(a) refund out of the consolidated revenue fund to the notice recipient any excess amount paid by the notice recipient, including any excess interest, and .

(i) in subsection (3) (b) by striking out "to that person" and substituting "to the notice recipient" and by striking out "at the rate referred to in subsection (1) (b)" and substituting "at the prescribed rate",

(j) by repealing subsection (4) and substituting the following:

(4) Subject to subsection (12), if a notice recipient does not pay, on or before the due date, the total amount owed under subsection (1.01) in respect of a grant or low-income grant supplement, the notice recipient must, in addition, pay to the Minister of Finance interest on the unpaid amount including interest, at the prescribed rate, from the date of issue of the notice of disentitlement.

(4.1) If a notice recipient does not pay the total amount owed under subsections (1.01) and (4) in respect of a grant, the grant administrator may direct the collector to place the unpaid amount

(a) on the tax roll of any jurisdiction in British Columbia in which any property of the notice recipient is located, and

(b) against the notice recipient's property. .

(k) in subsection (5) (a) by striking out "at the rate referred to in subsection (1) (b)" and substituting "at the prescribed rate",

(l) in subsection (6) by striking out "a person's property," and substituting "a notice recipient's property," and by striking out "the person." and substituting "the notice recipient.",

(m) by repealing subsection (7) and substituting the following:

(7) Subject to subsection (7.1), if a notice recipient does not pay the total amount owed under subsections (1.01) and (4), the grant administrator may

(a) issue a certificate specifying

(i) the total amount owed, and

(ii) the name of the notice recipient, and

(b) file the certificate with the Supreme Court.

(7.1) Subsection (7) applies to an amount owed in respect of

(a) a low-income grant supplement, and

(b) a grant, if the notice recipient does not have any property on the tax roll of any jurisdiction in British Columbia. .

(n) in subsection (9) by striking out "under subsection (5)" and substituting "under subsection (4.1) or (5)",

(o) by repealing subsection (11), and

(p) by adding the following subsections:

(12) Despite the Financial Administration Act, if the grant administrator is satisfied that a notice recipient, in applying for a grant or low-income grant supplement, relied on incorrect information or advice provided by a person who was employed in or retained under a contract to perform services for

(a) the government, or

(b) a municipality,

the grant administrator may, on or before the date that is one year after the date that the notice of disentitlement was issued, waive or cancel all or part of any interest otherwise payable by a notice recipient under subsection (1.01) (b) or (4).

(13) If interest is waived or cancelled under subsection (12), the grant administrator must

(a) refund out of the consolidated revenue fund to the notice recipient any of the waived or cancelled interest paid by the notice recipient, and

(b) pay to the notice recipient interest on the amount refunded at the prescribed rate from the date of payment to the Minister of Finance to the date of refund.

International Business Activity Act

16 Section 1 of the International Business Activity Act, S.B.C. 2004, c. 49, is amended

(a) by adding the following definitions:

"Canadian banking business" has the same meaning as in section 248 (1) of the federal Act;

"foreign bank" has the same meaning as in section 2 of the Bank Act (Canada); , and

(b) by repealing the definition of "international financial business" and substituting the following:

"international financial business" means,

(a) in relation to a corporation other than a foreign bank, a business

(i) that is a qualifying financial business carried on by the corporation through a fixed place of business in British Columbia, and

(ii) all the activities of which are international financial activities, and

(b) in relation to a corporation that is a foreign bank, a business

(i) that is a Canadian banking business carried on by the corporation through a fixed place of business in British Columbia, and

(ii) all the activities of which are international financial activities; .

17 Section 2 is amended by adding the following subsection:

(3.2) An activity referred to in subsection (2) is not an international financial activity of a corporation that is a foreign bank unless the activity is carried on by the corporation with a person other than the foreign bank.

18 Section 9 (1) (a) is repealed and the following substituted:

(a) the corporation

(i) was incorporated in Canada and, since that incorporation, has not been continued, amalgamated or otherwise transferred by a similar process into a foreign jurisdiction, or

(ii) is a foreign bank; .

19 Section 17 is amended by adding "or 18.1, whichever is applicable" after "as determined under section 18".

20 Section 18 (1) is amended by striking out "a corporation's eligible proportion of income for a taxation year" and substituting "the eligible proportion of income for a taxation year for a corporation that is not a foreign bank".

21 The following section is added:

Eligible proportion of income — foreign bank

18.1  (1) Subject to subsection (2), the eligible proportion of income for a taxation year for a corporation that is a foreign bank is the lesser of one and the proportion calculated by the following formula:

eligible proportion =	total adjusted IB income
		adjusted income x	BC taxable income federal taxable income

(2) A corporation's eligible proportion of income for a taxation year is zero if the corporation's adjusted income, BC taxable income, federal taxable income or total adjusted IB income is zero or less than zero.

22 Section 19 is amended by adding "other than a foreign bank" after "If a corporation".

23 The following section is added:

Total adjusted IB income for foreign bank

19.001  If a corporation that is a foreign bank claims a tax refund under section 17 in respect of an international financial business, for the purpose of section 18.1, the corporation's total adjusted IB income for a taxation year is the total of all amounts, each of which is the corporation's adjusted IB income, as calculated by the following formula, for the taxation year from a particular source that is an international financial business carried on by the corporation:

24 Section 19.03 is amended by adding the following subsection:

(3) For the purpose of calculating under section 19.001 the IB income of a corporation's international financial business, for a taxation year, the corporation must deduct for the taxation year all amounts that have been deducted by the corporation in determining the corporation's income or loss under section 115 (1) (a) (ii) and (c) of the federal Act for the purposes of that Act for the taxation year that

(a) relate to the international financial business for which a claim is made under this Act by the corporation, or

(b) are amounts paid or payable by the corporation as salary, wages or other remuneration or benefits to an individual registered under section 14 (5) (b) or (c) for all or part of the year during which the individual was registered, whether or not the amounts relate to a type of international financial business.

School Act

25 Section 130 of the School Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 412, is amended

(a) by repealing subsection (2) (c) and substituting the following:

(c) used for a purpose prescribed by the Lieutenant Governor in Council. , and

(b) by adding the following subsection:

(4) Subsection (1) (b) does not apply to a parcel of land that

(a) is classified in a property class, as defined in section 120 (1), that is prescribed by the Lieutenant Governor in Council for the purposes of this section, or

(b) is used for a purpose prescribed by the Lieutenant Governor in Council.

Taxation (Rural Area) Act

26 Section 12 (1) of the Taxation (Rural Area) Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 448, is amended by striking out "section 21 (7)" and substituting "section 21 (7) or (8.2)".

27 Section 21 is amended

(a) by adding the following subsections:

(0.1) In this section, "taxing authority" means an entity that is authorized under an enactment to receive revenue from taxes imposed or collected for it by the Surveyor of Taxes.

(8.1) If, on or before December 31 of the calendar year for which a taxation roll has been completed, the Surveyor of Taxes finds that an incorrect amount of taxes was levied as a result of

(a) an error in an entry on the taxation roll in relation to a parcel of land that is caused by incorrectly

(i) identifying a taxing authority,

(ii) including the parcel or another parcel of land in a particular area, or

(iii) excluding the parcel or another parcel of land from a particular area, or

(b) an error in the preparation of the taxation roll by a ministry person,

the Surveyor of Taxes may prepare a supplementary taxation roll correcting the error.

(8.2) If a supplementary taxation roll is prepared under subsection (8.1), the Surveyor of Taxes must, on or before December 31 of the year following the calendar year for which the supplementary taxation roll was prepared, mail to every person named on the supplementary taxation roll a supplementary taxation notice. , and

(b) in subsection (9) by striking out "subsections (2), (3), (7) and (8)" and substituting "subsections (2), (3), (7), (8) and (8.2)".

28 Section 24 (3) is amended by adding "from the consolidated revenue fund" after "must refund".

University Act

29 Section 54 of the University Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 468, is amended

(a) in subsection (1) by adding "by or on behalf of the university" after "held or used", and

(b) by adding the following subsections:

(3) If property vested in a university is held or used by or on behalf of a student society affiliated with the university, so long as it is held or used for university purposes, the property continues to be entitled to the exemption from taxation provided in this section.

(4) Subsections (1), (2) and (3) do not apply to property used for a prescribed purpose.

30 Section 71 (2) is amended by striking out "and" at the end of paragraph (b) and by adding the following paragraph:

(b.1) prescribing purposes for the purpose of section 54 (4), and .

Transitional Provisions

Health Authorities Act and University Act transition

31  (1) In this section, "former provision" means

(a) section 15 of the Health Authorities Act, as that section read on December 31, 2009, or

(b) section 54 of the University Act, as that section read on December 31, 2009.

(2) This section applies despite

(a) section 15 of the Health Authorities Act, as amended by this Act, and

(b) section 54 of the University Act, as amended by this Act.

(3) If property was exempt from taxation under a former provision for the purposes of the 2010 taxation year, the former provision continues to apply in respect of that property until the earlier of

(a) December 31, 2015, and

(b) December 31 of the taxation year in which there is a change in who is the holder or occupier of the property.

Health Authorities Act and University Act
amendments — retroactive effect

32  Sections 13, 14, 29 and 30 of this Act are retroactive to the extent necessary to give them effect for the purposes of the 2011 taxation year.

Health Authorities Act and University Act
transition — retroactive regulations for 2011 taxation year

33  (1) Despite section 74 (5) of the Assessment Act, the Lieutenant Governor in Council may make regulations under section 21 (2) (s) of the Health Authorities Act or section 71 (2) (b.1) of the University Act retroactive to the extent necessary to apply for the purposes of the 2011 taxation year.

(2) A regulation may not be made under subsection (1) after December 31, 2011.

Home Owner Grant Act transition

34  Section 17 (12) and (13) of the Home Owner Grant Act as enacted by this Act does not apply in respect of a notice of disentitlement provided under section 17 (1) of the Home Owner Grant Act before February 16, 2011.

School Act transition — retroactive regulations for 2011 taxation year

35  (1) Despite section 74 (5) of the Assessment Act, the Lieutenant Governor in Council may make regulations under section 130 (4) of the School Act retroactive to the extent necessary to apply for the purposes of the 2011 taxation year.

(2) A regulation may not be made under subsection (1) after December 31, 2011.

Commencement

36  The provisions of this Act referred to in column 1 of the following table come into force as set out in column 2 of the table: