The following electronic version is for informational purposes only.
The printed version remains the official version.
HONOURABLE NIKI SHARMA
ATTORNEY GENERAL
AND DEPUTY PREMIER
This Bill provides for an online Act or online consolidation of an Act to be relied on as an official version of the Act for evidentiary purposes.
This Bill also establishes requirements relating to the publication of Acts and consolidations of Acts.
HIS MAJESTY, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of British Columbia, enacts as follows:
1 In this Act:
"consolidation", in relation to an Act, has the meaning set out in section 2;
"official website" means the website designated by regulation as the official website.
2 (1) A consolidation of an Act is a record that, subject to sections 8 [matters not required in consolidation] and 11 [retroactive portions and amendments], sets out the portions of the Act that are in force on the currency date, or during the currency period, indicated on the consolidation, as those portions read after incorporating the amendments, if any, made to the Act by other enactments.
(2) Subject to sections 8 and 11 and in the absence of evidence to the contrary, a consolidation of an Act is an accurate record of the law set out in the portions of the Act described in subsection (1).
(3) Each of the following is a consolidation for the purposes of this Act:
(a) an initial consolidation prepared under section 7;
(b) an updated consolidation prepared under section 9;
(c) a previous consolidation prepared under section 10, also known as a point-in-time consolidation.
(4) The currency date or currency period indicated on a consolidation
(a) is not part of the law enacted in respect of the Act, and
(b) may be added, updated or changed editorially.
3 (1) In respect of an Act to which section 6 [record of Acts] of the Constitution Act applies, the Clerk of the Legislative Assembly, or a person designated under that section, must provide a copy of the Act to the Chief Legislative Counsel
(a) promptly after the Lieutenant Governor assents to the Act, or
(b) if the Act is reserved for the signification of the Governor General's pleasure, promptly after the Lieutenant Governor signifies that the Governor General has assented to the Act.
(2) In respect of an Act that is a revision under the Statute Revision Act, the Clerk of the Legislative Assembly must provide a copy of the revision to the Chief Legislative Counsel promptly after the revision is deposited and signed under section 4 [approved revision to be deposited as official copy] of that Act.
4 (1) For the purposes of section 43 [citation of Acts] of the Interpretation Act, the Chief Legislative Counsel must assign a chapter number to an Act.
(2) After receiving a copy of an Act under section 3, the Chief Legislative Counsel must do the following:
(a) provide a copy of the Act to the King's Printer for the purposes of section 5 (1) [delivery of printed copies of Acts to members] of the King's Printer Act;
(b) arrange for the Act to be published on the official website in a collection of Acts enacted in the same year.
(3) For an Act enacted before the date subsection (2) comes into force, the Chief Legislative Counsel may arrange for the Act to be published on the official website in a collection of Acts enacted in the same year.
5 (1) The Lieutenant Governor in Council may make regulations to correct the following in any Act:
(a) errors of form;
(b) errors of style;
(c) numbering errors;
(d) typographical errors;
(e) reference errors.
(2) Unless confirmed by the Legislature, corrections made by a regulation under this section cease to have effect after the last day of the next session of the Legislative Assembly after the regulation is made.
6 (1) The Chief Legislative Counsel must arrange for an Act published on the official website to be corrected, and for notice of the correction to be published on the official website, if the Chief Legislative Counsel determines that an error was made
(a) in preparing the Act for publication on the official website, or
(b) in publishing the Act on the official website.
(2) The Chief Legislative Counsel must notify the King's Printer if the Chief Legislative Counsel determines that an error was made
(a) in preparing an Act for publication in print form, or
(b) in publishing the Act in print form.
Part 3 – Consolidations of Acts
7 (1) After receiving a copy of an Act under section 3 [Clerk to provide copy of Act], the Chief Legislative Counsel must prepare an initial consolidation of the Act, unless one or more of the following apply:
(a) the Chief Legislative Counsel considers that the Act primarily amends or repeals other Acts;
(b) the Chief Legislative Counsel considers that the Act has effect for a limited time or is transitional in nature;
(c) the regulations provide that a consolidation of the Act is not required.
(2) The Chief Legislative Counsel may prepare an initial consolidation of the following:
(a) an Act for which an initial consolidation is not required under subsection (1);
(b) an Act enacted before the date subsection (1) comes into force.
(3) After an initial consolidation has been prepared under this section, the Chief Legislative Counsel must arrange for the consolidation to be published on the official website.
8 The Chief Legislative Counsel is not required to include in a consolidation any of the following portions of or amendments to an Act:
(a) a portion that is not in force;
(b) a portion that amends or repeals another Act;
(c) a portion that has expired or been repealed;
(d) a portion that the Chief Legislative Counsel considers has ceased to have effect;
(e) a portion that, under the regulations, is not required to be included in a consolidation;
(f) an amendment that is not in force;
(g) an amendment to a portion described in this section.
9 (1) If an initial consolidation of an Act has been published under section 7, the Chief Legislative Counsel must prepare an updated consolidation of the Act each time another portion of or an amendment to the Act comes into force, other than a portion or amendment described in section 8.
(2) The Chief Legislative Counsel may prepare an updated consolidation of an Act in circumstances other than those for which consolidation is required under subsection (1).
(3) After an updated consolidation has been prepared under this section, the Chief Legislative Counsel must arrange for the updated consolidation to be published on the official website.
10 (1) If an updated consolidation of an Act is published under section 9 (3), the Chief Legislative Counsel must prepare and arrange for the continued publication on the official website of the previous consolidation of the Act.
(2) If a consolidation of an Act has been published on the official website and the Act expires, is repealed or, in the opinion of the Chief Legislative Counsel, ceases to have effect, the Chief Legislative Counsel must do the following:
(a) notify the King's Printer;
(b) arrange for notice of the expiry, repeal or cessation to be published on the official website;
(c) prepare and arrange for the continued publication on the official website of the previous consolidation of the Act.
(3) A previous consolidation, as referred to in subsections (1) and (2) (c), is also known as a point-in-time consolidation of the Act.
11 If a point-in-time consolidation of an Act has been published under section 10, the Chief Legislative Counsel is not required to make changes to the consolidation to incorporate a portion or amendment that comes into force on a date that is earlier than both of the following:
(a) the date on which the portion or amendment is enacted;
(b) the currency date, or the end date of the currency period, indicated on the consolidation.
12 The Chief Legislative Counsel may arrange for the following information to be published with or included in a consolidation of an Act:
(a) the title of the minister charged with the administration of the Act or a portion of the Act;
(b) a table of legislative changes to the Act;
(c) a portion or amendment described in section 8 [matters not required in consolidation];
(d) transitional provisions that relate to the Act but are in another Act;
(e) notations that provide information about a portion of the Act, including notations that do any of the following:
(i) indicate that the portion is not in force;
(ii) indicate that the portion
(A) has expired or been repealed, or
(B) has ceased to have effect;
(iii) indicate the enactment that resulted in the expiry, repeal or cessation referred to in subparagraph (ii);
(f) historical references;
(g) other information the Chief Legislative Counsel considers useful.
13 (1) The Chief Legislative Counsel must arrange for a consolidation published on the official website to be corrected, and for notice of the correction to be published on the official website, if the Chief Legislative Counsel determines that an error was made
(a) in preparing the consolidation for publication on the official website, or
(b) in publishing the consolidation on the official website.
(2) The Chief Legislative Counsel must notify the King's Printer if the Chief Legislative Counsel determines that an error was made
(a) in preparing a consolidation of an Act for publication in print form, or
(b) in publishing the consolidation in print form.
14 (1) An Act or consolidation accessed from the official website is an official version of the Act or consolidation if both of the following requirements are met:
(a) the Act or consolidation is in a prescribed format;
(b) the Act or consolidation is published with or includes a statement, in a form approved by the Chief Legislative Counsel, indicating that the Act or consolidation is an official version.
(2) A statement referred to in subsection (1) (b) may indicate that an Act or consolidation published on the official website is an official version of only a specified portion of the Act or consolidation.
(3) An Act or consolidation is presumed to be accessed from the official website if the Act or consolidation is submitted with an oral or written statement indicating that it was accessed from the official website.
15 (1) In this section:
"accessibility features" means hyperlinks, alternative text or other features;
"alternative text" means metadata that communicates the nature or content of a map, image, document or any other record included in an Act or consolidation published on the official website;
"information features" means information described in section 12 [additional information in consolidation].
(2) The Chief Legislative Counsel may arrange for accessibility features to be added to or included with an Act or consolidation published on the official website.
(3) The Chief Legislative Counsel may arrange for updates or changes to be made to accessibility features or information features.
(4) Accessibility features and information features
(a) are not part of an Act or consolidation, and
(b) must be considered to have been provided editorially for convenience of access or reference only.
16 If there is a conflict or inconsistency between this Act and the King's Printer Act, this Act prevails.
17 Section 5 of the Offence Act does not apply to this Act or the regulations.
18 (1) The Attorney General may make regulations referred to in section 41 of the Interpretation Act.
(2) The Attorney General may make regulations respecting any matter for which regulations are contemplated by this Act, other than matters for which regulations are expressly contemplated to be made by the Lieutenant Governor in Council.
(3) The authority of the Attorney General to make regulations under another provision of this section does not limit subsection (1) or (2).
(4) The Attorney General may, by regulation, designate as the official website a website maintained by the King's Printer.
(5) The Attorney General may make regulations respecting the official website.
(6) In making regulations under this Act, the Attorney General may do any of the following:
(a) confer a discretion on an employee of the government;
(b) delegate a matter to an employee of the government;
(c) make different regulations for different persons or things or different classes of persons or things.
Part 5 – Transitional Provision and Consequential, Related and Other Amendments
Division 1 – Transitional Provision
19 The Lieutenant Governor in Council may, by regulation, do the following:
(a) amend section 4 (3) [annual collection of Acts] by striking out "the date subsection (2) comes into force" and substituting the date section 4 (2) comes into force;
(b) amend section 7 (2) (b) [initial consolidation] by striking out "the date subsection (1) comes into force" and substituting the date section 7 (1) comes into force.
Division 2 – Consequential, Related and Other Amendments
Drainage, Ditch and Dike Act
20 Section 169 of the Drainage, Ditch and Dike Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 102, is amended by striking out "Queen's Printer" and substituting "King's Printer".
Evidence Act
21 Section 25 of the Evidence Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 124, is amended
(a) in subsection (1) by adding the following definition:
"King's Printer" includes the government printer or other official printer; ,
(b) in subsection (1) by repealing the definition of "Queen's Printer", and
(c) in subsections (3) (c), (4) (b), (5) (a) and (7) by striking out "Queen's Printer" wherever it appears and substituting "King's Printer".
22 The following section is added:
25.1 (1) In this section:
"consolidation" and "official website" have the same meaning as in section 1 of the Statutes Act;
"online official version", in relation to an Act or consolidation of an Act published on the official website, means an official version within the meaning of section 14 of the Statutes Act.
(2) The existence and contents, in whole or in part, of an Act may be proved by producing either of the following:
(a) an online official version of the Act;
(b) an online official version of a consolidation of the Act.
(3) This section does not limit any of the methods of proof under section 25 (4).
Interpretation Act
23 Section 29 of the Interpretation Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 238, is amended in the definition of "Gazette" by striking out "Queen's Printer Act" and substituting "King's Printer Act".
24 Section 33 (5) is amended by striking out "the other enactment as printed" and substituting "the other enactment as published".
25 Section 33 (5) is amended by striking out "Queen's Printer Act" and substituting "King's Printer Act".
26 Section 43 is repealed and the following substituted:
43 An Act may be cited by reference to any of the following:
(a) the Act's chapter number, as a Statute of British Columbia, in either of the following:
(i) the online collection of Acts published under section 5 (3) of the King's Printer Act for the year in which the Act was enacted;
(ii) the printed volume of Acts published under section 5 (5) (a) of the King's Printer Act for the year or regnal year in which the Act was enacted;
(b) the Act's title, with or without reference to its chapter number;
(c) in the case of an Act that is a revised statute included in a general revision, the Act's chapter number in the Revised Statutes of British Columbia;
(d) in the case of an Act that is a limited revision, the Act's chapter number, as a Revised Statute of British Columbia, in the online collection of Acts or printed volume of Acts referred to in paragraph (a) (i) or (ii) of this section.
Public Service Labour Relations Act
27 Section 1 (1) of the Public Service Labour Relations Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 388, is amended in paragraph (l) (ii) of the definition of "employee" by striking out "the Queen's Printer under the Queen's Printer Act" and substituting "the King's Printer under the King's Printer Act".
Queen's Printer Act
28 The title of the Queen's Printer Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 394, is repealed and the following substituted:
29 Section 1 is repealed and the following substituted:
1 In this Act, "King's Printer" means the person appointed under the Public Service Act as the King's Printer and Comptroller of Stationery for British Columbia.
30 Sections 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 (2) and (3), 7, 8, 8.1 and 10 are amended by striking out "Queen's Printer" wherever it appears and substituting "King's Printer".
31 Section 3 is repealed.
32 Section 4 is repealed and the following substituted:
4 As soon as practicable after the close of each session, the Clerk of the Legislative Assembly must provide to the King's Printer an indexed copy of the journals of that session.
33 Section 5 is repealed and the following substituted:
5 (1) As soon as practicable after the end of a calendar year, the King's Printer must make arrangements for the following:
(a) the printing of the copies of Acts enacted during the calendar year and provided to the King's Printer under section 4 (2) (a) [annual collection of Acts] of the Statutes Act;
(b) the delivery of the number of printed copies of the Acts that the minister directs to
(i) each member of the Legislative Assembly on request, and
(ii) other persons, institutions, ministries and representative bodies, in or outside British Columbia, as specified by the minister.
(2) As soon as practicable after the close of each session, the King's Printer must make arrangements for the following:
(a) the printing of the journals and other public documents placed before the Legislative Assembly during the session;
(b) the delivery of the number of printed copies of the journals and other public documents that the minister directs to
(i) each member of the Legislative Assembly on request, and
(ii) other persons, institutions, ministries and representative bodies, in or outside British Columbia, as specified by the minister.
(3) The King's Printer must, as soon as practicable, publish the copies of Acts provided to the King's Printer for the purposes of section 4 (2) (b) [publication on official website] of the Statutes Act.
(4) The King's Printer must, as soon as practicable, publish the copies of Acts and consolidations of Acts provided to the King's Printer for the purposes of the following provisions of the Statutes Act:
(a) section 4 (3) [publication of pre-existing Act on official website];
(b) section 7 (3) [publication of initial consolidation on official website];
(c) section 9 (3) [publication of updated consolidation on official website];
(d) section 10 (1) and (2) (c) [publication of point-in-time consolidation on official website].
(5) The King's Printer may make arrangements for any of the following:
(a) after delivery of the Acts under subsection (1) is complete,
(i) the publication of printed copies of those Acts, and
(ii) the sale or transfer, with or without charge, of those printed copies;
(b) after delivery of the journals and public documents under subsection (2) is complete,
(i) the publication of printed copies of those journals and public documents, and
(ii) the sale or transfer, with or without charge, of those printed copies;
(c) after publication of the Acts or consolidations of Acts under subsection (4) is complete,
(i) the publication of printed copies of those Acts or consolidations, and
(ii) the sale or transfer, with or without charge, of those printed copies.
34 Section 6 is amended
(a) in subsection (1) by striking out "the Acts, journals, sessional papers and other public documents under section 5 (1)" and substituting "the Acts, journals and other public documents under section 5 (1) and (2)",
(b) by repealing subsection (2) and substituting the following:
(2) The publication, printing, sale or transfer of the copies of Acts, consolidations of Acts, journals and public documents referred to in section 5 must be done in the manner determined by the King's Printer. , and
(c) in subsection (3) by striking out "section 5 (2)" and substituting "section 5 (5) (a) (ii), (b) (ii) and (c) (ii) [selling or transferring printed copies]".
35 Section 8.1 is amended by striking out "an Act, journal, sessional paper or other public document" and substituting "an Act, consolidation of an Act, journal or other public document".
Statute Revision Act
36 Section 11 of the Statute Revision Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 440, is amended
(a) by renumbering the section as section 11 (1), and
(b) by adding the following subsection:
(2) A revision is considered to be enacted when the official copy of the revision is deposited under section 4 with the Clerk of the Legislative Assembly.
37 Section 12 is repealed.
38 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:
| Item | Column 1 Provisions of Act |
Column 2 Commencement |
| 1 | Anything not elsewhere covered by this table | The date of Royal Assent |
| 2 | Sections 1 to 19 | By regulation of the Lieutenant Governor in Council |
| 3 | Section 22 | By regulation of the Lieutenant Governor in Council |
| 4 | Section 24 | By regulation of the Lieutenant Governor in Council |
| 5 | Section 26 | By regulation of the Lieutenant Governor in Council |
| 6 | Sections 31 to 37 | By regulation of the Lieutenant Governor in Council |
This Bill provides for an online Act or online consolidation of an Act to be relied on as an official version of the Act for evidentiary purposes.
This Bill also establishes requirements relating to the publication of Acts and consolidations of Acts.