1996 Legislative Session: 5th Session, 35th Parliament
FIRST READING


The following electronic version is for informational purposes only.
The printed version remains the official version.


HONOURABLE CORKY EVANS
MINISTER OF TRANSPORTATION
AND HIGHWAYS

BILL 4 -- 1996

MOTOR VEHICLE AMENDMENT ACT, 1996

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

1 Section 59 of the Motor Vehicle Act, R.S.B.C. 1979, c. 288, is repealed and the following substituted:

Accounting

59 Subject to section 15.1 of the Insurance Corporation Act, all fees collected under this Act shall be paid into the consolidated revenue fund.

2 Section 111 is repealed and the following substituted:

Superintendent may delegate

111v(1) Subject to subsection (2), the superintendent, by conditional or unconditional written authority, may delegate to the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia, to a person employed under the minister in the public service or to a class of persons so employed any powers, duties or functions of the superintendent under this Act, the Offence Act or other enactments designated by regulation of the Lieutenant Governor in Council.

(2) The superintendent shall not delegate

(a) an authority conferred on the superintendent to enact a regulation as defined in the Regulations Act, or

(b) to the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia a power, duty or function under section 84, 85, 86 or 88 of the Motor Vehicle Act or section 14.4 (2) of the Offence Act.

(3) The Insurance Corporation of British Columbia or another person to whom the superintendent, by written authority under subsection (1), delegates a power, duty or function must carry out the power, duty or function in accordance with the written authority.

 
Consequential Amendments

 
Insurance Corporation Act

3 The Insurance Corporation Act, R.S.B.C. 1979, c. 201, is amended by adding the following section:

Transferred employees' pensions and benefits

4.1 (1) Notwithstanding section 4 (4), the Pension (Public Service) Act applies to persons who, immediately before any transfer date that the Lieutenant Governor in Council may fix by order, are employees of the government, within the motor vehicle branch, and who

(a) are designated by order of the Superintendent of Motor Vehicles as persons carrying out functions intended to be delegated, under section 111 of the Motor Vehicle Act, to the corporation,

(b) elect to become employees of the corporation, and

(c) on the relevant transfer date fixed under this section, begin employment as employees of the corporation.

(2) The Pension (Public Service) Act applies to the corporation in its capacity as the employer of the persons to whom that Act is applicable under this section.

(3) The corporation must pay to the Minister of Finance and Corporate Relations under the Pension (Public Service) Act the employer's contributions in amounts equivalent to the amounts required under that Act.

(4) Until, but not after, the end of the day on a date to be fixed by order of the Minister of Transportation and Highways, the Public Service Benefit Plan Act applies to the employees of the corporation to whom the Pension (Public Service) Act is applicable under this section.

(5) The discretion under subsection (1) to fix a transfer date or to make a designation referred to in subsection (1) (a) may be exercised from time to time as the occasion requires.

4 Section 6 is amended by striking out "and" at the end of paragraph (e) and by adding the following:

(g) carry out any powers, duties and functions that, under section 111 of the Motor Vehicle Act, are delegated to the corporation by the Superintendent of Motor Vehicles;

(h) receive, hold, manage and collect, for and on behalf of the government,

(i) revenue from fines in connection with violation tickets under the Offence Act, for contravention of enactments referred to in the regulations under that Act, including revenue from fines imposed by the Provincial Court for contraventions for which violation tickets have been issued, and

(ii) revenue from licence, permit and other fees under the Motor Vehicle Act, the Commercial Transport Act or another enactment respecting motor vehicles or vehicles; and

(i) promote and improve highway safety.

5 Section 12 is amended by adding the following subsection:

(3.1) Subsection (3) does not apply to the revenue referred to in section 6 (h) that is received by the corporation.

6 The following section is added:

Corporation's costs for services
under other enactments

15.1 (1) Notwithstanding the Financial Administration Act, the corporation may retain, out of the revenue referred to in section 6 (h) of this Act that is received by the corporation, the corporation's permitted costs of its services, in

(a) receiving, holding, managing, collecting and accounting for the revenue, and

(b) carrying out any powers, duties and functions that, under section 111 of the Motor Vehicle Act, are delegated to the corporation by the Superintendent of Motor Vehicles.

(2) The Treasury Board shall prescribe by regulation the corporation's permitted costs of its services, for the purpose of subsection (1).

Commencement

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

 
Explanatory Notes

SECTION 1: [Motor Vehicle Act, re-enacts section 59] provides that fee revenue under the Motor Vehicle Act continues to be public revenue to be paid into the consolidated revenue fund, subject, however, to the deduction by the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia of its "permitted costs" pursuant to the new section 15.1 of the Insurance Corporation Act, added by this Bill.

SECTION 2: [Motor Vehicle Act, re-enacts section 111] broadens the discretion of the Superintendent of Motor Vehicles to delegate, subject to certain exceptions, any powers, duties and functions. The references to "other enactments designated by regulation" and to the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia are new.

SECTION 3: [Insurance Corporation Act, adds section 4.1] provides for pensions and benefits for persons who, immediately before any "transfer date" to be fixed by the Lieutenant Governor in Council, are Motor Vehicle Branch employees and who elect to become employees of the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia.

SECTION 4: [Insurance Corporation Act, amends section 6] broadens the objects, power and capacity of the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia to enable it to carry out powers, duties and functions delegated to it under section 111 of the Motor Vehicle Act, as amended by this Bill, to receive and manage on behalf of the government certain fine and licence revenue and to promote and improve highway safety.

SECTION 5: [Insurance Corporation Act, amends section 12] clarifies that section 12 (3) of the Insurance Corporation Act, that restricts government use of the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia's funds, does not apply to the fine and licence revenue to be received by the corporation on behalf of the government. That revenue retains its character as public revenue, payable into the government's consolidated revenue fund.

SECTION 6: [Insurance Corporation Act, adds section 15.1] permits the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia to retain, out of the fine and licence revenue to be received by the corporation on behalf of the government, the corporation's permitted costs of its services, as prescribed by regulation of the Treasury Board.


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