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

Election Act

1 Section 186 of the Election Act, R. S. B. C. 1996, c. 106, is amended in subsections (1) and (2) by striking out "individual or organization" and substituting "individual";

2 Section 186 is amended by adding:

Ineligible contributors

186.1  (1) No person or entity other than an individual who is a registered voter in British Columbia in accordance with section 29 of this Act shall make a political contribution as defined in section 180 of this Act.

(2) Subsection (1) does not apply to contributions made under section 182.

3 Section 187 is amended by adding:

Limits on contributions

187.2 (1) No individual shall make contributions that exceed

(a) $1,000 in total in any calendar year to a particular registered political party;

(b) $1,000 in total in any calendar year to the registered associations, nomination contestants and candidates of a particular registered political party;

(c) $1,000 in total in any calendar year to a candidate who is not the candidate of a registered political party.

(d) $1,000 in total to the leadership contestants in a particular leadership contest.

Exceptions

(2) The following contributions shall not be taken into account in calculating contributions for the purposes of subsection (l):

(a) contributions that do not exceed $1,000 in total by a nomination contestant or candidate of a registered party out of his or her own funds to his or her own campaign as a nomination contestant or candidate;

(b) contributions that do not exceed $1,000 in total by a candidate for a particular election who is not the candidate of a registered party out of his or her own funds to his or her own campaign; and

(c) contributions that do not exceed $1,000 in total by a leadership contestant in a particular leadership contest out of his or her own funds to his or her own campaign.

Deemed to be contributions

(3) For the purposes of this Act, contributions made to a leadership contestant within 18 months after a leadership contest are deemed to be contributions for that contest.

4 Section 190 is amended

(a) in subsection (1) by repealing items (d) (e); and

(b) by repealing subsection (2).

 
Explanatory Note

This Act amends the Election Act by restricting political contributions exclusively to individuals registered as voters in British Columbia and places a limit of $1,000 on contributions in a given calendar year, with minor exceptions. These changes to British Columbia's election finance laws reflect the democratic principle of `one person, one vote', prohibiting political contributions from corporations, trade unions and other associations. Ensuring donations only come from individuals removes the perception of a conflict of interest or preferential treatment by a candidate or political party toward large financial supporters.