Bill C-682: An Act to amend the Department of Industry Act (small businesses)

C-682 Second Session, Forty-first Parliament, 62-63-64 Elizabeth II, 2013-2014-2015 HOUSE OF COMMONS OF CANADA BILL C-682 An Act to amend the Department of Industry Act (small businesses) first reading, May 28, 2015 Ms. May 412298 SUMMARY This enactment amends the Department of Industry Act to establish a mandatory review of the potential impact on small businesses in Canada of any proposed government bill or regulation that is designated by the Minister of Industry on the basis of certain considerations. Available on the Parliament of Canada Web Site at the following address:http://www.parl.gc.ca 2nd Session, 41st Parliament, 62-63-64 Elizabeth II, 2013-2014-2015 house of commons of canada BILL C-682 An Act to amend the Department of Industry Act (small businesses) Whereas a Canadian economy that is prosperous, sustainable and resilient depends on healthy local economies and thriving small and medium-sized Canadian enterprises; Whereas small businesses employ more than sixty percent of all working Canadians and are responsible for more than fifty percent of Canada’s economic activity; Whereas small businesses are the lifeblood of small and rural communities and, according to the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, owners of small businesses are more likely to reduce their own salaries during periods of economic recession than reduce the number of their employees; And whereas the Government of Canada must protect and promote the role of small businesses in the Canadian economy by ensuring that the potential impacts of any new legislation on the success of small businesses are carefully considered; Now, therefore, Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate and House of Commons of Canada, enacts as follows: SHORT TITLE Short Title 1. This Bill may be cited as the Creation of Small Business Impact Assessment Act. 1995, c. 1 DEPARTMENT OF INDUSTRY ACT 2. The Department of Industry Act is amended by adding the following after section 1: INTERPRETATION Definitions 1.1 The following definitions apply in this Act. “designated legislative initiative”« mesure législative désignée » “designated legislative initiative” means any proposed government bill or regulation designated by the Minister in accordance with section 6.1. “Small Business Impact Assessment”« évaluation des incidences sur les petites entreprises » “Small Business Impact Assessment” means an assessment, conducted in accordance with paragraph 6(f), of the significant direct and indirect effects that a designated legislative initiative would reasonably be expected to have on the successful operation and underlying conditions of Canadian small businesses. 3. Section 5 of the Act is amended by striking out “and” at the end of paragraph (h), by adding “and” at the end of paragraph (i) and by adding the following after paragraph (i): (j) protect and promote the role of small businesses within the Canadian economy. 4. Section 6 of the Act is amended by striking out “and” at the end of paragraph (d), by adding “and” at the end of paragraph (e) and by adding the following after paragraph (e): (f) conduct, in accordance with any regulations made under section 6.3, a Small Business Impact Assessment of designated legislative initiatives based on the following considerations: (i) the need to ensure that meaningful measures continue to be in place for facilitating the access of small businesses to financial assistance, (ii) the benefits of improving conditions for investment in small businesses and by small businesses, (iii) the need to ensure that the designated legislative initiative does not inhibit, directly or indirectly, the participation of small businesses in an efficient and competitive marketplace, and (iv) the recognition and application of the principle of net positive impact — as it pertains to the sustainibility of small businesses — in determining whether or not the designated legislative initiative is beneficial to those businesses. 5. The Act is amended by adding the following after section 6: Designated legislative initiatives 6.1 The Minister must, in consultation with relevant stakeholders, designate any proposed government bill or regulation that may have a potentially significant effect on Canadian small businesses. House of Commons 6.2 (1) The Small Business Impact Assessment must accompany the designated legislative initiative when it is introduced in the House of Commons, in the case of a bill, or when it is tabled in the House of Commons, in the case of a proposed regulation that is required to be tabled before that House. Canada Gazette (2) If a designated legislative initiative is a proposed regulation, the Small Business Impact Assessment must be published with the proposed regulation in the Canada Gazette, Part I. Regulations 6.3 The Governor in Council may, on the recommendation of the Minister, make regulations respecting (a) the considerations to apply in designating the legislative initiatives that would reasonably be expected to have a potentially significant effect on the successful operation and underlying conditions of Canadian small businesses; (b) the process to be followed in preparing and submitting a Small Business Impact Assessment; (c) the matters that must be addressed in each Small Business Impact Assessment, including a summary description of the designated legislative initiative’s quantitative and qualitative costs and benefits as they can reasonably be expected to impact upon the conditions for Canadian businesses with less than 50 employees; and (d) the meaning and application of the principle of net positive impact for the purposes of subparagraph 6(f)(iv). Published under authority of the Speaker of the House of Commons