Alberta Legislative Round Up: 13 Bills Passed by the New Government
The first sitting of the new government began on May 22 with a Speech from the Throne and just concluded on July 4 with 13 bills passed relating to 55 of the UCP platform commitments. The House will not sit again until October when a budget is expected to be tabled. To give nonprofits an easy reference to all the legislation, this blog post provides a brief summary of each bill.
Breaking Down Bill 2: What It Means for Your Nonprofit
Bill 2: An Act to Make Alberta Open for Business is set to implement critical and strategic changes affecting the Alberta labour force. The bill covers a range of subsections including the Alberta Employment Standards Code, the Labour Relations Code and changes in the minimum wage. This blog post will break down Bill 2 and help you understand how your nonprofit will be affected by the new legislation, if it is passed in its current form.
Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation
On December 4, Federal Minister of Industry James Moore announced that Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation (CASL) will come into force on July 1, 2014. The legislation is intended to deter spam and other damaging and deceptive electronic threats.
Federal Lobbying Act
In 2008, a new Lobbying Act and Regulations came into force as part of the Federal Accountability Act. Charities and nonprofit organizations that meet the threshold for federal lobbying activities set out in the Act are subject to the Act’s Regulations and Code of Conduct.
Bill C-470: An Act to Amend the Income Tax Act (Disclosure of Compensation For Registered Charities)
With the dissolution of Parliament on March 26, all bills that had not received Royal Assent, including Bill C-470 on compensation disclosure for registered charities, have been terminated. Bills cannot be reinstated; however, a new bill with the same or similar intent to that of Bill C-470 could be reintroduced in the next Parliament. MP Albina Guarnieri, who originally sponsored the Bill C-470, is not seeking re-election, so another member of parliament would have to introduce the bill.
Guidance for Canadian Registered Charities Carrying Out Activities Outside Canada
In July 2010, the Canada Revenue Agency’s (CRA) Guidance Canadian Registered Charities Carrying Out Activities Outside Canada came into effect, replacing the previous Guidance, Registered Charities: Operating Outside Canada.
Calgary Business Tax Exemption Bylaw
The City of Calgary exempts certain types of organizations from paying business tax in recognition that in some cases, the use of a property itself returns enough community benefit that the organization should be relieved of tax obligations. This reduces the tax burden on eligible nonprofit organizations so they can provide services, support and/or programs to Calgarians.
Lobbying and Government Communications: New Legislation for the Voluntary Sector
This issue of In Brief looks at Bill 1: The Lobbyist Act and the Federal Accountability Act and what their affect on the Canadian and Albertan voluntary sectors will be if they are passed into law in their current form (as of the end of July 2007).