Vol. 147, No. 26 — December 18, 2013
Registration
SI/2013-123 December 18, 2013
PUBLIC SAFETY ACT, 2002
Order Fixing February 1, 2014 and February 1, 2015 as the Days on which Certain Provisions of the Act Come into Force
P.C. 2013-1282 November 26, 2013
His Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of Natural Resources, pursuant to subsection 112(1) of the Public Safety Act, 2002 (“the Act”), chapter 15 of the Statutes of Canada, 2004, fixes
- (a) February 1, 2014 as the day on which the following provisions come into force:
- (i) section 35 of the Act,
- (ii) the definitions “illicit manufacture”, “illicit trafficking” and “transit” in section 2 of the Explosives Act, as enacted by subsection 36(2) of the Act,
- (iii) paragraphs 5(a.2), (a.3) and (a.4) of the Explosives Act, as enacted by subsection 37(1) of the Act, and
- (iv) subsections 37(3) and (5) and 38(2) and (4) and sections 39 and 50 of the Act; and
- (b) February 1, 2015 as the day on which section 40 of the Act comes into force.
EXPLANATORY NOTE
(This note is not part of the Order.)
Proposal and objective
Pursuant to subsection 112(1) of the Public Safety Act, 2002, which received Royal Assent on May 6, 2004, certain provisions of the Explosives Act were amended but are not currently in force. The proposed Order would fix February 1, 2014, as the day on which the following sections and certain definitions of the Explosives Act come into force, and February 1, 2015, as the day on which section 40 of the Public Safety Act, 2002 comes into force.
The objective of the proposed Order is
- — to bring certain sections of the Explosives Act and the Public Safety Act, 2002 into force; and
- — to bring provisions of the Explosives Act into force in order to provide legal authority for the making of regulations related to the exportation and transportation in transit requirements under Part 4 of the Explosives Regulations, 2013 and to the security screening requirements under Part 8 of the Explosives Regulations, 2013.
Background
The sections that would be brought into force as a result of the proposed Order would amend the Explosives Act to
- — replace the long title of the Explosives Act in section 35 to state “An Act respecting the manufacture, testing, acquisition, possession, sale, storage, transportation, importation and exportation of explosives and the use of fireworks.” The current title is “An Act respecting the manufacture, testing, sale, storage, transportation and importation of explosives and the use of fireworks.” The new title more clearly indicates the activities being regulated including new areas of regulation, such as the export of explosives;
- — subsection 36(2) of the Public Safety Act, 2002, amends section 2 of the Explosives Act and will add the following definitions: “illicit manufacture,” “illicit trafficking”;
- — subsection 37(1) of the Public Safety Act, 2002 amends paragraphs 5(a.2) to (a.4) concerning the exemption, restriction or prohibition from the acquisition, possession, use or sale of any explosive or class of explosives. The amendment provides the ability to allow individuals to possess, use, or sell explosives, in certain instances (as permitted by the Minister of Natural Resources), and enables the creation of a security screening program for individuals with access to high explosives;
- — subsection 37(3) of the Public Safety Act, 2002 is brought into force to amend the text in paragraph 5(c) of the Explosives Act to add exportation to the scope of the Explosives Regulations. This will allow Canada to strengthen security related to the exportation of commercial explosives;
- — subsection 5(l) of the Explosives Act limits the amount of authorized explosives that may be kept in places other than licensed factories and licensed magazines (e.g. temporary magazines) and prescribes the manner in and conditions on which it shall be handled and stored in those places. Subsection 37(5) of the Public Safety Act, 2002 is brought into force to add the requirements for record keeping in places other than licensed factories and licensed magazines under the Explosives Act;
- — subsection 38(2) of the Public Safety Act, 2002 is brought into force to clarify the text in paragraph 6(a) of the Explosives Act to specify that any explosive may only be made or manufactured in a licensed factory;
- — subsection 38(4) of the Public Safety Act, 2002 is brought into force to clarify the text in subparagraph 6(1)(e)(i) of the Explosives Act in order to specify that it is a prohibited activity to divide an explosive into its component parts unless it is done in a licensed factory;
- — section 39 of the Public Safety Act, 2002 is brought into force to prevent a person from knowingly engaging in illicit trafficking of explosives;
- — section 40 of the Public Safety Act, 2002 would allow the Minister of Natural Resources to permits for the exportation of explosives or the transportation in transit of explosives through Canada. An example of transportation in-transit is the transportation of explosives from the continental United States to Alaska through Canada. This provision would come into force on February 2, 2015;
- — section 50 of the Public Safety Act, 2002 would address a discrepancy between the French and English text for the current text of section 27 of the Explosives Act.
Implications
The proposed Order would bring certain sections of the Explosives Act that were adopted by the Public Safety Act, 2002 into force. This is intended to further strengthen the safety and the security of explosives use in Canada, and would allow for increased control over the exportation and transportation “in transit” of explosives through Canada, the acquisition, possession and sale of explosives and certain physical components of the explosives, and would provide increased penalties for certain offences, through section 45 of the Public Safety Act, 2002.
Without the proposed Order, the authority to make regulations for the transportation in transit and for the exportation of explosives under the Act would not be possible.
Consultation
Extensive consultations were undertaken on the legislative changes to the Explosives Act when the Public Safety Act, 2002 was being adopted. Stakeholder feedback was positive and was incorporated into the final legislation.
Departmental contact
Patrick O’Neill
Director General
Natural Resources Canada
Explosives Safety and Security Branch
580 Booth Street, 10th Floor
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0E4
Telephone: 613-948-5181
Email: Patrick.O’Neill@NRCan-RNCan.gc.ca