BILL 21
An Act to Amend the
Assessment Act
Her Majesty, by and with the advice and
consent of the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick, enacts as follows:
1 Section
1 of the Assessment Act, chapter A-14 of the Revised Statutes, 1973,
is amended
(a) by repealing the definition “Register”;
(b) by adding the following
definition in alphabetical order:
“Review Register” means a Review
Register maintained by the Director under subsection 26(1); (registre )
2 Section
12 of the Act is amended
(a) by adding before subsection
(1) the following:
12(0.1) In this section, “sales information” means the
amount of consideration paid for the transfer of any real property
and the date of such transfer.
(b) in subsection (1) by
striking out “subsections (2), (3), (3.1) and (3.2)” and
substituting “subsections
(2), (3), (3.01), (3.1), (3.2), (3.5) and (3.6)”;
(c) by adding after subsection
(3) the following:
12(3.01) Subsection (1) does not apply to sales information pertaining
to the transfer of any real property after December 31, 2008.
(d) by adding after subsection (3.4) the following:
12(3.5) If the Director considers it in the
public interest to do so, the Director may furnish the information
contained in an affidavit of transfer required in subsection 19(6)
of the Registry Act to any
Minister of the Crown in right of Canada or the Province.
12(3.6) Upon the application of any person and upon the applicant having
served a notice of such application on the Director, a judge of The
Court of Queen’s Bench of New Brunswick may order the Director
to furnish the applicant with the information contained in an affidavit
of transfer if the judge is satisfied that the information contained
in the affidavit may be of use to the applicant in the enforcement
or protection of any right of the applicant.
3 Subsection
12.2(1) of the Act is amended in the definition “assessor”
by striking out “referrals” and substituting “requests for review of assessment”.
4 Section
15.2 of the Act is amended
(a) in subsection (7) by
striking out “referral” and substituting “request for review of assessment”;
(b) in paragraph (11)(b)
by striking out “referral” and substituting “request for review of assessment”.
5 The
heading “REFERENCE OF ASSESSMENT” preceding section 25
of the Act is repealed and the following is substituted:
REVIEW OF ASSESSMENT
6 Section
25 of the Act is amended
(a) by repealing subsection
(1) and substituting the following:
25(1) Any person who receives an assessment and tax notice under section 21 or 22.1 or an amended assessment and tax notice under section 22 may, by a request for review of assessment,
request the Director to review the assessment if the request is made
within 30 days after the mailing of the assessment and tax notice
or the amended assessment and tax notice.
(b) in subsection (2) by
striking out “notice of reference of assessment” and substituting “request for review
of assessment”;
(c) by repealing subsection
(3) and substituting the following:
25(3) Every person who makes a request for review of assessment under
subsection (1) shall set out in the request his or her full name,
address including postal code and telephone number and provide full,
complete and detailed reasons for objecting to the assessment.
(d) by repealing subsection (4) and substituting
the following:
25(4) The Director shall reconsider an assessment referred to in subsection
(1) and shall vacate, confirm or vary the assessment, then send a
notice to the person of his or her decision by mailing to the person
a copy of all entries in the Review Register pertaining to the request
for review of assessment together with a copy of the form for giving
notice of appeal to the Board.
(e) in subsection (5)
(i) by striking out “Where
a reference” and substituting “Where a request for review of assessment”;
(ii) by striking out “the
register pertaining to the reference” and substituting “the Review Register pertaining
to the request for review of assessment”;
(f) in subsection (6) of
the English version by striking out “referred under subsection
(1)” and substituting “referred to in subsection (1)”;
(g) in subsection (8)
(i) by striking out “any
reference” and substituting “any request for review of assessment”;
(ii) by striking out “a
reference” and substituting “a request for review of assessment”.
7 The
Act is amended by adding after section 25 the following:
Reference to Director before
January 1, 2009
25.1 A notice of reference of assessment received by the Director before
January 1, 2009, and any appeal pertaining to it shall be dealt with
and completed in accordance with the law as it existed immediately
before January 1, 2009.
8 Section
26 of the Act is amended
(a) in subsection (1) by
striking out “Referral Registers” and substituting “Review Registers”;
(b) in subsection (2)
(i) in the portion
preceding paragraph (a) by striking out “Referral Register”
and substituting “Review
Register”;
(ii) in paragraph
(a) by striking out “reference” and substituting “request for review of assessment”;
(iii) in paragraph
(b) by striking out “reference” and substituting “request for review of assessment”;
(iv) in paragraph
(c) by striking out “reference” and substituting “request for review of assessment”;
(c) in subsection (3) by
striking out “Referral Register” and substituting “Review Register”;
(d) in subsection (4) by
striking out “Referral Registers” and substituting “Review Registers”.
9 Section
27 of the Act is amended
(a) in subsection (1) by
striking out “Where an assessment has been referred to the Director
under section 25, the person making the reference” and substituting “If a person has made
a request for review of assessment to the Director under section 25,
the person”;
(b) in paragraph (2)(b)
by striking out “notice of reference of assessment” and
substituting “request
for review of assessment”.
10 Section 28 of the Act is amended by striking
out “reference” and substituting “request for review of assessment”.
11 Subparagraph
29(1.2)(a)(ii) of the Act is amended in the portion preceding clause
(A) by striking out “reference” and substituting “request for review
of assessment”.
12 Section 32 of the Act is amended
(a) in subsection (4) by
striking out “the notice of reference of assessment and the
Referral Register” and substituting “the request for review of assessment
and the Review Register”;
(b) by repealing subsection
(5).
13 Subsection 37(2) of the Act is amended
by striking out “thirty days” and substituting “60 days”.
CONSEQUENTIAL AMENDMENTS
Regulation under the Assessment Act
14(1) Paragraph 4(1)(j) of New Brunswick Regulation 84-6 under the Assessment
Act is repealed and the following is substituted:
(j) the request for review of assessment
form.
14(2) Section 7 of the Regulation is amended
by striking out “Referral Register” and substituting “Review Register”.
14(3) Section 11 of the Regulation is amended by striking out “referrals”
and substituting “requests
for review of assessment”.
14(4) Subsection 12(2) of the Regulation is amended
by striking out “fourteen days” and substituting “30 days”.
14(5) Section 13 of the Regulation is repealed and the following is substituted:
Written submissions
13(1) All parties to an appeal shall file written submissions with
the Board at least 15 days before the date set for the hearing.
13(2) With the consent of the parties to an appeal, the Chairperson
may order that the Board may dispose of an appeal on the basis of
the written submissions without an oral hearing.
13(3) If a party to an appeal fails to file a written submission within
the time referred to in subsection (1) or subsection 14(1), the Board may dismiss the appeal
or proceed to the hearing of the appeal.
14(6) Subsection 20(1) of the Regulation is repealed and the following
is substituted:
20(1) After the Director has filed copies of the documents referred
to in subsection 32(4) of the Act, the party appealing may adduce
evidence in support of his or her appeal.
14(7) Section 24 of the Regulation is amended
(a) in paragraph (3)(c)
by striking out “fourteen days” and substituting “15 days”;
(b) in paragraph (6)(b)
by striking out “fourteen days” and substituting “15 days”.
Land Titles Act
15 Subsection
80(5) of the Land Titles Act, chapter L-1.1 of the Acts of New Brunswick,
1981, is amended by striking out “Subsections 19(7), (8) and
(9) of the Registry Act, apply” and substituting “Subsection 19(7) of the Registry Act and subsections 12(3.5)
and (3.6) of the Assessment Act apply”.
Regulation under the Real Property Tax Act
16 Paragraph
3(3)(v) of New Brunswick Regulation 84-210 under the Real Property
Tax Act is repealed and the following is substituted:
(v) the request for review of assessment
form; and
Registry
Act
17 Section 19 of the Registry Act, chapter
R-6 of the Revised Statutes, 1973, is amended
(a) by repealing subsection
(8);
(b) by repealing subsection
(9).
COMMENCEMENT
18 This Act comes into force on January 1,
2009.
Chapter Outline Update
6
Strike out the entry for s.25 and substitute
the following:
Request for review of assessment to Director25
8
Strike out the entry for s.26 and substitute
the following:
Review Registers26
17 (c.R-6)
Strike out the entries for s.19(8) and
(9) and substitute the following:
Repealed19(8),
(9)