BILL 46

Government Advertising Accountability Act

Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick, enacts as follows:

Definitions

1(1)             The following definitions apply in this Act.

“Crown body” means an organization or body listed in Schedule A of the Accountability and Continuous Improvement Act.

(organisme de la Couronne)

“Crown corporation” means a board, Crown corporation or commission listed under Part IV of the First Schedule of the Public Service Labour Relations Act.

(société de la Couronne)

“Crown entity” means a department over which a member of the Executive Council presides or a Crown body.

 (entité de la Couronne)

 ‘‘government advertising” means the use of public funds for the production and dissemination of material to the public which promotes activities, programs or initiatives of a Crown corporation or Crown entity.

 (publicité gouvernementale)

“government office” means a Crown corporation or Crown entity or other prescribed entity. (service de l’État)

“item” means a reviewable advertisement, reviewable printed matter or a reviewable message, as the case may be.

 (article)

“partisan advertising” means any information involving the production and dissemination of material to the public which promotes activities, programs or initiatives of a Crown corporation or Crown entity in a politically partisan or biased manner.

 (publicité partisane)

“prescribed” means prescribed by a regulation made under this Act.

 (réglementaire)

“Supervisor” means the Supervisor of Political Financing.

 (Contrôleur)

Head of an office

1(2)             For the purposes of this Act, the deputy minister of any portion of the Civil Service is the head of the ministry, the Clerk of the Executive Council is the head of Executive Council Office and the head of the Office of the Premier, the Chair is the head of a Crown entity and the regulations may specify the person who is the head of such other prescribed government offices.

Requirements re advertisements

Application

2(1)             This section applies with respect to any advertisement that a government office proposes to pay to have published in a newspaper or magazine, displayed on a billboard or broadcast on radio or on television.

Submission for review

2(2)             The head of the government office shall give a copy of the advertisement to the Supervisor for review.

Prohibition on use pending review

2(3)             The government office shall not publish, display or broadcast the advertisement before the head of the office receives notice, or is deemed to have received notice, of the results of the review.

Prohibition

2(4)             The government office shall not publish, display or broadcast the advertisement if the head of the office receives notice that, in the Supervisor’s opinion, the advertisement does not meet the standards required by this Act.

Non-application

2(5)             This section does not apply with respect to a notice to the public that is required by law, an advertisement about an urgent matter affecting public health or safety, a job advertisement or an advertisement about the provision of goods or services to a government office.

Requirements re printed matter

Application

3(1)             This section applies with respect to printed matter that a government office proposes to pay to have distributed to households in New Brunswick either by bulk mail or by another method of bulk delivery.

Submission for review

3(2)             The head of the government office shall give a copy of the printed matter to the Supervisor for review.

Prohibition on use pending review

3(3)             The government office shall not distribute the printed matter before the head of the office receives notice, or is deemed to have received notice, of the results of the review.

Prohibition

3(4)             The government office shall not distribute the printed matter if the head of the office receives notice that, in the Supervisor’s opinion, it does not meet the standards required by this Act.

Non-application

3(5)             This section does not apply with respect to a notice to the public that is required by law or printed matter about an urgent matter affecting public health or safety or about the provision of goods or services to a government office.

Interpretation

3(6)             For the purposes of this section, printed matter is distributed by bulk mail or another method of bulk delivery if, when it is distributed, it is not individually addressed to the intended recipient.

Requirements re additional classes of messages

Application

4(1)             This section applies with respect to such additional classes of messages as may be prescribed that a government office proposes to convey to the public in such circumstances as may be prescribed.

Submission for review

4(2)             The head of the government office shall give a copy of the message to the Supervisor for review.

Prohibition on use pending review

4(3)             The government office shall not convey the message before the head of the office receives notice, or is deemed to have received notice, of the results of the review.

Prohibition

4(4)             The government office shall not convey the message if the head of the office receives notice that, in the Supervisor’s opinion, the message does not meet the standards required by this Act.

Non-application

4(5)             This section does not apply with respect to a message that is a notice to the public that is required by law, that concerns an urgent matter affecting public health or safety, that is a job advertisement or that concerns the provision of goods or services to a government office.

Review by the Supervisor

5(1)             When an item is given to the office of the Supervisor for review, the Supervisor shall review it to determine whether, in his or her opinion, it meets the standards required by this Act.

Decision

5(2)             The decision of the Supervisor is final.

Required standards

6(1)             The following are the standards that an item is required to meet:

(a)          it must be a reasonable means of achieving one or more of the following purposes:

(i)      to inform the public of current or proposed government policies, programs or services available to them;

(ii)     to inform the public of their rights and responsibilities under the law;

(iii)   to encourage or discourage specific social behaviour, in the public interest;

(iv)    to promote New Brunswick or any part of New Brunswick as a good place to live, work, invest, study or visit or to promote any economic activity or sector of New Brunswick’s economy;

(b)          it must include a statement that the item is paid for by the government office that initiated it;

(c)          it must not include the name, voice or image of a member of the Executive Council or a member of the Assembly;

(d)          it must not be partisan;

(e)          it must not be a primary objective of the item to foster a positive impression of the governing party or a negative impression of a person or entity who is critical of the government; and

(f)           it must meet such additional standards as may be prescribed.

Advertising outside New Brunswick

6(2)             Paragraph (1)(c) does not apply with respect to an item for which the primary target audience is located outside New Brunswick.

Partisan advertising

6(3)             An item is partisan if, in the opinion of the Supervisor, a primary objective of the item is to promote the partisan political interests of the governing party.

Consideration by Supervisor

6(4)             The Supervisor shall consider such factors as may be prescribed, and may consider such additional factors as he or she considers appropriate, in deciding whether a primary objective of an item is to promote the partisan political interests of the governing party.

Notice of results of review

7(1)             The Supervisor shall notify the head of the government office of the results of the review within the prescribed number of days after receiving an item for review.

Deemed notice

7(2)             If the notice is not given within that period, the head shall be deemed to have received notice that the item meets the standards required by this Act.

Submission of revised version

8(1)             If the head of a government office is notified that an item does not meet the standards required by this Act and if the government office proposes to use a revised version of it, the head shall give the revised version to the Supervisor for a further review.

Prohibition on use pending review

8(2)             The government office shall not use the revised version before the head of the office receives notice, or is deemed to have received notice, of the results of the review.

Prohibition

8(3)             The government office shall not use the revised version if the head of the office receives notice that, in the Supervisor’s opinion, the revised version does not meet the standards required by this Act.

Review of revised version

8(4)             Sections 5 and 6 apply with respect to the review of the revised version.

Notice of results of review, revised version

8(5)             The Supervisor shall notify the head of the results of the further review within the prescribed number of days after receiving the revised version.

Deemed notice

8(6)             If the notice is not given within that period, the head shall be deemed to have received notice that the revised version meets the standards required by this Act.

Reports to the Assembly

Annual report

9(1)             Each year, the Supervisor shall report to the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly about such matters as the Supervisor considers appropriate relating to his or her powers and duties under this Act.

Notification of Contraventions

9(2)             In the annual report, the Supervisor shall notify the Speaker about any contraventions of section 2, 3, 4 or 8.

Special report

9(3)             The Supervisor may make a special report to the Speaker at any time on any matter that in the opinion of the Supervisor should not be deferred until the annual report.

Tabling of reports

9(4)             The Speaker shall lay each annual report or special report of the Supervisor before the Assembly forthwith if it is in session or, if not, not later than the 10th day of the next session.

Access to records

10                The Supervisor may examine the records of a government office at any time for the purpose of determining whether section 2, 3, 4 or 8 has been contravened, and the Supervisor, or his or her designate, shall be given access to such records as he or she considers necessary for that purpose.

Immunity with respect to publication, display or broadcasting

11(1)          No action or other proceeding shall be brought against a person who publishes, displays or broadcasts a reviewable advertisement on the sole ground that, under this Act, a government office was not permitted to use it to communicate with the public.

Immunity with respect to distribution

11(2)          No action or other proceeding shall be brought against a person who distributes reviewable printed matter on the sole ground that, under this Act, a government office was not permitted to distribute it.

Immunity for conveyance

11(3)          No action or other proceeding shall be brought against a person who conveys to the public on behalf of a government office a reviewable message on the sole ground that, under this Act, a government office was not permitted to convey it to the public.

Regulations

12                The Lieutenant Governor in Council may make regulations,

(a)          designating an entity or class of entities as a government office and specifying who is the head of the government office for the purposes of this Act;

(b)          prescribing additional classes of messages and circumstances for the purposes of subsection 4(1);

(c)          prescribing additional standards for the purposes of paragraph 6(1)(f);

(d)          prescribing factors for the purposes of subsection 6(4);

(e)          prescribing a number of days for the purposes of subsections 7(1) and 8(5);

(f)           prescribing penalties for violations of this Act.

CONSEQUENTIAL AMENDMENTS

Political Process Financing Act

13                Section 19 of the Political Process Financing Act, chapter P-9.3 of the Acts of New Brunswick, 1978, is amended

(a)          in subsection (2) by adding “or the Government Advertising Accountability Act” after “under this Act”;

(b)          by adding after subsection (2) the following:

19(3)          The Supervisor shall exercise those powers and responsibilities delegated to him or her pursuant to the provisions of the Government Advertising Accountability Act.

19(4)          The Supervisor may delegate to a person employed in the office of the Supervisor any of the Supervisor’s powers and duties under the Government Advertising Accountability Act and may impose conditions and restrictions with respect to the delegation.

Commencement

14                This Act comes into force on a day to be fixed by proclamation.