BILL NO. 14

1st Session, 57th General Assembly
Nova Scotia
47 Elizabeth II, 1998

Private Member's Bill

Public Services Protection Act

Helen MacDonald
Cape Breton The Lakes

First Reading: June 9, 1998

Second Reading:

Third Reading:

Be it enacted by the Governor and Assembly as follows:

1 This Act may be cited as the Public Services Protection Act.

2 The purpose of this Act is to ensure that services provided by a department of Government, Crown corporation or agency, board or commission of Government are not privatized or contracted out and that major assets of the Government are not sold as part of a privatization unless there is an open and independent review and the individual or agency conducting the review recommends that the service or asset be sold, privatized or contracted out because such action will improve services for the public without unreasonable cost to the individuals or communities directly affected.

3 In this Act,

(a) "agency of government" means an agency of government as defined in the Auditor General Act;

(b) "public property" means major assets of Her Majesty in right of the Province proposed to be sold as part of a privatization;

(c) "Review Agency" means the Nova Scotia Utility and Review Board;

(d) "services" means services provided to the public by an agency of government.

4 No services shall be privatized or contracted out and no public property shall be sold by an agency of government except as provided in this Act.

5 Every proposed privatization or contracting out of a service by an agency of government and every proposed sale of public property shall be referred to the Review Agency for review and recommendation.

6 Where a matter is referred to the Review Agency pursuant to Section 5, the Review Agency shall conduct a public consultation at which members of the public are given an opportunity to express their views on the proposed privatization, contracting out or sale.

7 (1) The Review Agency may determine the practice and procedure in relation to matters referred to the Review Agency pursuant to this Act.

(2) Without restricting the generality of subsection (1), the Review Agency shall ensure that adequate notice is given to the public of the proposed privatization, contracting out or sale and ensure that interested parties and members of the public generally have an opportunity to make representations to the Review Agency and respond to representations made to the Review Agency.

8 The Utility and Review Board Act applies mutatis mutandis to a review conducted by the Review Agency pursuant to this Act.

9 Where a matter is referred to the Review Agency pursuant to this Act, the Review Agency shall

(a) conduct a cost-benefit analysis and a social and economic-impact study with respect to the proposed privatization, contracting out or sale; and

(b) take into consideration the impact the proposed privatization, contracting out or sale will have on the quality of services delivered by the agency of government and the impact it will have on workers and communities.

10 (1) When the Review Agency has completed the review required by this Act, the Review Agency shall prepare a report summarizing the results of the public consultation and containing the recommendation of the Review Agency with respect to the proposed privatization, contracting out or sale.

(2) For greater certainty, where the Review Agency, after considering the matters referred to in Section 9, concludes that the proposed privatization, contracting out or sale will adversely affect individuals or a community or will not lead to the improvement of services for the public, the report referred to in subsection (1) shall recommend that the privatization, contracting out or sale not take place.

11 The report referred to in Section 10 shall be tabled in the House of Assembly if the House is sitting and, if the House is not sitting, the report shall be tabled with the Clerk of the Assembly.

12 No agency of government shall privatize or contract out a service or sell public property unless the report referred to in Section 10 contains a recommendation to that effect and the recommendation is approved by a two-thirds vote of the members of the House of Assembly.

13 Where the report referred to in Section 10 recommends that a privatization or contracting out be undertaken, the agency of government shall not privatize or contract out the services until satisfactory arrangements are in place to ensure that all employees of the agency of government affected by the privatization or contracting out will be transferred to the private sector without any change in the employees' existing rights, benefits or entitlements and, for greater certainty, any collective agreement in force with respect to those employees at the time of the contracting out remains in effect.

14 (1) The Governor in Council may make regulations

(a) exempting a service or class of services or a class of public property from all or part of this Act;

(b) defining any word or expression used but not defined in this Act;

(c) deemed necessary or advisable to carry out effectively the intent and purpose of this Act.

(2) The exercise by the Governor in Council of the authority contained in subsection (1) is regulations within the meaning of the Regulations Act.