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2003 Legislative Session: 4th Session, 37th Parliament

FIRST READING

The following electronic version is for informational

purposes only.

The printed version remains the official version.

HONOURABLE MICHAEL DE JONG

MINISTER OF FORESTS

BILL 96 – 2003

TIMBER LICENCES SETTLEMENT ACT

Contents

Section

Definitions

Rights, if any, to elect to pay royalty or stumpage extinguished

No compensation or damages payable by government

Certain actions and proceedings prohibited

Legal effect of timber licences

This Act to be given specific legal effect

Commencement

HER MAJESTY, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of British Columbia, enacts as follows:

Definitions

1 In this Act:

"holder of a timber licence" includes a person eligible for a timber licence, a person claiming through the holder of a timber licence and a successor or assign of either of them;

"licence to cut" means a licence to cut under the

Forest Act , and includes a licence to cut issued under the Forest

Act , R.S.B.C. 1979, c. 140, and a licence to cut issued under the former

Act as defined in

section 1 of the Forest Act ;

"old temporary tenure" means an old temporary tenure as defined in

section 1 of the Forest Act , R.S.B.C. 1979, c. 140;

"right" includes entitlement and privilege;

"timber licence" means a timber licence under the Forest Act , and includes

(

a) a timber licence issued under the Forest

Act , R.S.B.C. 1979, c. 140, and a timber licence issued under the former

Act as defined in

section 1 of the Forest Act ,

(

b) a licence to cut, and

(

c) an old temporary tenure.

Rights, if any, to elect to pay royalty or stumpage extinguished

(1) The following rights, if any, subsisting at the end of the day on March 31, 1995, of the holder of a timber licence are extinguished:

(

a) the right to elect under

section 23 of the Forest

Act , R.S.B.C. 1979, c. 140, to pay to the Crown either royalty or stumpage

for timber harvested under the timber licence;

(

b) the right to pay to the Crown royalty for timber harvested under the timber licence, because of

(

i) an election made under

section 23 of the Forest

Act , R.S.B.C. 1979, c. 140,

(ii) any provision of the Forest Act , R.S.B.C.

1979, c. 140,

(iii) any provision of the timber licence,

(iv) any agreement, arrangement or approval, or

(

v) any combination of 2 or more of the things referred to in subparagraphs (

i) to (iv).

(2) Any agreement, arrangement, approval or timber licence, or any combination of 2 or more of those things, whether made, granted or entered into before or after the coming into force of this subsection, is and always has been without effect to the extent, if any, that it limits or limited, or purports or purported to limit, the amounts payable to the government, in respect of timber cut under the timber licence, or under any timber licence, and scaled, to amounts that are less than the pertinent amounts of stumpage ascertained by reference to

Part 7 of the Forest Act , as amended from time to time.

No compensation or damages payable by government

3 Nothing in this Act or the Forest Amendment Act, 1995 , S.B.C. 1995, c. 24, gives rise to a claim for compensation or damages.

Certain actions and proceedings prohibited

4 No action lies, and an action or other proceeding must not be brought or maintained, against the government for

(

a) compensation,

(

b) damages, or

(

c) any other remedy

arising as a direct or indirect consequence of

(

d) section 2,

(

e) the repeal of

section 23 of the Forest Act , R.S.B.C. 1979, c. 140, by

section 2 of the Forest Amendment Act, 1995 , S.B.C. 1995, c. 24,

(

f) the amendments made by the Forest Amendment Act , 1995 , S.B.C. 1995, c. 24, as they pertain to royalty, stumpage or both,

(

g) an election made under

section 23 of the Forest Act , R.S.B.C. 1979, c. 140, before the repeal of that section,

(

h) a timber licence as it pertains to royalty, stumpage or both,

(

i) any agreement, arrangement or approval respecting

(

i) royalty,

(ii) stumpage, or

(iii) both

under a timber licence, or

(

j) any combination of 2 or more of the things referred to in paragraphs (

d) to (i).

Legal effect of timber licences

5 Except as provided in

section 2, this Act does not alter the legal effect of any timber licence.

This Act to be given specific legal effect

(1) This Act must be applied to and must be given effect in every action or proceeding, whether commenced before, on or after the date this Act receives Royal Assent.

(2) This Act must not be construed as lacking effect, whether retroactive or otherwise, in relation to any matter because of making no specific reference to that matter.

Commencement

7 Sections 1 to 3 are deemed to have come into force on April 1, 1995 and are retroactive to the extent necessary to give sections 1 to 3 effect on and after that date.

Explanatory Note

The Forest Amendment Act, 1995 , S.B.C. 1995, c. 24, amended

section

84 and certain other provisions of the Forest Act in order to improve

Crown revenue by placing holders of old temporary tenures, timber licences and

licences to cut on the same footing, in relation to the payment of stumpage,

as the holders of other forms of agreement under the Forest Act .

Before the 1995 amendments, the timber licence holders, unlike other holders of agreements under the Forest Act , were allowed to elect whether to pay royalties instead of stumpage, at royalty rates that were more favourable than stumpage rates. The repeal of

section 23 of the Forest Act , together with certain other provisions of the Forest Amendment Act, 1995 , ended the right to make that election and removed references to royalties and the payment of royalties.

This Bill enacts the Timber Licences Settlement Act to clarify the application of the Forest Act , as amended by the Forest Amendment Act, 1995 , by expressly

extinguishing the rights described in

section 2 (1) of the Timber Licences

Settlement Act , in order to dispel any argument that any of those rights

remained after the coming into force of the 1995 amendments;

stating that agreements, arrangements, approvals and timber licences (as defined) are and have always been without effect to the extent, if any, that they limit or limited, or purport or purported to limit, the amounts payable to government as described in

section 2 (2) of the Act;

stating that nothing in the Timber Licences Settlement Act or the Forest Amendment Act, 1995 , S.B.C. 1995, c. 24, gives rise to compensation or damages;

providing both a substantive and a procedural bar to bringing or maintaining actions or other proceedings for compensation, damages or any other remedies, arising as a direct or indirect consequence of the matters and things described;

preserving the effect of timber licences (as defined), except as provided

for in

section 2 of the Timber Licences Settlement Act ;

requiring the Timber Licences Settlement Act to be applied to and

given effect in every action or proceeding, whenever commenced, and in respect

of any matter, whether or not specifically referenced in the Timber Licences

Settlement Act ;

providing for retroactivity as stated.

Copyright (c) 2003: Queen's Printer, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada