2001 1 1 BALANCED BUDGET BILL No. 212 of 2001

An Act respecting the Balancing of the Budget of the Province of Saskatchewan (Assented to , 2001) HER MAJESTY, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan, enacts as follows:

Short title 1 This Act may be cited as The Balanced Budget Act, 2001.

Interpretation 2 In this Act: (a) “deficit” means the difference between the revenues and expenditures in a fiscal year when expenditures exceed revenues; (b) “expenditure” means, with respect to a fiscal year, any expenditure of money, including current and capital expenditures, as reported in the audited financial statements of the operating fund for that fiscal year; (c) “minister” means the Minister of Finance; (d) “net general purpose debt” means the general purpose debt less the book value of related sinking funds; (e) “operating fund” means that part of the General Revenue Fund that records the operational activities of the government and does not record activities relating to moneys that are held in trust; (f) “revenue” means, with respect to a fiscal year, any revenue as set out in the audited financial statements of the operating fund for that fiscal year; (g) “surplus” means the difference between the revenues and the expenditures in a fiscal year when revenues exceed expenditures.

2001BALANCED BUDGET 2 2 BALANCED BUDGET REQUIREMENT Fiscal year 2001-2002 and thereafter 3 Subject to

section 4 and subsection 5(2), for the fiscal year commencing on April 1, 2001 and ending on March 31, 2002 and for each fiscal year thereafter, the government shall not incur a deficit. Calculation of deficit or surplus 4(1) In a fiscal year when expenditures exceed revenues, the government shall not be considered to be in contravention of this Act to the extent that the deficit is a result of one or more of the following: (

a) an expenditure required in the fiscal year as a result of a natural or other disaster in Saskatchewan that could not have been anticipated and affects Saskatchewan or a region of Saskatchewan in a manner that is of urgent public concern; (

b) an expenditure required in the fiscal year because Canada is at war or under apprehension of war; (

c) a reduction in revenue of 5% or more in the fiscal year other than a reduction resulting from a change in Saskatchewan’s taxation laws.

(2) A declaration, by the Lieutenant Governor in Council, that an expenditure or a reduction of revenue mentioned in subsection (1) has occurred, is conclusive for the purposes of this Act of the fact that the expenditure was made or the reduction occurred and in the amount specified.

(3) A declaration pursuant to subsection (2) must include a description of: (

a) the expenditure and why it was necessary; or (

b) the reduction in revenue and why it occurred.

(4) Subject to subsection (5), expenditures and revenues of a fiscal year must be determined in accordance with the accounting policies that are observed for the fiscal year as disclosed in the audited financial statements of the operating fund for that fiscal year.

(5) If the audited financial statements of the operating fund for a fiscal year contain a reservation of the Provincial Auditor that results directly from a change in accounting policies occurring after March 31, 2001 that is not authorized by this Act, the government will not be considered to be in compliance with this Act unless a restatement of the revenue and expenditure of the operating fund for that fiscal year, excluding the effect of the change in accounting policies, would show expenditure and revenue in compliance with this Act.

Deficit to be offset in following fiscal year 5(1) Subject to subsection (2), in a fiscal year if there is a deficit that is not authorized by this Act, the government is required to achieve a surplus in an amount in the next fiscal year equal to or greater than the deficit from the previous fiscal year.

(2) In the case of a general election where there is a change in the political party forming the executive government as a result of the election, subsection (1) does not apply.

2001 3 3 BALANCED BUDGET Audited financial statements 6 The audited financial statements of the operating fund for a fiscal year must be completed and made public within six months after the end of that fiscal year. Reporting requirements 7 The minister shall include a report respecting compliance with this Act in the mid-year financial report and in the audited financial statements of the operating fund for each fiscal year.

Failure to meet projections 8(1) If with respect to a fiscal year ending after March 31, 2001, the mid-year financial report projects that expenditures will exceed revenues in the fiscal year in a manner not authorized by this Act, the amount payable to each member of the Executive Council as remuneration for service as a member of the Executive Council, for the 12 month period commencing on April 1 of the fiscal year immediately following the fiscal year to which the mid-year financial report relates, is to be reduced by: (

a) in a case where expenditures did not exceed revenues in a manner not authorized by this Act in the fiscal year immediately preceding the fiscal year to which the report relates, 20%; or (

b) in a case where expenditures exceeded revenues in a manner not authorized by this Act in the fiscal year immediately preceding the fiscal year to which the report relates, 40%.

(2) If the audited financial statements of the operating fund for a fiscal year show that the government is in compliance with this Act and amounts have been deducted from amounts payable to members of the Executive Council in connection with that fiscal year pursuant to subsection (1), the amounts so deducted shall be refunded to each of the members of the Executive Council.

(3) If with respect to a fiscal year ending after March 31, 2001 the audited financial statements of the operating fund show that expenditures exceed revenues in a manner not authorized by this Act and no amount is deducted from amounts payable to members of the Executive Council pursuant to subsection (1) in connection with that fiscal year, the amount of remuneration for service as a member of the Executive Council, for the 12 month period commencing on April 1 of the fiscal year immediately following the fiscal year to which the statements relate, shall be reduced by: (

a) in a case where expenditures did not exceed revenues in a manner not authorized by this Act in the fiscal year immediately preceding the fiscal year to which the statement relates, 20%; (

b) in a case where expenditures exceeded revenues in a manner not authorized by this Act in the fiscal year immediately preceding the fiscal year to which the statement relates, 40%.

(4) The amount to be deducted pursuant to subsection (3) may be prorated for the number of months that remain in the fiscal year after the publication of the audited financial statements of the operating fund.

2001BALANCED BUDGET 4 4 REGINA, SASKATCHEWAN Printed by the authority of THE QUEEN’S PRINTER Copyright©2001

(5) A reduction in the amount of money payable to a member of the Executive Council pursuant to this

section applies only during the period when the person served as a member of the Executive Council.

(6) A reduction in the amount of money payable to members of the Executive Council pursuant to this

section applies on a prorated basis to any new member of the Executive Council appointed during a period when the amount of remuneration for service as a member of the Executive Council is reduced. S.S. 1995, c.B-0.01, repealed 9 The Balanced Budget Act is repealed. Coming into force 10 This Act comes into force on assent.