Broadcasting Act (S.C. 1991, c. 11)

Objects and Powers

Marginal note:Objects and powers

• 46 (1) The Corporation is established for the purpose of providing the programming contemplated by paragraphs 3(1)(l) and (m), subject to any applicable orders and regulations of the Commission, and for that purpose the Corporation may

  • (a) establish, equip, maintain and operate broadcasting undertakings;

  • (b) make agreements with persons carrying on broadcasting undertakings for the broadcasting of programs;

  • (c) originate programs, secure programs from within or outside Canada by purchase, exchange or otherwise and make arrangements necessary for their transmission;

  • (d) make contracts with any person, within or outside Canada, in connection with the production or presentation of programs originated or secured by the Corporation;

  • (e) make contracts with any person, within or outside Canada, for performances in connection with the programs of the Corporation;

  • (f) with the approval of the Governor in Council, make contracts with any person for the provision by the Corporation of consulting or engineering services outside Canada;

  • (g) with the approval of the Governor in Council, distribute or market outside Canada programming services originated by the Corporation;

  • (h) with the approval of the Minister, act as agent for or on behalf of any person in providing programming to any part of Canada not served by any other licensee;

  • (i) collect news relating to current events in any part of the world and establish and subscribe to news agencies;

  • (j) publish, distribute and preserve, whether for a consideration or otherwise, such audio-visual material, papers, periodicals and other literary matter as may seem conducive to the attainment of the objects of the Corporation;

  • (k) produce, distribute and sell such consumer products as may seem conducive to the attainment of the objects of the Corporation;

  • (l) acquire copyrights and trademarks;

  • (m) acquire and use any patent, patent rights, licences or concessions that the Board considers useful for the purposes of the Corporation;

  • (n) make arrangements or agreements with any organization for the use of any rights, privileges or concessions that the Board considers useful for the purposes of the Corporation;

  • (o) acquire broadcasting undertakings either by lease or by purchase;

  • (p) make arrangements or agreements with any organization for the provision of broadcasting services;

  • (q) subject to the approval of the Governor in Council, acquire, hold and dispose of shares of the capital stock of any company or corporation that is authorized to carry on any business incidental or conducive to the attainment of the objects of the Corporation; and

  • (r) do all such other things as the Board deems incidental or conducive to the attainment of the objects of the Corporation.

• Marginal note:International service

  (2) The Corporation shall, subject to any applicable orders and regulations of the Commission, provide an international service that includes the creation, production and presentation of programming intended for audiences outside of Canada and provided in English, French and any other language deemed appropriate, in accordance with any directions that the Governor in Council may issue.

• Marginal note:Power to act as agent

  (3) The Corporation may, subject to any applicable orders and regulations of the Commission, act as an agent of Her Majesty in right of Canada, or as an agent or mandatary of Her Majesty in right of a province, in respect of any broadcasting operations that it may be directed by the Governor in Council to carry out.

• Marginal note:Extension of services

  (4) In planning extensions of broadcasting services, the Corporation shall have regard to the principles and purposes of the Official Languages Act.

• Marginal note:Independence

  (5) The Corporation shall, in the pursuit of its objects and in the exercise of its powers, enjoy freedom of expression and journalistic, creative and programming independence.

Marginal note:Debt obligations

• 46.1 (1) The Corporation may, with the approval of the Minister of Finance, borrow money by any means, including the issuance and sale of bonds, debentures, notes and any other evidence of indebtedness of the Corporation.

• Marginal note:Loans to the Corporation

  (2) At the request of the Corporation, the Minister of Finance may, out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund, lend money to the Corporation on such terms and conditions as that Minister may fix.

• Marginal note:Total indebtedness

  (3) The total indebtedness outstanding in respect of borrowings under subsections (1) and (2) shall not exceed

  • (a) $220,000,000; or

  • (b) such greater amount as may be authorized for the purposes of this subsection by Parliament under an appropriation Act.

Agent of Her Majesty

Marginal note:Corporation an agent of Her Majesty

• 47 (1) Except as provided in subsections 44(1) and 46(2), the Corporation is, for all purposes of this Act, an agent of Her Majesty, and it may exercise its powers under this Act only as an agent of Her Majesty.

• Marginal note:Contracts

  (2) The Corporation may, on behalf of Her Majesty, enter into contracts in the name of Her Majesty or in the name of the Corporation.

• Marginal note:Property

  (3) Property acquired by the Corporation is the property of Her Majesty and title thereto may be vested in the name of Her Majesty or in the name of the Corporation.

• Marginal note:Proceedings

  (4) Actions, suits or other legal proceedings in respect of any right or obligation acquired or incurred by the Corporation on behalf of Her Majesty, whether in its name or in the name of Her Majesty, may be brought or taken by or against the Corporation in the name of the Corporation in any court that would have jurisdiction if the Corporation were not an agent of Her Majesty.

Marginal note:Acquisition and disposition of property

• 48 (1) Subject to subsection (2), the Corporation may purchase, lease or otherwise acquire any real or personal property that the Corporation deems necessary or convenient for carrying out its objects and may sell, lease or otherwise dispose of all or any part of any property acquired by it.

• Marginal note:Restriction

  (2) The Corporation shall not, without the approval of the Governor in Council, enter into

  • (a) any transaction for the acquisition of any real property or the disposition of any real or personal property, other than program material or rights therein, for a consideration in excess of four million dollars or such greater amount as the Governor in Council may by order prescribe; or

  • (b) a lease or other agreement for the use or occupation of real property involving an expenditure in excess of four million dollars or such greater amount as the Governor in Council may by order prescribe.

• Marginal note:Retaining proceeds

  (3) Subject to subsection (4), the Corporation may retain and use all of the proceeds of any transaction for the disposition of real or personal property.

• Marginal note:Idem

  (4) In the case of a transaction for the disposition of real or personal property requiring the approval of the Governor in Council under subsection (2), the Corporation may retain and use all or any part of the proceeds therefrom unless otherwise directed by the Governor in Council.

Marginal note:Expropriation

• 49 (1) Where, in the opinion of the Corporation, the taking or acquisition of any land or interest therein by the Corporation without the consent of the owner is required for the purpose of carrying out its objects, the Corporation shall so advise the appropriate Minister in relation to Part I of the Expropriation Act.

• Marginal note:Application of Expropriation Act

  (2) For the purposes of the Expropriation Act, any land or interest therein that, in the opinion of the Minister referred to in subsection (1), is required for the purpose of carrying out the objects of the Corporation shall be deemed to be land or an interest therein that, in the opinion of the Minister, is required for a public work or other public purpose and, in relation thereto, a reference to the Crown in that Act shall be construed as a reference to the Corporation.

Head Office and Meetings

Marginal note:Head office

• 50 (1) The head office of the Corporation shall be in the National Capital Region as described in the schedule to the National Capital Act or at such other place in Canada as the Governor in Council may specify.

• Marginal note:Meetings

  (2) The Board shall meet at least six times in each year.

• Marginal note:Telephone conferences

  (3) A director may, subject to the by-laws of the Corporation, participate in a meeting of the Board or a committee of directors by means of such telephone or other communication facilities as permit all persons participating in the meeting to hear each other, and a director who participates in such a meeting by those means is deemed for the purposes of this Part to be present at the meeting.

By-laws

Marginal note:By-laws

• 51 (1) The Board may make by-laws

  • (a) respecting the calling of meetings of the Board;

  • (b) respecting the conduct of business at meetings of the Board, the establishment of special and standing committees of directors, the delegation of duties to special and standing committees of directors, including the committees referred to in section 45, and the fixing of quorums for meetings thereof;

  • (c) fixing the fees to be paid to directors, other than the Chairperson and the President, for attendance at meetings of the Board or any committee of directors, and the travel and living expenses to be paid to directors;

  • (d) respecting the duties and conduct of the directors, officers and employees of the Corporation and the terms and conditions of employment and of termination of employment of officers and employees of the Corporation, including the payment of any gratuity to those officers and employees or any one or more of them, whether by way of retirement allowance or otherwise;

  • (e) respecting the establishment, management and administration of a pension fund for the directors, officers and employees of the Corporation and their dependants, the contributions thereto to be made by the Corporation and the investment of the pension fund moneys thereof; and

  • (f) generally for the conduct and management of the affairs of the Corporation.

• Marginal note:Certain by-laws subject to Minister’s approval

  (2) No by-law made under paragraph (1)(c) or (e), and no by-law made under paragraph (1)(d) that provides for the payment of any gratuity referred to in that paragraph, has any effect unless it is approved by the Minister.

Financial Provisions

Marginal note:Independence of the Corporation

• 52 (1) Nothing in sections 53 to 70 shall be interpreted or applied so as to limit the freedom of expression or the journalistic, creative or programming independence enjoyed by the Corporation in the pursuit of its objects and in the exercise of its powers.

• Marginal note:Idem

  (2) Without limiting the generality of subsection (1), and notwithstanding sections 53 to 70 or any regulation made under any of those sections, the Corporation is not required to

  • (a) submit to the Treasury Board or to the Minister or the Minister of Finance any information the provision of which could reasonably be expected to compromise or constrain the journalistic, creative or programming independence of the Corporation; or

  • (b) include in any corporate plan or summary thereof submitted to the Minister pursuant to section 54 or 55 any information the provision of which could reasonably be expected to limit the ability of the Corporation to exercise its journalistic, creative or programming independence.

Marginal note:Part VII of Financial Administration Act not to apply

52.1 Notwithstanding the Financial Administration Act, Part VII of that Act does not apply to a debt incurred by the Corporation.

Marginal note:Financial year

53 The financial year of the Corporation is the period beginning on April 1 in one year and ending on March 31 in the next year, unless the Governor in Council otherwise directs.

Marginal note:Corporate plan

• 54 (1) The Corporation shall annually submit a corporate plan to the Minister.

• Marginal note:Scope of corporate plan

  (2) The corporate plan of the Corporation shall encompass all the businesses and activities, including investments, of the Corporation and its wholly-owned subsidiaries, if any.

• Marginal note:Contents of corporate plan

  (3) The corporate plan of the Corporation shall include

  • (a) a statement of

    • (i) the objects for which the Corporation is incorporated, as set out in this Act,

    • (ii) the Corporation’s objectives for the next five years and for each year in that period and the strategy the Corporation intends to employ to achieve them, and

    • (iii) the Corporation’s expected performance for the year in which the plan is submitted as compared to its objectives for that year, as set out in the last corporate plan;

  • (b) the capital budget of the Corporation for the next following financial year of the Corporation;

  • (c) an operating budget for the next following financial year of the Corporation; and

  • (d) where the Corporation intends to borrow money in the next financial year, a general indication of the borrowing plans and strategies of the Corporation for that year.

• Marginal note:Approval of Minister of Finance

  (3.1) Where the Corporation includes a general indication of its plans to borrow money in its corporate plan, the Corporation shall submit that part of its corporate plan to the Minister of Finance for that Minister’s approval.

• Marginal note:Capital budgets

  (4) The Corporation shall submit the capital budget to the Minister in a corporate plan pursuant to paragraph (3)(b) for the approval of the Treasury Board.

• Marginal note:Notification of business activity

  (5) Where the Corporation or a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Corporation proposes to carry out a substantial change to business activities in any period in a manner that is not consistent with the last corporate plan of the Corporation in respect of that period, the Corporation shall forthwith notify the Minister in writing of the inconsistency in the manner of carrying on the business activity.

• Marginal note:Scope of budgets

  (6) The budgets of the Corporation referred to in paragraphs (3)(b) and (c) shall encompass all the businesses and activities, including investments, of the Corporation and its wholly-owned subsidiaries, if any.

• Marginal note:Form of budgets

  (7) The budgets of the Corporation referred to in paragraphs (3)(b) and (c) shall be prepared in a form that clearly sets out information according to the major businesses or activities of the Corporation and its wholly-owned subsidiaries, if any.

• Marginal note:Approval of multi-year items

  (8) The Treasury Board may approve any item in a capital budget submitted pursuant to paragraph (3)(b) for any financial year or years following the financial year for which the budget is submitted.