Civil Air Navigation Services Commercialization Act (S.C. 1996, c. 20)

Marginal note:Announcement of termination or reduction

• 21 (1) Before implementing a proposal to terminate or reduce designated northern or remote services in respect of which a notice is required to be given under section 18, the Corporation shall make an announcement in accordance with this section.

• Marginal note:Contents of announcement

  (2) The announcement must

  • (a) set out the particulars of the termination or reduction, including whether civil air navigation services are going to be introduced as a result of the termination or reduction; and

  • (b) specify when the termination or reduction will become effective.

• Marginal note:How announcement is to be made

  (3) The Corporation shall

  • (a) send, by mail or by electronic means, a copy of the announcement to

    • (i) representative organizations of users whose members will, in the opinion of the Corporation, be affected by the termination or reduction, and

    • (ii) every user and other person who has, at least 10 days before, notified the Corporation of their desire to receive notices or announcements under this Act, and

  • (b) post an electronic version of the announcement in a location that is generally accessible to persons who have access to what is commonly referred to as the Internet,

  and, after having done so, the Corporation shall send, by mail or by electronic means, a copy of the announcement to the government of every province affected by the termination or reduction.

• Marginal note:Time for making announcement

  (4) The announcement may only be made after 60 days have expired since the day the notice required under section 18 was sent to the government of the provinces affected by the termination or reduction.

Marginal note:When proposal can be implemented

22 The Corporation may only implement a proposal to terminate or reduce designated northern or remote services after 10 days have expired since the day the announcement required under section 21 was sent to the government of the provinces affected by the termination or reduction.

Level of Service Policies

Marginal note:Policies to be established

• 23 (1) The Corporation shall, within one year after the transfer date, establish policies consistent with this Act concerning the levels of civil air navigation services it provides.

• Marginal note:Application of policy

  (2) Subject to this Act, the Corporation shall apply its level of service policies in a consistent manner.

• Marginal note:Revising policies

  (3) The Corporation may revise its level of service policies from time to time.

• Marginal note:Publication

  (4) The Corporation shall publish the level of service policies established or revised under this section.

• Marginal note:Provision of services in excess of policy levels

  (5) Where civil air navigation services are requested in excess of the levels provided for in the level of service policies, the Corporation is not required to provide those additional services unless the person requesting them establishes through written evidence that a majority of the users who will be affected in a material way by the provision of the additional services agree to the provision of the additional services.

• Marginal note:Affected users

  (6) For the purpose of subsection (5), a user shall be considered to be affected by the provision of additional services only if, in the opinion of the Board of Directors of the Corporation acting reasonably and in good faith, the user is likely to use the additional services, pay more for the service that is to be increased or experience a change in service as a result of the provision of the additional services.

• Marginal note:Prior notice

  (7) Before establishing level of service policies or revising those policies, the Corporation shall give notice of its proposal to establish or revise the policies, as the case may be, in accordance with subsections 15(2) and (3).

Directions

Marginal note:Directions — northern or remote locations

• 24 (1) The Governor in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister, may give directions in writing to the Corporation to provide civil air navigation services at or in respect of northern or remote locations designated in the directions.

• Marginal note:Directions — international agreements

  (2) Where Canada must, pursuant to an international agreement, provide civil air navigation services in a certain manner or to a certain extent, the Governor in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister, may give directions in writing to the Corporation requiring it to provide the civil air navigation services in that manner or to that extent.

• Marginal note:Directions — national security

  (3) The Governor in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of National Defence, may give directions in writing to the Corporation to provide civil air navigation services if the Governor in Council is of the opinion that it is in the interest of national security to do so.

Marginal note:Sections 15 to 22 do not apply

25 Sections 15 to 22 do not apply if the Corporation is doing anything mentioned in section 14 in order to comply with a direction.

Marginal note:Exemption

26 A direction is exempt from examination, registration and publication under the Statutory Instruments Act.

Marginal note:Prior consultations

27 Before a direction is given, the appropriate Minister shall consult with the Corporation as to its content and timing.

Marginal note:Obligation to implement

28 The Corporation shall ensure that every direction it receives is implemented as soon as is practicable.

Marginal note:Implementation in best interests of Corporation

29 Compliance by the Corporation with a direction is deemed to be in the best interests of the Corporation.

Marginal note:Notification of implementation

30 Immediately after implementing a direction, the Corporation shall notify the appropriate Minister to that effect.

Marginal note:Compensation

• 31 (1) The appropriate Minister shall compensate the Corporation for any financial loss determined in accordance with subsection (2) that it has sustained or will sustain in complying with a direction under subsection 24(1) or (3) and for that purpose, the appropriate Minister may require an audit of the books and records of the Corporation to determine the amount of that financial loss.

• Marginal note:Financial loss

  (2) The financial loss for which compensation is payable under this section is the amount by which the incremental costs to the Corporation resulting from complying with the direction exceed the incremental revenues generated by the provision of the services.

• Marginal note:Appropriation required

  (3) The amount of compensation shall be paid out of money appropriated by Parliament for the purpose.

PART IIICharges for Air Navigation Services

Right to Impose Charges

Marginal note:Charges for availability or provision of services

• 32 (1) The Corporation may impose charges on a user for the availability or provision of air navigation services provided by the Corporation or a person acting under the authority of the Minister of National Defence.

• Marginal note:Exception

  (2) No charge may be imposed under subsection (1)

  • (a) on a user who is a person acting under the authority of the Minister of National Defence; or

  • (b) on a user in respect of a state aircraft of a foreign country, unless the foreign country has been designated under subsection (3).

• Marginal note:Designation

  (3) The Governor in Council may, by order, designate any country to be a country in respect of which charges may be imposed for the purpose of subsection (2).

• Marginal note:Deeming

  (4) A charge imposed on a user under subsection (1) is deemed to be in respect of aircraft operated by that user.

• Marginal note:Restriction

  (5) No charge may be imposed under subsection (1) in respect of air navigation services provided by a person acting under the authority of the Minister of National Defence unless the Corporation provides and charges for similar services in respect of Canadian airspace or any other airspace in respect of which Canada has responsibility for the provision of air traffic control services.

• Marginal note:Telecommunications Act

  (6) The Telecommunications Act does not apply in respect of any charges imposed by the Corporation pursuant to this Act.

Initial Charges

Marginal note:Initial charges

• 33 (1) Subject to this Act, the charges imposed by the Corporation on or after the transfer date for air navigation services shall be the charges that were imposed by the Minister immediately before the transfer date.

• Marginal note:Charges not new or revised charges

  (2) For the purposes of this Act, charges imposed under subsection (1) are not new charges for air navigation services or revised charges.

New and Revised Charges

Marginal note:New and revised charges

• 34 (1) Subject to this Act, the Corporation may, on or after the transfer date, establish new charges for air navigation services and revise existing charges, including a charge referred to in subsection 33(1).

• Marginal note:Where dollar amount changes

  (2) The Corporation is deemed to be revising an existing charge each time the dollar amount of the charge changes.

Charging Principles

Marginal note:Charging principles

• 35 (1) The Corporation shall observe the following principles when establishing a new charge for air navigation services or revising an existing charge:

  • (a) charges must be in accordance with a methodology established and published by the Corporation that is explicit and that also includes the terms and conditions affecting charges;

  • (b) charges must not be structured in such a way that a user would be encouraged to engage in practices that diminish safety for the purpose of avoiding a charge;

  • (c) charges for the same services must not differentiate between domestic and international flights of air carriers;

  • (d) charges for the same services must not differentiate among Canadian air carriers or among foreign air carriers;

  • (e) charges must differentiate between the provision of services in relation to the landing and take-off of aircraft and the provision of services in relation to aircraft in flight, and must reflect a reasonable allocation of the costs of providing the services in those circumstances;

  • (f) charges in respect of recreational and private aircraft must not be unreasonable or undue;

  • (g) charges for designated northern or remote services and for services directed to be provided under subsection 24(1) must not be higher than charges for similar services utilized to a similar extent elsewhere in Canada;

  • (h) charges must be consistent with the international obligations of the Government of Canada; and

  • (i) charges must not be set at a level that, based on reasonable and prudent projections, would generate revenues exceeding the Corporation’s current and future financial requirements in relation to the provision of civil air navigation services.

• Marginal note:Value of the services

  (2) The charging methodology may recognize that the value of the services differs among users.

• Marginal note:Application of principle

  (3) Where the Corporation’s charging methodology recognizes the value of the services and aircraft weight is used as a measure of the value of the services, the principle referred to in paragraph (1)(a) is deemed not to have been observed if aircraft weight is taken into account either directly proportionally or greater than directly proportionally.

• Marginal note:Meaning of weight

  (4) For the purpose of subsection (3), weight, in relation to an aircraft, means the maximum permissible take-off weight specified in the aircraft’s certificate of airworthiness or in a document referred to in that certificate.

• Marginal note:Financial requirements

  (5) For the purpose of paragraph (1)(i), the financial requirements of the Corporation in relation to the provision of civil air navigation services include, without duplication, the Corporation’s

  • (a) costs incurred before the transfer date,

  • (b) operations and maintenance costs,

  • (c) management and administration costs,

  • (d) debt servicing requirements and financial requirements arising out of contractual agreements relating to the borrowing of money,

  • (e) depreciation costs on capital assets,

  • (f) financial requirements necessary for the Corporation to maintain an appropriate credit rating,

  • (g) tax liability,

  • (h) reasonable reserves for future expenditures and contingencies, and

  • (i) other costs determined in accordance with accounting principles recommended by the Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada or its successor,

  to the extent that they relate to the provision of those services, less the amount determined in accordance with subsection (6).

• Marginal note:Deduction amount

  (6) The amount to be deducted for the purpose of subsection (5) is the aggregate of

  • (a) all grants, contributions and subsidies of a monetary nature received by the Corporation,

  • (b) all transition period payments pursuant to section 98,

  • (c) all interest income and investment income earned by the Corporation, and

  • (d) all profits earned by the Corporation, other than in respect of the provision of civil air navigation services.

• Marginal note:Flat-fee

  (7) Notwithstanding subsection (3), a category of users may be charged on a flat-fee basis so long as the charge is otherwise consistent with the charging principles set out in subsection (1).

• Marginal note:Application of paragraph (1)(c)

  (8) Paragraph (1)(c) does not apply in respect of charges for en route air traffic control services for the period during which an air transportation tax is levied under the Excise Tax Act.