Electricity and Gas Inspection Act (R.S.C., 1985, c. E-4)

Short Title

Marginal note:Short title

1 This Act may be cited as the Electricity and Gas Inspection Act.

Interpretation

Marginal note:Definitions

• 2 (1) In this Act,

  accredited meter verifier

  accredited meter verifier means any person accredited under section 10; (vérificateur accrédité)

  apparatus

  apparatus includes any machine, instrument or device; (appareil)

  contractor

  contractor means any person or body that has undertaken to supply electricity or gas to any purchaser; (fournisseur)

  director

  director means the director appointed under subsection 26(1); (directeur)

  functions

  functions includes powers conferred and duties imposed by or under this Act; (fonctions)

  gas

  gas includes natural gas and manufactured gas; (gaz)

  inspector

  inspector means any officer appointed under the authority of this Act and, in relation to any functions that may be executed by such an officer, includes any person designated under subsection 26(3) for the purpose of executing those functions; (inspecteur)

  meter

  meter means an electricity or gas meter and includes any apparatus used for the purpose of making measurements of, or obtaining the basis of a charge for, electricity or gas supplied to a purchaser; (compteur)

  Minister

  Minister means the Minister of Industry; (ministre)

  prescribed

  prescribed means prescribed by regulation; (Version anglaise seulement)

  purchaser

  purchaser means any person to whom electricity or gas is sold; (consommateur)

  verified meter

  verified meter means a meter that has been verified in accordance with this Act and the regulations. (compteur vérifié)

• Marginal note:Rendering seal ineffective is breaking it

  (2) The rendering ineffective of a seal pertaining to any meter shall, for the purposes of this Act, be deemed to constitute breaking the seal.

• Marginal note:Construction

  (3) Any reference in this Act, except in subsection 23(2), to the owner of a meter shall, in the case of a meter used by a contractor for any purpose mentioned in subsection 9(1), be construed as a reference to the contractor.

Units and Standards

Marginal note:Units of electricity and gas

• 3 (1) Subject to subsection (2) and the regulations,

  • (a) the unit of measurement for the sale of electricity shall be

    • (i) the watt hour,

    • (ii) the volt-ampere hour,

    • (iii) the var hour, or

    • (iv) the joule; and

  • (b) the unit of measurement for the sale of gas shall be

    • (i) in the case of sale by volume, the cubic metre or the cubic foot,

    • (ii) in the case of sale by energy units, the joule or the British Thermal Unit, and

    • (iii) in the case of sale by mass, the kilogram.

• Marginal note:Multiples and submultiples of units

  (2) Any requirement of this section that a unit of measurement be a unit specified in subsection (1) is sufficiently complied with if the unit of measurement

  • (a) is any multiple or submultiple of the unit so specified, and

  • (b) is capable of being expressed by way of a prefix specified in Part V of Schedule I to the Weights and Measures Act,

  but nothing in this subsection applies to a cubic foot specified in subparagraph (1)(b)(i) or a British Thermal Unit specified in subparagraph (1)(b)(ii).

Marginal note:Custody of standard apparatus

4 All standard apparatus necessary to establish the units of measurement for sales referred to in section 3 shall remain in the custody of the Minister and form part of the system of reference standards referred to in the Weights and Measures Act.

Marginal note:Calibration of measuring apparatus

5 No measuring apparatus, other than a standard designated under section 13 of the Weights and Measures Act, that is required for measurement or examination of electricity, gas or meters shall be used by an accredited meter verifier unless

• (a) the apparatus is calibrated, and

• (b) such calibration is certified,

in prescribed manner.

Registration

Marginal note:Register of contractors

• 6 (1) The director shall maintain, in accordance with the regulations, a register for the registration of contractors.

• Marginal note:Certificate of registration

  (2) No contractor shall sell electricity or gas on the basis of measurement unless he holds a certificate of registration issued under the authority of this subsection in respect of the supply of electricity or gas, as the case may be.

• Marginal note:Contractor ceasing to be seller

  (3) Where a contractor ceases to sell electricity or gas on the basis of measurement, the contractor shall forthwith give notice, in prescribed manner, to the director to that effect and return to the director the certificate of registration referred to in subsection (2).

Contractor’s Access and Reports

Marginal note:Right of access by contractor

• 7 (1) A contractor may, at all reasonable times, for the purpose of

  • (a) inspecting, testing, installing, repairing, removing or changing, when it is lawful for him to do so, any meters, wiring, piping, fittings or other apparatus of the contractor for the measurement or conveyance of electricity or gas supplied by him, or

  • (b) ascertaining the quantity or making other measurements of the electricity or gas consumed or supplied,

  enter any premises belonging to or occupied by the purchaser to whom the contractor has undertaken to supply the electricity or gas.

• Marginal note:Liability of contractor

  (2) A contractor that has exercised any right of entry pursuant to subsection (1) is responsible for, and shall forthwith repair and make good, all damage caused by the entry or by any inspection, testing, installation, repair, removal or change for the purpose of which the contractor has exercised that right.

Marginal note:Service pressure reports

8 A contractor shall, if the regulations so require, report at prescribed intervals to the director, in respect of any gas supplied by the contractor, such particulars of the service pressures as are prescribed.

Meters

Marginal note:Verification

• 9 (1) Subject to subsections (2) and (3), where a contractor or purchaser intends to use or cause to be used a meter for the purpose of obtaining the basis of a charge for electricity or gas supplied by or to him, the meter shall not, until it has been verified and sealed in accordance with this Act and the regulations, be put into service.

• Marginal note:Temporary dispensation

  (2) The director may grant permission for the putting into service, without verification and sealing or without sealing, of any meter or any class, type or design of meter on a temporary basis under such terms and conditions and for such period as the director stipulates.

• Marginal note:Permanent dispensation

  (3) The director may grant approval for the putting into service, without verification and sealing or without sealing, of any meter or any class, type or design of meter.

• Marginal note:Director’s approval required for verification

  (4) No meter shall be verified pursuant to this Act until it or the class, type or design of meter to which it belongs has received the approval of the director.

Marginal note:Accredited meter verifiers

10 Subject to the regulations, any person

• (a) may, on making application in prescribed manner, be accredited by the director for purposes of the verification, sealing, reverification and resealing of any meter or any class, type or design of meter and the execution of prescribed incidental functions by that person or their employee, agent or mandatary; and

• (b) shall, in the event of the granting of the application under paragraph (a), be issued with a certificate of accreditation in prescribed form by the director.

Marginal note:Revocation of permission

• 11 (1) A permission granted under subsection 9(2) may, by notice given in prescribed manner, be revoked by the director for failure to comply with any of the terms or conditions on which the permission was granted.

• Marginal note:Revocation of approval or accreditation

  (2) Any approval granted under subsection 9(3) or (4) or accreditation granted under section 10 may, by notice given in prescribed manner, be revoked by the Minister for failure to comply with any conditions to which that approval or accreditation has been made subject in accordance with the regulations.

• Marginal note:Requirement on revocation

  (3) Where a permission under subsection 9(2) or an approval under subsection 9(3) is revoked, any meter that is in service pursuant to the permission or approval at the time of the revocation shall thereupon be taken out of service unless, in the case of revocation of an approval, the notice of revocation otherwise provides.

• Marginal note:Right to make representations

  (4) No permission under subsection 9(2), approval under subsection 9(3) or (4) or accreditation under section 10 shall be revoked unless

  • (a) notice of the proposal to revoke it has been given in prescribed manner;

  • (b) any interested person objecting to the proposal has been afforded reasonable opportunity to make representations with respect to his objection; and

  • (c) the representations, if any, so made have been taken into account in deciding whether to implement such proposal.

Marginal note:Reverification

• 12 (1) Within

  • (a) the period of eight years from verification, and the period of eight years from each reverification, of a meter used for the purpose of obtaining the basis of a charge for electricity,

  • (b) the period of seven years from verification, and the period of seven years from each reverification, of a meter used for the purpose of obtaining the basis of a charge for gas, or

  • (c) such other period from any or each verification or reverification of a meter as may be determined in any case or class of cases by the director,

  the meter shall be submitted to reverification, together with resealing or marking, or to cancellation of the seal or mark, as the case may require, under this Act and the regulations.

• Marginal note:Where shorter period determined

  (2) No period determined under paragraph (1)(c) for any reverification shall be shorter than the period specified therefor in paragraph (1)(a) or (b) unless the director so determines the period under paragraph (1)(c) with the approval of the Minister, in which event the director shall cause to be given, in prescribed manner and before a prescribed time prior to expiration of the period determined under paragraph (1)(c), notice that the reverification within the period so determined, instead of within the period so specified, is required.

Marginal note:Exercise of powers by inspector

13 The power to deal with a meter in any manner provided or referred to in section 12 or specified or authorized pursuant to paragraph 28(1)(c) or (d) may be exercised by an inspector, on the general or special instructions of the director, whether or not the meter may be or has been so dealt with by an accredited meter verifier.

Marginal note:Certificates

14 On verification or reverification of a meter by an inspector or an accredited meter verifier who is not the owner of the meter, the inspector or meter verifier shall, in prescribed manner, issue to the owner a certificate containing prescribed particulars respecting the verification or reverification.

Marginal note:Persons authorized to deal with meters

• 15 (1) No meter shall be verified, sealed, reverified or resealed by any person other than an inspector or an accredited meter verifier, and no person,

  • (a) other than an inspector, shall break the seal of any verified meter the correctness of which is in dispute; or

  • (b) other than an inspector, an accredited meter verifier or the owner, shall, except as prescribed, break the seal of any verified meter.

• Marginal note:Meter with broken seal

  (2) Except as otherwise provided by or pursuant to this Act, no meter on which the seal has been broken shall be put into service or continued in use until it has been reverified and resealed.

Marginal note:Owner’s liability

• 16 (1) The owner of each verified meter that is in use shall keep it in good repair and is responsible for causing it to be dealt with in accordance with the requirements of this Act and the regulations, and, subject to those requirements, the owner is liable to pay any fees chargeable for dealing with the meter in accordance with those requirements.

• Marginal note:Owner’s records

  (2) An owner referred to in subsection (1) shall keep records containing such information related to the administration of this Act, in such form, at such place and for such period as may be prescribed.