# Constitution Act, 1907 (annotated)

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This act regulated transfer payments by the federal government to smaller provinces to support their legislatures and governments. The funds transferred were set at between $100,000 and $250,000 depending on the province's population with an extra $100,000 a year for ten years to British Columbia.

## Contents

Constitution Act, 1907
    1. Payments to be made by Canada to Provinces.
    2. Short title.
Schedule
Notes

## The Act

7 Edward VII, c. 11 (U.K.)
An Act to make further provision with respect to the sums to be paid by Canada to the several provinces of the Dominion.
[ 9th August, 1907 ]
Whereas an address has been presented to His Majesty by the Senate and Commons of Canada in the terms set forth in the schedule of this Act:
Be it enacted by the King's Most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords, Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:—
| Payments to be made by Canada to Provinces. | 1. | (1) The following grants shall be made yearly by Canada to every province, which at the commencement of this Act is a province of the Dominion, for its local purposes and the support of its Government and Legislature: (a) A fixed grant — Where the population of the province is under one hundred and fifty thousand, of one hundred thousand dollars; Where the population of the province is one hundred and fifty thousand, but does not exceed two hundred thousand, of one hundred and fifty thousand dollars; Where the population of the province is two hundred thousand, but does not exceed four hundred thousand, of one hundred and eighty thousand dollars; Where the population of the province is four hundred thousand, but does not exceed eight hundred thousand, of one hundred and ninety thousand dollars; Where the population of the province is eight hundred thousand, but does not exceed one million five hundred thousand, of two hundred and twenty thousand dollars; Where the population of the province exceeds one million five hundred thousand, of two hundred and forty thousand dollars; and (b) Subject to the special provisions of this Act as to the provinces of British Columbia and Prince Edward Island, a grant at the rate of eighty cents per head of the population of the province up to the number of two million five hundred thousand, and at the rate of sixty cents per head of so much of the population as exceeds that number. (2) An additional grant of one hundred thousand dollars shall be made yearly to the province of British Columbia for a period of ten years from the commencement of this Act. (3) The population of a province shall be ascertained from time to time in the case of provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta respectively by the last quinquennial census of statutory estimate of population made under the Acts establishing those provinces of any other Act of the Parliament of Canada, making provision for the purpose, and in the case of any other province by the last decennial census for the time being. (4) The grants payable under this Act shall be paid half-yearly in advance to each province. (5) The grants payable under this Act shall be substituted for the grants and subsidies (in this Act referred to as existing grants) payable for the like purposes at the commencement of this Act to the several provinces of the Dominion under the provisions of section one hundred and eighteen of the Constitution Act, 1867, or of any Order in Council establishing a province, or of any Act of the Parliament of Canada containing directions for the payment of any such grant or subsidy and those provisions shall cease to have effect. (6) The Government of Canada shall have the same power of deducting sums charged against a province on account of the interest of public debt in the case of the grant payable under this Act to the province as they have in the case of the existing grant. (7) Nothing in this Act shall affect the obligation of the Government of Canada to pay to any province any grant which is payable to that province other than the existing grant for which the grant under this Act is substituted. (8) In the case of the provinces of British Columbia and Prince Edward Island, the amount paid on account of the grant payable per head of the population to the provinces under this act shall not at any time be less than the amount of corresponding grant payable at the commencement of this Act; and if it is found on any decennial census that the population of the province has decreased since the last decennial census, the amount paid on account of the grant shall not be decreased below the amount then payable, notwithstanding the decrease of the population. |
| Short title. | 2. | This Act may be cited as the Constitution Act, 1907. |

## Schedule

To the King's Most Excellent Majesty.
Most Gracious Sovereign,
We, Your Majesty's most dutiful and loyal subjects, the Senate and Commons of Canada , in Parliament assembled, humbly approach Your Majesty for the purpose of representing that: is expedient to amend the scale of payments authorized under section 118 of the Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, commonly called the Constitution Act, 1867, or by or under any terms or conditions upon which any other province were admitted to the Union, to be made by Canada to the several provinces of the Dominion for the support of their Governments and Legislatures by providing that--
A. Instead of the amounts now payable, the sums hereafter payable yearly by Canada to the several provinces for the support of their Governments and Legislatures be according to population, and as follows:--
    (a) Where the population of the province is under 150,000, $100,000;
    (b) Where the population of the province is 150,000, but does not exceed 200,000, $150,000;
    (c) Where the population of the province is 200,000, but does not exceed 400,000, $180,000;
    (d) Where the population of the province is 400,000, but does not exceed 800,000, $190,000;
    (e) Where the population of the province is 800,000, but does not exceed 1,500,000, $220,000;
    (f) Where the population of the province exceeds 1,500,000, $240,000;
B. Instead of an annual grant per head of population now allowed, the annual payment hereafter be at the same rate of eighty cents per head, but on the population of each province, as ascertained from time to time by the last decennial census, or in the case of the provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta respectively, by the last quinquennial census or statutory estimate, until such population exceeds 2,500,000, and at the rate of sixty cents per head for so much of said population as may exceed 2,500,000.
C. An additional allowance to the extent of one hundred thousand dollars annually be paid for ten years to the province of British Columbia.
D. Nothing herein contained shall in any way supersede or affect the terms special to any particular province upon which such province became part of the Dominion of Canada, or the right of any province to the payment of any special grant heretofore made by the Parliament of Canada to any province for any special purpose in such grant expressed.
We pray that Your Majesty may be graciously pleased to cause a measure to be laid before the Imperial Parliament at its present Session repealing the provisions of section 118 of the Constitution Act, 1867, aforesaid, and substituting therefor the scale of payments above set forth, which shall be a final and unalterable settlement of the amounts to be paid yearly to the several provinces of the Dominion for their local purposes, and the support of their Governments and Legislatures.
Such grants shall be paid half-yearly in advance to each province, but the Government of Canada shall deduct from such grants as against any province all sums chargeable as interest on the public debt of that province in excess of the several amounts stipulated in the said Act.
All of which we humbly pray Your Majesty to take into your favourable and gracious consideration.
(Signed) R. DANDURAND,
Speaker of the Senate.
(Signed) R. F. SUTHERLAND,
Speaker of the House of Commons.
Senate and House of Commons,
Ottawa, Canada,
26th April, 1907.

## Notes

* ↑ As enacted by the Constitution Act, 1982. As originally enacted it read: 2. This Act may be cited as the British North America Act, 1907, and shall take effect as from the first of July nineteen hundred and seven.
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