Source: http://canadagazette.gc.ca/rp-pr/p2/2012/2012-12-05/html/sor-dors239-eng.html
Timestamp: 2017-12-11 13:34:32
Document Index: 701227542

Matched Legal Cases: ['art 7', 'art 1', 'art 2', 'art 1', 'art 7', 'art 7']

SOR/2012-239 November 14, 2012
The Public Service Commission, pursuant to section 22 (see footnote a) of the Public Service Employment Act (see footnote b), hereby makes the annexed Regulations Amending the Political Activities Regulations.
The Regulations Amending the Political Activities Regulations (RAPAR) clarify certain provisions of the Political Activities Regulations (PAR) to facilitate decision-making, and incorporate the recommendations of the Standing Joint Committee for the Scrutiny of Regulations (SJCSR) to prescribe a specific timeframe to render a decision after the Public Service Commission (PSC) receives complete information from federal public service employees requesting permission to seek nomination or be a candidate in a federal, provincial, territorial or municipal election or for leave without pay (LWOP), if applicable.
Part 7 of the Public Service Employment Act (PSEA) establishes a regime governing the political activities of employees that balances their right to engage in those activities while maintaining the principle of political impartiality in the public service. Sections 114 and 115 of the PSEA allow the PSC to grant permission to employees who request permission to seek nomination and/or become candidates in federal, provincial, territorial or municipal elections and LWOP, if applicable. To do this, the PSC must be satisfied that seeking nomination or being a candidate will not impair or be perceived as impairing the employee’s ability to perform their duties in a politically impartial manner. Sections 118 and 119 of the PSEA authorize the PSC to investigate an allegation that an employee or a deputy head has failed to comply with the political activities provisions.
The PAR are divided into two parts. Part 1 prescribes how an employee who wishes to seek nomination or be a candidate in an election must first request permission or LWOP, if applicable, from the PSC, in accordance with the requirements of subsections 114(1), (2) and (3), and section 115 of the PSEA. Part 2 provides information on the timeframe for submitting allegations of improper political activities, the manner in which these allegations should be submitted (a form is prescribed), the investigations conducted under section 118 or 119 of the PSEA, and the disclosure of information obtained in the conduct of an investigation.
The RAPAR improve the clarity of the PAR and facilitate their application:
Throughout Part 1, the term “applicant” has been replaced with the term “employee” in the English version, and the term “demandeur” has been replaced with the term “fonctionnaire” in the French version, for consistency with the terminology of the PSEA as well as the respective enabling legislation of the six organizations whose employees are subject to Part 7 of the PSEA: the Canada Revenue Agency, the Parks Canada Agency, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada, the National Film Board and the Public Service Staffing Tribunal.
Section 2, Content of a Request, lists which information a request for permission or LWOP must contain, and indicates that the PSC could request additional information it deems necessary to determine whether the employee’s political activities would impair, or could be perceived to impair their ability to perform their duties in a politically impartial manner. The information provided needs to be timely, relevant, detailed and comprehensive, and cover the nature of the duties being performed by the employee, whether on a permanent basis (an employee in their substantive position) or on a temporary basis (for example an employee on secondment, assignment, acting), the level and visibility of their position and the nature of the election.
Further to the recommendation of the SJCSR, section 3, Deadline for Submission of a Request, has been replaced by section 5, which prescribes that the PSC will render a decision within 30 days from the date of receipt of all the information required in section 2. “All the information” means not only the information that is required from the employee and the relevant organizations, but also all other information that is necessary for the PSC to fulfill its obligations under subsections 114(4) and (5) and 115(2) of the PSEA.
The French version of subsection 7(1), Format of Allegation, has been aligned with the English version, which indicates that the allegations “may” (as opposed to “must”) be submitted in writing, and subsection 7(2) prescribes the conditions under which the PSC may investigate an allegation not submitted in writing.
The Schedule, Allegations of Improper Political Activity, has been repealed, as the PSC accepts all allegations regardless of format.
When drafting the RAPAR, the PSC consulted with the organizations subject to Part 7 of the PSEA, the Office of the Auditor General, the Office of the Chief Human Resources Officer, the Human Resources Council, and bargaining agents. There was neither objection to nor concern with the RAPAR
The RAPAR were prepublished in the Canada Gazette, Part I, on September 8, 2012, for public consultations purposes. No comments or representations were made during the 30-day public consultation period.
The RAPAR come into force on the day on which they are registered.
Deputy heads of organizations subject to the RAPAR will be informed by way of correspondence from the President of the PSC, copying their Designated Political Activities Representatives. It will include a communiqué for employees describing the amendments to the PAR. This correspondence will then be posted on the PSC Web site as a letter to heads of human resources.