Feb 2019 Charity & NFP Law Update
Yukon Territory Introduces New Societies Act
As a result of the efforts of the Government of Yukon in 2017 and 2018 to modernize legislation in order to better serve the needs of societies and the public, a new Societies Act (“New Act”) received Royal Assent on November 22, 2018 (Bill 20, Societies Act).
The New Act is not currently in force and will come into force on a day or days to be fixed by the Commissioner in Executive Council. Regulations for the New Act have not yet been drafted. However, the Government of Yukon anticipates that the New Act and regulations will be approved and proclaimed in force approximately one year after Royal Assent, i.e. late 2019. When the New Act comes into force, it will repeal and replace the Yukon’s current Societies Act (RSY 2002, c 206).
Following input from a number of stakeholders from September 25 to 29, 2017, concerning their experiences with the Societies Act and its Regulations, the Department of Community Services invited the public for input on potential improvements to the Societies Act from October 14 to December 14, 2017. The Department then invited the public to provide feedback from May 1 to June 30, 2018 on proposed changes set out in Policy Elements for New Societies Legislation, which includes 40 proposed key policy elements. The Policy Elements for New Societies Legislation reviews changes in the following areas: the creation and liquidation of societies; directors’ matters; the role of the registrar; operational matters; privacy; liability; finance and employment; and other structures (being social enterprises and non-profit cooperatives).
The New Act is written in plain language and aims to clarify the framework for societies and the processes regarding their creation, governance and operation. An overview of key changes in the New Act are summarized in Bill #20 Societies Act: Highlights of Proposed New Societies Act.
Amendments to Recordkeeping Requirements under Alberta Societies Act
On December 11, 2018, sections 26 and 36 of Alberta’s Societies Act were amended by Bill 31, Miscellaneous Statutes Amendment Act, 2018. As a result of these changes, Alberta societies no longer need to state the occupation of each of their directors and officers in their annual returns, and thereby no longer need to provide the Registrar with notice when a director or officer changes occupations. Accordingly, Alberta’s REG3185 Society Annual Return has also been updated to reflect this change. As well, Alberta societies will have the flexibility of recording the “street address or postal address” of the members in the members’ registers instead of their “residential address.”