The year 2021 will likely bring major changes to the Quebec Lobbyists Registry online lobbying activity disclosure platform.

In the works since the summer of 2019, the updated web platform aims to replace the “technological obsolescence” of the current site with a modern system, to improve the user experience, and to be in line with Quebec’s 2019-2023 digital transformation strategy, according to Lobbyists Commissioner Jean-Francois Routhier.

“The modernization of the lobbyists registry is without a doubt one of the biggest projects of our institution since its creation in 2002,” Routhier stated in his December 2020 newsletter.

A user committee made up of lobbyists, public office holders, journalists, and citizens has been testing a model of the new website to validate its user-friendliness and processes.

The commissioner has emphasized that the new website’s intuitive design, simplified process for registration, and increased capacity of searching for relevant information, are of interest to both lobbyists and the public.

Routhier says the new platform will replace the current Lobbyists Registry platform at the end of 2021.

On April 17, the Quebec National Assembly extended its adjournment until May 5 because of the continuing COVID-19 pandemic.

The Assembly had agreed on March 17 to adjourn parliamentary business until April 21.

At the time, the leaders of the four parliamentary groups left open the option to recommend to the President of the National Assembly to extend the adjournment beyond April 21.

Lawmakers plan to hold four virtual committee sessions.

These will allow MPs and members of the opposition groups to exchange views with members of the executive.

These committee sessions will be held between April 24 and May 1.

On March 17, the National Assembly of Quebec agreed to adjourn parliamentary business until Tuesday, April 21, 2020, at 1:40 p.m.

The adjournment is in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

If required, the leaders of the four parliamentary groups will recommend to the President of the National Assembly to extend the adjournment beyond April 21.

On December 2, a provincial by-election will be held in the Capitale-Nationale riding of Jean-Talon for the Quebec National Assembly.

The election will be held to fill the vacant seat of former Member of the National Assembly Sébastien Proulx, who resigned in August to return to private life.

The election was announced by Premier François Legault on October 27

On February 14, a bill was introduced in the National Assembly of Quebec to allow the Lobbyists Commissioner to maintain the registry of lobbyists.

Currently, paperwork filed by lobbyists is processed with the Ministry of Justice. Bill 6 amends the Lobbying Transparency and Ethics Act in order to transfer responsibility for keeping the registry of lobbyists to the Lobbyists Commissioner.

The bill also creates a three-year statute of limitations for the prosecution of lobbying violations, starting from the time a prosecutor becomes aware of a violation. A prosecution would be prohibited if the commission of the offense occurred more than seven years earlier.

Sometime before January 30, 2019, a by-election will be announced for the seat in the House of Commons representing Outremont in the province of Quebec.

On August 3, the Chief Electoral Officer of Canada, Stéphane Perrault, received official notice from the Speaker of the House of Commons that the seat for Outremont (Quebec) became vacant following the resignation of Tom Mulcair, who left office to teach at the at Universite de Montreal and to become a regularly scheduled political commentator at CJAD radio and CTV news.

Under the law, the by-election date must be announced between August 14, 2018, and January 30, 2019, and will signal the start of the by-election period. According to Elections Canada, the earliest date the by-election can be held is September 24, 2018.

On May 13, Elections Canada announced a federal by-election will be held on June 18 in the electoral district of Chicoutimi–Le Fjord (Quebec) to fill a vacancy in the House of Commons.

MP Denis Lemieux had announced his resignation in November of last year with an effective date of December 1.

Lemieux had cited family reasons for leaving office. He had been in the office since 2015.

A bill was introduced in the National Assembly of Quebec to amend the legislature’s ethics law. The amendments to the Code of Ethics and Conduct of the Members of the National Assembly (MNA) (chapter C-23.1) would provide an Ethics Commissioner inquiry report be produced within 90 days of the date on which an inquiry began, with allowances for extensions.

The bill also entitles a lawmaker who is the subject of an inquiry report to request a review committee be established to examine the report before it is tabled in the National Assembly. The review committee, which would be composed of three persons and chaired by a Court of Appeal judge designated by that court’s chief judge, could approve or revise the inquiry report.

The private bill, which was introduced on March 21 by MNA Claude Surprenant, an Independent representing the provincial electoral district of Groulx in the Laurentides region of Quebec, also mandates the committee must hear from both the investigated member and from the ethics commissioner. The bill also establishes the procedure for tabling the review report in the National Assembly.

On December 5, Elections Canada announced a by-election for the House of Commons will be held for the seat for Chicoutimi–Le Fjord (Quebec). The seat was vacated by MP Denis Lemieux, who announced his plan to resign in November for family reasons.

On December 4, Stéphane Perrault, Acting Chief Electoral Officer of Canada, received official notice from the Speaker of the House of Commons that the seat was vacant. Canadian law requires the date of this by-election be announced between December 15, 2017, and June 2, 2018, which will signal the start of the by-election period.

On October 2, a provincial byelection will be held in the Quebec City riding of Louis-Hébert for the Quebec National Assembly.

The election will be held to fill the vacant seat of former Member of the National Assembly Sam Hamad, who resigned in April to return to private life.

The election will fill the only remaining vacant seat in the National Assembly.

On June 8, Quebec’s Commissioner of Lobbying François Casgrain, scheduled to retire this month, urged lawmakers to pass lobbying law reform.

According to the Montreal Gazette, Casgrain, who is leaving the position after eight years due to health reasons, is disappointed with the lack of progress in updating the lobbying laws. Casgrain has pushed for the passage of Bill 56, the Lobbying Transparency Act, which was first introduced in 2015. The legislation would expand the scope of the definition of lobbyists to include shareholders lobbying for an entity as well as directors and officers of a nonprofit. The bill would also expand the types of activity considered to be lobbying and impose stricter penalties and higher fines on violators of the law.

Casgrain will step down as Commissioner of Lobbying on June 30.

Several Canadian legislative sessions adjourned last week:

• On June 2, the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories adjourned. Legislation considered this session included infrastructure and operations expenditure bills as well as an amendment to the Tobacco Tax Act. The Legislative Assembly is scheduled to reconvene on September 19, 2017, and to adjourn on October 4, 2017. The Legislative Assembly is scheduled to then again reconvene on October 17, 2017, and to adjourn on October 20, 2017.
• On June 1, the first session of the 41st Legislature of the Quebec National adjourned until June 6. One piece of legislation still being considered is Bill 56, the Lobbying Transparency Act, introduced in 2015. The bill would expand the scope of the definition of lobbyists to include shareholders lobbying for an entity as well as directors and officers of a nonprofit. The bill would also expand the types of activity considered to be lobbying and impose stricter penalties and higher fines on violators of the law. The National Assembly is scheduled to reconvene on June 6, 2017, and to adjourn on June 16, 2017.
• On June 1, the Legislative Assembly of Ontario adjourned on June 1, 2017. In the last week of the session, Bill 138, Transparency in Government Bills Act, 2017, was introduced. The bill would require all proposed legislation to include a statement describing the problem the bill seeks to address, a description of the public policy goals the bill seeks to achieve, and a summary of the financial costs the bill would have on the government, municipalities, the public, and any affected industries or businesses. The Legislative Assembly is scheduled to reconvene on September 11, 2017, and then adjourn on December 14, 2017.
• On June 1, the Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly adjourned to the call of the Chair. During this latest session, amendments to the Intergovernmental Affairs Act and the House of Assembly Accountability, Integrity and Administration Act were considered. The next scheduled sitting day is Monday, November 6, 2017. The Assembly is then scheduled to adjourn on December 7.

The City Council of Côte Saint-Luc passed a formal resolution stating opposition to proposed changes to Quebec’s Lobbying Transparency and Ethics Act.

The council opposes the measure that would require nonprofit groups to register as lobbyists. The resolution is being sent to the Quebec Lobbyists Commissioner and the Minister of Quebec Intergovernmental Affairs.

Lobbying Commissioner Karen Shepherd found former Quebec premier Jean Charest did not breach federal lobbying rules when he contacted the Prime Minister’s Office earlier this year to discuss an oil pipeline project.

Shepherd stated Charest was not acting as an unregistered lobbyist because he was not paid by the pipeline company at the time of the call. Shepherd did not elaborate any further as the Lobbying Act requires all reviews and investigations be conducted in private.