British Columbia.

• Author: Schofield, Josie
• Position: Legislative Reports

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The fourth session of the 38th Parliament was prorogued on February 16, 2009, one week later than originally scheduled in the parliamentary calendar. This extension enabled the government to amend the balanced-budget legislation to permit temporary deficits in fiscal 2010 and 2011, due to the impact of the global economic crisis on provincial revenues.

Throne Speech and Budget

The fifth session opened on the afternoon of Monday, February 16, 2009. The Speech from the Throne was described by the news media as "a muted affair, particularly for an election year." The 40-page speech focused on how British Columbia's economic strengths could create jobs and support families during the recession. New policy initiatives included the development of a statutory framework to change the province's legal relationship with First Nations.

On February 17, Finance Minister Colin Hansen tabled a budget forecasting the deficit to be $495 million for 2009/10 and $245 million for 2010/11, with a return to a balanced budget by 2011/12. He explained that Budget 2009 builds on B.C.'s economic plan to alleviate the effects of the economic slowdown by investing almost $14 billion in infrastructure projects and reallocating $1.9 billion to strengthen health, education and social services. Finance Critic Bruce Ralston, however, contended that the plan was "making life harder for B.C. families."

Legislation

Early in the fifth session, two financial bills received royal assent: the Supply Act, 2008-2009 (Supplementary Estimates) and the Ministerial Accountability Bases Act, 2008-2009. For the current fiscal year, the House approved the Budget Measures Implementation Act, 2009 and the Supply Act (No. 1), 2009. The latter provides government with five months of required expenditure, from April through August, since Estimates debate will not occur until after the election period officially ends on June 3.

Five amending bills were also passed prior to adjournment of the House on March 31, 2009:

* Bill 7, Police (Police Complaint Commissioner) Amendment Act, 2009 changes provisions relating to the Commissioner's term of appointment

* Bill 8, Workers Compensation Amendment Act, 2009 adds lung cancer as a recognized occupational disease for B.C.

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* Bill 10, Public Safety and Solicitor General Statutes Amendment Act, 2009 amends the Motor Vehicle Act and Insurance Vehicle Act to tackle identity theft

* Bill 11, Pension Benefits Standards...