Rules of Practice

The following rules of practice were adopted by the Commission under authority of section 18 of the Act.

1. The following terms shall be interpreted as follows:

   (a) "advertisement" means advertisements and notices published pursuant to subsections 19(2) and (3) of the Act and giving notice of the date, time and place of the Commission's public sittings;
   
   (b) "notice" means the notice in writing that must be addressed to the Commission Secretary by any person interested in making representations within fifty?three (53) days of the date of publication of the last advertisement, as required by subsection 19(5) of the Act;
   
   (c) "Commission" means the Federal Electoral Boundaries Commission established for the Province of Quebec pursuant to section 3 of the Act and created by proclamation on April 16, 2002;
   
   (d) "Act" means the Electoral Boundaries Readjustment Act, R.S.C., 1985, Chapter E-3, as amended;
   
   (e) "representation" means a representation made, pursuant to subsection 19(5) of the Act, by a person with an interest in the geographical boundaries or in the names of one or more electoral districts in Quebec;
   
   (f) "Chairman" means the Chairman of the Commission or the Deputy Chairman, as the case may be;
   
   (g) "sitting" means a public sitting held by the Commission under section 19 of the Act;
   
   (h) "Secretary" means the person who acts as Commission Secretary, so named pursuant to subsection 16(2) of the Act.

2. For the purpose of calculating the fifty?three?day (53-day) limit prescribed by subsection 19(5) of the Act, the postmark on a mailed notice and the date of receipt by the Commission appearing on the notice sent by fax or by electronic means will establish the date it was given. Where it is impossible to determine the date it was forwarded, the Commission will decide the admissibility of the notice.

3. Any person who wishes to make representations at a sitting must give notice of his or her intentions and indicate at which Commission sitting he or she wishes to be heard.

4. The notice must indicate:

   (i) the name and address of the person who wishes to make representations,
   (ii) the nature of the representations, and
   (iii) the nature of the interest in question.

   That person may also indicate:

(i) related references and copies, if applicable;
(ii) pertinent details for representations that deal with the assigned names;
(iii) any information that could enlighten the Commission in its deliberations;
(iv) the official language in which the person wishes to be heard.

5. Two (2) members of the Commission shall constitute a quorum for a public sitting.

6. Only one representative of an agency, an association or a public body will be heard at a sitting unless the Commission decides otherwise.

7. If a sitting cannot be held, the Chairman may postpone that sitting to a later date. The Secretary shall then give notice of the date, time and place of the new sitting to the interested persons. A new notice shall also be given by means deemed appropriate.

8. If the Commission is of the opinion that it cannot finish hearing the representations in the time allotted, it can adjourn the sitting to a future date.

9. Any person who wishes to make representations in an Aboriginal language, or who has special needs, must so advise the Commission Secretary in writing.

10. The Commission shall have the power to waive any requirement that the Commission deems to be a defect in form.

Dated at Laval, Quebec, this 18th day of July, 2002.

Pierre Boudreault
Chairman
Federal Electoral Boundaries Commission
for the Province of Quebec

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