The Alberta government is proposing a series of legislative amendments that will, among other things, create a framework for reps to incorporate in the province, give the Alberta Securities Commission (ASC) the authority to set its own fees, and to automatically issue reciprocal enforcement orders.
Alberta Treasury Board and Finance said Tuesday that Bill 5, the Securities Amendment Act, 2014, “will further modernize, harmonize and streamline Alberta’s securities laws and assist Canada in meeting its international commitments.”
In particular, the government notes that the proposed amendments would establish a statutory framework to allow individual representatives of registered dealers and advisors to use professional corporations; a model that confers tax advantages by allowing reps to flow their revenues through a corporation and be taxed at the lower corporate rate. “This framework will allow individual representatives to choose what business structure works best for them,” the government says.
The amendments will also give the ASC the authority to set its own fees, subject to ministerial approval. And, it notes that this will give the ASC the ability to set fees (which regulators in Ontario and British Columbia already have) in connection with the various national filing systems that the regulators are seeking to replace over the next few years.
Additionally, the government says that the proposed amendments also, “clarifies, expands and refines existing enforcement provisions and creates a mechanism for issuing automatic reciprocal enforcement orders in Alberta against securities violators.”
It also aims to facilitate the ongoing harmonization of derivatives regulation in Canada, and it provides for the recognition and oversight of the Canadian Public Accountability Board (CPAB) as the overseer of audit firms.