Be it enacted by the Lieutenant-Governor and
House of Assembly in Legislative Session convened, as follows:
Short title
1. This
Act may be cited as the Seniors Advocate
Act.
Definitions
2. In
this Act
(a) "advocate" means the Seniors' Advocate
appointed under section 4;
(b) "House of Assembly Management
Commission" means the commission continued under section 18 of the House of Assembly Accountability, Integrity
and Administration Act;
(c) "department" means a department
created under the Executive Council Act or
a branch of the executive government of the province;
(d) "senior" means an individual who is
(i) 65 years of age or older, or
(ii) less than 65 years of age and receives seniors'
services;
(e) "seniors' services" means the programs,
services or systems of support, prescribed in the regulations, that are related
to health care, personal care, housing, transportation or finances that are used
by or associated with seniors; and
(f) "service providers" means the public
or private persons or bodies prescribed in the regulations who fund or deliver,
in whole or in part, seniors' services.
Office of
Seniors' Advocate established
3. The
Office of the Seniors' Advocate is established to
(a) identify, review and analyze systemic issues
related to seniors;
(b) work collaboratively with seniors'
organizations, service providers and others to identify and address systemic
issues related to seniors; and
(c) make recommendations to government and government
agencies respecting changes to improve seniors' services.
Appointment of
Seniors' Advocate
4. On
resolution of the House of Assembly, the Lieutenant-Governor in Council shall
appoint a Seniors' Advocate.
Status of
advocate
5. (1) The advocate is an officer of the House of
Assembly and is not eligible to be nominated for election, to be elected or to
sit as a member of the House of Assembly.
(2) The
advocate shall not hold another public office or carry on a trade, business or
profession.
Term of office
6. (1) Unless he or she sooner resigns, dies or is
removed from office, the advocate shall hold office for 6 years from the date
of his or her appointment, and he or she may be re-appointed for a second term
of 6 years, but shall not hold office for more than 2 terms.
(2) The
advocate may resign his or her office in writing addressed to the Speaker of
the House of Assembly, or, where there is no Speaker or the Speaker is absent,
to the Clerk of the House of Assembly.
Removal or suspension
7. The Lieutenant-Governor in Council, on resolution
of the House of Assembly passed by a majority vote of the members of the House
of Assembly actually voting, may suspend or remove the advocate from office
because of an incapacity to act or for misconduct, cause or neglect of
duty.
Suspension when
House of Assembly not sitting
8. When the House of Assembly is not sitting, the
Lieutenant-Governor in Council may suspend the advocate because of an incapacity
to act or for misconduct, cause or neglect of duty but the suspension shall not continue in force
beyond the end of the next sitting of the House of Assembly.
Acting advocate
9. (1) The
Lieutenant-Governor in Council may, on the recommendation of the House of
Assembly Management Commission, appoint an acting advocate if
(a) the advocate is temporarily unable to perform
his or her duties;
(b) the office of the advocate becomes vacant or
the advocate is suspended when the House of Assembly is not sitting; or
(c) the office of the advocate becomes vacant or
the advocate is suspended when the House of Assembly is sitting, but the House
of Assembly does not pass a resolution to appoint an advocate before the end of
that sitting.
(2) Where the office of the advocate becomes
vacant and an acting advocate is appointed under paragraph (1)(b) or (c), the
term of the acting advocate shall not extend beyond the end of the next sitting
of the House of Assembly.
(3) An acting advocate holds office until
(a) the advocate returns to his or her duties
after a temporary inability to perform;
(b) the suspension of the advocate ends or is
dealt with in the House of Assembly; or
(c) a person is appointed as an advocate under
section 4.
Salary, pension
and benefits
10. (1) The advocate shall be paid a salary fixed by the
Lieutenant-Governor in Council after consultation with the House of
Assembly Management Commission.
(2) The salary
of the advocate shall not be reduced except on resolution of the House of
Assembly.
(3) The advocate is subject to the Public Service Pensions Act, 1991 where
he or she was subject to that Act before his or her appointment as advocate.
(4) Where the advocate was not subject to the Public Service Pensions Act, 1991 before
his or her appointment as advocate, he or she shall be paid, for contribution
to a registered retirement savings plan, an amount equivalent to the amount
which he or she would have contributed to the Public Service Pension Plan were
the circumstances in subsection (3) applicable.
(5) The advocate is eligible to receive the same
benefits as a deputy minister, with the exception of a pension where subsection
(4) applies.
Expenses
11. The
advocate shall be paid the travelling and
other expenses incurred by him or her in the performance of his or her duties
that may be approved by the House of Assembly Management Commission.
Advocate's staff
12. (1) The advocate may, subject to the approval of the House
of Assembly Management Commission, and in
the manner provided by the Public Service
Commission Act, appoint those assistants and employees that the advocate
considers necessary to enable him or her to carry out his or her powers and
duties under this Act.
(2) Persons employed under subsection (1) are
members of the public service of the province.
Oath of office
13. (1) Before beginning to perform his or her duties,
the advocate shall swear an oath or affirm before the Speaker of the House of Assembly
or the Clerk of the House of Assembly that he or she shall faithfully and
impartially perform the duties of his or her office.
(2) Every
person employed under the advocate shall, before he or she begins to perform
his or her duties, swear an oath, or affirm, before the advocate that he or she
shall not, except as provided by this Act, divulge information received by him
or her under this Act.
Confidentiality
of information
14. (1) The
advocate and every person employed under him or her shall keep confidential all
matters that come to their knowledge in the exercise of their powers and duties
under this Act.
(2) Notwithstanding subsection (1), the advocate
may disclose in a report made by him or her under this Act those matters which
he or she considers it necessary to disclose in order to establish grounds for
his or her conclusions and recommendations.
(3) A report the advocate makes under this Act
shall not disclose the name or identifying information about a senior.
Delegation
15. (1) The advocate may in writing delegate to another
person his or her powers under this Act except the power to make a report under
this Act.
(2) A person
purporting to exercise the power of the advocate by virtue of the delegation
under subsection (1) shall produce evidence of his or her authority to exercise
that power when required to do so.
Powers and duties
of advocate
16. (1) In
carrying out the powers and duties of his or her office the advocate may
(a) receive and review matters related to seniors;
(b) initiate and participate in reviews related to
seniors;
(c) conduct research related to seniors, including
interviews and surveys;
(d) consult with seniors, service providers and the
public;
(e) request information, other than
(i) personal health information within the meaning
of the Personal Health Information Act,
and
(ii) personal information within the meaning of the
Access to Information and Protection of
Privacy Act, 2015;
(f) make recommendations to government, government
agencies, service providers and community groups respecting legislation,
policies, programs and services impacting seniors; and
(g) inform the public about the Office of the
Seniors' Advocate and promote awareness of systemic issues related to seniors.
(2) A service provider, department or government
agency who receives a request for information under this Act shall, if he, she
or it has custody or control of the information, provide the information.
Referral to Citizens'
Representative
17. Where
the advocate becomes aware of a matter relating to a senior, the advocate may
refer that senior to the Citizens' Representative for investigation of that
matter.
Proceedings
against advocate
18. An
action does not lie against the advocate or
against a person employed under him or her for anything he or she may do or
report or say in the course of the exercise or performance, or intended exercise
or performance, of his or her powers and duties under this Act, unless it is
shown he or she acted in bad faith.
Advocate not to
be called as witness
19. The advocate and a person employed under him or
her shall not be called to give evidence in a court or in a proceeding of a
judicial or quasi-judicial nature in respect of anything coming to his or her
knowledge in the exercise or performance of his or her powers and duties under
this Act.
Annual report to
House of Assembly
20. The advocate shall report annually to the House
of Assembly through the Speaker on the exercise and performance of his or her
powers and duties under this Act.
Publication of
reports
21. Where
it is in the public interest, or in the
interest of a person, department or government agency, the advocate may publish
reports relating generally to the exercise and performance of his or her powers
and duties under this Act, whether or not the matters to be dealt with in the
report have been the subject of the report made to the House of Assembly under
this Act.
Regulations
22. The
Lieutenant-Governor in Council may make regulations
(a) prescribing the programs, services or systems
of support for the purpose of paragraph 2(e);
(b) prescribing the public or private persons or bodies
for the purpose of paragraph 2(f);
(c) re-defining or further defining a word or
expression defined in this Act;
(d) defining a word or expression used
but not defined in this Act; and
(e) generally, to give effect to the purpose of
this Act.
Offence and
penalty
23. A person who
(a) obstructs,
hinders or resists the advocate or another person in the exercise or
performance of his or her powers and duties under this Act;
(b) refuses or
fails to comply with a lawful request under this Act; or
(c) makes a
false statement to or misleads or attempts to mislead the advocate or a person
employed under the advocate in the exercise or performance of his or her powers
and duties under this Act,
is guilty of
an offence and liable, on summary conviction, to a fine of not more than $1,000
or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3 months, or to both.
SNL2007 cH-10.1 Amdt.
24. (1) Paragraph 2(r) of the House of Assembly Accountability, Integrity
and Administration Act is amended by deleting the word "and" at
the end of subparagraph (v) and by adding immediately after that subparagraph
the following:
(v.1) Seniors' Advocate, and
(2) Subsection 32(2) of the House of Assembly Accountability, Integrity and Administration Act
is amended by deleting the word "and" at the end of paragraph (d), by
deleting the comma at the end of paragraph (e) and substituting a semi-colon
and the word "and", and by adding immediately after that paragraph
the following:
(f) subsection 12(1) of the Seniors' Advocate Act,
SNL2016 cI-2.1 Amdt.
25. The
Schedule to the Independent Appointments
Commission Act is amended by adding immediately after the statutory appointment
reference "Royal Newfoundland
Constabulary Act, 1992, subsection 4(1)" the statutory appointment
reference "Seniors' Advocate Act,
section 4".
Commencement
26. This Act comes into force on a day to be
proclaimed by the Lieutenant-Governor in Council.
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