[37] Bill 144 Royal Assent (PDF)
Bill 144
Bill 1442000
An Act to establish accountability
in correctional services, to make offenders demonstrate that they are drug-free,
to set rules for offenders to earn their release, to give the Board of Parole a say in earned release decisions, and to change the name of the Board of Parole
Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Ontario, enacts as follows:
1. (1) Section 1 of the Ministry of Correctional Services Act is amended by adding the following definition: "
contractor" means an individual, corporation, partnership or unincorporated association that enters into a contract or agreement under subsection 8 (4) or (5) to provide correctional services, and includes any person engaged by the contractor to provide any of the services. ("entrepreneur")
(2) The definition of "correctional institution" in section 1 of the Act is repealed and the following substituted: "
correctional institution" means a correctional institution established or continued under section 14, whether it is operated or maintained by the Ministry or by a contractor, but does not include a place of open custody, a place of secure custody, a place of temporary detention or a lock-up established under section 205 of the Municipal Act. ("tablissement correctionnel")
(3) Section 1 of the Act is amended by adding the following definition: "
correctional service" means a service provided for the purpose of carrying out the function or objects of the Ministry, including the operation and maintenance of correctional institutions. ("service correctionnel")
(4) The definitions of "parole", "parolee" and "remission" in section 1 of the Act are repealed and the following substituted: "
parole" means parole under the Corrections and Conditional Release Act (Canada) or this Act, and "parolee" means a person who is released on parole; ("libration conditionnelle" ou "libert conditionnelle", "personne en libert conditionnelle") "
remission" means the remission of an inmate's sentence that he or she may earn in accordance with the Prisons and Reformatories Act (Canada) or this Act. ("rduction de peine")
2. Section 8 of the Act is amended by adding the following subsection:
Same
(6) Without limiting the generality of subsections (4) and (5), a contract or agreement under either of those subsections may authorize or require an individual, corporation, partnership or unincorporated association to provide correctional services.
3. Section 9 of the Act is amended by striking out "an employee of the Ministry" and substituting "an employee of the Ministry, a contractor or an employee of a contractor".
4. The Act is amended by adding the following section:
Local monitoring boards
14.1 The Minister may establish a local monitoring board for a correctional institution, composed of persons appointed by the Minister.
5. (1) Subsection 20 (1) of the Act is repealed and the following substituted:
Director, superintendent of correctional institution
(1) The Minister shall, for each correctional institution, designate one or more directors or superintendents of the institution.
Responsibility for administration
(1.1) The director or superintendent shall be responsible for the administration of the correctional institution.
(2) Subsection 20 (3) of the Act is repealed and the following substituted:
Deputy director, deputy superintendent
(3) The Minister may designate one or more deputy directors or deputy superintendents of a correctional institution to be responsible for the administration of the institution when the director or superintendent by reason of absence, illness or other cause, is unable to carry out his or her duties.
Limitations
(4) A designation under subsection (1) or (3) may be subject to such limitations, restrictions, conditions and requirements as the Minister may set out in the designation.
Persons designated
(5) A person designated under subsection (1) or (3) may be an employee of the Ministry or any other person.
6. Section 22 of the Act is amended by adding the following subsection:
Offence for obstructing inspection
(2) A contractor or employee of a contractor who obstructs an inspection or investigation or withholds, destroys, conceals or refuses to furnish any information or thing required by an inspector for the purposes of the inspection or investigation is guilty of an offence and on conviction is liable to a fine of not more than $5,000.
7. Subsection 27 (1) of the Act is amended by striking out "a person employed in the Ministry" and substituting "a person employed in the administration of this Act".
8. The Act is amended by adding the following section:
Determinations of remission
28.1 A determination of whether an inmate has earned remission under the Prisons and Reformatories Act (Canada) or section 28 of this Act shall comply with the requirement under subsection 6 (1) of the Prisons and Reformatories Act that inmates earn remission by obeying prison rules and conditions governing temporary absence and by actively participating in programs, other than full parole, designed to promote inmates' rehabilitation and reintegration as determined in accordance with the regulations made under clause 60 (1) (d.1).
9. The heading to Part III of the Act is struck out and the following substituted:
PART III
ONTARIO PAROLE AND
EARNED RELEASE BOARD
10. Sections 31 and 32 of the Act are repealed and the following substituted:
Definition
31. In this Part, "
Board" means the Ontario Parole and Earned Release Board continued by section 32.
Ontario Parole and Earned Release Board
32. (1) The Board of Parole is continued as a board known in English as the Ontario Parole and Earned Release Board and in French as Commission ontarienne des librations conditionnelles et des mises en libert mrites.
Composition
(2) The Board shall be composed of such full-time and part-time members appointed by the Lieutenant Governor in Council as the Lieutenant Governor in Council may consider necessary.
Provincial parole board
(3) For the purposes of any Act of the Parliament of Canada, the Board is the provincial parole board for Ontario.
11. The Act is amended by adding the following section:
Remission
35.1 In the prescribed circumstances, determinations of whether an inmate has earned remission under subsection 6 (1) of the Prisons and Reformatories Act (Canada) or section 28 of this Act may be made by the Board.
12. Subsection 48 (2) of the Act is amended by striking out "Subsections 20 (1) and (2) (director or superintendent) apply" and substituting "Subsections 20 (1), (1.1), (2), (4) and (5) apply".
13. Clause 53 (2) (c) of the Act is amended by striking out "Part III (Parole)" and substituting "Part III (Ontario Parole and Earned Release Board)".
14. The Act is amended by adding the following Part:
PART V.1
CONTRACTORS
Contractor employed in administration of Act
57.1 A contractor and a contractor's employees shall, for the purposes of this Act, be deemed to be employed in the administration of this Act.
Contractor not Crown agent
57.2 (1) A contractor and the persons employed by a contractor are not agents of Her Majesty for any purpose, despite the Crown Agency Act, and shall not hold themselves out as agents of Her Majesty for any purpose.
Not Crown employees
(2) A contractor and the persons employed by a contractor shall be deemed not to be employed by the Crown and are not Crown employees within the meaning of the Public Service Act.
Contract compliance managers
57.3 (1) The Minister may designate one or more employees of the Ministry as contract compliance managers to monitor the provision of correctional services by contractors pursuant to contracts or agreements entered into under subsection 8 (4) or (5).
Inspection
(2) For the purpose of determining whether a contract or agreement is being complied with or whether this Act or an Act of the Parliament of Canada that relates to correctional services is being complied with, the Minister, a contract compliance manager or any other person authorized for the purpose by the Minister may without a warrant enter and inspect,
(a)a correctional institution operated and maintained by a contractor, at any time; and
(b)any place, other than a correctional institution, where the contractor keeps documents or things relevant to the inspection, during normal business hours.
Identification
(3) A person conducting an inspection, other than the Minister, shall produce, on request, evidence of his or her designation as a contract compliance manager or of his or her authorization under subsection (2).
Dwellings
(4) No person conducting an inspection under this section may enter a place described in clause (2) (b) that is also a dwelling without the consent of the occupier or without first obtaining and producing a warrant.
Powers on inspection
(5) A person conducting an inspection may,
(a)examine any document or thing that is relevant to the inspection;
(b)demand the production for inspection of any document or thing that is relevant to the inspection;
(c)remove for review and copying any document or thing that is relevant to the inspection;
(d)in order to produce a document in readable form, use data storage, information processing or retrieval devices or systems that are normally used in carrying on business in the correctional institution;
(e)conduct tests or take samples of any thing that is relevant to the inspection; and
(f)question an employee of the contractor or an inmate of the correctional institution on matters relevant to the inspection, subject to the person's right to have counsel or another representative present during the questioning.
Written demand
(6) A demand that a document or other thing be produced for inspection must be in writing and must include a statement of the nature of the document or thing required.
Obligation to produce and assist
(7) If a person conducting an inspection demands that a document or thing be produced for inspection, the person who has custody of the document or thing shall produce it and, in the case of a document, shall on request provide any assistance that is reasonably necessary to interpret the document or to produce it in a readable form.
Documents and things removed from place
(8) A document or thing that has been removed for review and copying,
(a)shall be made available to the person from whom it was removed, for review and copying, on request and at a time and place that are convenient for the person and for the person conducting the inspection; and
(b)shall be returned to the person within a reasonable time.
Copy admissible in evidence
(9) A copy of a document that purports to be certified by a person conducting an inspection as being a true copy of the original is admissible in evidence to the same extent as the original, and has the same evidentiary value.
Contractor to provide unrestricted access
(10) A contractor shall provide unrestricted access to the Minister, a contract compliance manager and any other person authorized for the purpose of conducting inspections by the Minister to,
(a)a correctional institution that is operated and maintained by the contractor;
(b)persons employed by the contractor in connection with the provision of correctional services by the contractor;
(c)inmates of the correctional institution; and
(d)documents or things in the possession or control of the contractor and relating to the provision of correctional services by the contractor.
Warrant
(11) If a justice of the peace is satisfied on information on oath that entry to a place described in clause (2) (a) or (b) has been denied or will be denied, the justice of the peace may issue a warrant authorizing the Minister, a contract compliance manager or any other person designated by the Minister and named in the warrant to enter premises specified in clause (2) (a) or (b) and to do anything described in subsection (5).
Same
(12) A warrant issued under subsection (11) shall name the date on which it expires, which shall not be later than 15 days after its issue and may be executed only between 6 a.m. and 9 p.m. unless the warrant specifies otherwise.
Obstruction
(13) No person shall hinder, obstruct or interfere with a person conducting an inspection under this section, refuse to answer questions on matters relevant to the inspection or provide the inspector with information, on matters relevant to the inspection, that the person knows to be false or misleading.
Offence
(14) Every person who contravenes subsection (13) is guilty of an offence and on conviction is liable to a fine of not more than $5,000.
Minister's directions to contractor,
failure to provide competent services
57.4 (1) If the Minister is of the opinion that a contractor has failed to provide correctional services in a competent manner, the Minister may issue a direction to the contractor with respect to those services and require the contractor to report back on the implementation of the direction within the time and in the manner specified by the Minister.
Same
(2) The contractor shall comply with the direction and provide the report as required.
Minister's directions to contractor, emergencies, etc.
57.5 (1) The Minister may issue a direction to the contractor or to any employees of the contractor with respect to any correctional services and require the contractor to report back on the implementation of the direction within the time and in the manner specified by the Minister if the Minister is of the opinion that,
(a)there is a risk to the safety of any person or the security of any property; or
(b)there is an emergency situation related to the provision of the correctional services by the contractor.
Same
(2) The contractor and the contractor's employees shall comply with the direction and the contractor shall provide the report as required.
Other actions by Minister, emergencies, etc.
(3) Whether or not a direction is issued under subsection (1), the Minister may take any action he or she considers necessary for the safe and proper provision of correctional services, without obtaining a court order, if the Minister is of the opinion that,
(a)there is a risk to the safety of any person or the security of any property; or
(b)there is an emergency situation related to the provision of the correctional services by the contractor.
Force
(4) The Minister may use such force as is necessary in taking any action authorized by subsection (3).
Appointment of superintendent replacement
57.6 (1) The Minister may appoint a person to act in the place of the director or superintendent of a correctional institution for the period of time specified in the appointment if,
(a)the Minister is not satisfied that the contractor is complying with a direction issued under section 57.4 or is of the opinion that the contractor is continuing to fail to provide correctional services in a competent manner despite complying with the direction; or
(b)the Minister is not satisfied that the contractor is complying with a direction issued under subsection 57.5 (1) or is of the opinion that a circumstance described in subsection 57.5 (1) continues to exist despite the efforts of the contractor.
Powers of replacement
(2) A person appointed under subsection (1) shall have all the powers, duties and functions of the director or superintendent, subject to any limitations, restrictions, conditions and requirements set out in the appointment.
Duty to co-operate
(3) The contractor that operates or maintains the correctional institution, the contractor's employees and the replaced director or superintendent shall co-operate with the person appointed under this section by providing any assistance that the person may request and the contractor's employees shall comply with any directions given by the person appointed under this section.
Same
(4) The contractor that operates or maintains the correctional institution, the contractor's employees and the replaced director or superintendent shall provide immediate and unrestricted access to the person appointed under this section to the correctional institution and to all documents and things relevant to the operation and maintenance of the institution.
Powers of Ombudsman
57.7 A contractor shall be deemed to be a governmental organization for the purpose of sections 19 and 25 of the Ombudsman Act.
Prevails over contract
57.8 (1) Subject to subsection (2), this Part prevails over a contract or agreement.
Authority in contract
(2) This Part does not limit any authority that the Minister has under a contract or agreement.
15. Part VI of the Act is amended by adding the following section:
Substance testing
57.9 (1) A person authorized by the Minister for the purpose may demand that an inmate in a correctional institution produce evidence of the absence of alcohol or other prescribed substances from his or her body by submitting to a prescribed test to determine the presence of alcohol or other prescribed substances in his or her body, if,
(a)the demand is authorized by the director or superintendent of the correctional institution and the person authorized by the Minister has reasonable grounds to suspect that,
(i)the inmate has consumed or used alcohol or another prescribed substance, and
(ii)a test is necessary to confirm the consumption or use;
(b)the demand is part of a prescribed random selection substance testing program, conducted without individualized grounds on a periodic basis and in accordance with the regulations; or
(c)a substance test is prescribed as a requirement for participation in,
(i)a prescribed program or activity involving contact with the community, or
(ii)a prescribed substance abuse program.
Same
(2) A person authorized by the Minister for the purpose may demand that a parolee, inmate who is released from custody on a temporary absence, probationer or conditional sentence offender produce evidence of the absence of alcohol or other prescribed substances from his or her body by submitting to a prescribed test to determine the presence of alcohol or other prescribed substances in his or her body,
(a)at once, if the person authorized by the Minister has reasonable grounds to suspect that the person has breached any condition of his or her parole or temporary absence that requires abstention from alcohol or other prescribed substances, in order to monitor the person's compliance with that condition;
(b)at once, if the person authorized by the Minister has reasonable grounds to suspect that the person has breached any condition of his or her probation or conditional sentence that requires abstention from alcohol or other prescribed substances, in order to monitor the person's compliance with that condition;
(c)at regular intervals, in order to monitor the person's compliance with any condition of his or her parole or temporary absence that requires abstention from alcohol or other prescribed substances; or
(d)at regular intervals, in order to monitor the person's compliance with any condition of his or her probation or conditional sentence that requires abstention from alcohol or other prescribed substances.
Application of subs. (2)
(3) Subsection (2) only applies if it is a condition of the person's parole, temporary absence, probation or conditional sentence that the person,
(a)abstain from the consumption or use of alcohol or other prescribed substances; and
(b)submit to testing to determine the presence of alcohol or other prescribed substances.
16. Clause 58 (e) of the Act is amended by striking out "Board of Parole" and substituting "Ontario Parole and Earned Release Board".
17. Section 59 of the Act is repealed and the following substituted:
Member of Legislative Assembly
59. Every member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario is entitled to enter and inspect any correctional institution, community resource centre or other facility established or designated under this Act, whether it is operated or maintained by the Ministry or by a contractor, for any purpose related to the member's duties and responsibilities as a member of the Legislative Assembly, unless the Minister determines that the institution, community resource centre or facility is insecure or an emergency condition exists in it.
18. (1) Subsection 60 (1) of the Act, as amended by the Statutes of Ontario, 1997, chapter 17, section 7 and 1997, chapter 39, section 10, is further amended by adding the following clauses:
(c.1)with respect to contracts and agreements entered into under subsection 8 (4) or (5), prescribing and governing the powers and duties of the Minister, employees of the Ministry, contractors, employees of contractors, and other persons employed in the administration of this Act, and providing that regulations made under this clause apply despite a contract or agreement entered into under subsection 8 (4) or (5);
(c.2)prescribing provisions of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act that apply, with necessary modifications, to contractors and employees of contractors;
(c.3)prescribing and governing powers and duties of local monitoring boards established under section 14.1, and requiring directors and superintendents of correctional institutions to give the members of the local monitoring board access in accordance with the regulations to the premises of the correctional institution, its records, its employees and its inmates;
(c.4)prescribing, for the purpose of section 35.1, circumstances in which the Ontario Parole and Earned Release Board may make determinations of whether an inmate has earned remission under subsection 6 (1) of the Prisons and Reformatories Act (Canada) or section 28 of this Act;
(c.5)prescribing substances and tests for the purpose of section 57.9;
(c.6)establishing and governing random selection substance testing programs;
(c.7)prescribing programs or activities involving contact with the community for which a substance test is a requirement for participation;
(c.8)prescribing substance abuse programs for which a substance test is a requirement for participation;
. . . . .
(d.1)governing, for the purpose of earning remission under subsection 6 (1) of the Prisons and Reformatories Act (Canada) and section 28 of this Act, active participation in programs designed to promote rehabilitation and reintegration;
. . . . .
(v)defining any word or expression used in this Act that is not already expressly defined in this Act.
(2) Clause 60 (1) (j) of the Act is amended by striking out "Board of Parole" and substituting "Ontario Parole and Earned Release Board".
(3) Clause 60 (1) (k) of the Act is amended by striking out "Board of Parole" and substituting "Ontario Parole and Earned Release Board".
Legislative Assembly Act
19. Clause 8 (2) (e) of the Legislative Assembly Act, as amended by the Statutes of Ontario, 1997, chapter 16, section 10, is further amended by striking out "Board of Parole" and substituting "Ontario Parole and Earned Release Board".
Commencement
20. This Act comes into force on a day to be named by proclamation of the Lieutenant Governor.
Short title
21. The short title of this Act is the Corrections Accountability Act, 2000.