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Legislative Activities

2003

New Brunswick

Prepared for The Honourable Bev Harrison

Speaker of the Legislative Assembly

Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick

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April 30, 2004.

The Honourable Bev Harrison

Speaker of the Legislative Assembly

Room 31, Legislative Building

Fredericton, New Brunswick

E3B 5H1

Dear Mr. Speaker:

I have the honour of submitting this, the fifteenth annual report

of Legislative Activities, for the year ended December 31, 2003.

Respectfully submitted,

Loredana Catalli Sonier,

Clerk of the Legislative Assembly.

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Table of Contents

Year in Review....................................................................................................................... 7

Office of the Legislative Assembly ...................................................................................... 11

Mission Statement ............................................................................................................... 11

Organizational Chart ............................................................................................................ 11

Functional Statements .......................................................................................................... 12

Office of the Clerk ............................................................................................................... 13

House, Committee, and Procedural Services ....................................................................... 13

Activities of Standing and Select Committees .................................................................... 17

House Statistics .................................................................................................................... 23

Financial and Human Resource Services ............................................................................. 24

2002-2003 Financial Summary - Legislative Assembly ...................................................... 27

Staff Complement as of March 31, 2003 ............................................................................. 27

Ceremonial, Security and Visitor Services .......................................................................... 28

Legislative Library ............................................................................................................... 30

Hansard ................................................................................................................................ 35

Debates Translation ............................................................................................................. 37

Special Project ..................................................................................................................... 39

Program for Members .......................................................................................................... 40

Publications ......................................................................................................................... 40

Tributes ................................................................................................................................ 41

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Year in ReviewClerk of the Legislative Assembly — Loredana Catalli Sonier

A June 9th provincial election, a lengthy fifth andfinal session of the Fifth-fourth Legislature, and anadditional 79 days of Committee meetings, placedheavy demands on all aspects of Legislative Assemblyoperations.

The Fifth session of the Fifty-fourth Legislatureresumed January 7, 2003, and sat until February 21,2003, before adjourning until March 11. The Housesat a further five weeks before adjourning on April 14.In total, the Fifth Session lasted 68 days, 48 of whichwere in 2003.

During the session, the Legislative AdministrationCommittee, which was mandated in a previous sessionto consider the advisability of an MLA ResponsibilityAct, or a code of conduct for Members that wouldguide MLAs in the conduct of their duties and betterinform the people of New Brunswick on the role andresponsibilities of an MLA, tabled its report on April3, 2003. The Committee recommended that theLegislative Assembly not enact an MLA ResponsibilityAct. The Committee recommended instead theadoption of a Code of Conduct and Statement on theRole and Responsibilities of the MLAs. TheCommittee’s recommendations were not acted uponprior to the adjournment of the House.

Two Members announced that they would not re-offerin the next provincial election: Dr. Dennis Furlong,(PC-Dalhousie-Restigouche East); and Sheldon Lee,(Liberal-Charlotte).

On May 10, 2003, a proclamation dissolved the Fifty-fourth Legislative Assembly and ordered the issue ofwrits of election for June 9. At dissolution, thestandings in the House were: Conservatives, 46;Liberals, 7; New Democrats, 1; vacancy, 1.

For the first time, election result coverage wasbroadcast live by the CBC from the rotunda of theLegislative Assembly Building.

The election significantly altered the standings in theHouse. Premier Bernard Lord’s ProgressiveConservative government was returned to power by amajority of 1 with the election of 28 Members. TheLiberals increased their representation in the Housefrom 7 to 26 Members. The Leader of the NewDemocrats, Elizabeth Weir, was re-elected, bringingthe number of opposition Members to 27. In the final

analysis, 20 new Members were elected, of the 20,three had served in the Legislature previously.

Staff assisted caucuses by providing orientation forboth new and returning MLAs. A new Members’Orientation Manual was published and on July 9,2003, Members participated in an orientation sessionheld in the Legislative Assembly Chamber. Topicscovered during the one-day session included: theadministrative structure of the Legislative AssemblyOffice including the services provided by the Clerk’sOffice, Debates Translation, Hansard and theLegislative Library; Members indemnities andallowances, conflict of interest legislation, the recallof the House, the election of Speaker, and the generalfunctioning of the House and its committees.

In a ceremony held in the Legislative AssemblyChamber on June 27, the Lieutenant- Governor, HerHonour Marilyn Trenholme Counsell, administeredthe Oath of Office to the new members of the 18-member Executive Council.

Members of the Fifty-fifth Legislative Assembly tooktheir Oath of Allegiance in a morning ceremony heldin the Legislative Assembly Chamber on July 29,2003.

The First Session of the Fifty-fifth LegislativeAssembly opened that same afternoon with thedelivery of the Speech from the Throne outlining thegovernment’s main agenda of the session: - the needto deal with the rising cost of automobile insurancerates in the province. As the first order of business, theHon. Bev Harrison, Member for the electoral districtof Hampton was declared elected Speaker. Mr.Harrison served as Speaker during the Fifty-fourthLegislative Assembly. The focus of the House debatecentred on Bill 1, An Act to Amend the Insurance Act.During the rare summer session, the House alsoappointed the standing and three select committees.On August 8, 2003, the session was adjourned untilMarch 30, 2004.

The election and the summer session occupiedconsiderable staff time and attention during whatmight otherwise have been the summer holidayperiod. The increased number of newly electedopposition MLAs precipitated the move of DebatesTranslation from the Jewett House on Secretary Lane

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to the Edgecombe House, a nearby heritage home onKing street.

The installation of Herménégilde Chiasson as the 29thLieutenant-Governor for the province of NewBrunswick took place in the Legislative Assembly onAugust 26, 2003. Dr. Chiasson replaces MarilynTrenholme Counsel who had served as Lieutenant-Governor of New Brunswick since 1997.

During the fall of 2003, the escalating cost of publicautomobile insurance premiums and the reform of theprovince’s Crown Lands and Forests Act were themajor focus of committee activity. The SelectCommittee on Public Automobile Insurance mandatedto recommend a fair, affordable and accessible publicautomobile insurance system for all New Brunswickdrivers consulted with New Brunswickers to hear theiradvice and opinions on what may constitute the bestpublic automobile insurance model for the province.Public hearings were held in seven locationsthroughout the province. New Democratic PartyLeader Elizabeth Weir, (MLA for Saint JohnHarbour), was elected chair of the committee.

The Select Committee on Wood Supply was mandatedto inquire into and report on the status of sustainablewood supply from Crown lands in New Brunswickand to recommend legislative, regulatory or policychanges to be considered by government to improveand manage the current wood supply. The Committee,chaired by Progressive Conservative Member KirkMacDonald, (MLA for Mactaquac), held 13 days ofpublic hearings in seven locations throughout theprovince. Both select committees have begun theirdeliberations in preparation of their final reports forpresentation to the House.

On November 25, 2003, Liberal MLA BernardRichard resigned to accept the position ofOmbudsman for the province effective January 3,2004. Mr. Richard was first elected to the LegislatureSeptember 23, 1991, as the MLA for Shediac. He wasre-elected September 11, 1995, to represent the newconstituency of Shediac—Cap-Pelé. He served asMinister of State for Intergovernmental andAboriginal Affairs and Minister of Education. Heresigned from Cabinet in February 1998 and ranunsuccessfully for the leadership of the Liberal Party.He was re-elected June 7, 1999, and served as InterimLeader of the Opposition and as finance and justicecritic. He was re-elected June 9, 2003, and was

Opposition House Leader at the time of hisresignation.

Mr. Richard replaces Ellen King who served asOmbudsman since 1993. His resignation gave theProgressive Conservative government of PremierBernard Lord a two-seat majority in the 55-seatHouse. On December 9, 2003, the House expressed itsappreciation and gratitude to Ellen King for her over10 years of professional and dedicated service to theLegislature and the people of New Brunswick asOmbudsman.

A procedural briefing session held December 4, 2003,was well attended by new and returning Members.The session focused on the conduct of business in theHouse, the rules of procedure and debate, ceremonialpractices and decorum and voting procedures. OnDecember 9, 2003, the First Session of the Fifty-fifthLegislative Assembly resumed and sat for a two-weekperiod before adjourning to March 30, 2004.

Most of the debate during the two-week Decembersitting focussed on two Government Bills. Bill 9, AnAct to Amend the Municipal Assistance Act, proposedto provide for the distribution of the unconditionalgrant for the calendar year 2004 and a special one-time grant for certain municipalities. Bill 11, An Act toAmend the Gasoline and Motive Fuel Tax Act,proposed an increase in gasoline and motive fuel taxrates announced in the last budget and clarified theimposition of tax on single trip fuel permits issued totruckers.

Two Private Member’s Public Bills introduced byOpposition Leader Shawn Graham, (Liberal MLA forKent), were referred for further study to the StandingCommittee on Law Amendments: Bill 2, VolunteerProtection Act, which proposed to protect volunteersin certain situations from being liable for damagescaused as a result of their volunteer work; and Bill 5,An Act to Amend the Workers’ Compensation Act,which proposed to expand the scope of worker’scompensation coverage to protect both professionaland volunteer firefighters who develop cancer directlyrelated to their public service. The Committee recentlybegan its deliberations on both Bills and is expected toreport when the House resumes March 30, 2004.

On December 16, 2003, Minister of Finance JeannotVolpé introduced the 2004-2005 Capital Estimates.Also tabled were the Supplementary Estimates 2002-

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2003 Volume II and the Supplementary Estimates2003-2004 Volume 1.

In an effort to make Question Period more effective,rule changes to limit the length of questions andanswers were recommended by the StandingCommittee on Procedure in a report presented to theHouse December 9, 2003. Among the Committee’srecommendations were:

(1) That the Clerk of the House maintain at the Table a Registerof Paired Members in which any Member of the Governmentparty and any Member of an Opposition party may have theirnames entered together by their respective Whips or HouseLeaders, to indicate that they will not take part in anyrecorded division held on the date inscribed on that page ofthe Register.

(2) That an additional item of routine business entitled“Condolences and Messages of Sympathy” be added to theordinary daily routine of business in the House.

(3) That a Member asking a question speak for no more than sixtyseconds and that a Minister’s reply not exceed sixty seconds.That a Member asking a question be allowed twosupplementary questions on the same subject matter.

(4) That debate on an item of Private Members’ Public Businessbe limited to 2 hours to ensure that Members are given theopportunity to introduce debate and influence issues ofimmediate and current concern to all.

(5) That motions considered during the days allotted for PrivateMembers’ Business alternate between Opposition andGovernment Members to allow all Private Members theopportunity to debate issues of concern.

By agreement of both sides of the House, theCommittee’s recommendation to amend the StandingRules to give the chair of the Committees of theWhole House a deliberative vote, and a second orcasting vote in the event of a tie, was not adopted.

Subsequently, the House adopted a resolution(Motion 72) moved by Government House LeaderHon. Brad Green, (MLA for Fredericton South), andseconded by Opposition House Leader KellyLamrock, (MLA for Fredericton-Fort Nashwaak), thatthe Legislative Assembly acknowledge and confirmthe agreement entered into between the Governmentand the Official Opposition as hereto set forth:

The Government and the Official Opposition agreethat each shall provide the name of a Member oftheir respective caucus for the purpose of theirentering into a pairing agreement to indicate thatthey will not take part in any recorded divisionheld during any and all proceedings of theCommittees of the Whole House during the life ofthe Fifty-fifth Legislative Assembly.

During the December sitting, a woman chained herselfto a radiator near the entrance of the AssemblyChamber to protest the decision of the government torelocate a hospital in her region. The demonstrationwas peaceful in nature; however, following repeatedrequests from the Sergeant-at-Arms and securitypersonnel that she remove her chains and vacate thearea, the woman’s chains were cut and she wasescorted out of the building.

On December 12, 2003, T.J. Burke, (Liberal MLA forFredericton North), laid upon the table of the House apetition signed by concerned citizens who maintainedthat Ritalin was over-prescribed in the province.(Petition 14) The petition was organized by CharlesLeBlanc of Saint John, N.B., who occupied thegrounds of the Legislature for the previous 180 daysand brought attention to the concerns of childrensuffering from attention deficit disorders. Mr. LeBlancvacated the grounds after the tabling of the petition.

On December 19, 2003, Premier Lord announced thecreation of a Commission on Legislative Democracy,fulfilling a promise made during the June 2003election. The Commission is mandated to examine andmake recommendations on strengthening andmodernizing New Brunswick’s electoral system anddemocratic institutions and practices, to make themmore fair, open, accountable and accessible to NewBrunswickers. David McLaughlin, former DeputyMinister of Intergovernmental and Aboriginal Affairs,is Deputy Minister to the Commission.

The commission’s mandate will focus on three keyareas: electoral reform that will look at changes tohow we elect MLAs to the Legislative Assembly;legislative reform which will examine how we canenhance the role of MLAs and the legislature in thepublic and political life of our province; anddemocratic reform, which will seek to give a strongervoice to New Brunswickers in the decisions of theirgovernment and their legislature.

On December 19, 2003, the Session was adjourneduntil March 30, 2004, when Finance Minister JeannotVolpé will deliver the budget.

During 2003, important work continued on theLegislature’s south chandelier damaged in a fallcaused by a failure of the chandelier’s loweringsystem. The Legislative Assembly has been workingclosely with staff of the Heritage Branch.

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A structural upgrade of the spiral staircase commencedJune 10th, the day after the election and continued wellbeyond the expected completion date of the project.Many years from now, future Members and staff of thisAssembly may uncover a time capsule left behind bylegislative staff. The contents of the capsule will be leftto be discovered in the future. However, Lieutenant-Governor Herménégilde Chiasson did contributeautographed copies of one of his books.

The Legislative Assembly acknowledges the financialcontribution of the Department of Intergovernmentaland International Relations and the federal Ministry ofCanadian Heritage under the Canada-New BrunswickGeneral Agreement on the Promotion of OfficialLanguages. Funding received contributed to thesuccess of the 2003 Annual Student LegislativeSeminar, a non-partisan program whose objectives areto provide a comprehensive understanding of thefunctions and operations of government, to encouragethe use of the model parliament in senior high schools,to promote positive relations between anglophone andfrancophone students in New Brunswick, and todevelop informed and responsible citizens. Funding

under the agreement also assisted with the outsourcingof translation of the debates of the LegislativeAssembly.

Staffing ChangesThe majority of staffing changes occurred in theOffice of the Official Opposition where several newstaff joined the Office in 2003: Sheri Shannon,Special Assistant to the Leader, Jean-StéphaneChiasson and Misty McLaughlin, Researchers, andNathalie Chenard, Secretary to Members.

In Debates Translation, Natasha Bossé-Simard joinedthe Office as a Parliamentary Translator. FormerParliamentary Editor Lise L’Anglais joined the Officeas a Parliamentary Translator. In the Office ofGovernment Members, Terry Andow became the newChief of Staff replacing Charles Ayles who pursued acareer opportunity within government as did MarcBelliveau, Director of Communications. In theHansard Office, Anne-Marie Acker joined the staff asa Parliamentary Editor. In the Clerk’s Office, DianeMercier-Allain joined the Office as Visitor ServicesCoordinator.

The installation of Herménégilde Chiasson as the 29th Lieutenant-Governorof the province of New Brunswick took place in the Legislative AssemblyChamber on August 26, 2003. Left to right: Herménégilde Chiasson; JolèneLeBlanc, Deputy Clerk of the Executive Council, and the Hon. J. ErnestDrapeau, Chief Justice of the province of New Brunswick.

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Mission Statement

1. To assist the Legislative Assembly in fostering respect for the institution and privileges of parliamentarydemocracy.

2. To provide assistance and support to all Members of the Legislative Assembly, their staff and the public.

3. To provide impartial and confidential service to all Members of the Legislative Assembly.

4. To record the proceedings and maintain the records of the Legislative Assembly.

5. To provide public education and information services on behalf of the Legislative Assembly.

Organizational Chart

Office of the Legislative Assembly

Legislative AdministrationCommittee

Speaker and Chairof the Legislative Administration

Committee

Clerk and Secretary of the LegislativeAdministration Committee

Office of theClerk

LegislativeLibrary

HansardDebates

TranslationProgram for Members

Office of

Government

Members

Office of the

Official

Opposition

Office of the

New

Democratric

Member

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1. Clerk of the Legislative Assembly• The Clerk is the chief procedural advisor to the Speaker and to the Members and acts as Secretary

to the Legislative Administration Committee. Appointed by resolution of the House, the Clerk isresponsible for a wide range of administrative and procedural duties relating to the work of theHouse and its Committees. The Clerk of the Legislature is the Speaker’s chief administrative deputyand has authority and responsibility similar to that of a Deputy Minister of a government department.

2. Office of the Clerk• Produces the Journal, Orders of the Day and maintains the official permanent records of

the Assembly.• Provides procedural advice and support services to the chairs and members of committees of the

Legislative Assembly.• Provides public education and information services to Members, to government, and to the private

sector.• Provides administrative support to the Legislative Assembly.• Provides financial and human resource management services to the Legislative Assembly.

3. Legislative Library• Provides information and reference services to Members of the Legislative Assembly.

4. Hansard• Records and transcribes House proceedings (Hansard) for the members of the Legislative Assembly

and for publication; records and transcribes legislative committee proceedings for members of theLegislative Assembly.

5. Debates Translation• Translates House proceedings (Hansard) and the Journal for members of the Legislative Assembly

and for publication; translates speeches and statements for members of the Legislative Assembly,reports for legislative committees, and procedural and administrative material for the Office of theLegislative Assembly.

6. Sergeant-at-Arms• Provides security services to the Legislative Assembly.• Provides page and messenger services to the Assembly.• Provides visitor information services to the public.• Provides building maintenance and custodial services.

7. Program for Members• Provides financial and administrative support to the backbench Members of the Legislative Assembly.

Functional Statements

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Office of the ClerkClerk Assistant and Clerk of Committees — Donald J. Forestell

During 2003, the Assembly and its committees placeda heavy demand for services on all branches of theClerk’s Office. In total, the House sat for 64 daysduring the course of the calendar year. In addition, thecommittees of the House met for a total of 79 days.

In general, the number of days that the House is insession has increased to an average of 65 days eachyear from a previous average of 35 to 40 days perfiscal year. In addition, the activities of LegislativeCommittees, in terms of the number of meetings,budget and resources allocated, has increased with theappointment of Select Committees carrying outspecific mandates each of the last number of years.

House Sittings and ActivityThe Fifth session of the Fifty-fourth LegislativeAssembly, which opened on November 19, 2002,resumed sitting on January 7, 2003. The House satuntil February 21, 2003 and then adjourned untilMarch 11. The House sat a further five weeks beforeadjourning on April 11, for a total of 68 sitting daysduring the session, 48 of which were in 2003.

The House was dissolved on May 10, 2003, and aprovincial election called for June 9. At the time ofdissolution the standings in the House were:

Conservatives 46Liberals 7NDP 1Vacancy 1

The Conservative Party under Premier Bernard Lordwas returned to power in the June election. Thestandings in the House following the election were:

Conservatives 28Liberals 26NDP 1

The Liberal Party under Leader Shawn Grahamincreased their representation in the House, returninga number of new and experienced Members. TheLeader of the New Democratic Party, Elizabeth Weir,also retained her seat.

A new 18-member Executive Council was sworn in onJune 27, 2003. Seven Members who had served asbackbenchers in the previous House were promoted toCabinet, as well as one newly elected Member.

The First Session of the Fifty-fifth Legislature was calledinto session on July 29, 2003, the Members having beenadministered their Oath of Allegiance in a ceremonyearlier that day. As the first order of business, the Clerkof the Legislative Assembly was required to preside overthe election of Speaker. Accordingly, after announcingthat only one candidate stood for election, pursuant to theprovisions of the Standing Rules the Clerk declared BevHarrison, Member for the electoral district of Hampton-Belleisle, elected Speaker of the House. As is thetradition in New Brunswick, Premier Bernard Lord andOpposition Leader Shawn Graham escorted Mr. Harrisonto the dais. Mr. Harrison was first elected Speaker onJuly 6, 1999, and served as Speaker during the course ofthe Fifty-fourth Legislative Assembly.

The Lieutenant-Governor, Hon. Marilyn TrenholmCounsell, delivered a brief Speech from the Throneoutlining the main purpose of the sitting, which wascalled primarily to deal with the issue of rising

House, Committee, and Procedural Services

Office of the Clerk

House, Committeeand Procedural

Services

Financial and HumanResource Services

Ceremonial,Security and Visitor

Services

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automobile insurance rates in the province. The Housedispensed with the introduction of the customary proforma Bill. The government introduced instead Bill 1,An Act to Amend the Insurance Act. The effect of thelegislation would be to require every insurancecompany doing business in the province to file rateswith the Public Utilities Board, which would thenreview the rates to determine whether they are fair andreasonable to consumers, and to take any appropriateaction as authorized under the Act.

Deputy Speakers Cy (Richard) LeBlanc, Member forthe electoral district of Dieppe-Memramcook andTrevor Holder, Member for the electoral district ofSaint John Portland, were appointed, on motion, andwill also serve as Chairmen of the Committees of theWhole House.

Following the July 29 opening, the House sat for atotal of eight days in what was a rare summer session.The close House resulted in a number of standingvotes being called on various issues. During thecourse of the two-week session, the Speaker wascalled upon to give one casting vote from the Chair.Following a prolonged debate in the House and inCommittee, Bill 1 was passed into law on August 8,2003. The Official Opposition also introduced anumber of Bills during the session, several of whichwere referred to legislative committees for review.

The House appointed eight Standing Committees andfour Select Committees, including a Select Committeeon Health Care and a Select Committee on Education.The Assembly also appointed a Select Committee onPublic Automobile Insurance, to be chaired by NDPLeader Elizabeth Weir. The Committee is chargedwith reviewing and identifying the most suitable formof public insurance system for New Brunswick,should the province conclude that a public system isrequired.

The Assembly also appointed a Select Committee onWood Supply. The Committee will inquire into andreport on the status of sustainable wood supply fromCrown lands and make recommendations regardingpotential legislative, regulatory or other changes thatmay be considered by government to improve uponthe current wood supply and management system. TheCommittee is chaired by Kirk MacDonald.

During the Spring session, Donald Forestell, ClerkAssistant, continued his secondment as a CrownProsecutor with the Office of Public Prosecutions.

Consequently, during the House sittings, Clerks fromvarious other Canadian jurisdictions were invited toserve attachments at the New Brunswick Table.Visiting Table Officers included: Patricia Chaychuk,Clerk of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba; BevBosiak, Deputy Clerk, Legislative Assembly ofManitoba; Neil Ferguson, Clerk Assistant, NovaScotia House of Assembly; Marian Johnston, ClerkAssistant and Clerk of Committees, LegislativeAssembly of Prince Edward Island; and Margaret(Meta) Woods, Clerk Assistant, Legislative Assemblyof Saskatchewan.

On August 8, 2003, the Speaker announced to theHouse that Shayne Davies, who had been serving as aClerk-at-the-Table in the Assembly, was beingpromoted to a Clerk Assistant, in addition to his dutiesas a Committee Clerk.

The House, which adjourned on August 8, 2003,resumed sitting on December 9 for a further twoweeks. The main purpose of the fall sitting was toconsider the 2004-2005 Capital Estimates.

Procedural Services and ResearchAs a result of the June election, the remaining sixmonths of the calendar year brought an increaseddemand for procedural and legislative informationfrom new Members and staff. On July 9, staff held anorientation session for new Members which focusedon the administrative structure of the LegislativeAssembly Office and services to Members. NewMembers were introduced to the staff of the Clerk’sOffice and other offices within the Assembly.Members were briefed on the role and servicesprovided by each area.

On December 4 a procedural orientation session washeld for Members in the Legislative AssemblyChamber. Procedural staff spoke on the role andfunctions of the Legislative Assembly; the transactionof business in the House; the rules of procedure andparticipation in debate; and the process of decisionmaking in the House.

In addition, the Office continued its regularinvolvement with the “Machinery of Government”seminars for Legislative staff, civil servants andexecutive staff members. The seminars focus on therole and functions of the Legislative Assembly inrelation to the executive and judicial branches ofgovernment.

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Public Education andInter-Parliamentary RelationsStudent Legislative SeminarThe 14th Annual Student Legislative Seminar washosted by the Legislative Assembly from April 25 to27. Speaker Harrison welcomed 55 studentsrepresenting the various high schools from around theprovince. Students attended a reception at OldGovernment House hosted by Her Honour, MarilynTrenholme Counsell, the Lieutenant-Governor of NewBrunswick. During the course of the seminar, thestudents heard presentations from MLA Jody Carr onthe role of a Private Member and from the Minister ofEducation, Hon. Dennis Furlong, on the role ofCabinet. The Clerk of the Legislative Assembly,Loredana Catalli Sonier, spoke on the role of theLegislative Branch. The students were also briefed byHon. David Walker, a Judge of the Provincial Court,on the workings of the Judicial Branch. The weekendculminated with the students participating in a modelparliament held in the Legislative Assembly Chamber.

Teacher’s WorkshopProcedural staff in the Clerk’s Office also participatedin a workshop for provincial high school teachers. Anumber of teachers from around the province attendeda summer workshop held in the Assembly Chamber.The teachers were briefed on the business of theAssembly, the role of Members and CabinetMinisters, and the process of decision making in theHouse. The teachers participated in a mini-modelparliament where issues of the day were debatedthrough the introduction of legislation and motions.

Conference PlanningIn the fall of 2003, staff of the Legislative Assembly,together with officials from the Office of the AuditorGeneral, commenced the initial planning of the jointCanadian Council of Public Accounts Committee 25thAnnual Conference and the 32nd Canadian Council ofLegislative Auditors Conference. The joint conferencewill be held in Fredericton from August 29 - 31, 2004.Delegates and their partners from across Canada arescheduled to attend and participate, including electedMembers and Auditors General from all jurisdictions.

Legislative CommitteesLegislative committees remained extremely activeduring 2003, holding a total of 79 meetings through-out the year. Eight Standing and four Select Commit-tees were appointed during the First Sitting of the

House. In particular, two high-profile Select Commit-tees were appointed to review and address majorissues of importance to the New Brunswick economyand population. The Select Committee on PublicAutomobile Insurance and the Select Committee onWood Supply each held highly visible and well-attended public hearings throughout the province.

Detailed information on the mandates and schedulesof the various legislative committees is now availableon-line. Direct links to the major committee publichearings are available directly on the LegislativeAssembly home page. The public is able to access allrelevant information relating to a particular commit-tee’s meeting dates and locations. Individuals andorganizations can submit briefs on-line and advise theClerk’s Office of their intention to participate in thepublic hearings. Overall, the past year has seen adramatic increase in committee related communica-tions through web-based and other electronic formats.

House and Committee SupportDuring 2003, Research Officer, Diane Taylor Myles,compiled the minutes of the House in the unrevisedJournal, referred to in many jurisdictions as the Votesand Proceedings. The Journal, the complete, official,indexed record of House proceedings for a session,contains reference to all matters before the Houseincluding: election of Speaker, Throne Speech,Speaker’s Rulings, motions, Bills, reports of Standingand Select committees and Committees of the WholeHouse, division votes and Royal Assent. All currentsessional documents tabled in the House are noted inthe Journal.

During the year, the research officer drafted andrevised 61 Journals, daily sittings 21 through 68 of theFifth Session of the 54th and the 16 sittings for thefirst session of the 55th Legislature. As well, theJournal for the Third Session (54th) 2000-2001 (63daily sittings), was prepared and printed in the boundbilingual version. The Legislative Library vaulthouses the Journals of the New Brunswick Legisla-ture beginning with the first session, 1786 through tothe present day.

The Research Office tracks legislation as it progressesthrough the House and compiles and distributes online a Final Status of Bills Report. Bills are of twotypes, public and private. Public Bills may be furtherdivided into government and Private Members’ Bills.Public Bills involve matters affecting all New

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Brunswickers, while private Bills concern a specificgroup. Subject to certain conditions, Members mayintroduce either type of Bill in the House. The Statusof Bills Report allows users to obtain up-to-dateinformation on the progress of each Bill introduced.Users are able to ascertain whether a Bill has receivedFirst, Second or Third Reading, been referred tocommittee or received Royal Assent.

During the year, the Research Office collaborated withstaff in Communications New Brunswick to design adata base which would culminate in a more easily readand printer friendly version of the on-line status ofBills. At the beginning of the 1996-1997 session, asimple html version of a status of Bills was posted tothe Internet. Before that date, 500 printed copies ofthe status of bills were mailed out weekly during thesession to other Legislatures, universities, law schools,the corporate sector, and civil servants across Canada.

The entire text of First Reading Bills are made avail-able on-line in both html and pdf format. The database was recently expanded to include amendments online. In collaboration with the Department of Justice,Bills were first made available on line during the1997-1998 session.

During 2003, the Clerk’s Office prepared LegislativeActivities for the 14th consecutive year. Begun as a 40-page pilot project in 1989, the 2002 issue grew to nearly100 pages. Published in-house by the Queen’s Printer,Legislative Activities continues to provide a readyreference for the multitude of legislative queries whichthe Clerks are called upon to answer on a daily basis.

The changes brought about by the provincial electionresulted in 26 new members requiring biographicaland constituency information. Biographies were keptup to date on line and the booklet Biographies of theMembers of the 55th Legislature was prepared forpublication. Similar versions were published after theelections of 1982, 1987, 1991, 1995 and 1999.

MLA online information flows from the province’sGNB Infosource and culminates in the printed tel-ephone directory. The project, initiated by CIMS andSNB continues to expand. The Research Office wasinvolved in the preliminary planning sessions for thedesign and implementation of the directory. Theaddress list for all Members in both their constituencyand in their offices flows from the directory and isavailable in html and pdf format.

A legislative calendar in html format was expanded toinclude links to the orders of the day, public commit-tee meetings and agendas. The Research Officeprovided research, editorial, and desktop publishingservices to the Assembly. One example, the seatingplan, was made available in a variety of formats: apaper copy with photographs of members for theconvenience of pages, tour guides and visiting stu-dents; a small simple version for a quick name-constituency reference; a larger reverse for theconvenience of the Speaker and Deputy Speakers, andan html version online for students and the public.

Technology InitiativesDuring 2003, the digital recording system used by theHansard Office for transcribing House and committeeproceedings was upgraded. The system was convertedfrom Novell to Windows 2000, and was one of the lastNovell servers in government to be converted. Harddrive space was increased from 220 GB to 360 GB.The voice recorders used for converting analog voicesignals to digital were upgraded with MPEG cards.Each 5 minute take is now stored in MP2 formatresulting in better sound quality when transcribing.The client software was upgraded from DOS to awindows based program called Lplayer. The propri-etary sounds card needed with the old system werediscarded and the clients own sound card can now beincorporated.

An E Policy Orchestrator (ePO) was installed on oneof the local servers. This system keeps virus softwareupdated daily and allows better monitoring andreporting of virus activity and updates.

A review was conducted with respect to network andinternet access in the Assembly Chamber and Com-mittee Room. The existing policy permits the use oflaptops in the House during Committee of the Wholeproceedings only. The laptops cannot be connected tothe network and cannot be used by a Member who isinvolved in debate. The matter was referred to theLegislative Administration Committee for review.Two proposals were put forth, one for hardwiring theChamber and another for installing wireless technol-ogy. Various factors are being considered by theCommittee, including Heritage considerations.

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Activities of Standing and Select CommitteesClerk Assistant and Committee Clerk — Shayne Davies

I. IntroductionLegislative Committees have existed in NewBrunswick since the meeting of the first LegislativeAssembly in 1786. Parliamentarians realized veryearly on the need to entrust some of their work togroups—or committees—made up of their ownMembers. Since that time, the role and importance ofcommittees has increased dramatically, especiallyover the past 30 years. Much of this is due to theincrease in volume of the work coming before theLegislature, the complexity of which has made it moreurgent that work be delegated to committees. It is alsodue to the ability and experience of persons elected topublic office, who have sought a more meaningfulrole for themselves in the legislative process.Committees also provide an avenue for electedMembers to better utilize their divers talents andabilities.

Legislative committees are an extension of the Houseand the makeup of a committee will generally reflectthe overall distribution of seats in the Assembly.Proceedings in committee are often more informal andcollegial than in the House itself, providing anatmosphere that is more conducive to collaborativethought and team work. Indeed, reports to the Houseare often agreed to unanimously, providingconstructive recommendations that have received thesupport of all parties. Committees are able to carry outwork that the Assembly as a whole would finddifficult, if not impossible, to undertake. They are ableto consult with the public on important matters inorder to hear the views and suggestions of ordinarycitizens. In addition, committees are able to travelwhen necessary, allowing Members to hear fromcitizens in all areas of the province.

In 2003 the majority of committee activity occurredduring the second half of the year. Between the first ofJanuary and the end of July only three committees metfor a total of 5 days. This was a result of theLegislature being in session from the beginning of theyear until April and the provincial election thatfollowed on June 9, which caused the House todissolve and committee work to cease until August.

The results of the provincial election saw many newMembers elected to the Assembly. Consequently, staffof the Clerk’s Office offered a training and orientation

session to the newly elected Members on theimportant role the committees play in the legislativeprocess. Members were presented with an overview ofthe various types of parliamentary committees, theirpowers and authority, and various other aspects of thecommittee process.

On July 30, 2003, the House met and appointed threenew Select Committees: the Select Committee onHealth Care, the Select Committee on Education, andthe Select Committee on Wood Supply. The SelectCommittees on Health Care and Education had alsobeen appointed during the previous Legislature. Inaddition, eight Standing Committees of the Assemblywere appointed on July 30 pursuant to the StandingRules. On August 5, 2003, a fourth Select Committeewas appointed: the Select Committee on PublicAutomobile Insurance.

In total, 79 meetings were held during the course ofthe year to complete the work mandated to the variouscommittees. Two of the Legislature’s SelectCommittees were the most active during the past year.The Select Committee on Public AutomobileInsurance and the Select Committee on Wood Supplyheld 26 and 19 meetings respectively.

The following chart presents a breakdown of thevarious committees and the number of days eachcommittee met during 2003:

COMMITTEE NO. OF MEETINGS

Crown Corporations 10Education 2Health Care 1Law Amendments 2Legislative Administration 4Ombudsman 1Private Bills 4Privileges 1Procedure 3Public Accounts 6Public Automobile Insurance 26Wood Supply 19

TOTAL 79

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II. Standing CommitteesStanding Committee on Crown CorporationsThe Standing Committee on Crown Corporationspresented its First Report to the Fifth Session of theFifty-fourth Legislative Assembly on April 1, 2003.The report outlined the Committee’s work during theyears 2001-2002.

Following the provincial election and the appointmentof the committees, the Standing Committee on CrownCorporations met on August 6, 2003. Wally Stiles(Petitcodiac) was elected Chairman and Trevor Holder(Saint John Portland) was elected Vice-Chairman.

An orientation session was held for members of theCommittee by the staff of the Office of the AuditorGeneral of New Brunswick on September 23, 2003.Topics of discussion included the role of the Office ofthe Auditor General, the annual report policy ofgovernment, and how to make use of a Crowncorporation annual report.

The Committee met in the Legislative CouncilChamber on September 24, 25, 26, 30, October 1, 2,and 3, 2003, to review the activities and financialstatements of various provincial Crown corporationsand agencies for the fiscal year ending March 31,2002. Officials of the following Crown corporationsand agencies appeared before the Committee:

Algonquin Properties LimitedKings Landing CorporationNB Coal Ltd. (reviewed year ending March 31, 2002

and March 31, 2003)New Brunswick Forest Products CommissionNew Brunswick Liquor CorporationNew Brunswick Municipal Finance CorporationNew Brunswick Power Corporation (reviewed year

ending March 31, 2002 and March 31, 2003)Provincial Holdings Ltd.Regional Development CorporationService New BrunswickWorkplace Health, Safety and Compensation

Commission of New Brunswick

On December 9, 2003, the Committee met in a specialjoint session with the Standing Committee on PublicAccounts to receive and review the 2003 Report of theAuditor General of New Brunswick - Volume 1. TheAuditor General briefed members on the nature of thework undertaken during the year and the contents andfindings of the Report.

Standing Committee on Law AmendmentsOn occasion bills introduced in the LegislativeAssembly may not receive second reading, but,instead, be referred by way of motion to the StandingCommittee on Law Amendments for review. Thisreferral is often made to allow for public consultationin order to receive input from interested stakeholders,groups and individuals.

Following the provincial election and the appointmentof the committees, the Standing Committee on LawAmendments met on August 6, 2003. Jody Carr(Oromocto-Gagetown) was elected Chairman andJohn Betts (Moncton Crescent) was elected Vice-Chairman.

During 2003 two bills were referred to the StandingCommittee on Law Amendments. Bill 2, VolunteerProtection Act, was introduced July 30, 2003 andreferred to the Committee August 1, 2003, for review.The proposed Act is intended to encourage volunteer-ism by protecting volunteers in certain situations frombeing liable for damages caused during theperformance of their volunteer work. Bill 5, An Act toAmend the Workers’ Compensation Act, wasintroduced August 5, 2003, and referred to theCommittee August 7, 2003, for review. The proposedAct is intended to expand the scope of workers’compensation coverage to protect both professionaland volunteer firefighters who develop cancer directlyrelated to their public service. The Committee met onNovember 13, 2003, to begin its deliberations on bothbills.

Legislative Administration CommitteeThe Legislative Administration Committee isresponsible for administrative and financial mattersconcerning the Legislative Assembly and its Membersand determines all policies of the House in relationthereto. The Committee is chaired by the Speaker,Hon. Bev Harrison (Hampton-Belleisle) and iscomposed of Members from all parties represented inthe House.

The Legislative Administration Committee held 4meetings in 2003. The Committee met on March 27,August 6, October 27 and December 18.

By motion of the House adopted June 7, 2002, theCommittee was mandated to consider the advisabilityof introducing an MLA Responsibility Act, a code ofconduct for Members, or some similar guideline that

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would serve as an aid to MLAs in the conduct of theirduties and would better inform the people of NewBrunswick of the role and responsibilities of an MLA.The Committee presented its report to the Assemblyon April 3, 2003, and recommended against theenactment of an MLA Responsibility Act, however, theCommittee did recommend the adoption of a Code ofConduct and Statement on the Roles andResponsibilities of the MLAs. Theserecommendations were not taken into considerationby the House prior to the dissolution of the Assembly.

The Committee also considered the following mattersin 2003: the structural upgrade of spiral staircase;televised election coverage in rotunda; the transfer ofpersonnel and administrative functions of otherstatutory offices to the Legislative Assembly; thestandardization of committee report covers; securityupgrades within the precincts, the modification of thegallery guardrail to address safety concerns; theprovision of internet access and power outlets atMembers’ desks; the relocation of Debates Translationstaff to Edgecombe House and a portion of the Officeof the Official Opposition to Jewett House; and thereadjustment of the budget for Members’ Offices as aresult of the provincial election.

Standing Committee on the OmbudsmanThe Office of the Ombudsman ensures thatindividuals are served in a just, fair and reasonablemanner by departments, agencies or organizations ofthe Government.

Under Standing Rule 91, all reports to the House ofthe Ombudsman stand permanently referred to theStanding Committee on the Ombudsman. TheCommittee is mandated to meet annually or asrequired to review the Annual Report of theOmbudsman and to consider other questions relatingto the Office of the Ombudsman as they may arise.The Ombudsman is a statutory officer of the Houseand reports to the Legislative Assembly through theCommittee.

The Committee met once in 2003. Following theprovincial election and the appointment of thecommittees, the Standing Committee on theOmbudsman met on August 6. Michael (Tanker)Malley (Miramichi-Bay du Vin) was elected Chairmanand John Betts (Moncton Crescent) was elected Vice-Chairman.

Standing Committee on Private BillsPursuant to Standing Rule 115, Private Billsintroduced in the Legislative Assembly are referred tothe Standing Committee on Private Bills after FirstReading. Any person whose interests or property maybe affected by a Private Bill may appear before theCommittee to express their concerns.

In 2003, during the Fifth Session of the Fifty-fourthLegislative Assembly, the Committee considered thefollowing five Private Bills:

Bill 17, An Act to Amend An Act Respecting theCanadian Corps of Commissionaires, N.B.& P.E.I. Division Inc.

Bill 34, An Act to Incorporate Downtown MonctonCentre-ville Inc.

Bill 35, An Act to Amend the Université de MonctonAct.

Bill 38, An Act to Amend An Act to Incorporate theMaritime Forest Ranger School.

Bill 56, Anglican Church Act, 2003

The Committee met on January 23, 2003. In a reportto the House on February 4 the Committeerecommended Bill 17 to the favourable considerationof the House. Bill 17 received Royal Assent onFebruary 21, 2003.

The Committee met on March 20, 2003. In a report tothe House on March 27 the Committee recommendedBills 34, 35 and 38 to the favourable consideration ofthe House. Bills 34, 35, and 38 received Royal Assenton April 11, 2003.

The Committee met on April 8, 2003, and reported tothe House the same day that the Committeerecommended Bill 56 to the favourable considerationof the House with certain amendments. An amendedBill 56 received Royal Assent on April 11, 2003.

Following the provincial election and the appointmentof the committees, the Standing Committee on PrivateBills met on August 6, 2003. Milton Sherwood (GrandBay-Westfield) was elected Chairman and John Betts(Moncton Crescent) was elected Vice-Chairman.

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Standing Committee on PrivilegesPursuant to Standing Rule 9(2), the House may, byresolution, refer a matter or question directlyconcerning the House, a Committee or Member tothe Standing Committee on Privileges.

The Committee met once in 2003. Following theprovincial election and the appointment of thecommittees, the Standing Committee on Privilegesmet on August 7. The Minister of Justice, Hon. BradGreen (Fredericton-South) was elected Chairman andthe Minister of Transportation, Paul Robichaud(Lamèque-Shippagan-Miscou) was elected Vice-Chairman.

Standing Committee on ProcedurePursuant to Standing Rule 92, all Standing Rules andpractices of the House, together with any matterreferred by the Speaker, stand permanently referredto the Standing Committee on Procedure.

Following the provincial election and the appointmentof the committees, the Standing Committee onProcedure met on August 7, 2003. The Minister ofJustice, Hon. Brad Green (Fredericton-South) waselected Chairman and the Minister of Transportation,Paul Robichaud (Lamèque-Shippagan-Miscou) waselected Vice-Chairman.

The Committee held two meetings on November 28and December 3, 2003, and commenced a review ofthe Standing Rules and practices of the LegislativeAssembly. On December 9, 2003, the Committeepresented a report to the Assembly that recommendedseveral amendments be made to the Standing Rules. Asummary of the more noteworthy recommendationsare as follows: that the Clerk of the House maintain atthe Table a Register of Paired Members; that StandingRule 35 be amended to include “Condolences andMessages of Sympathy” during Routine Proceedingsprovided that prior notice is given to the Speaker; thatStanding Rule 41 be amended to codify the practice ofallowing two supplementary questions during oralquestion period and to provide for a sixty second timelimit on all questions and answers; that Standing Rule44 be amended to reduce the length of speechesduring Private Members’ Public Business (from 30 to20 minutes for the proposer of an item of PrivateMembers’ Public Business, from 20 to 15 minutes forMembers speaking in reply and from 20 minutes to 10minutes for the mover of the original motion to close

the debate); that debate on an item of Private Mem-bers’ Public Business be limited to 120 minutes, andthat a rotation for the consideration of Private Mem-bers’ Public Business be established alternatingbetween the official opposition, government, andother Members of the House; and that Standing Rule81 be amended to allow for the Chair of the Commit-tees of the Whole House to cast both a deliberativevote and a second or casting vote in the event of a tie.

On December 19, 2003, each recommendationcontained in the Committee’s report was concurred inby the House “except for any and allrecommendations amending Standing Rule 81”, whichresulted in the Chair of the Committees of the WholeHouse retaining the original casting vote in the eventof a tie.

Standing Committee on Public AccountsThe Standing Committee on Public Accountspresented its First Report to the Fifth Session of theFifty-fourth Legislative Assembly on April 4, 2003.The report outlined the Committee’s work during theyear 2002.

Following the provincial election and the appointmentof the committees, the Standing Committee on PublicAccounts met on August 6, 2003. Frank Branch(Nepisiguit) was elected Chairman and MiltonSherwood (Grand Bay-Westfield) was elected Vice-Chairman.

Following an organizational meeting on September30, 2003, an orientation session was held for membersof the Committee by the staff of the Office of theAuditor General of New Brunswick on October 9,2003. Topics of discussion included the role of theOffice of the Auditor General, the annual report policyof government, and how to make use of adepartmental annual report.

The Committee met on October 10 and November 14,2003, to review the annual reports and financialstatements of the various government departments forthe fiscal year ending March 31, 2002. Officials of thefollowing departments appeared before theCommittee:

Department of Intergovernmental AffairsDepartment of Supply and ServicesDepartment of TransportationOffice of the Auditor GeneralOffice of the Comptroller

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On December 9, 2003, the Committee met in a specialjoint session with the Standing Committee on CrownCorporations, to receive and review the 2003 Reportof the Auditor General of New Brunswick - Volume 1.The Auditor General briefed members on the nature ofthe work undertaken during the year and the contentsand findings of the Report.

III. Select CommitteesSelect Committee on EducationThe Select Committee on Education is responsible forexamining the issues related to the delivery ofeducation in the province and to consider other suchmatters and materials as may be referred by theMinister of Education.

On March 14, 2003, the Committee presented its FirstReport to the Fifth Session of the Fifty-fourthLegislative Assembly. The report was the result of theCommittee’s deliberations on a Bill entitled “An Act toAmend the Education Act” (Bill 57), which wasintroduced in the Legislative Assembly during theFourth Session of the Fifty-fourth Legislature andreferred to the Committee for its consideration. Bill 57would prohibit smoking on all school grounds in NewBrunswick. Based on the input and advice receivedfrom the public consultation process, the Committeewas of the opinion that tobacco use must beeliminated from all school grounds. However, theCommittee did not recommend the immediateenactment of legislation, such as Bill 57. Instead, theCommittee recommended that the LegislativeAssembly urge the government to consider theadvisability of mandating District Education Councils,in consultation with school staffs, administrations,parents and student councils, to submit to the Ministerof Education a smoking cessation plan that would leadto the total elimination of smoking and the use ofother tobacco products on all school grounds.

Following the provincial election and the appointmentof the committees, the Select Committee on Educationmet on August 5, 2003. John Betts (MonctonCrescent) was elected Chairman and Jody Carr(Oromocto-Gagetown) was elected Vice-Chairman.

Select Committee on Health CareThe Select Committee on Health Care is responsiblefor examining the issues related to the delivery ofhealth care in the province and to consider other such

matters and materials as may be referred by theMinister of Health and Wellness.

The Committee met once in 2003. Following theprovincial election and the appointment of thecommittees, the Select Committee on Health Care meton August 5. Claude Williams (Kent South) waselected Chairman and Milton Sherwood (Grand Bay-Westfield) was elected Vice-Chairman.

Select Committee on Public AutomobileInsuranceThe Select Committee on Public AutomobileInsurance was appointed on August 5, 2003, to inquireinto and report to the House on the most suitable formof public insurance system for New Brunswick shouldthe province conclude that a public system is required.

The Committee was mandated with the responsibilityof inquiring into and identifying:

1) the most suitable model of public automobileinsurance to ensure fair, affordable and accessiblepublic automobile insurance for all NewBrunswickers, including:

a) the type of public automobile insurance system tobe recommended;

b) the types of coverage and benefits to be offered;

c) a proper risk rating system for establishingindividual premiums;

d) the method of distribution;

e) the types of insurers;

2) the start-up costs for establishing the proposedmodel;

3) the fixed and recurring costs of operating theproposed model;

4) the legal and trade implications involved in settingup the proposed model;

5) the downstream impact of the proposed model onthe legal community, the physiotherapists and othertherapists, as well as on the brokers, independentadjusters, automotive repair shops and other tradesor professions;

6) the impact on provincial finances with respect tothe health services levy, premium tax, cost

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recovery of the PUB and the Superintendent, andthe impact on medicare;

7) the benefits of common inter-provincial andregional approaches; and

8) the creation of a basic automobile insurance policywithin a public system.

The Committee met on August 7, 2003, to elect aChairman and Vice-Chairman. Elizabeth Weir (SaintJohn Harbour) was elected to Chair the Committeeand Wally Stiles (Petitcodiac) was elected Vice-Chair.

The Committee held an organizational meeting onSeptember 2, 2003. Further meetings were held onSeptember 9, 10, 11, 12, 16, 17, 18, October 17 and25, to consult with senior officials from the fourexisting public automobile insurance corporations(B.C., Man., Que., Sask.) and with senior officialsfrom relevant provincial government departments.

Public hearings were held around the province onOctober 21, 22, 23, 24, 28, 30, 31, November 4, 5, 6,7, 12, and 13, 2003. The Committee heardapproximately 100 presentations during thirteen daysof public hearings held in Bathurst, Campbellton,Caraquet, Edmundston, Fredericton, Miramichi,Moncton, and Saint John. The Committee alsoreceived over 100 additional written briefs. Furthermeetings were held on November 28 and 29, 2003.The Committee is expected to table a final reportwhen the House resumes sitting in March, 2004.

Select Committee on Wood SupplyThe Select Committee on Wood Supply was appointedJuly 30, 2003, to inquire into and report to the Houseon the status of sustainable wood supply from Crownlands in New Brunswick and to makerecommendations regarding what legislative,regulatory or policy changes may be considered bygovernment to improve upon the current wood supplyand its management.

The Committee was also mandated to address thefollowing matters:

1) opportunities and strategies arising from theJaakko Pöyry Report to increase the availablewood supply from Crown lands in NewBrunswick; and

2) opportunities and strategies for the futuredirection of Crown land forest management.

The Committee met on August 5, 2003, to elect aChairman and Vice-Chairman. Kirk MacDonald(Mactaquac) was elected to Chair the Committee andWally Stiles (Petitcodiac) was elected Vice-Chair.

The Committee held meetings on October 7, 8,November 12, December 11, and 16, 2003, to developa work plan and consult with senior officials fromrelevant provincial government departments. Publichearings were held around the province on November18, 19, 20, 21, 25, 26, 27, December 2, 3, 4, 5, 17, and22. The Committee heard approximately 180 presenta-tions during thirteen days of public hearings held inCampbellton, Edmundston, Fredericton, Miramichi,Paquetville, Petitcodiac, and Saint John. The Commit-tee also received over 240 additional written briefs.The Committee is expected to table a final report afterthe House resumes sitting in March, 2004.

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54th Legislative Assembly

Second Session Third Session Fourth Session Fifth Session1999 - 2000 2000 - 2001 2001 - 2002 2002-2003

Daily SittingsNumber of Sitting Days 65 63 71 68Evening Sittings 18 15 17 23

Government BillsIntroduced 49 62 63 50Received Royal Assent 45 60 63 48

Private BillsIntroduced 3 10 4 5Received Royal Assent 2 7 4 5

Private Members’ Public BillsIntroduced 2 - 1 7Received Royal Assent 1 - 0 0

Government MotionsTotal 8 10 12 10Number debated 6 8 6 6Number agreed to 6 8 12 6Number withdrawn 1 2 - -

Private Members’ MotionsTotal 144 118 83 92Number debated 11 5 6 4Number agreed to 4 4 4 0Motions for returns 130 102 53 71

Committee of SupplyIn House (Days) 35 32 41 35In Committee on Estimates - - - -

Annual Reports Tabled 64 54 71 57

Petitions 16 16 13 16

Written Questions 0 4 3 1

House Statistics

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The Director of Finance and Human Resources isaccountable for the proper and effective managementof the financial and human resource support systemsof the Legislative Assembly.

The provision of a high standard of support services tothe Members and other branches of the Office of theLegislative Assembly is a priority and, to that end,staff attended information and training sessions suchas the following:

• Courses and seminars on changes andenhancements to the Province’s Human ResourceInformation System (HRIS) including performancemanagement, access security and online maintenanceof payroll and personnel records.

• Seminars entitled “Organizational PerformanceManagement”, “Managing Change”, “New Directionsin E-Commerce” and “Current Financial Issues” thatcovered areas such as career and succession planning,financial planning and budgeting, and current issues inthe area of purchasing, accounting and auditing ingovernments.

• Training seminars on recent advancements ininformation technology affecting areas such aselectronic procurement, online input and processing offinancial documents, and protection of online personalinformation.

During the year the workload in each of the Financeand Human Resource areas was significantlyincreased by the June 9, 2003 general election. Theelection resulted in twenty-two new Members beingelected, the appointment of eight new CabinetMinisters, and the appointment of two new DeputySpeakers. Finance and human resource assistance wasprovided to the twenty-one Members who were not re-elected to aid in the transition from public service. Inaddition, finance and human resource assistance wasprovided to the family and estate of ProgressiveConservative MLA for Riverview, Pat Crossman, whopassed away December 30, 2002.

The Director of Finance and Human Resourcesparticipated in an orientation session for the Membersof the Legislative Assembly following the generalelection. Staff provided administrative assistance andguidance to newly-elected Members with respect totheir indemnities and allowances and setup and

Financial and Human Resource ServicesDirector — Peter Wolters

operation of their constituency offices. A significantnumber of staffing and organizational changes in theMembers’ offices occurred as a result of the electioninvolving commencements, transfers and terminationsof employees. The number of authorized full-timeequivalents in the Office of the Official Oppositionwas increased, along with corresponding funding, toreflect the increase in the number of elected membersof the Official Opposition.

The Canadian Association of ParliamentaryAdministrators (CAPA) is an association forparliamentary staff responsible for providing supportservices in the areas of finance, human resources,technology and administration. Its mission is toprovide a means for consultation and informationsharing among parliamentary organizations and tofoster co-operation and understanding of the uniquerequirements to support these organizations. TheDirector attended the third annual conference of thisassociation in September 2003 to share best practiceswith representatives from legislatures across Canada.

During 2003 the Finance and Human Resource sectioncontinued to provide financial and human resourcesupport to the Office of the Conflict of InterestCommissioner, the Office of the Chief ElectoralOfficer, and the Office of the Supervisor of PoliticalFinancing components of the Legislative Assembly,including performing certain payroll and humanresource administrative responsibilities. In addition,beginning in April 2003, the Finance and HumanResource section assumed responsibility for andbegan providing all finance, purchasing, payroll andhuman resource administration support for the newOffice of the Commissioner of Official Languages.Training was provided to staff in all offices onordering supplies using NBON and purchasing ofgoods and services, in compliance with purchasinglegislation.

I. Financial Services

OverviewFinancial Services include the followingresponsibilities:

* Payroll and Benefits (Ministers, Members, publicservice and casual employees)

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• Ensure timely and accurate payment of (andprovision of information relating to) salariesand benefits.

* Members’ and Committee Expenses

• Ensure timely and accurate payment ofexpenses based on legislation and decisions ofLegislative Administration Committee.

* Purchasing of and Payment for Goods andServices

• Ensure compliance with the various Acts andRegulations of the province. Ensure alltransactions are properly recorded forfinancial statement presentation andsafeguarding of assets. Ensure proper recordkeeping and storage for future referencepurposes.

* Financial Analysis and Projections

• Review financial position of LegislativeAssembly and responsibility sections withinthe Legislative Assembly. Advise individualmanagers of changes in expenditure statususing customized reports and  specializedreports when required.

* Budget Process

• Coordinate the budget process, prepare thebudget submission for the LegislativeAdministration Committee, and liaise with therelated central agencies of the province ofNew Brunswick.

Financial Services HighlightsFor the fiscal year ending March 31, 2003 theLegislative Assembly met budgetary objectives andmaintained a reasonable level of services to theMembers and staff in the program areas of MembersAllowances and Committees, Office of the LegislativeAssembly, and the Offices of Members of RegisteredPolitical Parties. The accompanying financialstatement shows actual expenditure savingsamounting to $105,700 (or 1.04%) of the total budgetof $10,197,100 for the fiscal year ended March 31,2003. This includes $87,300 in the MembersAllowances and Committees component, $14,700 inthe Office of the Legislative Assembly componentand $3,700 in the Offices of Members of Registered

Political Parties component.

The Legislative Assembly was in session a total of100 sitting days during the 2002-2003 fiscal year incomparison to the 40-day average during the 1990s.When the House is in session, the LegislativeAssembly incurs a number of additional expendituresassociated with members sessional allowances andexpenses, translation and interpretation services,security, page and messenger services, televisionbroadcast and communication services and otherHouse related services. To accommodate thissignificant increase, additional budget was approvedfor the Members Allowances and Committeescomponent in the amount of $175,000 to cover theexpenditures associated with the additional 60 sittingdays.

The retention of the budget of the LegislativeAssembly for the 2003-2004 fiscal year at a levelsimilar to the previous fiscal year provides a majorchallenge to maintain a reasonable level of services tothe Members of the Legislaitve Assembly. TheLegislative Assembly is facing significantlyincreased demand and expenses in the area of thesafety and security of the Members, the staff, and thepublic, in and around the Legislative AssemblyComplex. In addition, areas such as the translation,interpretation, and transcription of House proceedings,the televising and recording of House proceedings, theactivities of Legislative Committees and services toMembers, are all increasing in cost and activity level.

Seven months into the calendar year, the LegislativeAdministration Committee adopted the governmentwide in-year budgetary reduction, which mandated afive percent reduction in the budget for non-statutoryexpenditures. Meeting the expenditure reductiontargets and addressing and prioritizing the pressuresoutlined above, while maintaining a reasonable levelof services to Members and staff of the LegislativeAssembly and their staff, will be a significantchallenge for the 2003-2004 fiscal year.

II. Human Resource Services

OverviewHuman Resource Services include the followingresponsibilities:

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* Personnel Administration

• Participate in recruitment process and ensureproper classification, compensation andbenefits through maintenance of payroll andpersonnel records.

• Update and communicate changes in the areasof policies and benefits to all employees.

* Human Resource Development

• Facilitate staff training to enable employees todevelop professionally and use theircapabilities to further both organizational andindividual goals.

* Personnel Policies

• Develop, maintain and document personnelpolicies in accordance with theAdministration Manual of the Province,Legislative Administration Committeedecisions and the unique environment of theLegislative Assembly. Ensure propercommunication of personnel policies to allemployees.

Human Resource Service HighlightsA total of thirty-four students were employed underthe Student Employment and ExperienceDevelopment (SEED) program and other programsadministered by the Finance and Human Resourcesection. These programs include the MLA SEEDprogram, which began in 1997, under which eachMember may employ a student in their constituencyfor a period between May and August, for workassociated with the duties of a Member of theLegislative Assembly. The Finance and HumanResource section’s responsibilities includecoordination of the SEED program and thecommencement (payroll setup and notices of hiring),payment (weekly time sheet input) and subsequenttermination (removal from payroll and issuance ofRecord of Employment) of each of the relatedstudents. The students employed included twelvePages for the 2003-2004 session, four Tour Guides forthe 2003 tourism season, and an informationtechnology student.

Legislation amending the Legislative Assembly Actwas introduced and passed by the Legislative

Assembly in 2001, that provided for the annualindexation of the indemnity of Members based onthe three-year average change in the “AverageWeekly  Earnings of New Brunswick Employees”.Pursuant to this legislation, the Members of theLegislative Assembly received a 2.567 % increasein their annual indemnity and expense allowanceeffective January 1, 2003. Legislation was alsointroduced and passed amending the ExecutiveCouncil Act, requiring a similar increase in thesalaries paid to the Premier and Ministers. Theseincreases and all the necessary adjustmentswere processed by the Finance and HumanResource staff.

Finance and Human Resource staff processed costof living increases during 2003, affecting a total ofseventy-one positions. Staff processed regular meritincreases for employees and requests for positionreclassifications, and assisted in the interviewingand hiring process for the Visitor Services Co-ordinator, one Parliamentary Translator, theWarehouse Supervisor (Office of the ChiefElectoral Officer), four Tour Guides and twelvePages for the Legislative Assembly. With respectto the full-time employees of the various offices ofthe Legislative Assembly, a total of fifteen employeecommencements  and three terminations, includingtwo transfers to government departments, wereprocessed by staff during the year.

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2002-2003 Financial Summary - Legislative AssemblyFor the Year Ended March 31, 2003

(in $ 000’s)

Budget ActualMembers’ Allowances and Committees

Allowances to Members 6,244.3 6,134.7Legislative Committees 185.0 207.3Subtotal 6,429.3 6,342.0

Office of the Legislative AssemblyLegislative Library 381.0 377.7Office of the Clerk 1,046.6 1,045.5Office of the Conflict of Interest Commissioner 129.0 87.7Hansard 444.0 441.9Debates Translation 590.0 623.1Subtotal 2,590.6 2,575.9

Offices of Members of Registered Political PartiesOffice of Government Members 514.2 511.9Office of the Official Opposition 543.0 541.6Office of the New Democratic Member 120.0 120.0Subtotal 1,177.2 1,173.5

Total - Legislative Assembly 10,197.1 10,091.4

Staff Complement as of March 31, 2003

Permanent Elected Sessional Wages TOTAL

General Administration 8 0 0 3 11Finance and Human Resources 3 0 0 1 4Security 1 0 15 4 20Office of the Conflict of Interest Commissioner 1 0 0 0 1Legislative Library and Research Services 7 0 0 0 7Hansard 10 0 0 0 10Debates Translation 9 0 0 1 10Members 0 55 0 0 55Offices of Members of Registered Political Parties 18 0 0 0 18Pages and Tour Guides 0 0 12 4 16

TOTAL 57 55 27 13 152

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Ceremonial, Security and Visitor ServicesSergeant-at-Arms — Daniel Bussières

The Fifth Session of the Fifty-fourth Legislature cameto a close on April 14, 2003, the 68th sitting day. OnMay 10, 2003, the Legislative Assembly wasdissolved and the writ of election issued for June 9.For the first time, a CBC television crew set up in therotunda to provide live coverage of the election. Finalresults in the House were 28 ProgressiveConservatives, 26 Liberals, and 1 New Democrat.

In a ceremony held in the Assembly Chamber onJune 27, 2003, Her Honour Lieutenant-GovernorMarilyn Trenholme Counsell administered the Oath ofOffice to the eight new Members of the ExecutiveCouncil. Newly elected Members were sworn in at aceremony held on the morning of the Opening of theFirst Session of the Fifty-fifth Legislature. With therecall of the House set for July 29, staff hastilyidentified students who could serve as pages duringthe two-week summer session. Following theadjournment on August 8, staff turned their attentionto the busy summer tourist season and the manyvisitors to the Legislative Assembly.

The Sergeant-at-Arms and Executive Officer GisèleOsborne assisted with the 2003-2004 House ofCommons Page Recruitment Program by conductingfinal interviews on behalf of the House of Commons;two New Brunswick students were selected to serve asHouse of Commons pages.

On April 3, 4 and 5, four Saskatchewan LegislativeInterns visited the Assembly to observe proceedings inthe House and to meet with the Speaker and Legisla-tive staff.

On April 15, the NB Arts Board held its AnnualAwards Ceremony in the Legislative AssemblyChamber. The recipients for 2003 were HerménégildeChiasson, M. Travis Lane, Freeman Patterson, andClaudette Thériault.

From April 25 to April 27, the Legislative Assemblyhosted the fourteenth annual Student LegislativeSeminar. Throughout the weekend, students attendedworkshops and lectures focusing on the executive,judicial and legislative branches of government.Students gained first-hand knowledge from guestspeakers: Minister of Education, Hon. DennisFurlong; Judge David Walker of the Provincial Court,Judicial District of Saint John; and Jody Carr, MLA

for Oromocto-Gagetown. Speaker Bev Harrisonpresided over the model Parliament as students usedthe information they had gained throughout theworkshop to proceed through periods of oral questionsand members’ statements. Students entered their owndebates in the House to pass or defend motions andpieces of legislation, all of which they had writtenthemselves on topics of concern. Fifty-four studentsfrom 38 high schools throughout the provinceparticipated in this successful and popular educationalinitiative.

On June 22, eight recipients were honoured at theLieutenant-Governor’s Annual Literacy Awards.

On July 24, 2003, the Legislative Assembly hosted thefirst Legislative Seminar for Teachers. The seminar,co-sponsored by the Department of Education,allowed 21 teachers from across the province to gain abetter understanding of how the Legislative Assemblyfunctions and how it conducts its business. Theultimate goal of the seminar was to provide teacherswith the necessary information to share with theirclassroom students.

From August 12-13, a delegation of five Membersfrom the Scottish Parliament visited the province togain a better understanding of the workings ofgovernment and the Legislature. During the visit, thedelegation met with government and Legislative staff.Discussion focused on the parliamentary process,including legislative scrutiny.

The installation of Dr. Herménégilde Chiasson as the29th Lieutenant-Governor of the province of NewBrunswick took place in the Chamber on August 26,2003. His Honour was born and educated in St.-Simon, New Brunswick. He earned a Bachelor of Artsfrom the Université de Moncton, a Bachelor of FineArts from Mount Allison University, a Master ofAesthetics from the Université de Paris (Sorbonne), aMaster of Fine Arts from New York State University,and a doctorate from the Université de Paris(Sorbonne). One of the first events presided over bythe new Lieutenant-Governor was the annual GirlGuides’ Canada Cord Ceremony which took place inthe Assembly Chamber September 27, 2003.

In late September, a legal translation team from theNational Assembly of Wales visited the Legislative

29

Assembly as part of a Canadian visit which included avisit to the House of Commons and the Senate, andmeetings with procedural staff, and members of theCanadian Association of Legal Translators. Aftermeeting with government officials for briefings on thelegislative drafting process and training, members ofthe team met with the Clerk of the House to discussthe functioning of a bilingual Assembly andLegislative scrutiny.

November 5 was Take Your Kids to Work day. As partof the day’s activities, employees in the Departmentsof Justice, Supply and Services, and Agriculture,Fisheries and Aquaculture, brought their children tothe Legislative Assembly for a special tour andbriefing on how a Bill becomes law; 21 studentsparticipated. On November 6, Speaker Harrisonconducted a tour of the Assembly for a delegationfrom Shenzhen province in China, and staff of theDepartment of Education, various schools, andConcord College. The annual Chief Scout Ceremonywas held November 8. From November 12 to 13, PeterBennison, Deputy Clerk of the Legislative Assemblyof Tasmania, met with legislative staff. On November19, as part of an outreach initiative of the RenaissanceCollege, a program administered by the University ofNew Brunswick, students had the opportunity to meetwith Members, ask questions, and make presentations.

The annual Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony washeld on Thursday, December 4, 2003. An estimatedcrowd of 300 braved the extreme cold and chills toattend. On December 15, a Queen’s CounselAppointment Ceremony took place in the LegislativeCouncil Chamber despite a severe winter storm thatforced the closure of government and private sectoroffices. Lieutenant-Governor Herménégilde Chiassonpresided over the ceremony in which 11 recipients,their families and friends took part.

The number of tourists visiting the LegislativeAssembly through organized bus tours decreased;however, the number of visitors for 2003 was upsignificantly. This change may be the result of betteraccess control and tracking of traffic. Total traffic for theyear was 21,401; of this number, 17,275 were visitors.

Visiting dignitaries included The High Commissionerof India, Her Excellency Shashi Tripathi; the ConsulGeneral of Korea, Choi Jong-moo; the CanadianAmbassador to the Netherlands, Serge April; theAmbassador to Iceland, His Excellency Hjálmar W.

Hannesson; the Consul General of the Netherlands,Albert Emile Moses; the Ambassador to Norway, HisExcellency Ingvard Havnen; the Consul General ofGermany, His Excellency Hartmut Scheer; and theAmbassador of Slovenia, Her Excellency VeronkiaStabej. The Legislative Assembly welcomed a largedelegation from the Norwegian Ministry of Defenceand CFB Gagetown, which included dignitaries from25 different countries.

SecurityThe security of Members, staff, visitors, andLegislative Assembly assets within Parliament Squareand adjoining Legislative buildings continues to be apriority. Commissionaires supported by state of the arttechnology continue to be on duty on a 24-hour basisand during the session plainclothes constables offeron-site protection. Since the adoption of the 2003Threat and Risk Assessment Report by the LegislativeAdministration Committee, many of the report’ssecurity initiatives were implemented. Developmentof contingency plans, updating policies andprocedures, and related training, continued.

Buildings, Furniture and FittingsWork to upgrade the structural support of the spiralstaircase commenced June 8, 2003. King ConstructionLtd. was awarded the contract to do the structuralupgrade made necessary due to the age of the staircaseand the sagging of its support systems. Although thework was expected to be completed within a 12- to16-week time frame, unplanned contingencies delayedcompletion of the work until 2004.

During the year, the Legislative Assembly retained theservices of heritage consultant Nancy Reid and theengineering firm D.M. Steeves and Associates tooversee the repair and restoration of one of theChamber’s ornate brass chandeliers damaged inNovember 2002 during the collapse of thechandelier’s lowering mechanism.

Condition reports on the chandelier’s crystal and glasscomponents and frame were prepared. Work in 2004will focus on commissioning replacement crystals andglobes and identifying companies qualified toundertake the rebuilding and restoration efforts. Workon the damaged chandelier is expected to becompleted in late fall of 2004.

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Legislative LibraryLegislative Librarian — Margaret Pacey

MandateAccording to the Legislative Library Act, “TheLegislative Library shall operate primarily for the useof the members of the Legislative Assembly and themembers of departments in order that they may betterserve the people of New Brunswick. The LegislativeLibrary may acquire by gift, bequest, and loan orpurchase any book, periodical, newspaper, film or anypublication that may serve the members of theLegislative Assembly or the departments in theperformance of their duties. The Legislative Library isdesignated as the official library for the deposit ofNew Brunswick government publications. TheQueen’s Printer shall deposit with the LegislativeLibrary four copies of every government publicationprinted by her. Subject to the government publicationsdeposited by the Queen’s Printer, all departments shalldeposit with the Legislative Library four copies ofevery government publication printed by it or underits authority within thirty days after its printing.”

The Legislative Librarian and the Clerk aredeveloping proposals for amendments to theLegislative Library Act to ensure that New Brunswickpublishers are mandated to deposit publications withthe Library. The Library’s New Brunswick Collectionis the largest collection of New Brunswickana andsuch legislation would preserve New Brunswick’swritten heritage. The Library will seek to broaden itsmandate to automatically receive all onlinegovernment publications. Currently each departmentmust deposit any printed government publication andthis practice will be extended to include electronicpublications. The establishment of an e-repository fordownloading New Brunswick government electronic

publications would enhance preservation and providebetter access.

The Legislative Library receives requests forinformation from Members, legislative staff, the civilservice and the public. All requests for information arehandled in confidence and in a nonpartisan fashion.The Library is open from 8:15 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. fivedays a week and 24-hour access is available throughphone, fax and e-mail. When the House is in session,the Library remains open in the evening until theHouse rises.

HighlightsThe Legislative Library hosted a very successful booklaunch on Thursday, October 30, 2003. Key PorterBooks was approached to launch Geoffrey Stevens’biography of Dalton Camp entitled The Player, the lifeand times of Dalton Camp. This well attendedfunction included a reading and a question andanswer period with the author. Dalton Camp loved theLegislative Library and he was a frequent visitor whenin Fredericton. Following the book launch, theLegislative Librarian and Mr. Stevens attended theDalton Camp Memorial Lecture given by JoeSchlesinger, one of Canada’s most recognized seniorforeign correspondents, which was held at St. ThomasUniversity.

The Library’s second annual wine and cheesereception for Members and staff was held December11, 2003. More than 80 people were in attendance,including 32 of the 55 MLAs.

Legislative Librarian

Technical Services GovernmentPublications Service Reference Service

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Library statistics indicate a significant increase inusage. The Library welcomed 8% more MLAs in2003. There was a significant increase in the numberof Reference Questions answered, up 29% from theprevious year. The Library’s online searches are up29%, due in part to the increased use of onlineresources to respond to reference questions. There isalso an increase in research-type questions as opposedto ready-reference questions. More and more of thequestions take significant time to answer, the result ofboth the availability of quick facts on the web, and anincrease in requests from government. Since regularupdates have served to inform departments of libraryservices that are available, the Library has seen anincreasing number of queries of a more demandingnature. Regardless of the factors that can be attributedfor this increase in use, it is a positive reversal intoday’s world of declining library use.

The Library invited all the Members of the LegislativeAssembly to a one-on-one tutorial session. There wasa very favourable response and many Memberspolished their web searching techniques and receivedtips on e-mail methods and etiquette. The sessionswere tailored to each Member’s prior knowledge ofthe Internet and varied from one to three hours inlength. Kathleen Jeffries, who has a Master degree inAdult Education, was the instructor for these sessions.Each participant was also given a tour of the Libraryand met the Reference Librarian, Peggy Goss, todiscuss services available. The objective is to continuethis initiative and to include other computerapplications.

Collection DevelopmentThe Legislative Library’s New Brunswick Collectionis an important part of New Brunswick’s heritage andis an incredible resource. New Brunswick publisherswere once again approached to donate their books tothe Library. Specific authors of privately publishedbooks were also approached. A great many donorsaccepted the idea and, as a result, the New BrunswickCollection is expanding. The Library acquired moreNew Brunswick books during 2003 than in theprevious year, 398 compared to 378. Of that total,22% were donated. The Library expressesappreciation to the following individuals andpublishers who donated books:

Individuals:- Anita Boudreau- Stephen Branch- Astrid Brunner- Robert G. Butler- Denise Clavette- Judson M. Corey- Roger Crouse- Norman DeMerchant- Vaughan DeMerchant- Deborah Doherty- Ernie Fitzsimmons- Wendell Fulton- Frances Gammon- John Glass- David and Sandra Hamilton- Constance Hill- Fred Horgan- Camille Lang- Ross I. MacCallum- Horace R. Macaulay- Charles McFadden- Stephen Palmer- Marie Resmer- Lucide Rioux- Conrad Stairs- Rudy Stocek- Greg West- Richard Wilbur- John Williamson

Publishers/Associations:- CCAF-FCVI Inc.- Conservation Council of New Brunswick- Convention of Atlantic Baptist Churches- DreamCatcher Publishing- Environment and Local Government- Environmental Affairs- La Fédération d’alphabétisation du Nouveau-

Brunswick- The Fredericton Region Solid Waste Commission- Goose Lane Editions- Les Éditions La Grande Marée- Irving Eco-Centre- New Brunswick Museum, Archives & Research

Library- Saint John Energy- University of New Brunswick Art Centre

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The Library gratefully acknowledges a grant receivedthrough the Viscount Bennett Trust Fund which wasused to purchase several rare New Brunswickpublications reflecting the intellectual heritage of theprovince: History of St. Andrew’s Society of SaintJohn, N.B., Canada, 1798 to 1903, The Administrationof criminal law in relation to insanity, Thenortheastern boundary of the United States [1832],and The St. John River in Maine, Quebec, and NewBrunswick [1894]. Without this generous grant,purchase of the titles mentioned, and other valuableNew Brunswick books, would not have been possible.

The Library added several new periodicals to thecollection this year: Science & Vie, Walrus, andHERizons. During 2003, the most utilized part of theLibrary’s collections was the periodical collection:2,338 periodicals were perused.

Marketing/OutreachThe Library’s two main publications SelectedAccessions List and Government Documents Checklistare available on the Library’s web site. Members aresent paper copies of the Selected Accessions List andapproximately 10,000 New Brunswick civil servantsreceive e-mail versions of the document. Each versionof the Selected Accessions List includes notesemphasizing a Library service, or some aspect of thecollection, along with selections from the accessionslist thought to appeal to employees of a particulardepartment.

The Government Documents Checklist is no longerproduced in a print format. It is on the web page under«Publications.» ( <http:/ /www.gnb.ca/legis/leglibbib/publications/ publications-e.asp> ).

The Library’s popular Periodical Contents nowincludes a cover sheet specifying particular articles onthe contents pages. This addition highlights, andtherefore alerts, Members to the themes in theperiodical literature.

Library Assistant Tom Stillwell designed thebookmark displayed on the left which was producedto give the Library more visibility.

The Legislative Librarian was interviewed in relationto newspaper articles and television programs on theLegislative Library. A headline in the November 4,2003, issue of The Telegraph Journal stated: “NewBrunswick’s Legislative Library is a provincialtreasure.” The article recognized the LegislativeLibrary’s value and related significant detail on theLibrary’s history and purpose.

The Library’s complete four-volume set of John JamesAudubon’s Birds of America was the focus of aFredericton Heritage Trust annual meeting held at theLibrary June 5, 2003. Several members of theassociation have been doing research at the Librarysince this initiation.

Several displays were mounted throughout the year.One complemented the Dalton Camp book launch;another highlighted releases of books and films of thenew Lieutenant-Governor, Hermenegilde Chiasson,writer, filmmaker, and artist, who was installed as theprovince’s 29th Lieutenant-Governor August 26,2003. Other topical displays centred around issues ofthe day, including automobile insurance, electricityrestructuring, and aquaculture.

Library Assistant Tom Stillwell designed anew bookmark which was produced to givethe Library more visibility.

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InitiativesThe MLA database, 1784 to the present, is in its finalrevision. There are more than one thousandbiographies; many include a photograph of theMember. The entries for deceased MLAs are quitecomprehensive; many biographical sources have beenconsulted. Database entries for recent and currentMLAs are less of a true biography, but simply fastfacts. As time goes by the entries will be updated. Thedatabase is a reflection of the dedicated work of KevinPlummer, a graduate student in history, who was hiredon a casual basis. The database is currently availablein-house and will eventually appear online.

The New Brunswick History Checklist has beenconsolidated, updated and converted into a searchabledatabase. It includes over 11,000 bibliographicrecords relating to the history ofNew Brunswick fromprehistoric times to the present. References includedare books, book chapters, periodical articles, anddocuments. This in-house online database is awonderful complement to the Library’s NewBrunswick Collection. The database is currentlyavailable in-house and will eventually appear online.

Enhancements to the Library’s website in the “SpecialProjects” section include a listing of female Membersof the Legislative Assembly, with biographical notesattached. A comprehensive list of New BrunswickGovernment Ministers and Deputy Ministers isposted, including a list of departmental name changes.A list of past New Brunswick premiers is also posted.

In March 2003, after signing with a vendor, EBSCO,the Library obtained access to the followingcommercial databases Academic Search Fulltext Eliteand Canadian Reference Centre. Academic SearchElite provides journal coverage for most academicareas of study, and Canadian Reference Centre is acomprehensive Canadian reference databasecombining magazines, news wires, reference booksand company information. Subscription to EBSCOdatabases has proven to be satisfactory. The full textof these databases is particularly appealing andreference staff find EBSCO products easy to use. TheLibrary maintains its subscriptions to Factiva andCEDROM.

Among the more time-consuming reference questionsfacilitated by the Library’s electronic databases were:note taking in the Gallery, development of the

European Union, trade relations between NewBrunswick and Colombia, models for gas priceregulation, politics and the media, guidelines for homeeconomics interventions in child welfare, assimilationof French language and culture, how polls influencepublic policy, regulations for hypnotherapists in otherjurisdictions and federal applications, treatment ofwomen in non-traditional, male-dominated careers,New Brunswick’s policies on advanced nursingpractices in primary health care and challenges to theRight to Information Act in this province and the restof Canada.

During 2003, the Library provided research support toStanding and Select Committees at the LegislativeAssembly as requested. In particular, the Libraryassisted the Select Committee on Public AutomobileInsurance. Assistance was also provided to theProvincial Capital Commission Study Team, and theCommission on Legislative Democracy.

An unusually severe New Brunswick winter with alarge amount of snow and the possibility of a springflood precipitated the development of a disaster planto protect part of the Library’s collection stored in thebasement of the Legislative Building.

Library RestorationImprovements to the interior of the Library includethe acquisition of several native cherry handmadestools, designed and crafted by Peter AtkinsonWoodenworks. Craftsperson Michiel Oudemansproduced a hand carved cherry wood sign for theLibrary. It features New Brunswick’s ArmorialBearings and the name of the Library.

The Library continues to host rotating exhibits of NewBrunswick artworks generously loaned by Gallery 78,a private local gallery.

Despite the fact that a number of repairs have beenundertaken, a leaky roof continues to plague theLibrary. Legislative staff are working with staff fromthe Department of Supply and Services and theCulture and Sport Secretariat to solve the situation.

While renovations continued on the circular staircase,the main entrance to the Library remained blocked.While the House was in session, Library users had tobe escorted past anterooms and media scrums.Completion of the renovations will be welcomed byall Legislative staff and Library users. The Legislative

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Library contributed to a time capsule hidden in thewall of the staircase.

Space/StorageSpace continues to be at a premium at the LegislativeLibrary. Weeding is ongoing but does not keep upwith the vast numbers of acquisitions. After beingformally asked to vacate the Library’s largest storagefacility, an alternate location became a priority for theLegislative Librarian. Supply and Services areattempting to locate space for our duplicate NewBrunswick Government Documents Collection.Negotiations are underway with the DepositoryServices Program and the University of NewBrunswick and Mount Allison University to have ajoint storage facility for federal governmentdocuments. The new Lieutenant-Governoracknowledged his appreciation of the significance ofthe Library’s collection to New Brunswick’s heritageand has agreed that sections of the stored rare bookcollection be shelved at Old Government House.

StaffingThe Library hired three casual employees in 2003 tofill one full-time vacant position bringing the staffingcomplement to nine during part of the year. An acrossthe government 5% budget cut midway through theyear curtailed purchases, continuing education, andshortened casual employee work terms.

Peggy Goss continues to manage the referencefunctions. In addition she performs the conservationand preservation work and is training two other staffmembers in this area. Documents Librarian JanetMcNeil continues to work several shifts at the mainreference desk every week. She remains as thelibrarian in charge of the Government DocumentsCollection. Jean-Claude Arcand remains in charge ofTechnical Services. He assisted two students with thecataloguing of the serials collection which makes forbetter access to this collection. Library AssistantKathleen Jeffries continues on the reference desk andis responsible for the day-to-day operation of theGovernment Documents Section where she uses theCODOC classification system in conjunction withHTML. Library Assistant Tom Stillwell works inReference and in Government Documents andrecently revamped the New Brunswick pamphlet fileto include a new Index. Jean Weissenhorn DeLongassists the Technical Services Librarian with

cataloguing and classification. Jean is also responsiblefor claims and accounting. Summer student AnthonyLovesey worked part-time on the Library’s web pageand designed several databases. Summer studentKevin Plummer worked almost exclusively on theMLA database.

The 2003 summer students included AngelaWisniewski (her fifth summer with the Library), SarahRichard, Mike Caverhill, Kevin Plummer, andAnthony Lovesey. Appreciation is conveyed to theMembers of the Legislative Assembly who providedthe work weeks necessary to hire these students.

In January 2003, the Library began a program of stafftutorials covering a variety of topics: arrangement ofthe collections in the Government Documentsbuilding, types of Bills and how to trace a Bill throughthe House, searching the MLA database, searching theonline catalogue, contents of the vaults in theDepartmental Building, searching the on-lineHansard, searching Newscan, and circulationprocedures. A training manual for new staff is beingput together as the handouts for these sessions aregathered.

Continuing EducationIn April, Peggy Goss attended a teleconference atUNB on Reference Services. In June, Margie Paceyattended the Canadian Library Association AnnualConference in Toronto; members of the Association ofParliamentary Librarians in Canada took advantageand also met while in Toronto.

MembershipsMargie Pacey is a member of the Atlantic ProvincesLibrary Association, Special Libraries Association,Canadian Library Association and the Association ofParliamentarian Librarians in Canada. Jean-ClaudeArcand is a member of and Treasurer of theAssociation of Professional Librarians of NewBrunswick. He is also a member of the AtlanticProvinces Library Association.

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HansardHansard Editor — Susan Kennedy

MandateUnder section 8 of the Official Languages Act of NewBrunswick, “The records, journals and reports of theLegislative Assembly and its committees shall beprinted and published in English and French”. Thisrequirement is enshrined in subsection 18(2) of theConstitution Act, 1982: “The statutes, records andjournals of the legislature of New Brunswick shall beprinted and published in English and French and bothlanguage versions are equally authoritative.”

More specifically, the Hansard Office records,transcribes and publishes the proceedings of theHouse (“Hansard”) in both official languages, withemphasis on oral questions; records, transcribes andmakes available the proceedings of the standing andselect committees of the Legislative Assembly in thespoken word; and responds to inquiries relating torecorded proceedings.

Highlights• One casual was hired to assist staff during the year.

HouseObjective: to record, transcribe and edit Houseproceedings, with priority given to oral questions andrequests for specific excerpts of transcripts orinformation.

Oral question transcripts are provided to 300 clientson a daily basis. Tables 1 and 2 provide a breakdownby party of oral questions, as well as statements byministers and members.

During the 2002-03 fiscal year, there were 100 sittingdays, with 33 night sittings. This entailed therecording, transcribing and editing of 600 hours, or7 390 five-minute takes.

Hansard daily reports are provided to 32 subscribers.As of the end of the fiscal year, with the exception offour daily sittings, dailies for the 2000-01 session hadbeen distributed up to Daily Sitting 57, Daily Sittings1 to 3, 7 and 30 had been distributed for the 2001-02session, and Daily Sittings 1, 3 and 15 had beendistributed for the 2002-03 session.

Table 3 provides comparative statistics on the numberof days, hours, and tapes and/or takes for the pastfive sessions.

Bound volumes of Hansard are published in bothofficial languages. Hansard volumes are provided to67 subscribers—Members of the LegislativeAssembly; government departments; political partyoffices; legislative, university and public librariesthroughout Canada; the media; and interested citizens.

During the 2002-03 fiscal year, there were383 requests for specific excerpts of Houseproceedings.

CommitteesObjective: to record, transcribe and edit proceedingsof the standing and select committees of theLegislative Assembly, with priority given to requestsfor specific excerpts of transcripts or information.

During the 2002-03 fiscal year, a total of 15 meetingsof standing committees were recorded: CrownCorporations, 4; Crown Corporations/PublicAccounts, 1; Private Bills, 5; and Public Accounts, 5.A total of 2 select committees were recorded: PrivatePassenger Automobile Insurance, 1; and Education, 1.These committee meetings entailed the recording,transcribing and editing of 52 hours, or 672 five-minute takes.

Hansard Editor

6 ParliamentaryEditors (English)

3 ParliamentaryEditors (French)

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Table 4 shows the percentage of committee workcompared to House work.

During the 2002-03 fiscal year, there were 53 requestsfor specific excerpts of committee proceedings.

Special EventsHansard staff operated the sound equipmentthroughout the three-day Student Legislative Seminarin April 2002.

Hansard staff assisted with the business sessions ofthe 41st Canadian Regional Conference -Commonwealth Parliamentary Assocation fromJuly 17 - 20, 2002.

Cheryl Fulton attended the annual conference of theHansard Association of Canada held in Ottawa,Ontario in August 2002.

StaffTwo Parliamentary Editors were hired to fill vacantpositions in 2002, Marc Poitras and Lise L’Anglais.

Lillian A. TaitFormer Official Reporter Lillian A. Tait diedJune 27, 2003, in Fredericton.

She was educated at the Jacquet RiverConvent and, at age 17, she came toFredericton to work at the Office of theProvincial Secretary. Later, she worked at theLegislative Assembly when the House was insession, first as a stenographer on the floorof the House, and advancing to translationand editing of Legislative Assembly Reports,and then to Assistant Official Reporter. In themid-sixties she was appointed the OfficialReporter. At the time of her appointment, theCanadian Press reported that Lillian Tait wasnot only the first woman Official Reporter inCanada, but the first in the British Common-wealth. She held that position until herretirement in 1978. In recognition of heraccomplishments, she was awarded theQueen’s Jubilee Medal in 1977.

Table 1: Oral Questions by Caucus,2002-03 Fiscal Year

Caucus Questions Minutes

Progressive Conservative PartyLiberal Party 342 2 725New Democratic Party 88 291

TOTAL 430 3 016

Table 2: Statements by Ministers andMembers, 2002-03 Fiscal Year

Caucus Ministers Members

Progressive Conservative Party 410 439Liberal Party 460New Democratic Party 84

TOTAL 410 983

Table 3: Comparative Statistics for Sessions

1999 +1998-99 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03

Days 40 1 + 65 63 71 68Hours 235 1 + 376 340 396 410

7*+ 1 519# 4 766# 4 199# 4 826# 5119#

* Tapes# Takes

Table 4: Takes Recorded,2002-03 Fiscal Year

5-Minute Takes % of Workload

House 7 390 92

Committees /Conferences 672 8

TOTAL 8 062 100

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MandateUnder section 8 of the Official Languages Act of NewBrunswick, “The records, journals and reports of theLegislative Assembly and its committees shall beprinted and published in English and French”.Thisrequirement is enshrined in subsection 18(2) of theConstitution Act, 1982: “The statutes, records andjournals of the legislature of New Brunswick shall beprinted and published in English and French and bothlanguage versions are equally authoritative.”

More specifically, Debates Translation translatesstatements and speeches delivered by members in theHouse, the daily Journal, the proceedings of the House(“Hansard”), committee reports and other material forthe Office of the Legislative Assembly.

Highlights• During the 2002-2003 fiscal year, over 2.6 million

words were translated, an increase of 21% over theprevious year. Table 1 provides a breakdown.

• During the year, over 1 728 translation requestswere processed, 420 more than the previous year.

• The number of daily sittings increased by 58 %,from 64 during the 2001-2002 fiscal year to 101 in2002-2003.

• Translation of the Hansard increased by 13% overthe previous year.

• In the fall of 2002, two translators resigned, oneTR2 and one TR3 (autonomous translator). In lateJanuary, the TR2 position was filled from theeligibility list from a previous competition, but,due to the candidates’ lack of experience, a TR1was hired.

• In March 2003, another competition was opened tofill the still-vacant position.

• During the year, Debates Translation waschallenged by the turnover of support staff.However, the staff of translators are to becommended for their continued output of highcalibre translation under difficult circumstances.

HouseObjective: to translate the records and journals ofLegislative Assembly proceedings, as well as motionsintroduced in the House.

Translation of Hansard accounted for 45% of theworkload. Approximately 27% of Hansard translationwas into English. Table 2 provides comparativestatistics on the number of words for the past fivesessions.

The daily Journal represented 3% of the workload;translation is usually completed shortly after thesession. The Order Paper and notices of motionaccounted for 29% of the workload, a 48% increaseover last year. The Order Paper and notices of motionreceive same-day translation.

Members of the Legislative AssemblyObjective: to translate, as resources allow, statementsand speeches delivered in the House by members,including Cabinet ministers and opposition members.

Translation for Members of the Legislative Assemblyaccounted for approximately 16% of the totalworkload.

Debates TranslationChief Translator — Aurella Losier-Vienneau

Chief Translator

3 AutonomousTranslators 4 Translators

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During the 101 sitting days in the fiscal yearunder review, 737 translation requests wereprocessed, representing 1 910 pages. Theseincluded the throne speech, the budget speech, aswell as 656 statements and 79 speeches given inthe House by ministers or private members. Anaverage speech is 11.5 pages in length. Translationfor Cabinet ministers accounted for 85% of theworkload. Approximately 97% of translation wasinto French.

During intersession, written translation servicesprovided for both government and oppositionmembers include correspondence and pressreleases. The Office of the Official Oppositionwas the largest client comprising 77% ofworkload. The Office of Government Membersand the New Democratic Member’s Officeaccounted for 11% and 12% of the workloadrespectively. Translation requests by Membersof the Legislative Assembly usually receive same-day or next-day service, as resources allow.

CommitteesObjective: to translate reports, agendas, and noticesof meeting for standing and select committees of theLegislative Assembly.

Translation for committees represented over 3% ofthe total workload during the 2002-2003 fiscal year.

Office of the Legislative AssemblyObjective: to translate material of a procedural andadministrative nature for the Speaker’s Office, theClerk’s Office, and the Legislative Library.

Translation for the Office of the LegislativeAssembly represented 5% of the total workloadin 2002-2003.

Table 1: Debates Translation Output,

2002-2003 Fiscal Year

(in thousands of words)

HOUSE

Notices of Motions and Order Paper 742Journal 75Hansard1 1 168

MEMBERS

Speeches and Statements 370Correspondence, releases 36

COMMITTEES 85

OFFICE OF THELEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 124

TOTAL2 2 600

1 Includes a carryover of 1.16 millionwords (60% of 1998-99 Hansard, 100%of 1999 Hansard, and 8% of 1999-2000Hansard, as well as Sittings 3 and 15 of2002-2003 Hansard) from the previousfiscal year.

2 Excludes a carryover of approximately9.38 million words (92% of 1999-2000 Hansard, 100% of 2000-2001Hansard, 100% of 2001-2002 Hansard,and Sittings 1 to 60 of 2002-2003Hansard) into the next fiscal year.

Table 2 :Comparative Statistics for Sessions

1999 1999-2000 2000-2001 2001-2002 2002-2003Days 1 65 63 70 68Words*5 2 497 2 380 2 500** 2 450**

* In thousands.** Estimate.

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Special ProjectSpecial Project Officer — Valmond LeBlanc

BackgroundWhen Debates Translation was established in 1977,its  mandate was to translate House proceedings(“Hansard”) before the next session. This differs fromother legislatures in Canada, where proceedings areusually made available within 24 to 48 hours. Atranslation backlog of Hansard developed in theearly nineties, and the Legislative AdministrationCommittee approved in September 1997 a strategy toaddress the issue. This strategy had three components.

The first component was to maintain outside fundingto assist catch-up efforts. In 2002-03, for the eighthconsecutive year, a translation outsourcing contribu-tion was received under the Canada/New BrunswickGeneral Agreement on the Promotion of OfficialLanguages. The Legislative Assembly appreciates thecooperation of the Department of IntergovernmentalAffairs and Canadian Heritage in support of its effortsto meet the objective of making documents availablesimultaneously in both official languages.

The second component was internal funding for out-sourcing. In 2002-03, the $100 000 added to theDebates Translation budget for outsourcing wasmaintained. One portion was used for a casual supportstaff.

The third component was designation of a senior staffmember as Special Project Officer, reporting to theClerk of the Legislative Assembly, to focus full-timeon elimination of the translation backlog. Duties alsoincluded updating the Directory of New Brunswickand National Organizations and leadership in settingstandards and quality control.

The special project has three objectives.

Objective 1: Maintain the Hansard translation workflow.

Results• In 2002-03, Hansard translation demand reached

an estimated 4.0 million words, an increase of60% over the previous fiscal year.

• In 2002-03, Hansard translation output totaled1.2 million words, an increase of 20% over theprevious fiscal year.

• During the year in review, demand exceededoutput by 2.8 million words. Over the pastfive fiscal years, demand has exceeded output byan average 1.1 million words per year.

Objective 2: Provide translation of daily sittings at anearlier date.

Results• In 2002-03, on-line translation of Hansard dailies

was made available on the Legislative Assemblynetwork 76 months earlier than the publishedvolumes.

• As of March 31, 2003, translation of dailies up toDay 8 (December 10, 1999) of the 1999-2000 ses-sion was posted on the network.

• Dailies up to Day 17 (January 26, 1999) of the 1998-99 session were available in bilingual dual-columnformat on the network. This material can be viewed,printed and is fully searchable electronically.

Objective 3: Reduce the Hansard translation backlogto 12 months.

Results• In 2002-03, the Hansard translation backlog increased

by a net 2.8 million words, compared to a netincrease 1.2 million words in the previous fiscal year.

• During the fiscal year, 101 new daily sittingsoccurred, while translation of 32 sitting days wascompleted, for a net backlog increase of 69 sittingdays, compared to an increase of 33 sitting days inthe previous fiscal year.

• As of March 31, 2003, Hansard translation wastrailing by 39 months (or 244 dailies), comparedto 38 months (or 175 dailies) at the end of theprevious fiscal year.

Quality ControlThe Parliamentary Stylebook and the Directory ofNew Brunswick and National Organizations wereupdated during the year. Both documents are availablefor consultation and download at <http://www.gnb.ca/legis/publications/publications-e.asp>.

ConclusionTranslation of House proceedings is conducted inconcert with the 8 other parliamentary translators atDebates Translation as well as 15 professionals in theprivate sector, in close cooperation with staff at theHansard Office. Efforts will continue to offer aproduct that not only meets high-quality standards butthat is also provided on a more timely basis formembers and staff of the Legislative Assembly,government departments, and New Brunswickers.

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Program for Members

Publications

The function of the Program for Members is to providelegislative and administrative support for the PrivateMembers of the Legislative Assembly. The PrivateMembers are provided with furnished offices in thelegislative complex in Fredericton.

Funding is provided for Members’ support staff in theirFredericton office. Members of each political partycombine this funding to obtain and share research,secretarial and receptionist personnel.

The staff of each office provides primary and secondaryresearch support with respect to topics and issues ofinterest to the Members. The Office helps handle corre-spondence relating to Members’ legislative and publicduties and provides many other support functions.

Office of Government MembersThis Office consists of a chief of staff, an office manager,a director of communications, a senior researcher, aresearcher, two secretaries and a receptionist.

Office of the Official OppositionThis Office consists of a chief of staff, an office manager,a director of communications, a communications officer,a senior researcher, a researcher, and two secretary /receptionists.

Office of the New Democratic MemberThis Office consists of an executive assistant to theLeader and a research assistant.

Debates TranslationComeau, Georges. Listing of Definitions in Legislation,

1993- (on disk only) / Recueil de définitionslégislatives, 1993- (sur disquette seulement)

LeBlanc, Valmond. Directory of New Brunswick andNational Organizations. [Online in PDF, regularlyupdated] 1979- <http://www.gnb.ca/legis/publications/publications-e.asp>

LeBlanc, Valmond. Parliamentary Stylebook. [Online inPDF, regularly updated] 2001- <http://www.gnb.ca/legis/publications/publications-e.asp> /

Sauvageau, Alain. Parliamentary Translation Forms,1995- (on disk only) /Formules pour la traductionparlementaire, 1995- (sur disquette seulement)

HansardJournal of Debates (Hansard). 2000-01, Third Session of

the Fifty-fourth Legislative Assembly, dailies 24, 31 to53, 57; 2001-02, Fourth Session of the Fifty-fourthLegislative Assembly, dailies 2, 30; 2002-03, FifthSession of the Fifty-fourth Legislative Assembly,dailies 1, 3, 15

Office of the ClerkLegislative Activities 2002Employee Handbook Legislative Assembly of New

Brunswick 1998Journal of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of

New Brunswick, Fifth Session, Fifty-fourthLegislature, 2002-2003 (Unrevised, 68 issues); First

Session, Fifty-Fifth Legislature (Unrevised, 16 issues)Order and Notice Paper, November 19, 2002-April 11, 68

issues; July 29, 2003-December 19, 2003, 16 issues*Orientation Manual 2003Seating Arrangement, First Session, 55th LegislatureStatus of Legislation Introduced during the Fifth Session

of the Fifty-fourth Legislative Assembly*Status of Legislation Introduced during the First Session

of the Fifty-fifth Legislative Assembly*Legislative Reports, Canadian Parliamentary Review,

2003

The Clerk’s Office serves as a repository for hard copyversions of annual reports, discussion papers, committeereports, Bills, motions and documents filed in responsethereto, amendments, and Journals of the House.

Legislative LibraryThe Development of the New Brunswick Legislative

Library, 1841 - 1991Elections in New Brunswick, 1784-1984Index to the Private Acts of New Brunswick, 1929-2003*New Brunswick Government Documents Annual

Catalogue*New Brunswick Legislative Library Handbook, 1999.Periodicals Contents (monthly) Selected Accessions (quarterly)*

* Available on the Internet only.

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TributesMargaret AndersonOn December 9, 2003, Leader of the OppositionShawn Graham paid tribute to Senator MargaretAnderson from Miramichi who passed awayDecember 8, 2003:

Ms. Anderson was appointed to the Senate Chamberin 1978, to the senatorial division ofNorthumberland-Miramichi, by Rt. Hon. PierreElliott Trudeau. Ms. Anderson retired from theUpper Chamber in 1990.

Ms. Anderson gave freely of her time to variouscommunity organizations and served as President ofthe New Brunswick Women’s Liberal Associationfrom 1972 to 1976. She was a successfulbusinessperson, working closely for years with herfather in the family business in Newcastle. Herfather was the late William Stafford Anderson, aformer Cabinet minister in the McNair government.

Maurice DionneOn December 9, 2003, Mr. Graham paid tribute to thememory of Maurice Dionne, a Liberal MP who diedNovember 17. He was first elected to represent theNorthumberland-Miramichi riding in 1974, andreelected in 1979, and in 1980. He served until 1984.He was reelected in 1988 and served until 1993.

His work with the Alzheimer Society and hisappearance on television brought greater awarenessof a disease that affects 6,600 New Brunswickersand their families. He leaves a great legacy as aneducator, as an elected representative, and as anactivist.

John MooneyOn April 1, 2003, Mr. Lee, MLA for Charlotte, paidtribute to former MLA John Mooney, who diedMarch 29, 2003:

Mr. Mooney was the last Liberal to hold theprovincial riding of Saint John South, now SaintJohn Harbour. A professional engineer with deepfamily roots in Saint John, Mr. Mooney served twoterms as a Member of the Legislative Assembly. Hefirst went to Fredericton from 1974 to 1978, whenthe Liberals were in opposition, and he wasreelected during the Liberal sweep of the provinceunder Frank McKenna in 1987.

Mr. Mooney was committed to public service from ayoung age, when he served as President of the SaintJohn Young Liberals Association. He held manypositions within the Liberal Party and was acandidate for the leadership in 1978.

Charles VanHorneOn December 9, Premier Bernard Lord extendedcondolences on the passing in August of formerConservative Party leader, MP, and MLA J.C.(Charlie) Van Horne of Campbellton:

Charlie Van Horne lent his energies to buildingCampbellton and the Restigouche region, to helpmake it prosper. This unique man worked hard topromote the province and to create a brightereconomic outlook for the Restigouche area.

Mr. Speaker, in the 1950s and 60s, Charlie lobbiedgovernment to build a bridge to connectCampbellton with the Québec communities acrossthe Restigouche River. That bridge is known to allas the J.C. Van Horne interprovincial bridge.[Translation]

As tourism minister under the late premier RichardHatfield, he was instrumental in developing severalinitiatives in the province, including Sugarloaf skihill in Atholville. [Translation]

As a politician, Charlie Van Horne left a legacy ofboldness in the face of adversity. He was neverafraid of challenging complacency and standingalone if that was necessary to what he believed wasright.

Wlliam James WoodroffeOn September 30, Premier Lord noted the passing offormer PC Member and Speaker, WilliamWoodroffe:

Bill Woodroffe had a long career in public life,beginning on the Parish Council for Simonds Parishin 1965, and later on Saint John Common Councilafter almalgamation. He was first elected to theLegislative Assembly in 1967 and served as Memberfor Saint John-Fundy for three terms. He waselected Speaker of the Legislature in March 1973and served until he retired in 1978.

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