BILL NO. 248
(as introduced)
2nd Session, 63rd General Assembly
Nova Scotia
69 Elizabeth II, 2020
Private Member's Bill
House of Assembly Act
(amended)
Claudia Chender
Dartmouth South
First Reading: March 5, 2020
Second Reading:
Third Reading:
Explanatory Note
This Bill sets out the days and hours when the House of Assembly must sit.
An Act to Amend Chapter 1
(1992 Supplement)
of the Revised Statutes, 1989,
the House of Assembly Act,
to Provide for Scheduled Sittings
of the House of Assembly
Be it enacted by the Governor and Assembly as follows:
1 Chapter 1 (1992 Supplement) of the Revised Statutes, 1989, the House of Assembly Act, is amended by adding immediately after Section 8 the following Sections:
- 8A (1) Unless otherwise directed by the Speaker when issuing notice of the reconvening of the House but subject to subsection 8(2), there must be a sitting of the House
(a) from the second Tuesday in February to the last Thursday in May, inclusive; and
(b) from the first Tuesday in October to the last Thursday in November, inclusive.
(2) Nothing in subsection (1) prevents the House from
(a) sitting at a time in addition to the periods set out in subsection (1); or
(b) adjourning the House before the end of the periods set out in subsection (1).
(3) Before any sitting ends, the Government House Leader or the Leader's substitute shall inform the House of the approximate day that the House will reconvene.
(4) As soon as possible in each year, the Chief Clerk of the House shall publish a calendar that shows the days on which the House is scheduled or anticipated to sit.
(5) Where the House stands adjourned for a period of ten sitting days or more, notice of the commencement of the House thereafter must be given by the Speaker to the members of the House at least thirty days prior to such commencement to the address on file at the Office of the Speaker for that Member.
8B (1) The time for the ordinary meeting of the House is at one o'clock in the afternoon on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday and at nine o'clock in the morning on Friday.
(2) The time for the ordinary adjournment of the House is at six o'clock in the afternoon on Tuesday and Thursday, thirty minutes after five o'clock in the afternoon on Wednesday and one o'clock in the afternoon on Friday.
(a) on New Year's Day, Good Friday, Easter Sunday, Easter Monday, Victoria Day, Canada Day, Labour Day, Thanksgiving Day, Remembrance Day, Christmas Day, Boxing Day, a Saturday, a Sunday or, unless the House otherwise determines, a Monday; or
(b) during the week in each year customarily observed by the schools at the seat of the Legislature as the "March Break" in accordance with a determination made by the Minister of Education and Early Childhood Development.
(4) Where the House meets on a Monday, the order of business of the House is as provided by the rules of the House.
(5) Notwithstanding subsections (1) and (2), the time for the meeting of the House, the time for the adjournment of the House and the maximum number of hours the House may sit during a day may be determined by the House by majority vote on the motion of the Government House Leader or the Leader's substitute.
(6) A notice of motion under subsection (5)
(a) does not require a notice of motion;
(b) is not amendable or debatable; and
(c) except by unanimous consent, may not be made during the first two months of the sitting referred to in clause 8A(1)(a) or the first month of the sitting referred to in clause 8A(1)(b).
2 For greater certainty, where there is a conflict between this Act and the Rules and Forms of Procedure of the House of Assembly, this Act prevails.
This page and its contents published by the Office of the Legislative Counsel, Nova Scotia House of Assembly, and © 2020 Crown in right of Nova Scotia. Created March 5, 2020. Send comments to legc.office@novascotia.ca.
