Heritage Railway Stations Protection Act

An Act to protect heritage railway stations Short title This Act may be cited as the Heritage Railway Stations Protection Act. Interpretation In this Act, alter means to change in any manner and includes to restore, renovate or repair; (modifier) Board means the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada established by section 4 of the Historic Sites and Monuments Act; (Commission) heritage feature means any feature of a heritage railway station designated by the Minister on the recommendation of the Board as a heritage feature; (caractéristique patrimoniale) heritage railway station means any railway station designated by the Minister on the recommendation of the Board as a heritage railway station; (gare ferroviaire patrimoniale) Minister means the Minister responsible for the Parks Canada Agency; (ministre) prescribed means prescribed by regulation of the Governor in Council. (Version anglaise seulement) Part III of the Canada Transportation Act Unless otherwise provided, words and expressions used in this Act have the same meaning as in Part III of the Canada Transportation Act. Application This Act applies to railway companies to which Part III of the Canada Transportation Act applies. Designation of stations The Minister may, on the recommendation of the Board, designate railway stations as heritage railway stations for the purposes of this Act; and features of heritage railway stations as heritage features for the purposes of this Act. Prohibition Unless authorized by the Governor in Council, no railway company shall remove, destroy or alter or sell, assign, transfer or otherwise dispose of a heritage railway station owned by it or otherwise under its control; or alter any of the heritage features of a heritage railway station referred to in paragraph (a). Offence and punishment Any railway company that contravenes subsection (1) is guilty of an offence and liable to a fine of not less than fifty thousand dollars and not more than one million dollars. Exception Subsection (1) does not apply in respect of the alteration of a heritage railway station or of any of the station’s heritage features where the alteration is made in response to an emergency situation. Idem Subsection (1) does not apply in respect of the sale, assignment, transfer or other disposition of a heritage railway station to a railway company. Application for authorization A railway company that plans to remove, destroy or alter or to sell, assign, transfer or otherwise dispose of a heritage railway station owned by it or otherwise under its control, or to alter any of the heritage features of a heritage railway station referred to in paragraph (a) shall file an application for authorization to do so with the Minister in accordance with the regulations after having given public notice in the prescribed manner of its intention to file such an application. Notice of objection A person who objects to an application for authorization filed pursuant to section 6 may, within sixty days after the application is filed, serve on the Minister a notice of objection in the form established by the Minister setting out the reason for the objection and any relevant facts. Hearing and report Where a notice of objection is served in accordance with subsection (1), the Minister may, within sixty days after the notice is served, refer the matter to the Board. Duties of the Board Pursuant to a reference by the Minister under this section, the Board shall give all interested persons a reasonable opportunity to make representations to it and may hold a public meeting to determine whether the Minister should recommend that the Governor in Council grant the application for authorization filed pursuant to section 6. Representations to the Board Notice of any public meeting held under this section shall be published at least ten days prior to the date of the public meeting in at least one newspaper of general circulation in the municipality in which the heritage railway station is situated. Quorum For the purposes of a reference under this section, one member of the Board constitutes a quorum. Report After the conclusion of the Board’s consideration of an application and in any event within six months after the application is filed, the Board shall submit to the Minister a report setting out its findings of fact and its recommendations as well as any information or knowledge that entered into the formulation of its recommendations. Recommendations to the Governor in Council After the receipt of the report referred to in subsection (6), the Minister may recommend that the Governor in Council grant the application for authorization. Authorization The Governor in Council may, on the recommendation of the Minister and on such terms and conditions as the Governor in Council considers appropriate, authorize a railway company to remove, destroy or alter or to sell, assign, transfer or otherwise dispose of a heritage railway station owned by it or otherwise under its control; or to alter any of the heritage features of a heritage railway station referred to in paragraph (a). The authorization referred to in subsection (1) is required in addition to and not in substitution for any other authorization or approval required by law. Regulations The Governor in Council may make regulations for carrying out the purposes and provisions of this Act and, without restricting the generality of the foregoing, may make regulations prescribing anything that by virtue of this Act may be prescribed by regulation. Coming into force This Act or any provision thereof shall come into force on a day or days to be fixed by order of the Governor in Council. [Note: Act in force August 15, 1990, see SI/90-100.]