Energy and Mines News:

November Natural Gas Rights
Sales Nearly $20 Million
The November 2009 land rights sale resulted in nearly $20 million in bonus bids, bringing the calendar year to date total to $720.6 million. See the News Release.

Family, Wills and Estates News:

Recognizing The Rights Of Foster Parents
The rights and entitlements of Foster Parents have been clarified and enshrined in a document recently signed by the Minister of Children and Family Development and the B.C. Federation of Foster Parent Associations (BCFFPA). The Foster Parent Rights document defines the entitlements and expectations of foster parents and recognizes their commitment, skills and contribution to vulnerable children and families in British Columbia. See the News Release.

B.C. Estate Law Stops The Dead From Stiffing Ungrateful Kids
People might still believe it's their estate and they'll leave it to whom they please, but the law in B.C. says otherwise if you try to stiff your wife or kid. There was talk of changing the unique way the province handles estate litigation as part of the latest omnibus amendments to our archaic death laws, but it went nowhere. Unlike some other jurisdictions, the century-old law we use for estate litigation comes from New Zealand rather than England. New Zealand was the first common law jurisdiction to seriously question and rein in the right to leave your estate to whom you pleased on the basis that the family had a right to be protected. See the News Story as posted by the Vancouver Sun.

Saying "I Do" Can Impact Your Will
In British Columbia today, many couples choose to live in a common law relationship, without legally marrying. They often refer to one another as his or her "spouse", and there are not many practical differences between a couple who is legally married and one who cohabits in a common law relationship. However, there can be significant legal differences, as shown by the recent case of the British Columbia Supreme Court, MacLean Estate 2009 BCSC 1159. See the Full Article as published by Amy Mortimore at Clark Wilson.

Forest and Environment News:

B.C. Adopts New Greenhouse Gas Threshold
B.C. will roll out new regulations next year that will require all entities emitting more than 10,000 tonnes of greenhouse gases annually to publicly report their emissions. Environment Minister Barry Penner says the move gives the province the lowest emissions threshold in Canada. About 200 B.C. facilities will be required to report annually under the new regulation, which goes into effect Jan. 1, 2010. See the News Story as reported by the CBC, or the News Release.

B.C. Judge To Head Probe Into
Salmon Stock Collapse
British Columbia Supreme Court Justice Bruce Cohen will chair a federal commission of inquiry into the collapse of Fraser River sockeye salmon runs, Trade Minister Stockwell Day announced this month. This past summer the Department of Fisheries and Oceans closed the Fraser to commercial fishing for the third consecutive year after DFO predictions of a sockeye run exceeding 10 million fish failed to materialize. Only a vestigial run of about a million fish migrated back to the river to spawn. See the Full Story as reported by the National Post.

New Regulation For Exotic
Animal Ownership
B.C. residents who own an exotic animal, or are thinking of purchasing one, are remnided that they should be applying for a permit in order to keep that animal. New regulations and permit application requirements come into effect on April 1, 2010 to regulate the ownership of the most dangerous exotic animals such as: tigers, lions, venomous and poisonous snakes and other large reptiles. See the Information Bulletin.

Climategate - Has the Science
been Compromised?
News recently broke that a hacker had broken in to the computer systems used by the Climatic Research Unit (CRU) of the University of East Anglia in Britain, obtaining more than 1,000 e-mails and 3,000 documents. The material, which covers a period of more than a decade, has led many to conclude that climate scientists associated with the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and various government agencies have been cooking the books to make the case for man-made global warming. See the Full Story as posted by the National Post.

B.C. Not Cutting Export Wood
To Lengths That The Chinese Prefer
British Columbia has only a small slice of the growing Chinese lumber market because most forest companies are shipping lumber cut to North American — not Chinese — specifications. Distributors, sawmillers and lumber remanufacturers alike say they love Canadian wood and would buy even more of it if they could get it in the lengths they prefer. See the Full Story as posted by Vancouver Sun.

Health News:

Audit of Private Medical Clinic Portends Likely
Legal Showdown - Order from B.C. Supreme Court
could have national consequences for
health-care system
A leading proponent of private health care says he is actually counting on a court-ordered audit of his B.C. surgery clinics to confirm he is violating provincial law by charging patients extra fees for publicly funded medical services. The audit by the Medical Services Commission – which his clinics have resisted for years – will pave the way for a legal showdown over the place of private medical clinics in the publicly funded health-care system in Canada. Last week, the B.C. Supreme Court ordered the clinics to submit to an audit as part of a larger legal case that started its journey through the courts in 2005. The original action was launched by the B.C. Nurses' Union, which challenged the provincial government to enforce the B.C. Medicare Protection Act, but it has since morphed into a constitutional battle about the validity of that law. See the Full Story as posted by the Globe and Mail.

B.C. Backs Tough Liquor-Law Penalties
The B.C. government says it supports stiffer penalties for those who violate provincial liquor laws, as recommended in the City of Victoria's Late Night Task Force report. The province is already working on changes that would hike fines under the Liquor Control and Licensing Act, said Rich Coleman, Minister of Housing and Social Development, who controls liquor licensing and enforcement. See the Full Story as posted by the Times Colonist.

Labour and Company News:

Parliament takes 1st step to allow HST
The House of Commons has taken the first step to allow Ontario and British Columbia to harmonize the provincial sales tax and federal GST on products and services. In a 192-32 vote, the Conservatives, Liberals and Bloc Quebecois supported the ways and means motion amending the Excise Tax Act, one of the steps towards implementing the Harmonized Sales Tax. The HST bill itself is expected to be introduced shortly. Quite a few MPs were absent for the vote, and British Columbia's Liberal MPs appear to be split on whether to support the HST. B.C. MP Keith Martin has said he is trying to convince his party's leadership that MPs who are against the HST bill should not be forced to vote in support of it. See the News Story as posted by CBCNews.

Consumer Taxation Branch
BC Comprehensive Integrated Tax Coordination Agreement
The Province and the federal government have signed an agreement on the implementation of HST in British Columbia. The Comprehensive Integrated Tax Coordination Agreement (CITCA) contains the terms and conditions under which B.C. will participate in the HST with the federal government. For the latest Bulletins from the Consumer Taxation Branch, see What's New.

Local Government News:

Municipal Election Reform Long Overdue,
But Timely Change Unlikely
More than a month after Premier Gordon Campbell announced that a task force would be formed to make recommendations for modernizing and improving municipal election rules by May 30, 2010, nothing has been done. See the Full Story as posted by Vancouver Sun.

Municipalities Receive $15.9 Million In Lieu Of Taxes
The Province, through the Ministry of Citizens’ Services, is providing $15.9 million to 63 B.C. municipalities as grants-in-lieu of property taxes for 2009, announced Minister Ben Stewart. In the past, it was the practice that one level of government did not tax the property of another level of government. However, beginning in the 1960s, the Province began to recognize its responsibility to compensate municipalities for local services that benefited these properties, such as roads, sewers and fire protection. See the News Release.

Chains Required by Commercial Vehicles
October 1 to April 30
A reminder that all commercial vehicles traveling outside Vancouver Island and Lower Mainland are required to carry chains. The CVSE released a map highlighting specific chain-up locations throughout BC. See the Map.

Postponement of Axle Weight Reduction
CVSE recently posted a circular to indicate the postponement of Axle Weight Reduction for Tridem Hayrack Semi-trailers, Tridem Pole Trailers, and Triaxle Trailers Hauling Green Felled or Bucked Logs or Poles until December 31, 2010. See the Official CVSE circular.

Real Estate and Builders Lien News:

BC Home Sales Rocket
The B.C. real estate market continued to heat up in October, with sales and prices rising dramatically from 2008. Home sales across the province climbed 115 per cent to 8,624 units in October, compared with the same month last year, according to figures released by the B.C. Real Estate Association. See the News Story as posted by CBCNews.

B.C. hikes HST New Housing Rebate Eligibility
The B.C. government is raising the maximum value for new homes that will get a rebate on the provincial portion of the coming HST. Under the proposed changes the threshold for the new housing rebate on the harmonized sales tax will increase to $525,000 from $400,000. See the News Story as posted by CBCNews.