Bill C-3 explained in plain English

Bill C-3 enacts the Aviation Industry Indemnity Act to allow the Minister of Transport to compensate aviation industry participants for losses from war-related events, and amends several marine and aviation statutes to implement the international 2010 Hazardous and Noxious Substances Convention.

Bill C-3 makes changes to Canadian aviation and marine law in two main areas. First, it creates the Aviation Industry Indemnity Act. This new law allows the Minister of Transport to compensate certain aviation industry participants—including air carriers, NAV CANADA, airport operators, and suppliers who support aircraft—for losses caused by "war risks" events. War risks include acts of terrorism, unlawful interference with aircraft or airports, and losses arising during armed conflict or civil unrest. The Minister can provide indemnification (compensation) only for losses that are not covered by insurance or other indemnification. The compensation does not apply to losses consisting solely of lost income. The Minister must set conditions on any indemnification undertaking, including which events are covered, what types of losses are covered, maximum payment amounts, and minimum insurance requirements. These undertakings must be published in the Canada Gazette within 23 days. If an aviation participant experiences a loss from a covered event, they must notify the Minister within two years. The Minister then decides whether the claim qualifies for compensation. The Crown gains the right to recover from the participant's insurance or other sources up to the amount it has paid. Every two years, the Minister must review whether insurance for war-related aviation losses is available in the market and report findings to Parliament. Second, Bill C-3 amends several marine-related laws to implement Canada's adoption of the 2010 Hazardous and Noxious Substances (HNS) Convention. This international agreement sets rules for compensating people and the environment harmed by spills or leaks of hazardous or noxious substances carried by ship. The amendments establish a liability system where ship owners are responsible for damage caused by HNS cargo during transport at sea. Ship owners have limited legal defenses—they cannot avoid liability by claiming an act of war, a third party's intentional action, government negligence, or incorrect information from cargo shippers. The owner's liability is capped at different amounts depending on the ship's size and the type of cargo being carried, ranging from 10 to 115 million units of account. When an owner's liability is not enough or the owner cannot pay, an international HNS Fund provides additional compensation, up to a maximum of 250 million units per incident. The Fund is supported by contributions from companies that receive hazardous cargo shipments exceeding certain quantity thresholds. The bill amends the Aeronautics Act, the Canada Marine Act, the Marine Liability Act, and the Canada Shipping Act, 2001 to add provisions supporting this regime, including requirements for ship owners to carry insurance certificates proving they can cover their liability. The bill also makes changes to update references in the Marine and Aviation War Risks Act (now called the Marine War Risks Act, since aviation provisions are removed) and makes minor amendments to the National Defence Act and the Access to Information Act.

A legislative summary is currently being prepared for this bill by the Parliamentary Information and Research Service of the Library of Parliament. Meanwhile, the following executive summary is available. On 18 October 2013, the Minister of Transport introduced Bill C-3, An Act to enact the Aviation Industry Indemnity Act, to amend the Aeronautics Act, the Canada Marine Act, the Marine Liability Act and the Canada Shipping Act, 2001 and to make consequential amendments to other Acts (Safeguarding Canada’s Seas and Skies Act), in the House of Commons and it was given first reading. Part 1 of Bill C-3 enacts the Aviation Industry Indemnity Act, which authorizes the Minister of Transport to undertake to indemnify certain aviation industry participants for loss, damage or liability caused by events that are commonly referred to in the insurance industry as “war risks”. The Minister may undertake to indemnify all aviation industry participants, or may specify that an undertaking applies only to specific participants or classes of participant or applies only in specific circumstances. The Act also requires that the Minister, at least once every two years, assess whether it is feasible for aviation industry participants to obtain insurance coverage for events or other similar coverage, and that the Minister report regularly to Parliament on his or her activities under the Act. Part 1 also makes consequential amendments to other Acts. Part 2 amends the Aeronautics Act to provide certain persons with powers to investigate aviation accidents or incidents involving civilians and aircraft or aeronautical installations operated by or on behalf of the Department of National Defence, the Canadian Forces or a visiting force. It also establishes privilege in respect of on-board recordings, communication records and certain statements, and permits, among other things, access to an on-board recording if certain criteria are met. Finally, it makes consequential amendments to other Acts. Part 3 amends the Canada Marine Act in relation to the effective day of the appointment of a director of a port authority. Part 4 amends the Marine Liability Act to implement the International Convention on Liability and Compensation for Damage in Connection with the Carriage of Hazardous and Noxious Substances by Sea, 2010. Among other things, it gives force of law to many provisions of the Convention, clarifies the liability of the Ship-source Oil Pollution Fund with respect to the Convention and confers powers, duties and functions on the Fund’s Administrator. Part 5 amends the Canada Shipping Act, 2001 to introduce new requirements for operators of oil handling facilities, including the requirement to notify the Minister of their operations and to submit plans to the Minister. It extends civil and criminal immunity to the agents or mandataries of response organizations engaged in response operations. It also introduces new enforcement measures for Part 8 of the Act, including by applying the administrative monetary penalties regime contained in Part 11 of that Act to Part 8.