Bill S-202 explained in plain English
An Act respecting commercial electronic messages
Federal Parliament bill summary, status, timeline, sponsor, votes, and official sources.
At a glance
Official Parliament of Canada snapshot for 40th Parliament, 1st Session. MP vote breakdowns appear when the House of Commons publishes a recorded division export for that bill. Senate and House stage details include official debate/sitting links when LEGISinfo publishes them.
Our plain-language take, written for civic education.
Source: By PoliticalData.ca
Bill S-202 would prohibit sending commercial electronic messages (spam) without recipient consent and establish penalties for violations including address harvesting, phishing, and dictionary attacks.
Bill S-202, titled the Anti-Spam Act, would regulate commercial electronic messages in Canada. The bill would make it illegal to send commercial emails, text messages, or instant messages advertising products, services, or business opportunities without the recipient's consent. The bill establishes several key rules. First, commercial electronic messages must clearly identify the sender, include accurate header information, and provide easy contact details. Messages must have a truthful subject line and include a working unsubscribe button that recipients can use for 30 days after receiving the message at no cost. Certain organizations would be exempt from consent requirements, including political parties, registered charities, non-profit groups, educational institutions (when messaging current or former students), and people with existing business relationships with the recipient. The bill would also ban specific harmful practices: collecting email addresses automatically using harvesting software, sending messages to addresses created by combining random letters and numbers (dictionary attacks), and creating fake websites to trick people into sharing personal information (phishing). The bill imposes a legal obligation on people who benefit financially from spam advertising their business to take reasonable steps to prevent it and report violations to law enforcement. The bill creates criminal offences with significant penalties. Non-individuals (corporations) face fines up to $500,000 for a first offence and $1,500,000 for repeat offences. Individuals face fines and imprisonment: up to $500,000 and two years in prison for a first offence, and up to $1,500,000 and five years for subsequent offences. The bill would also allow people harmed by spam to sue in court for damages, including compensation for financial losses and punitive damages. Telecommunications service providers could refuse service to spammers or block spam messages. The bill would come into force 30 days after receiving royal assent.
- This draft was normalized from a partial local-model response and must be reviewed before publication.
Generated using AI from official bill text. Not legal advice. It is written by PoliticalData.ca for civic education, automatically checked and spot-reviewed before publishing.
Official textParliamentary Process
Bill S-202, concerning commercial electronic messages, completed its first reading in the Senate and subsequently proceeded to second reading.
Bill S-202, an Act respecting commercial electronic messages, completed its first reading in the Senate on November 20, 2008. The bill was later at second reading in the Senate, with a debate occurring on November 25, 2008, including a speech from the sponsor, Yoine Goldstein.
On November 20, 2008, the Senate formally introduced Bill S-202, an Act respecting commercial electronic messages, during its first reading as part of a broader sitting that included other procedural business and debates.
On November 20, 2008, the Senate held its first reading of Bill S-202, an Act respecting commercial electronic messages. This artifact records the procedural step of introducing the bill and the subsequent debate and proceedings of the day. The sitting included a silent tribute to fallen soldiers, welcoming of visitors, senators' statements on various topics including the Golden Jubilee of His Highness the Aga Khan and National Child Day, routine proceedings where several bills were introduced (including Bill S-202), question period discussions on the economic downturn, seniors' issues, public service wage negotiations, and the accountability of the Parliamentary Budget Officer, and motions regarding Senate sittings and committee work. The text does not detail the content of Bill S-202 itself, beyond its title and its introduction at first reading.
Bill S-202, An Act respecting commercial electronic messages, was undergoing debate at second reading in the Senate on November 25, 2008, following its first reading earlier that week.
This artifact describes the status of Bill S-202, "An Act respecting commercial electronic messages," in the Canadian Senate. As of November 25, 2008, the bill was at the second reading stage in the Senate. The Senate had its first reading on November 20, 2008, and began debate at second reading on November 25, 2008. A major speech by Senator Yoine Goldstein (Liberal) was delivered on that date. The stage was not completed. The artifact also notes a similar bill, S-235, called the "Anti-Spam Act," was introduced in a previous Parliament.
On November 25, 2008, the Senate debated the second reading of Bill S-202 concerning commercial electronic messages, with the debate adjourned.
The Senate sat on November 25, 2008. The sitting included Senator Statements on various topics, Routine Proceedings, Question Period concerning the economy, and Orders of the Day. The Orders of the Day included several debates that were adjourned, including the second reading of Bill S-202, An Act respecting commercial electronic messages. The debate on Bill S-202 focused on the issue of spam and unsolicited commercial electronic messages, with the sponsor of the bill highlighting the prevalence and negative impacts of spam and proposing an "opt-in" approach to regulation, similar to Australia's model, and introducing strict penalties. Other debates adjourned included bills concerning bankruptcy and insolvency, the Library and Archives of Canada Act (National Portrait Gallery), amendments to the Constitution Act, 1867 regarding property qualifications for Senators, and World Autism Awareness Day.
During the Senate's second reading debate on Bill S-202, the sponsor introduced the legislation, explaining its aim to combat spam by requiring consent for commercial electronic messages and detailing the associated problems and proposed solutions.
This record details a debate in the Senate on November 25, 2008. The primary focus of the provided text related to Bill S-202, "An Act respecting commercial electronic messages," is the sponsor's speech introducing the bill at its second reading. The sponsor explained the bill's purpose and how it aims to combat spam by requiring consent before sending commercial electronic messages, drawing parallels to legislation in other countries like Australia and highlighting the issues with the "opt-out" approach used in the United States. The speech also detailed the significant costs and risks associated with spam, including financial losses from fraud and reduced productivity. It outlined proposed penalties and provisions for Internet service providers. Other Senate business, including statements, routine proceedings, and debates on other bills, also occurred on this date.
We don't have a plain-language summary for Third reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
We don't have a plain-language summary for First reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
We don't have a plain-language summary for Second reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
We don't have a plain-language summary for Consideration in committee yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
We don't have a plain-language summary for Report stage yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
We don't have a plain-language summary for Third reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
Debate and sitting links point to official parliamentary sources when LEGISinfo publishes them. Any plain-language discussion summaries should be generated from those official texts and reviewed before public display.
Vote Summary
This bill is still active. We only show vote counts after the legislature publishes a recorded division.
No published representative vote breakdown
This bill is still moving through the process. When a recorded division is published, representative positions can be listed here.
Official sources
Status, sponsor, votes, and timeline on this page are drawn from these official legislative sources and public records. Each summary above is attributed to its own source.
How this data is sourced