2.61 Demolition of
buildings
2.62 Capitalized
assets and equipment
2.7 Capital
development project
2.71 Transfer of
property
2.8 Ancillary
operations
2.9 Surplus and
deficit
2.91 Charitable
annuities
2.92 Organizational
meeting
3 Closed meetings
4 Minutes of
meetings
6 Exemption re
Land Titles fees
7 Auditor
8 Terms and
conditions
9 Compliance with
directives
Definitions
1 In this Regulation,
(a) “directive”
means a written policy, rule, direction or guideline issued by the Minister;
(a.1) “foundation”
means
(i) a foundation established or continued under the Regional
Health Authorities Foundations Regulation (Alta. Reg. 16/95),
(ii) a foundation established under the Health Foundations Act, and
(iii) the Alberta Cancer Foundation, Alberta Children’s Hospital
Foundation, Alberta Hospital Edmonton Foundation, Foothills Hospital
Foundation, and The Royal Alexandra Hospitals Foundation and any corporation
exempted under section 58 of the Hospitals Act;
(b) “joint venture agreement” means an agreement
for a specific business purpose where the parties to the agreement jointly
control and contribute to the accomplishment of the business purpose.
AR 15/95
s1;167/95;275/96;275/96;127/2002
Fiscal year
1.1 The fiscal year of a regional
health authority is from April 1 to March 31.
AR 167/95 s2
By‑laws
2(1) A
regional health authority may make by‑laws respecting the conduct of the
business and affairs of the regional health authority including, without
limitation, by‑laws respecting the following:
(a) the
calling of meetings of the members and the conduct of business at those
meetings;
(b) the
functions, powers and duties of the officers of the regional health authority;
(c) the
appointment, removal, functions, powers, duties, remuneration and benefits of
employees of the regional health authority;
(d) the
establishment, membership, duties and functions of special, standing and other
committees.
(2) A
regional health authority shall, on or before September 30, 1995 make by‑laws
respecting debt, guarantees, indemnities and capital leasing by the regional
health authority, and those by‑laws must contain at least the following:
(a) the
maximum total amount of outstanding debt obligations, guarantee obligations,
indemnity obligations and capital lease obligations that the regional health
authority is permitted to incur, with separate totals shown for
(i) with respect to capital asset purposes,
(A) the maximum permitted debt obligations, and
(B) the maximum permitted capital leasing
obligations,
(ii) with respect to working capital purposes,
(A) the maximum permitted debt obligations, and
(B) the maximum permitted debt available through
lines of credit,
and
(iii) the maximum potential liability that may be incurred through
guarantees and indemnities;
(b) terms
and conditions respecting debt transactions, guarantee transactions, indemnity
transactions and capital leasing transactions between the regional health
authority and persons and entities in respect of which it is not dealing at
arm’s length;
(c) the
disclosure requirements in respect of transactions referred to in clause (b);
(d) the
means by which and the time within which the regional health authority will
bring itself into compliance with the requirements of the by‑laws and
this Regulation respecting debt, guarantees, indemnities and capital leasing, where
the regional health authority is not in compliance with those requirements on
the effective date of those by‑laws;
(e) any
other information specified by the Minister by notice in writing to the
regional health authority.
(3) Repealed AR 190/96 s2.
(4) A
regional health authority shall, on or before September 30, 1995, make by‑laws
respecting the investment powers of the regional health authority, and those by‑laws
must contain at least the following:
(a) a
list of the types of investments that the regional health authority is
authorized to invest in;
(b) limits
on the amounts that may be invested in particular types of investments;
(c) terms
and conditions respecting investment transactions with persons and entities in
respect of which the regional health authority is not dealing at arm’s length;
(d) disclosure
requirements in respect of transactions referred to in clause (c);
(e) the
means by which and the time within which the regional health authority will
bring itself into compliance with the requirements of the by‑laws and
this Regulation respecting investments, where the regional health authority is
not in compliance with those requirements on the effective date of those by‑laws;
(f) any
other information specified by the Minister by notice in writing to the
regional health authority.
(5) No
by‑laws under this section, and no amendment to or replacement of them,
are effective until they have been approved by the Minister.
(6) Where
the Minister receives by‑laws for approval, the Minister may
(a) approve
the by‑laws as submitted, or
(b) refer
the by‑laws back to the regional health authority with directions to make
changes.
(7) The
Minister may by directive order a regional health authority to amend or repeal
its by‑laws in accordance with the order.
(8) If
there is a conflict between the by‑laws and the Act, a regulation under
the Act or an enactment that is made applicable by a regulation under the Act,
then the Act, regulation or enactment prevails.
(9) A regional health authority shall comply with
its by‑laws under this section.
AR 15/95
s2;167/95;190/96
Resolution re
borrowing and capital leasing
2.1(1) Except for borrowing transactions made on a
line of credit, each transaction of a regional health authority relating to
debt, guarantees, indemnities or capital leasing must be approved by resolution
in advance of the transaction and recorded in the minutes of the meeting at
which the resolution was approved.
(2) The
minutes must contain the following:
(a) in
the case of a debt obligation, the maximum amount of money to be borrowed and
the purposes for which the money is to be borrowed;
(b) in
the case of an indemnity or guarantee,
(i) the maximum amount of the potential liability of the regional
health authority under the indemnity or guarantee,
(ii) the purpose for which the indemnity or guarantee is given, and
(iii) the terms and conditions of the indemnity or guarantee;
(c) in
the case of a capital leasing transaction, the purpose for entering into the
capital leasing transaction and the value of the assets that will be leased;
(d) the
terms and conditions of repayment of the debt obligation or the payment under
the capital leasing obligation;
(e) the
source of the money from which the debt obligation or the payments under the
capital leasing obligation will be paid;
(f) the
source of the money from which potential liability on indemnities and
guarantees will be paid;
(g) the nature of the involvement in the
transaction of any person or entity in respect of which the regional health
authority is not dealing at arm’s length.
AR 167/95 s2
Borrowing powers and
restrictions
2.2(1) No regional health authority shall borrow for
the purpose of financing the purchase of securities within the meaning of the Securities
Act.
(2) Repealed
AR 190/96 s2.
(3) Where
a regional health authority borrows for the purposes of acquiring or
constructing a capital asset, the repayment term of the loan must not exceed
the estimated useful life of the capital asset.
(4) Subsection
(3) does not apply to the acquisition of land without improvements.
(5) No
regional health authority shall borrow for the purpose of financing an
ancillary operation as defined in section 2.8 unless the following conditions
are met:
(a) the
estimated net revenue to be generated by the ancillary operation must be at
least equal to the amount to be repaid under the borrowing;
(b) no
property other than property wholly used or to be used in the ancillary
operation may be given as security for the repayment of the loan.
(6) Where
a regional health authority borrows in a foreign currency, it shall ensure that
the risk of exchange rate fluctuations for the payment of the principal and
interest amounts are offset or reduced in accordance with section 2.4(6), (7)
and (8).
(7) Where a regional health authority enters into a
transaction referred to in section 2.1(1) or establishes or amends a line of
credit it shall disclose to all parties to the transaction that the Crown is
not obligated to pay any debt obligations of the regional health authority
except where the Crown has specifically assumed such an obligation.
AR 167/95 s2;190/96
Resolution re
investment
2.3(1) Each investment decision of a regional health
authority must be approved or ratified by resolution and recorded in the
minutes of the meeting at which it was approved or ratified.
(2) Subsection
(1) does not apply to an investment referred to in section 2.4(11).
(3) The
minutes must contain the following:
(a) a
description of the investment;
(b) the
amount of money invested or to be invested and the purpose for which the money
is or is to be invested;
(c) the
terms and conditions of the investment;
(d) the nature of the involvement in the
investment transaction of any person or entity in respect of which the regional
health authority is not dealing at arm’s length.
AR 167/95 s2
Investment powers and
restrictions
2.4(1) A regional health authority shall adhere to
prudent investment standards in making investment decisions.
(2) For
the purposes of subsection (1) prudent investment standards are those that, in
the overall context of an investment portfolio, a reasonable and prudent person
would apply to investments made on behalf of another person with whom there
exists a fiduciary relationship to make such investments without undue risk of
loss or impairment and with a reasonable expectation of fair return or
appreciation.
(3) A
regional health authority may, with the approval of the Minister of Finance, be
a depositor in the Consolidated Cash Investment Trust Fund.
(4) A
regional health authority may invest in securities within the meaning of the Securities
Act.
(5) Where
a regional health authority invests in securities within the meaning of the Securities
Act, it may not hold beneficially, directly or indirectly, more than 5% of
the aggregate of the equity and debt of the entity in which the investment is
made.
(6) A
regional health authority may
(a) enter
into swap or forward contracts, and
(b) purchase
financial futures or options
only where the purpose
of the transaction is to offset or reduce the risk of exchange rate
fluctuations associated with the liabilities in respect of specific assets or
groups of assets to be acquired or that are owned or operated by the regional
health authority.
(7) A
transaction under subsection (6) must be approved by resolution in advance of
the transaction and recorded in the minutes of the meeting at which the
resolution was approved.
(8) A
regional health authority shall not enter into transactions referred to in
subsection (6) unless the person or entity with whom it conducts the
transaction has a debt rating that is at least equivalent to the debt rating
given to the Province of Alberta by an agency specified by the Minister for the
purpose.
(9) A
regional health authority that enters into transactions referred to in
subsection (6) shall establish policies and procedures to measure and monitor
the risks associated with such transactions.
(10) No
regional health authority shall engage in short selling of securities.
(11) A
regional health authority shall not invest funds that are required to meet
liabilities and operating requirements during the next 365 days in any
investment vehicle other than one or more of the following:
(a) interest‑bearing
accounts managed by a deposit‑taking institution in Canada;
(b) securities
that are issued or guaranteed by the Government of Canada or any province;
(c) securities
that are issued by a deposit‑taking institution in Canada;
(d) money
market mutual fund units where the investment policy of the fund ensures that
at least 90% of the assets of the fund consist of securities that are issued or
guaranteed by the Government of Canada or any province.
(12) The term of an investment vehicle under
subsection (11)(b), (c) or (d) shall not exceed one year.
AR 167/95 s2;27/2002
Other limitations
2.5(1) Subject to this section, no regional health
authority shall give an indemnity or guarantee with respect to the obligations
of another person.
(2) A
regional health authority may give an indemnity or guarantee with respect to
the obligations of a subsidiary health corporation of the regional health
authority.
(3) A
regional health authority shall ensure that its potential liability under an
indemnity or guarantee under subsection (2) does not exceed the lesser of
(a) the
value of the regional health authority’s equity investment in the subsidiary,
and
(b) an
amount determined by multiplying the regional health authority’s percentage
ownership of the subsidiary times the total debt obligations of the subsidiary.
(4) Section
124 of the Business Corporations Act applies in respect of a regional
health authority.
(5) A
regional health authority may indemnify its employees and former employees, and
for that purpose section 124 of the Business Corporations Act applies
and shall be interpreted as if references to directors and officers of the
corporation were references to employees of the regional health authority.
(6) Repealed AR 275/96 s3.
AR 167/95
s2;275/96;127/2002
Joint venture
agreement
2.51 A regional health authority
that enters into a joint venture agreement shall ensure that the regional
health authority’s financial commitment in the agreement is clearly specified
in the agreement or can be determined from the terms and conditions of the
agreement.
AR 167/95 s2
Acquisition and
disposal of land
2.6 No regional health authority shall
(a) enter
into an agreement for the purchase or lease of an interest in land, or
(b) dispose
of an interest in land
without the prior
written consent of the Minister.
AR 167/95 s2
Demolition of
buildings
2.61 No regional health authority shall
without the written consent of the Minister demolish
(a) a
health care facility, or
(b) another
structure used for health care purposes
that has a value in excess
of an amount specified by the Minister in a directive.
AR 167/95 s2
Capitalized assets
and equipment
2.62 Where a regional health authority
acquires or disposes of
(a) a
capitalized asset, other than an interest in land, or
(b) equipment,
it shall do so in
accordance with written policies and rules issued by the Minister for the
purpose and given to the regional health authority.
AR 167/95 s2
Capital development
project
2.7(1) No regional health authority shall without the
written consent of the Minister enter into a capital development project that
has a value in excess of an amount specified by the Minister in a directive.
(2) A regional health authority that enters into a
capital development project referred to in subsection (1) shall comply with
written policies and rules issued by the Minister for the purpose and given to
the regional health authority.
AR 167/95 s2
Transfer of property
2.71(1) Subject to this section, no regional health
authority shall confer a benefit on or transfer property, including money, to
any person unless the regional health authority receives fair value in exchange
for the benefit or transfer.
(2) Subject
to any directive, a regional health authority may make repayable advances to a
foundation.
(3) A
regional health authority may, subject to the regional health authority’s
taking all reasonable steps to ensure that existing trust conditions, if any,
are complied with, transfer any property received by means of a bequest,
donation or other gift to a foundation.
(4) Subject to any directive, a regional
health authority may provide a non‑monetary subsidy to a foundation if
the regional health authority expects to receive benefits from the foundation
that exceed the value of the non‑monetary subsidy.
(5) A regional health authority that provides a non‑monetary
subsidy to a foundation shall advise the foundation of the value of the subsidy
within 21 days after the end of the authority’s fiscal year.
AR 167/95 s2;275/96
Ancillary operations
2.8(1) In this section,
(a) “ancillary
operation” means the sale of goods and services that are unrelated to the
direct provision of health services for which a regional health authority is
responsible;
(b) “health
system participants” means
(i) persons in direct receipt of health services provided by the
regional health authority;
(ii) subsidiary health corporations, persons or entities with whom the
regional health authority has a joint venture agreement and community health
councils;
(iii) health service providers;
(iv) other persons or entities as determined by the Minister.
(2) The
Minister shall notify regional health authorities in writing of any persons or
entities the Minister determines to be health system participants under
subsection (1)(b)(iv).
(3) A
regional health authority may engage in an ancillary operation itself or
through a subsidiary health corporation or joint venture agreement, and a
reference in this section to an ancillary operation includes an ancillary
operation engaged in by any of those means.
(4) No
regional health authority shall engage in an ancillary operation without the
prior written approval of the Minister.
(5) Subsection
(4) does not apply in respect of an ancillary operation that was being engaged
in by an existing health authority on the date the affairs of the existing
health authority were taken over by the regional health authority.
(6) A
regional health authority may market ancillary operations to other regional
health authorities and to provincial health boards.
(7) A
regional health authority shall ensure that the majority of the business
activity related to an ancillary operation takes place within the health
region.
(8) A
regional health authority shall ensure that the majority of the business
activity related to an ancillary operation is marketed to health system
participants.
(9) Where
a regional health authority charges fees in connection with an ancillary
operation, it shall do so in accordance with any directives issued by the
Minister.
(10) Where
a regional health authority engages in an ancillary operation and markets the
ancillary operation to non‑health system participants, the regional
health authority shall ensure that the fees charged in connection with the
ancillary operation include a margin which estimates equivalent market rates
for amortization of capital assets, taxes, costs of capital and other direct or
indirect costs related to the ancillary operation.
(11) Subsections
(7), (8) and (10) do not apply in respect of ancillary operations that are
marketed to other regional health authorities or to provincial health boards.
(12) The
Minister may, on the request of a regional health authority, exempt a regional
health authority from the requirements of subsection (7) or (8) or both.
(13) No
regional health authority shall use
(a) general
grants provided by the Crown, or
(b) health
service fees or charges that the regional health authority is authorized to
collect
to subsidize an
ancillary operation unless the money comes from accumulated surplus as defined
in section 2.9(1)(b) or the Minister approves the use of the money for that
purpose.
(14) All
costs incurred by a regional health authority in engaging in an ancillary
operation must be charged to the ancillary operation.
(15) The
Minister may by directive order a regional health authority
(a) to
cease engaging in an ancillary operation, or
(b) to comply with terms and conditions
specified by the Minister in respect of an ancillary operation that the
regional health authority is engaging in.
AR 167/95 s2
Surplus and deficit
2.9(1) In this section,
(a) “accumulated
deficit” means a negative amount when summing the following amounts in the
statement of financial position, as shown in the audited financial statements:
(i) the accumulated deficit;
(ii) the internally restricted or authority designated net assets;
(b) “accumulated
surplus” means the sum of the following amounts in the statement of financial
position, as shown in the audited financial statements:
(i) the unrestricted or available net assets;
(ii) the internally restricted or authority designated net assets;
(c) “annual
operating deficit” means the negative amount calculated by subtracting
(i) the total expenses for a fiscal year as determined in accordance
with generally accepted accounting principles and financial directives issued
by the Minister,
from
(ii) the total revenue for a fiscal year as determined in accordance
with generally accepted accounting principles and financial directives issued
by the Minister.
(2) A
regional health authority shall not incur an annual operating deficit.
(3) If,
despite subsection (2), a regional health authority incurs an annual operating
deficit, the regional health authority
(a) shall
use the accumulated surplus to offset the deficit, or
(b) if
there is no accumulated surplus or the accumulated surplus is insufficient,
shall provide the Minister with a plan, in writing, that is satisfactory to the
Minister, to eliminate the accumulated deficit within 3 years of it being
incurred.
(4) A
plan referred to in subsection (3)(b) must be submitted to the Minister within
4 months after the end of the fiscal year.
(5) A
regional health authority may use any portion of the accumulated surplus that
is not needed to offset an annual operating deficit for any purpose related to
(a) the
provision of health services or health related services to benefit the
residents of Alberta, or
(b) an
ancillary operation.
(6) If
a regional health authority reports an accumulated deficit as at March 31,
2002, the regional health authority shall provide the Minister, not later than
July 31, 2002, with a plan, in writing, that is satisfactory to the Minister,
to eliminate the accumulated deficit on or before March 31, 2004.
(7) The funding of an accumulated deficit is the responsibility
of the regional health authority.
AR 167/95 s2;127/2002
Charitable annuities
2.91(1) Where a regional health authority receives a
donation of money that is subject to a condition requiring the payment of
interest on the money or an annuity to any person, the regional health
authority shall comply with the following:
(a) the
regional health authority shall establish a trust fund and hold the money in
the trust fund;
(b) where
the condition requires the payment of an annuity, the regional health authority
may
(i) purchase an annuity for the annuitant, or
(ii) make the annuity payments out of the trust fund;
(c) where
the condition requires the payment of interest, the regional health authority
shall make those payments out of the trust fund;
(d) where
the regional health authority acts under clause (b)(ii) or (c),
(i) the regional health authority shall not use any of the money for
its own purposes until its obligation to make those payments has ended, and
(ii) the regional health authority shall invest the principal amount
in one or more investment vehicles referred to in section 2.4(11).
(2) Only the donation and the income earned on the
donation may be used to make the payments under subsection (1).
AR 167/95 s2
Organizational
meeting
2.92 Where
(a) the
members of the regional health authority of a newly established health region
are appointed, or
(b) more
than half of the members of a regional health authority are replaced at the
same time or substantially the same time,
the regional health authority shall hold an organizational
meeting not later than 15 days after the last of the new appointments or
replacement appointments is made.
AR 59/2001 s2;164/2004
Closed meetings
3(1) If a regional health authority decides under
section 12 of the Act to hold a meeting or part of a meeting in private, the
regional health authority shall ensure that the minutes of the meeting indicate
the nature of the subject‑matter to be discussed in private and the
reasons why the regional health authority considers it necessary to hold the
meeting or part of the meeting in private.
(2) Where
a meeting or part of a meeting is held in private under subsection (1), no
resolution related to the subject‑matter that was discussed in private
may be passed unless the meeting reverts to being held in public.
(3) In
determining under section 12 of the Act, whether to hold a meeting or part of a
meeting in private, a regional health authority shall take the following
considerations into account:
(a) whether
or not holding the meeting or part of a meeting in public would result in the
release of information that would prejudice measures protecting health, safety,
security or the maintenance of the law;
(b) whether
or not holding the meeting or part of a meeting in private is justified in
order to permit the regional health authority to carry out its responsibilities
in an effective and efficient manner;
(c) any other relevant considerations.
AR 15/95 s3;127/2002
Minutes of meetings
4(1) A regional health authority shall appoint one
of its members to be responsible for recording the minutes of meetings of the
regional health authority.
(2) At each meeting the regional health
authority shall adopt the minutes of the previous meeting.
(3) A
regional health authority shall
(a) forward
a copy of the adopted minutes to the Minister within 7 days after the meeting
at which they were adopted, and
(b) make
its adopted minutes available for inspection by the public during normal
business hours of the regional health authority.
(4) A
regional health authority may exclude from minutes made available under
subsection (3)(b)
(a) any
matter that relates to a meeting or part of a meeting that was held in private,
other than a resolution that was passed in respect of the matter, and
(b) any
other matter the regional health authority considers should not be released,
because of the confidential nature of the matter.
(5) A
regional health authority shall keep a copy of the minutes of its meetings.
5 Repealed AR 127/2002 s6.
Exemption re Land
Titles fees
6(1) A regional health authority is exempt from any
requirement under the Land Titles Act to pay a fee where the
transaction, document or other thing to which the fee relates arises during or
as a direct result of
(a) the
winding‑up of the affairs of an existing health authority and the
assumption of the affairs of the existing health authority by the regional
health authority, or
(b) an
order of the Minister under section 2 of the Act that provides that assets or
property of a named regional health authority become the assets or property of
another named regional health authority.
(2) A
certificate purporting to be signed by an officer of the regional health
authority and stating that a transaction, document or thing is a transaction
document or thing of the kind described in subsection (1) is conclusive proof
of that fact.
AR 15/95 s6;59/2001
Auditor
7(1) Where the Minister intends to appoint the
Auditor General as the auditor for a regional health authority, the Minister
shall give at least 90 days’ written notice of the appointment to the regional
health authority.
(2) Where
the Minister appoints the Auditor General as the auditor of a regional health
authority, the appointment of an auditor appointed by the regional health authority
ceases on the earlier of
(a) the
expiry of the auditor’s term,
(b) the
effective date of the cancellation of the auditor’s appointment by the regional
health authority, and
(c) the
effective date of the appointment of the Auditor General as auditor.
(3) Where
the Minister has appointed the Auditor General as the auditor of a regional
health authority and that appointment is subsisting, the regional health
authority may not appoint an auditor under section 13(3) of the Act.
(4) The
Minister may cancel the appointment of the Auditor General as auditor of a
regional health authority on 90 days’ written notice to the regional health
authority.
(5) Where the Minister cancels an appointment under
subsection (4), the regional health authority shall appoint an auditor before
the end of the fiscal year.
AR 167/95 s3;127/2002
Terms and conditions
8 The Minister may give any
consent or approval that the Minister is authorized to give under this
Regulation subject to any terms and conditions the Minister considers
appropriate.
AR 167/95 s3
Compliance with
directives
9 A regional health authority
shall comply with all directives.
AR 167/95 s3
