b'owed or quality of work, the new adjudication process enables stakeholders to resolveA contract entered into by a contractor, before the day on which this Act comesthe issue outside of court through a process overseen by an industry-experienced adju- into force, with Her Majesty or a service provider; anddicator who will issue a binding determination approximately six weeks after hearingA contract entered into by a subcontractor, before the day on which this Actthe case.comes into force or within one year after that day, with a contractor referred to in paragraph (a) or with any other subcontractor.Sparking Change As for when the Act is expected to take hold, she adds, CCA continues to closely monitor the announcement of the coming into force date for the Federal Prompt Pay-Ontario may be the first to move forward with official prompt payment rules, but itsment for Construction Work Act, but as of now there has been no word from the federal not likely to be the last. Similar prompt payment and adjudication initiatives are in thecabinet, who are understandably preoccupied by the election, on what this date will be.process of being adopted throughout the country, including:Bracing for Prompt PaymentManitoba: This June, the province introduced private members Bill 245, ThePrompt Payments in the Construction Industry Act. Prompt payment and adjudication rules have been long-awaited by construction Qubec: Bill 108, an Act to facilitate oversight of public bodies contracts and to establishstakeholders. But like any new regimes, they will take some getting used to. the Autorit des marchs publics has led to prompt payment and adjudication pilotThere are sure to be growing pains, says Ian Cunningham, President of the Council projects after receiving royal assent on December 1, 2017. of Ontario Construction Associations. Despite all the workshop and seminar presenta-Saskatchewan: On May 15, 2019, The Builders Lien (Prompt Payment) Amendment Act, tions, the online videos and the apps, the new prompt payment system will come as a 2018 received royal assent, laying the groundwork for new payment timelines andsurprise to the majority of Ontario contractors who have been too busy bidding work, mandatory adjudication for construction disputes as early as 2020.performing work, paying their bills and trying to make a living, and who pay little atten-Alberta: Since April 2016, Alberta Infrastructure has been exploring prompt pay-tion to new laws and regulations until they are confronted with them.ment rules within some of its contracts. Contractors are encouraged to brush up on their knowledge of the new prompt British Columbia: In May 2019, the province tabled Bill M223, the Prompt Pay-payment timelines and conditions, as well as adjust their internal processes to be more ment (Builders Lien) Act, which was informed in part by amendments to the Ontario Construction Lien Act.proactive when it comes to submitting the proper paperwork, submitting notifications Nova Scotia: In April 2019, the province passed Bill 119, An Act to Amend Chapterand staying on top of the new deadlines. To that end, there are a number of workshops277 of the Revised Statutes, 1989 the Builders Lien Act. and seminars to support firms in this transition, and new apps and back-office systems coming to market that can assist in keeping track of new prompt payment obligations. New Brunswick: Taking cues from Ontarios amendments, the province is looking into replacing its Mechanics Lien Act with a revised Construction Lien Act. It will also take some time to get the adjudication process up and running as intend-ed. To that end, the Authorized Nominating Authority has been set up to select, train The tide is also turning in Ottawa. Bill C-97, the Budget Implementation Act, was passedand qualify adjudicators, as well as maintain an adjudicator registry. by the Senate of Canada on June 21, 2019, creating a new prompt payment and adjudi- One thing we have to keep in mind is that this is a significant shift for the industry, cation regime for construction contractors and suppliers who work on federal projects.and its not one thats going to happen overnight, says Skivsky. This is new for a lot of The act applies to any federal real property or federal immovable, explains Marypeople, so theres work to be done on all sides to get ready.Van Buren, President of CCA.As expected, the act largely reflects the recommen- It may take some adjusting for Ontarios construction community, but a more equi-dations of the government-industry working group, as well as theOntario Construc- table industry is worth the effort.tion Act introduced in 2015. There are, however, to our knowledge, some distinctions involvedregardingtransitionprovisionsandthatpreexistingcontractswillnotbeIts important that contractors receive payment for work they have completed to grandfathered in. specification in a timely way, says Cunningham. When payment flows through the Van Buren adds that when the Act does come into force it will have non-applicationconstruction project pyramid in a timely way, contractors take on more apprentices and for one year in two categories: invest in new equipment.POSI-SLOPEHighly Specialized in Tapered Engineering Simplied InstallationPIONEER IN Factory-Mitered Modules Colour Coded Drawings and PackagingITS FIELDTrained Field Technicians Well Polished Design TeamSERVING ROOFING CONTRACTORS ACROSS CANADA SINCE 1982Mississauga | Peterborough | Surrey | Montralwww.posislope.com | info@posislope.com ORN THE ONLY SOURCE FOR PROFESSIONAL ICI ROOFING CONTRACTORS IN ONTARIO ONTARIO ROOFING NEWSISSUE 3 201913'