Province’s prompt payment plan poses problems gŏđŏ editionap.ca
past few weeks,” said Mayor Jean-Paul St- Pierre, Russell Township mayor, during his council’s March 3 committee of the whole session. Clarence-Rockland council will review fi- nal recommendations from administration on the situation at its March 17 regular ses- sion. But Mayor Marcel Guibord confirmed agreement with the position of Ottawa and Russell Township. “We are going to send a letter also,” he said. Liberal MPP Steven Del Duca introduced the legislation as a private member’s bill. The focus of Bill 69 is on payment sched- ules for contractors and sub-contractors so they are “paid quickly when they undertake work” according to a report summary of the legislation. There is no objection from any of the councils to contractors getting paid on time for their efforts. The concern is that the wording of Bill 69 could “set strong limits on municipalities’ freedom of contract for construction and infrastructure projects” RÉNOVATIONS Armoires de cuisine Multi finis Décaper • Teindre • Vernir PIERRE MARCOUX 613 446-5744 G182424_TS
and create both deadline and budgeting nightmares for some municipal infrastruc- ture projects. Bill 69 at present would eliminate any hold-back provisions which are part of a municipal construction contract except those allowed under the Ontario Construc- tion Lien Act and even then allow just one day to release the holdback. The bill would also prevent municipalities from linking contract payments to “construction mile- stones” as a way to encourage efficient and steady progress on a project. The legislation would require monthly “progress payments” every 31 days or less and allow a contractor to stop work or end a project if progress payments are late. Qui a la salle de bains la plus laide de la région? C’est le titre d’un concours original organ- isé dans le cadre de l’exposition commer- ciale, qui se déroulera les 25, 26 et 27 avril prochains à l’aréna de Clarence-Rockland. Les personnes intéressées à participer à ce concours peuvent envoyer une photo de leur salle de bains à l’adresse suivante : con- test@expoclarencerockland.com. Les vis- iteurs de l’exposition commerciale auront la chance de voter pour la salle de bains la plus laide parmi les 10 qui seront retenues par le comité organisateur. Grâce à la collaboration de plusieurs marchands, le gagnant pourra ainsi refaire sa salle de bains. « Nous avons déjà plus de 2000$ en prix, mais nous aimerions ajouter d’autres commanditaires pour le concours », a lancé Anne Lizotte, organisatrice de l’événement. Cette exposition commerciale est présen- tée en collaboration avec La Nouvelle Chambre de Commerce de Clarence-Rock- People who spend more of their attention on texting or talking on their cellphones while driving are becoming more danger- ous than drunk drivers in Ontario. As spring draws near the OPP are ready to launch their next annual Distracted Driving CounterAttack campaign. Anyone caught behind the wheel with cellphone to their ear or punching out a text message instead of watching the traffic ahead can expect to get pulled over right away. The OPP now describe distracted driving as the “number one killer on the roads of Ontario” and point to their 2013 highway traffic statistics to support that claim. Last year more people died in accidents where distracted driving was ruled as the cause compared to the number of fatalities result- ing from either drunk driving or speeding. Distracted driving fatalities in Ontario numbered 78 in 2013 compared to 57 cases of deaths due to drunk driving and 44 fatal accidents where speeding was the factor. "When you consider the overall impact of these 78 fatalities last year,” stated OPP
“Bill 69 provides for extremely short pay- ment timelines that will not allow for ap- propriate review of work and certification of the payments progress,”states one adminis- tration report. “The Bill could result in costly work stoppages and restarts and potential litigation to settle disputes.” All three municipalities will contact the provincial government and demand changes to Bill 69 that include “more realis- tic timelines for payments in infrastructure projects”and also allowmunicipalities to be able to link payments to “construction mile- stones” and also allow reasonable time for due diligence checks on a project’s progress and status before authorizing payments to a contractor.
GREGGCHAMBERLAIN gregg.chamberlain@eap.on.ca
Both the City of Ottawa and at least two municipalites in Prescott-Russell have some qualms and some questions about Bill 69, the provincial government’s Prompt Payment Act. Ottawa city council and councils for Rus- sell Township and the City of Clarence- Rockland have received reports from staff about Bill 69 along with recommendations to demand changes to the legislation. The proposed legislation has received ini- tial reading and nowmoved on to a govern- ment committee for review before it comes back before the legislature. Bill 69 has es- caped attention for the most part with the introduction of the federal budget and speculation on the upcoming provincial budget and whether or not Ontario might be headed for a spring election. “This bill has just sort of crept up in the
Une inspiration pour tous vos ,.+&!0/ŏHŏ(Ě4,+ŏ +))!. % (! land et la Cité de Clarence-Rockland pour une quatrième année consécutive.
Cet événement permet de réunir sous un seul et même toit toute la gamme de produits et services offerts dans la région, selon Anne Lizotte. Elle souhaite que cette exposition print- anière serve d’inspiration pour une mul- titude de projets, que ce soit acheter une nouvelle maison, finir le sous-sol ou ré- nover la salle de bains, changer de décor ou refaire sa garde-robe. « Le printemps est synonyme de renouveau », a soutenu Anne Lizotte. Cette dernière est confiante du succès de l’événement de cette année. Plus de la moitié des 80 kiosques disponibles ont déjà pris preneur. L’automne dernier, l’exposition avait attiré plus de 3 200 visiteurs. Vous pouvez obtenir plus de renseigne- ments en visitant le site we www.expoclar- encerockland.com ou en composant le 613- 487-3313. Deputy Commissioner Brad Blair, “and the 325 other distracted driving victims who have died since 2010, the number of peo- ple these irresponsible drivers have had a profound and devastating impact on is in the thousands. Everyone, from the victims’ families and friends to the police officers who attend these horrific collision scenes and have to notify next-of-kin, knows the emotional impact of one life lost to this senseless driving behavior trickles down to so many people who, sadly, through experi- ence, know how badly this behaviour needs to stop.” The provincial government will also make the penalty for distracted driving convic- tions heavier starting this spring. The fine for a distracted driving conviction will go up from the current $155 to $225 starting March 18. Besides the basic fine upon con- viction, distracted drivers are also hit with a $50 victim fine surcharge and a five-dollar court cost penalty. The OPP Distracted Driver CounterAttack campaign runs fromMarch 8 to 14 this year.
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