Reports to Minister of Cancelling debentures redeemed. Case of absence of members provided for. Board to frame system of to be used in departments, etc. 2. Upon all matters of importance the Board shall repor tto the Minister of Finance, and no decision of the Board shall be binding until it has been approved by him; and when any such report is made, any Member of the Board may record his dissent on the minutes and may submit to the Minister of Finance a minority report. 24. It shall also be the duty of the said Board to examine and cancel debentures redeemed; the Board shall meet at least once in each month for the purposes of this Act, and the Auditor may call an extra meeting of the Board on the requisition of any member thereof. 25. The Governor may, in case of the illness or absence of any Member of the Board, authorize any officer of the same department to perform all or any of the duties of the absent member as such. 26. It shall be the duty of the Board of Audit to frame ReBook-keeping gulations respecting the method of book-keeping to be used in the several departments and by the several sub-accountants of the Dominion, the issuing of warrants, the accounting for public moneys, and the auditing of accounts thereof, and to submit such Regulations to the Governor in Council through the Minster of Finance, and from time to time to suggest any amendments they may deem advisable in such Regulations, and to subRegulations. mit them in like manner; and any Order in Council made on any of the subjects aforesaid, shall have the force of law until revoked or amended, as it may be, by any subsequent Order. To prepare Financial year. Unexpended balances to lapse. Governor in accounting. 27. It shall be the duty of the Board of Audit to prepare and submit to the Minister of Finance the Public Accounts to be annually laid before Parliament. 28. The said Public Accounts shall include the period from the thirtieth of June in one year to the thirtieth of June in the next year, which period shall constitute the Financial Year; all Estimates submitted to Parliament shall be for the services coming in course of payment during the financial year; and all balances of appropriation which remain unexpended at the end of the financial year, shall lapse and be written off. 29. The Governor in Council may alter the period at or to alter period for which any Accountant for public moneys, Public Officer, Corporation or Institution, is required to render any account or to make any return, whenever in his opinion such alteration will facilitate the correct preparation of the Public Accounts or Estimates for the financial year, anything in any Act to the contrary notwithstanding. Power to examine per 30. The Board of Audit shall have full power and ausons on oath. thority to examine any person on oath or affirmation on any matter pertinent to any account submitted to it for Audit, and such oath or affirmation may be administered to any person by any Member of the Board. mons. 31. Any Member of the Board duly authorized by it, may To obtain apply, in term or in vacation, to any Judge of the Superior writs of sumCourt for the Province of Quebec, or of any one of the Superior Courts of Common Law in any of the Provinces of Ontario, Nova Scotia or New Brunswick, for an order that a subpoena be issued from the Court, commanding any person therein named to appear before the said Board at the time and place. mentioned in such subpoena, and then and there to testify to all matters within his knowledge relative to any account submitted to the said Board, and (if the Board so desire) to bring with him and produce to the Board any document, paper or thing which he may have in his possession relative to any such account as aforesaid; and such subpoena shall issue accordingly upon the order of such Judge; And any such witness may be summoned from any part of Canada whether within or without the ordinary jurisdiction of the Court issuing the subpoena. examine witnesses. 32. If by reason of the distance at which any person whose or to issue evidence is required by the said Board resides from the place commissions to where its sittings are held, or for any other cause, the Board deems it advisable, they may issue a Commission, under the hands and seals of any two Members of the Board, to any officer or person therein named, empowering him to take such evidence, and report the same to them; And such officer or person, being first sworn before some Justice of the Peace faithfully to execute the duty entrusted to him by such Commission, shall, with regard to such evidence, have the same powers as the Board or any Member thereof would have had if such evidence had been taken before the Board, and may, in like manner, apply to and obtain from any Judge of any of the Courts aforesaid, a subpoena for the purpose of compelling the attendance of any person, or the production of any document, paper or thing before him; And such subpoena shall issue accordingly on the order of such Judge, or such subpoena may issue on the application of any Member of the said Board authorized to make such application, to compel such attendance, or the production of any document, paper or thing before such Commissioner. 33. If any person summoned in the manner hereinbefore Punishment of provided to attend before the said Board of Audit or any Com- persons remissioner appointed as aforesaid, fails, without valid excuse, to attend. fusing to attend accordingly, or, being commanded to produce any document, paper or thing in his possession, fails to produce the same, or refuses to be sworn or to answer any lawful and pertinent question put to him by the Board or by such Commissioner, such person shall, for each such offence, forfeit the sum of one hundred dollars to the Crown, for the public uses of the Dominion, to be recovered in any manner in which debts due to the Crown can be recovered, and may likewise be dealt with by the Court out of which the subpoena issued, as having refused to obey the process of such Court, and as being guilty of a contempt thereof. To see that are not exceeded. SPECIAL DUTIES OF THE AUDITOR. 34. It shall be the duty of the Auditor to see that no warappropriations rant issues for the payment of any public money for which there is no direct parliamentary appropriation or in excess of any portion of such appropriation the expenditure of which has been authorized by the Governor in Council; and he shall report to the Governor in Council through the Minister of Finance, any case in which a sub-accountant has expended money out of the proceeds of any accountable warrant, for any purpose for which there is no legislative authority, or beyond the amount for which there is such authority. No money warrant except on his certificate. Exception. Opinion of Exception. A ccidents or sudden emergency. Duty of Auditor in such cases. By 33 V. c. 7, sec. 1, the Auditor-General is made Deputy Minister of Finance and Deputy Head of the Department of Finance. 35. No money warrant shall issue except upon the certificate of the Auditor that there is parliamentary authority for the expenditure, save only in the following cases: 1. If upon any application for a warrant, the Auditor has reported that there is no parliamentary authority for issuing it, then upon the written opinion of the Law Officer of the Crown, that there is such authority, citing it, the Minister of Finance may authorize the Deputy Inspector-General to prepare the warrant irrespective of the Auditor's report; See note to section 21, ante page 225. 2. If when Parliament is not in session, any accident happens to any public work or building which requires an immediate outlay for the repair thereof, or any other occasion arises when any expenditure not foreseen or provided for by Parliament is urgently and immediately required for the public good, then upon the Report of the Minister of Finance that there is no parliamentary provision, and of the Minister having charge of the particular service in question, that the necessity is urgent, the Governor in Council may order a special warrant to be prepared, to be signed by the Governor himself, for the issue of the amount estimated to be required, which shall be placed by the Receiver General to a special account, against which warrants may issue from time to time in the usual form, as they may be required. 3. It shall be the duty of the Auditor in all such cases to prepare a statement of all such legal opinions, reports of Coun cil and special warrants, and of all expenditure incurred in consequence thereof, which he shall deliver to the Minister of Finance to be by him presented to Parliament not later than the third day of the session thereof then next ensuing. upon judge of objec 36. If the Auditor has refused to certify that a warrant may Minister of issue, on the ground that the money is not justly due, or that it Finance to is in excess of the authority granted by Council, or for any rea- tions in cerson other than that there is no parliamentary authority, then tain cases. a report of the Board of Audit upon the case, the Minister of Finance shall be the judge of the sufficiency of the Auditor's objection, and may sustain him or order the issue of the warrant, in his discretion. LIABILITY OF PUBLIC ACCOUNTANTS AND REVENUE OFFICERS-CIVILLY. not account 37. If any corporation, officer or person refuses or neglects Penalty for to transmit any account, statement or return, with the proper ing as requir vouchers, to the officer or department to whom he is lawfully ed by law. required to transmit the same, on or before the day appointed for the transmission thereof, such corporation, officer or person shall, for such refusal or neglect, forfeit and pay to the Crown, for the public uses of the Dominion, the sum of one hundred dollars, to be recovered, with costs, as a debt due to the Crown, and in any court and in any way in which debts to the Crown can be recovered; and in any action for the recovery of such sum, it shall be sufficient to prove, by any one witness or other evidence, that such account, statement or return ought to have been transmitted by the defendant, as alleged on the part of the Crown, and the onus of proving that the same was so transmitted shall rest upon the defendant. Onus of proof. ing to pay over. 38. Whenever the Minister of Finance has reason to believe Notice to perthat any officer or person has received money for the Crown, or ons neglectfor which he is accountable to the Crown, or has in his hands any public money applicable to any purpose, and has not paid over or duly applied and accounted for the same-he may direct a notice to such officer, or person, or to his representative in case of his death, requiring him, within a time to be therein named, and not less than thirty nor more than sixty days from the service of such notice, to pay over, or apply and account for such money to the Minister of Finance or to the Officer to be mentioned in the notice, and to transmit to him the proper vouchers that he has so done : 2. Such notice shall be served by the Sheriff of the district Service of or county where the service is made, or his deputy, by deliver- notice. ing a copy to the officer or person to whom it is addressed, or leaving it for him at his usual place of abode; and the return of the Sheriff with an affidavit of such service, shall be conclusive evidence thereof. Proceedings against persons refusing to obey notice. Costs. cient vouchers. 39. If any officer or person fails to pay over, apply or account for any such money, and to transmit such vouchers as aforesaid within the time limited by the notice served on him, the Minister of Finance shall state an account as between such officer or person and the Crown in the matter to which the notice relates, charging interest from the service thereof, and shall deliver a copy thereof to Her Majesty's AttorneyGeneral for Canada, and such copy shall be sufficient evidence to support any information or other proceeding for the recovery of the amount therein shown to be in the hands of the defendant, as a debt due to the Crown, saving to the defendant the right to plead and give in evidence all such matters as may be legal and proper for his defence;-and the defendant shall be liable to the costs of such information or proceeding, whatever be the judgment therein, unless he proves that before the time limited in such notice, he paid over or applied and duly accounted for the money therein mentioned, and transmitted the proper vouchers with such account, or unless he be sued for the same in a representative character, and is not personally liable for such money, or to render such account. Proceedings in 40. Whenever any such officer or person as aforesaid case of insuffi- has transmitted an account, either before or after notice as aforesaid, but without vouchers or with insufficient vouchers for any sum for which he therein takes credit,-the Minister of Finance may notify such officer or person, in the manner mentioned in the next preceding section but one, to transmit vouchers, or sufficient vouchers, within thirty days after the service of the notice; And if such vouchers are not transmitted within that time, the Minister of Finance may state an account against such officer or person, disregarding the sums for which he has taken credit but for which he has transmitted no vouchers or insufficient vouchers, and may deliver a copy of such account to Her Majesty's Attorney-General for Canada, and such copy shall be sufficient evidence to support an information or other proceeding for the recovery of the amount therein shewn to be in the hands of the defendant, saving to the defendant the right to plead and give in evidence all such matters as may be legal and proper for his defence; but such defendant shall be liable to the costs of the information or proceeding, whatever be the judgment therein, unless the vouchers by him transmitted within the time limited by the notice served on him, or before such service, are found of themselves sufficient for his defence. and for his discharge from all eums demanded of him: Service of notice. Proceedings in case of public 2. The said notice shall be served and the Sheriff's return of service shall be of the like effect as provided in the next preceding section but one with regard to the notice therein mentioned. 41. If at any time it appears clearly, by the books or accounts kept by or in the office of any officer or person em |