Enterprise Saskatchewan

Saskatchewan's governing principles on regulation include consultation with citizens and business, sustainability, efficiency, harmonization and transparency. Saskatchewan's regulatory process also adheres to the principles of:

• "knowing your client," which states that the regulatory process and regulatory review should serve the regulated, not the regulator;
• availability, which ensures that regulations are widely available in printed and electronic format to those affected by them;
• accountability, which states that the makers of regulations should be accountable to the elected Assembly that grants the power to make regulations; and
• relevance, which provides that regulations should be regularly reviewed and obsolete or effete regulations should be repealed on a timely basis.

Saskatchewan's legal basis for regulations lies in its Regulations Act, 1995. The Act provides for filing regulations at the office of the Registrar of Regulations. It also establishes rules and requirements for when a regulation comes into force, for publication in the Saskatchewan Gazette and for the repeal of regulations. Also, the Regulatory Code of Conduct Fact Sheet ("the Code") and Principles of Good Regulation ensure that: non-regulatory alternatives are examined; a cost benefit analysis is performed; that overlap and conflict with other jurisdictions is avoided where possible; that regulations are written in plain language; and that affected parties are consulted. Saskatchewan's Regulatory Reform Initiative (RRI) provides for a regulatory review focussed on relevancy and effectiveness. The RRI also contains a component to identify and address red-tape concerns, particularly those that affect small and medium-sized businesses.

The regulatory process in Saskatchewan follows these procedures:

• A ministry/agency identifies a situation that requires some form of regulation. At this stage, alternatives to regulation are also examined.
• The originating ministry/agency prepares drafting instructions and the Legislative Drafting Section of the Ministry of Justice prepares a preliminary draft.
• The ministry/agency then circulates this draft to affected stakeholders for review and input.
• The ministry/agency must also consult with the Business Services Improvement Branch Branch of the Enterprise Saskatchewan. This ensures that the regulation is reviewed from the perspective of the RRI.
• The regulation is then forwarded to the Treasury Board and comptrollers in the Ministry of Finance, who review it for financial implications, compliance with accounting and reporting policies and for compliance with legislation governing financial administration.
• The regulatory package (draft regulations and the Code) is then signed off by the minister responsible for the ministry/agency and then forwarded to the Secretary of the Legislative Instruments Committee.
• After review by the Legislative Instruments Committee, the regulation is tabled and discussed in Cabinet. Here it may be approved rejected or returned to the ministry/agency for modifications.
• Once approved, the regulations are filed with the Registrar of Regulations and sent to the Queen's Printer, which publishes it in the Saskatchewan Gazette.

Under Saskatchewan's Regulations Act, 1995, all regulations stand permanently referred to one or more committees of the Legislative Assembly. Those committees have broad powers of review and broad powers to request that a regulation be amended or repealed if the Assembly agrees that it would be appropriate to take that action. Saskatchewan is one of only three jurisdictions in Canada with parliamentary scrutiny of regulation.