CRTC Decisions, CUSMA and IJC Notices

Summary#

This Canada Gazette “Commissions” page (published March 30, 2024) collects recent short items from the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) and a few other commissions and secretariats. It lists CRTC administrative decisions and consultations, a Broadcasting Fees Regulations policy item, a CUSMA Secretariat notice about a completed panel review on tin mill products, and an International Joint Commission (IJC) reference about pollution in the Elk–Kootenai/y watershed.

What it does#

• Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission: says it posts full decisions and documents on its website and provides abridged items here.
• Administrative decisions (all dated March 14, 2024 in the abridged list): examples include items involving Canadian Broadcasting Corporation stations in Quebec and Ontario and a decision involving North Superior Broadcasting Ltd. in Ontario.
• Notices of consultation: notice 2024-60 published March 15, 2024 with a filing deadline of May 14, 2024 for a Calgary proceeding.
• CRTC decisions posted in this issue (dates shown):
  • decision 2024-59 (findings about radio market capacity and whether to call for applications in Calgary) — March 15, 2024;
  • decision 2024-62 involving Bragg Communications Incorporated (Maritimes) — March 20, 2024;
  • decision 2024-63 involving Persona Communications Inc. (Sudbury) — March 20, 2024.
• Regulatory policy: policy 2024-65 dated March 21, 2024 about the Broadcasting Fees Regulations.
• CUSMA Secretariat: notice that a binational panel review about “Tin Mill Products from Canada” was completed and became effective on March 12, 2024 because no complaint was filed in time.
• International Joint Commission (IJC): Canada and the U.S. asked the IJC to address transboundary pollution in the Elk–Kootenai/y watershed. The IJC will:
  • help set up a governance body and develop Terms of Reference by June 30, 2024;
  • act as secretariat and advise that body for at least two years;
  • establish a study board within six months to coordinate data sharing; and
  • have that study board deliver a final report and recommendations within two years after it is set up. The IJC invites public engagement and provides contact emails.

Who's affected#

• Local radio listeners and broadcasters in places named in the CRTC items — for example Calgary, Sept‑Îles, La Romaine, Marathon, Nakina, and Sudbury — and companies such as Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, North Superior Broadcasting Ltd., Bragg Communications Incorporated, and Persona Communications Inc.
• Broadcasters and media organizations who may be affected by the Broadcasting Fees Regulations or by market-capacity and licence decisions.
• Canadian exporters and businesses in the tin mill products sector who face U.S. trade determinations covered by the CUSMA Secretariat notice.
• People, communities, Indigenous groups (including the Ktunaxa Nation named in the reference), and ecosystems in the Elk–Kootenai/y watershed across British Columbia, Montana, and Idaho who may be affected by future study findings or recommendations from the International Joint Commission.

Why it matters#

• CRTC decisions and consultations can change which radio services exist in a town, who runs them, and the competitive landscape that shapes local news and entertainment options.
• The Broadcasting Fees Regulations policy item could affect how much broadcasters pay into regulatory costs, which can in turn affect operations and costs passed to consumers — the item itself is a policy note in this issue.
• The CUSMA notice means the U.S. determinations on tin mill products will stand for now because no timely binational challenge was filed, which may affect Canadian exporters’ duties and market access.
• The IJC reference starts a formal, cross‑border review of pollution in the Elk–Kootenai/y watershed. That process could lead to coordinated monitoring, public engagement, and recommendations that influence pollution controls, land and water management, and community and Indigenous interests in the area.