moved:
Motion No. 7
That Bill C-43, in Clause 5, be amended by replacing line 18 on page 2 with the following:
“forcement of the program legislation in a manner that respect the principles of fairness, impartiality and accountability;”
Motion No. 8
That Bill C-43 be amended by adding after line 36 on page 2 the following new clause:
“5.1 (1) In carrying out its responsibilities under section 5 with respect to the administration and enforcement of program legislation, the Agency shall, in its dealings with taxpayers, promote, respect and protect the following rights of a taxpayer:
(a) to be provided with a plain English or French version of any provision of the Income Tax Act on request to the Agency;
(b) to be given the opportunity to provide a general explanation of a question regarding tax liability before being subjected to an audit or a requirement to produce receipts and other records to document the matter;
(c) to have assessments, appeals and other procedures related to tax liability dealt with expeditiously;
(d) to receive any information in the possession of the Agency that shows or tends to show that the taxpayer may be entitled to a refund of tax paid or a reduced assessment of tax owing;
(e) to confidentiality of all information provided by or respecting the taxpayer to the Agency, except as may be necessary for the administration of the Income Tax Act, and authorized by law;
(f) to complain to a designated officer of the Agency of the conduct of or a communication from any employee of the Agency and to receive an explanation of it from the officer, and if necessary, to complain further to the Commissioner;
(g) to refuse to provide information that is not required for the administration of program legislation;
(h) to appoint counsel or an agent to represent the taxpayer at any meeting that deals with liability to pay tax under the Income Tax Act and to record, without being required to give notice, the proceedings of any such meeting;
(i) not to be assessed interest or a penalty on tax found to be owing unless the taxpayer has deliberately evaded the payment of the tax or duty;
(j) in cases where the taxpayer has acted in good faith, to reasonable, negotiated terms of payment of taxes owing so as to avoid undue hardship to the taxpayer and the taxpayer's dependants and employees;
(k) to be subjected to steps to recover tax owing, including the seizure of property or freezing of assets, only if such steps are necessary to ensure payment of taxes owing, and to have the steps taken in a manner that protects, if possible, the interests of the taxpayer's dependants and employees.
(2) The Agency shall include in every annual report made pursuant to section 88, a review of the steps that have been taken by the Agency during the year to fulfil its responsibilities under subsection (1).”