Summary#
The Buildings Amendment Act (Radon Notice) would amend Manitoba’s existing Buildings Act by adding a radon-notice requirement when someone applies for a building permit for a building used for dwelling purposes. Its apparent goal is to give permit applicants and building owners information about radon; the bill does not state that as a formal purpose.
- The approving authority must give the permit applicant a written radon notice approved by the director.
- The notice must cover radon, the Canadian indoor-air guideline for dwellings, how to test, and ways to reduce radon.
- If someone applies on the owner’s behalf, that applicant must ensure the owner receives the notice.
- The bill would take effect 180 days after royal assent.
What it means for you#
- Permit applicants: When applying for a permit for a building used for dwelling purposes, you must receive the written notice from the approving authority.
- Owners: If someone applies for the permit on your behalf, that person must ensure you receive the notice.
- Owners and residents: The bill does not require anyone to test for radon or take steps to reduce it. It does not change building standards, make radon testing a permit condition, or create a new radon service.
Money#
No publicly available information on the bill’s cost.
- The text requires approving authorities to give notices, but provides no estimate for printing, staff time, or other costs.
What is unclear#
- The supplied material does not include the current Buildings Act, so I could not verify whether other notice requirements already exist or how this change would fit with them.
- The bill does not define “approving authority,” “director,” or “building used for dwelling purposes.” Those terms may be defined elsewhere in the Act, which was not supplied.
- The bill does not say how the notice must be delivered or how an applicant must show that an owner received it.
- It does not set out who would check compliance or what happens if the notice is not given.
- The supplied text leaves the royal-assent date blank, so it does not establish a calendar start date.
Case for#
- A permit application gives the approving authority a point at which it must provide information about radon and testing.
- The required notice must include practical information about testing and ways to reduce radon, as well as the Canadian guideline.
- Requiring an applicant who acts for the owner to pass on the notice could help ensure the owner receives the information.
Case against#
- The bill only requires a notice. It does not require testing or reduction measures, so its practical effect depends on what recipients do with the information.
- The bill does not specify how delivery to the owner must be confirmed or how the notice requirement will be enforced.
- The required notice must be approved by the director, but the bill does not set out its full wording or when it must be updated.