The Surrey Board of Trade, the BC Construction Association (BCCA), the Electrical Contractors Association of BC (ECABC), the Mechanical Contractors Association of BC (MCABC), and 30 industry partners, united in a shared cause, sent a letter to BC Attorney General Niki Sharma to emphasize the critical importance of Prompt Payment Legislation, Lien Reform, and Adjudication for the economic well-being of British Columbia.
“An implementation of Prompt Payment Legislation will set tight timelines for the payment of contractors, specifically for the government, after their work is completed,” said Anita Huberman, President & CEO, Surrey Board of Trade. “Surrey has a thriving construction and development industry – as well as ancillary contractors and vendors that support this industry. Prompt Payment Legislation will give these businesses bottom line certainty.”
The BC construction industry faces challenges like payment delays and a 10% project holdback, hampering labour relations and new development. Most BC contractors are small businesses, requiring barriers to be removed for healthy competition and infrastructure growth.
With 90% of BC contractors as small businesses, Prompt Payment Legislation is vital for stability, retaining skilled workers, attracting talent, and ensuring a growing construction industry. Enacting it is a tangible step towards this goal.
In Ontario, for example, their prompt payment legislation, found in amendments to the Construction Act, RSO 1990 c C.30, requires that an owner pay a contractor within 28 days after receipt of a “proper invoice”. If an owner does not pay all or part of the invoice, it must give the contractor a “notice of non-payment” within 14 days. A contractor must either pay its subcontractors within seven days of receipt of payment from the owner or issue its own “notice of non-payment”.
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Anita Huberman, 604-634-0342, anita@businessinsurrey.com
