Referendum Act

Marginal note:Provision of free broadcasting time

• 21 (1) In the period beginning on Thursday, the eighteenth day before polling day, and ending on the second day before polling day, every network operator

  • (a) that reaches the majority of those Canadians whose mother tongue is the same as that in which the network broadcasts,

  • (b) that is licensed with respect to more than a particular series of programs or type of programming, and

  • (c) that does not involve any distribution undertaking within the meaning of the Broadcasting Act,

  shall, subject to the regulations made pursuant to that Act and to the conditions imposed on it under section 9.1 of that Act, make available, at no cost, to registered referendum committees for the transmission of referendum announcements and other programming produced by or on behalf of those committees an aggregate of three hours of broadcasting time during prime time.

• Marginal note:Determination of population reached

  (2) For the purposes of subsection (1), a network is deemed to reach

  • (a) people resident within those areas served by broadcasting stations affiliated to the network that

    • (i) in the case of A.M. radio stations, are enclosed by the night-time interference-free official contour of the stations,

    • (ii) in the case of F.M. radio stations, are enclosed by the fifty microvolt per metre official contour of the stations, and

    • (iii) in the case of television stations, are enclosed by the Grade B official contour of the stations; and

  • (b) people resident outside the areas described in paragraph (a) to whom the signals of broadcasting stations affiliated to the network are available via distribution undertakings licensed by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission.