What Can Bylaws Cover?

Bylaws can deal with things like:

• traffic (A bylaw can deal with things like parking, speed limits or bicycle use but cannot change the traffic rules under the Indian Act.)
• trespass
• zoning
• law and order (A bylaw can deal with things like regulating public gatherings, appointing enforcement officers and curfews.)
• preventing disorderly conduct or nuisances (A bylaw can deal with things like noise or dangerous materials.)
• animal control (A bylaw can deal with things like licencing, requiring fences and leashes or preventing behaviours like excessive barking.)
• providing local services
• repair and construction of buildings
• control of noxious weeds
• regulating beekeeping and poultry raising
• controlling or prohibiting public games or sports
• allotment of reserve land among First Nation Members
• public health (A bylaw can deal with things like pest control or health hazards.)
• wildlife preservation and management
• rights of spouses and children who are not members but who live with a member on the reserve
• setting a penalty for bylaw violation of up to $1000 or jail for up to 30 days or both

Councils can pass bylaws about alcohol on the reserve. A majority of the First Nation Members who vote on it must approve these bylaws at a special meeting called for this purpose. These bylaws can:

• ban the selling, supplying or making of alcohol on the reserve
• prohibit anyone from being drunk on the reserve
• prohibit anyone from having alcohol on the reserve

The Indian Act makes it a summary conviction offence to violate these types of bylaws. Under these bylaws, a person can be fined up to $1000 or go to jail for up to 6 months if they sell, supply or make alcohol on the reserve. A person can be fined up to $100 and go to jail for up to 3 months for being drunk or having alcohol.

Cannabis is legal but there are laws about how it can be used, grown and sold. Some of these are criminal laws and others are provincial laws. These laws apply on reserves. For example, there are limits on the amount of cannabis that can be bought, who can purchase it and where it can be used. A store that sells cannabis must have a permit under provincial law. A permit to sell cannabis on a reserve will not be issued if the First Nation Council prohibits the sale of cannabis on the reserve.

Changes to the provincial Cannabis Control Act will give First Nations a way to make their own rules about retail sale of cannabis on a reserve. A First Nation will be able to set up their own Cannabis Authority. The First Nation’s Cannabis Authority will be able to make an agreement to control cannabis on their reserve. The First Nation would need to put some rules into place including only selling cannabis from a licenced provider and not selling to minors. Once the agreement and the rules are in place, the provincial laws about retail sale of cannabis would no longer apply.