HALIFAX — The Construction Association of Nova Scotia (CANS) is concerned that contractors and buyers of construction are still not compliant with the new regulations of the Builders’ Lien Act even though the province proclaimed all three industry-recommended amendments effective in June.
“The process of implementing new regulations for the Builders’ Lien Act took nearly six years, a complex process that industry has been very supportive of,” said CANS president Duncan Williams in a statement. “It is disappointing that after all this hard work, contractors and buyers of construction are still not compliant with the regulations that are now law.”
The act is intended to protect subcontractors and suppliers who perform work or supply materials at a construction project if the person with whom they directly contracted defaults on the contract, explained an association release.
Amendments are aimed at improving how money flows once certain stages of a construction project are reached and include: changing the way a finishing holdback is calculated; allowing for early release of holdbacks to subcontractors who complete their work at an early stage in the construction project; and creating authority to make regulations to require notice be given to parties when a contract is substantially performed and when a subcontract is certified as complete.
As of June 30, it was required by law that all contractors and buyers of construction use a single site of publication — www.substantialperformance.com — ensuring notice is given to parties when a contract is substantially performed and when a subcontract is certified as complete, the statement indicates.
“This is where we’re seeing a lack of compliance — contractors and buyers of construction are still not posting their contracts that are substantially performed or complete,” said Williams in the statement. “There are currently only 40 notices listed on www.substantialperformance.com and there should be many more.”
According to CANS, the website is a mandatory industry-based centralized site where contractors register for an automated message advising them of the milestone being achieved, saving a substantial amount of time for all parties concerned.
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