For the first major time since 1977, the Province will be conducting a review of the Society Act.

The Society Act is the legislation which the AMS exists under. There are similar acts in BC law which deal with other forms of incorporated bodies, such as businesses and cooperatives. Societies are incorporated not-for-profit bodies.

From the press release, the review is being framed around two questions. First, if the corporate model is the best for societies, and second, the extent that societies are regulated.

This is timely as the recent legal opinion ^[1] on the Society Act and AMS bylaws makes Students’ Council impotent, unable to keep the AMS executive accountable.

The AMS is one of the largest societies in BC and is one of the only ones with mandatory membership, and hence mandatory fees.

The deadline for submissions is April 1st, 2010.

Press release
Government website ^[2]