Bill 18: Sexual Assault Victims Support Act

This bill primarily affects law enforcement agencies in Nova Scotia — including the RCMP, Nova Scotia Provincial Police, and municipal police departments — rather than private businesses. The day-to-day operational impact falls on police services that will need to develop written complaint-handling policies, build and deliver mandatory training programs for new recruits and annual refreshers for all officers, and change how evidence is routed in sexual assault cases. Smaller municipal departments may face more proportionally significant administrative and training costs than larger forces. Private sector businesses are not directly regulated by this bill.