The Canadian Securities Administrators are seeking comment on a proposed national rule to introduce a harmonized takeover bid and issuer bid regime across the country.

The rule — named National Instrument 62-104 ,Take-Over Bids and Issuer Bids — would consolidate and harmonize most of the requirements and restrictions governing takeover bids and issuer bids and related early-warning requirements in a single national instrument. It would also update selected takeover bid and issuer bid provisions and provide exemptions from the bid requirements currently contained in various provincial statutes, regulations and rules.

The CSA are also proposing to make consequential amendments to the national rule regarding the early-warning system and takeover bid and insider reporting issues.

To achieve harmonization, amendments will be needed to securities legislation in the jurisdictions that currently regulate bids. The CSA have recommended to their respective governments legislative amendments and rule-making authority that would remove detailed bid provisions from statutes and substitute general “platform” provisions to enable regulators to harmonize, streamline and update bid requirements in a national rule.

The regulators report that the provincial and territorial governments have agreed, in principle, with CSA efforts to further harmonize and streamline securities laws and are considering the proposed Act amendments with a target implementation date by the end of 2006.

The CSA says that the proposed instrument will eliminate duplication and inconsistencies in existing takeover bid and issuer bid regimes and codify discretionary exemptions that we have routinely granted.

“We believe that harmonizing these requirements will ease the regulatory burden of issuers by reducing the sheer number of requirements that would otherwise require consideration,” it says. “Modifications to the existing requirements and restrictions include changing the scope of certain current exemptions and the introduction of several new exemptions in response to routine exemptive relief applications.”

Comments are due by July 28.