(a) In the construction of the regulations in this part, unless the context otherwise requires, words importing the singular number shall include the plural and words importing the plural number shall include the singular; and,

(b) Applicant means the Government or person on whose behalf on application is presented to the Commission in accordance with § 401.12;

(c) Government means the Government of Canada or the Government of the United States of America;

(d) Person includes Province, State, department or agency of a Province or State, municipality, individual, partnership, corporation and association, but does not include the Government of Canada or the Government of the United States of America;

(e) Oath includes affirmation;

(f) Reference means the document by which a question or matter of difference is referred to the Commission pursuant to Article IX of the Treaty;

(g) The Treaty means the Treaty between the United States of America and His Majesty the King, dated the 11th day of January 1909;

(h) Canadian section consists of the commissioners appointed by Her Majesty on the recommendation of the Governor in Council of Canada;

(i) United States section consists of the Commissioners appointed by the President of the United States.

(a) The commissioners of the United States section of the Commission shall appoint one of their number as chairman, to be known as the Chairman of the United States Section of the International Joint Commission, and he shall act as chairman at all meetings of the Commission held in the United States and in respect to all matters required to be done in the United States by the chairman of the Commission.

(b) The commissioners of the Canadian section of the Commission shall appoint one of their number as chairman, to be known as the Chairman of the Canadian Section of the International Joint Commission, and he shall act as chairman at all meetings of the Commission held in Canada and in respect to all matters required to be done in Canada by the chairman of the Commission.

(c) In case it shall be impracticable for the chairman of either section to act in any matter, the commissioner of such section who is senior in order of appointment shall act in his stead.

The permanent offices of the Commission shall be at Washington, in the District of Columbia, and at Ottawa, in the Province of Ontario, and, subject to the directions of the respective chairmen acting for their respective sections, the secretaries of the United States and Canadian sections of the Commission shall have full charge and control of said offices, respectively.

(a) The secretaries shall act as joint secretaries at all meetings and hearings of the Commission. The secretary of the section of the Commission of the country in which a meeting or hearing is held shall prepare a record thereof and each secretary shall preserve an authentic copy of the same in the permanent offices of the Commission.

(b) Each secretary shall receive and file all applications, references and other papers properly presented to the Commission in any proceeding instituted before it and shall number in numerical order all such applications and references; the number given to an application or reference shall be the primary file number for all papers relating to such application or reference.

(c) Each secretary shall forward to the other for filing in the office of the other copies of all official letters, documents, records or other papers received by him or filed in his office, pertaining to any proceeding before the Commission, to the end that there shall be on file in each office either the original or a copy of all official letters and other papers, relating to the said proceeding.

(d) Each secretary shall also forward to the other for filing in the office of the other copies of any letters, documents or other papers received by him or filed in his office which are deemed by him to be of interest to the Commission.

(a) Subject at all times to special call or direction by the two Governments, meetings of the Commission shall be held at such times and places in the United States and Canada as the Commission or the Chairman may determine and in any event shall be held each year at Washington in April and at Ottawa in October, beginning ordinarily on the first Tuesday of the said months.

(b) If the Commission determines that a meeting shall be open to the public, it shall give such advance notice to this effect as it considers appropriate in the circumstances.

(a) Where the secretary is required by the regulations in this part to give notice to any person, this shall be done by delivering or mailing such notice to the person at the address for service that the said person has furnished to the Commission, or if no such address has been furnished, at the dwelling house or usual place of abode or usual place of business of such person.

(b) Where the secretary is required by the regulations in this part to give notice to a Government, this shall be done by delivering or mailing such notice to the Secretary of State for External Affairs of Canada or to the Secretary of State of the United States of America, as the case may be.

(c) Service of any document pursuant to § 401.22 shall be by delivering a copy thereof to the person named therein, or by leaving the same at the dwelling house or usual place of abode or usual place of business of such person. The person serving the notice or request shall furnish an affidavit to the secretary stating the time and place of such service.

Hearings may be conducted, testimony received and arguments thereon heard by the whole Commission or by one or more Commissioners from each section of the Commission, designated for that purpose by the respective sections or the Chairman thereof.

The whole Commission shall consider and determine any matter or question which the Treaty or any other treaty or international agreement, either in terms or by implication, requires or makes it the duty of the Commission to determine. For the purposes of this section and § 401.7, “the whole Commission” means all of the commissioners appointed pursuant to Article VII of the Treaty whose terms of office have not expired and who are not prevented by serious illness or other circumstances beyond their control from carrying out their functions as commissioners. In no event shall a decision be made without the concurrence of at least four commissioners.

The commission may suspend, repeal, or amend all or any of the rules of procedure at any time, with the concurrence of at least four commissioners. Both Governments shall be informed forthwith of any such action.

The Commission may, at any time, adopt any procedure which it deems expedient and necessary to carry out the true intent and meaning of the Treaty.

(a) The following items in the official records of the Commission shall be available for public information at the permanent offices of the Commission.

(b) Decisions rendered and orders issued by the Commission and formal opinions of any of the Commissioners with relation thereto, shall be available similarly for public information after duplicate originals of the decisions or orders have been transmitted to and filed with the Governments pursuant to Article XI of the Treaty.

(c) Copies of reports submitted to one or both of the Governments pursuant to the Treaty shall be available similarly for public information only with the consent of the Government or Governments to whom the reports are addressed.

(d) Reports, letters, memoranda and other communications addressed to the Commissions, by boards or committees created by or at the request of the Commission, are privileged and shall become available for public information only in accordance with a decision of the Commission to that effect.

(e) Except as provided in the preceding paragraphs of this section, records of deliberations, and documents, letters, memoranda and communications of every nature and kind in the official records of the Commission, whether addressed to or by the Commission, commissioners, secretaries, advisers or any of them, are privileged and shall become available for public information only in accordance with a decision of the Commission to that effect.

(f) A copy of any document, report, record or other paper which under this section is available for public information may be furnished to any person upon payment of any cost involved in its reproduction.