Power to require information

(1) The P.U.C may, for any relevant purpose in connection with water and sewerage services in Belize, by notice in writing signed by it require any licensee to furnish the information required by it– (a) require any person to produce, at a time and place specified in the notice, to the P.U.C. or to any person appointed by it for the purpose, any documents which are specified or described in the notice and are in that person’s custody or under his control; or (b) require any person carrying on any business to furnish to the P.U.C. such estimates, returns or other information as may be specified or 24 described in the notice, and specify the time, the manner and the form in which any such estimates, returns or information are to be furnished; but no person shall be compelled for such purpose to produce any documents which he could not be compelled to produce in civil proceedings before a court or in complying with any requirement for the furnishing of information, or to give any information which he could not be compelled to give in evidence in such proceedings. (2) A person who refuses or, without reasonable excuse, fails to do anything duly required of him by a notice under sub- section (1) commits an offence and is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding five thousand dollars or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year or to both such fine and imprisonment. (3) Any person who– (a) intentionally alters, suppresses or destroys any document which he has been required by a notice under this section to produce; or (b) in furnishing any estimate, return or other information required of him under any such notice, makes any statement which he knows to be false in a material particular, or recklessly makes any statement which is false in a material particular, commits an offence. (4) A person who commits an offence under sub-section (3) is liable– (a) on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding five thousand dollars or to 25 imprisonment for a term not exceeding twelve months or to both such fine and imprisonment; or (b) on conviction on indictment, to a fine not exceeding ten thousand dollars or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years or to both such fine and imprisonment. (5) Where a person makes default in complying with a notice under sub-section (1), the court may, on the application of the P.U.C., make such order as the court thinks fit for requiring the default to be made good; and any such order may provide that all the costs or expenses of and incidental to the application shall be borne by the person in default or by any officer of a company or other association who is responsible for such default. (6) In this section“court” means the Magistrates’ court; and “relevant purpose” means any purpose connected with the exercise of the P.U.C.’s functions under this Act.