2016-2017 Departmental Results Report

Office of the Information Commissioner of Canada

Original signed by

The Honourable Jody Wilson-Raybould, P.C., Q.C., M.P.
Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada

Suzanne Legault
Information Commissioner of Canada

Cat. No. IP1-8E-PDF
ISSN 2561-2697

Commissioner’s message

In April 2017, I announced I would not seek reappointment as Information Commissioner when my term expires. Later, I was appointed for an interim period of six months ending on December 29, 2017. This will be the last year for which I will report the annual results of the Office of the Information Commissioner of Canada (OIC), and it is with great pride that I share our tremendous achievements with Canadians.

We had a very successful year in 2016–17, thanks to the hard work and dedication of my staff and aided by the much-needed addition of temporary funding. In 2016–17, investigators resolved the most complaint files of any year of my eight-year mandate. Investigators were also able to greatly reduce the median turnaround time for resolving complaints.

I am also very proud of the fact that my staff scored significantly higher than other Agents of Parliament and the core public service on the annual employee survey in the key areas of job satisfaction, work/life balance and mental health awareness. The OIC continues to strive to foster an exceptional workplace.

I also hosted the Transparency for the 21st Century Conference, in partnership with the Department of Justice Canada, the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat, Library and Archives Canada and the Canadian Commission for UNESCO. This conference was instrumental in bringing together many international stakeholders who work towards transparency.

In the coming months, I will continue to work with dedication and passion to advise the government on proposed legislative changes to the Access to Information Act and to prepare the OIC for the transition to a new commissioner.

I know I can count on the support of the OIC during this upcoming year. As always, the loyalty of my staff is unparalleled and their dedication to Canadians exemplary.

Results at a glance

The Office of the Information Commissioner of Canada (OIC) had a successful year in 2016–17, resolving the most complaint files of the current Commissioner’s mandate. By closing 2,245 complaints in 2016–17, the OIC improved its closure rate by 75 percent over the previous year.

The OIC’s total actual spending for 2016–17 was $12,923,260. This amount was approximately $2.1 million more than for the previous year because the OIC received $3.4 million in temporary funding from the Treasury Board Management Reserve Fund.

In 2016–17, the OIC reduced the median turnaround time for resolving complaints by 25 percent for administrative cases and 57 percent for refusal cases. These results are fundamental to safeguarding the information rights of Canadians and demonstrate the OIC’s commitment to an open and transparent government.

The OIC had a total of 83 actual full-time equivalents for 2016–17, 10 fewer than anticipated. The shortfall was due to employee turnover, long-term leave and retirements. The OIC lapsed $1.8 million that will be reprofiled to 2017–18 to help maintain the momentum of case closures achieved in 2016–17.

The OIC did hire a total of 23 consultants with the temporary funding to bolster its investigative capacity and reduce the inventory of complaints.

The OIC also hosted the Transparency for the 21st Century Conference, in partnership with the Department of Justice Canada, the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat, Library and Archives Canada and the Canadian Commission for UNESCO. This conference was a tremendous success and brought together the many stakeholders who work towards transparency.

For more information on the OIC’s plans, priorities and results achieved, see the “Results: what we achieved” section of this report.

Raison d’être, mandate and role: who we are and what we do

Raison d’être

The Information Commissioner of Canada reports directly to the House of Commons and the Senate. The Office of the Information Commissioner of Canada ensures that the rights conferred by the Access to Information Act are respected, which ultimately enhances transparency and accountability across the federal government.

Mandate and role

The OIC is an independent public body created in 1983 under the Access to Information Act. The primary responsibility of the organization is to conduct efficient, fair and confidential investigations into complaints about federal institutions’ handling of access to information requests. The OIC strives to maximize compliance with the Act, while fostering disclosure of public sector information using the full range of tools, activities and powers at the Commissioner’s disposal.

The OIC primarily uses negotiation and mediation to resolve complaints. In doing so, the OIC gives complainants, heads of institutions and all third parties affected by complaints a reasonable opportunity to make representations. The OIC encourages institutions to disclose information and to respect Canadians’ rights to receive information, in the name of transparency and accountability. It brings cases to the Federal Court to ensure the Act is properly applied and interpreted.

The OIC also supports the Information Commissioner in her advisory role to Parliament and parliamentary committees on all matters pertaining to access to information. The OIC actively makes the case for greater freedom of information in Canada through targeted initiatives such as Right to Know Week and ongoing dialogue with Canadians, Parliament and federal institutions.

For more general information about the organization, see the “Supplementary information” section of this report.

Operating context and key risks

Operating context

The current government was elected on a platform of transparency and openness. The Prime Minister’s commitment in the published mandate letter to all ministers is to “set a higher bar for openness and transparency.” The OIC has observed a willingness on the part of federal institutions to achieve the objective of a more open and transparent government; however, lasting change requires a dramatic cultural shift for the public service, and this will take time. Moreover, the number of access to information requests received by all federal institutions increased by 81 percent from 2010–11 (41,600) to 2015–16 (75,400), the latest year for which Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat statistics are available.

Text Version

The figure is a line graph showing the number of complaints the Commissioner registered, resolved as well as the unresolved complaints that remained in the inventory at the end of the year. The figure demonstrates the totals from 2012–2013 to 2016–17.

In 2012–2013, the Commissioner received 1,596 complaints, resolved 1,621 complaints and 1,798 unresolved complaints remained in inventory at the end of the year.

In 2013–2014, the Commissioner received 2,081 complaints, resolved 1,788 complaints and 2,091 unresolved complaints remained in inventory at the end of the year.

In 2014–2015, the Commissioner received 1,749 complaints, resolved 1,596 complaints and 2,244 unresolved complaints remained in inventory at the end of the year.

In 2015–2016, the Commissioner received 2,047 complaints, resolved 1,281 complaints and 3,010 unresolved complaints remained in inventory at the end of the year.

In 2016–2017, the Commissioner received 2,079 complaints, resolved 2,245 complaints and 2,844 unresolved complaints remained in inventory at the end of the year.

As shown in the figure above, the OIC received more than 2,000 complaints in three of the last four years. Due to limited investigative capacity, the number of complaints that remained open at the end of each year and became part of the inventory grew as a result, until 2016–17, when the OIC was able to resolve a record number of complaints (2,245) and the inventory began to shrink. An influx of $3.4 million from the Treasury Board Management Reserve Fund made this possible. However, although the additional funding was approved in June, the actual funds were not received until December.

Key risks

Both of the risks listed in the table above were included in the OIC’s 2016–17 Report on Plans and Priorities (RPP) and continue to be the biggest risks to the organization. By securing temporary funding and investigators, the OIC was able to mitigate its two primary risks in 2016–17. This allowed the OIC to protect and promote information rights as effectively as possible by addressing the factors that are within the OIC’s control.

Results: what we achieved

Program

Compliance with access to information obligations

Description

The Access to Information Act is the statutory authority for the oversight activities of the Information Commissioner, which are: to investigate complaints from requestors; to review the performance of government institutions; to report the results of investigations/reviews and recommendations to complainants, government institutions, and Parliament; to pursue judicial enforcement; and to provide advice to Parliament on access to information matters. The Office of the Information Commissioner supports the Commissioner in carrying out these activities.

Results

Results achieved

* Measured from the date files are assigned to investigators.

The OIC reduced the median turnaround time to resolve administrative complaints from the time they were assigned to investigators from 48 days in 2015–16 to 36 days in 2016–17. Similarly, the median turnaround time to resolve refusal complaints from the time they were assigned to investigators dropped from 163 days in 2015–16 to 70 days in 2016–17. The year-over-year reductions in median turnaround time were 33 percent and 57 percent, respectively.

As stated in the 2016–17 RPP, the OIC continued to use a lean investigative process, and also increased the use of mediation and negotiation. Together, these two steps increased efficiency in resolving complaints in the face of a large inventory of files, and allowed investigators and lawyers to work seamlessly on files. 

The OIC developed and tested its new online complaint form in 2016–17, including hosting several focus groups to test and comment on it. The OIC also conducted an information technology (IT) security audit to ensure that complainants’ information remains secure. The OIC continues to work on the implementation of the online form. It is scheduled to be launched in 2017–18.

In June 2017, the government proposed amendments to the Access to Information Act. The Commissioner will comment on these amendments before the appropriate entity over the next fiscal year.

Budgetary financial resources (dollars)

Human resources (full-time equivalents or FTEs)

The OIC received $3.4 million in temporary funding in 2016–17. This accounts for the variation between the Main Estimates and the total authorities available for use. The OIC lapsed $1.8 million in 2016–17, including $1.2 million in salary funds because positions remained vacant throughout the year, resulting from regular annual turnover of 10 percent, retirements and long-term leave. This also accounts for the variation in FTEs.

Internal Services

Description

Internal Services are those groups of related activities and resources that the federal government considers to be services in support of programs and/or required to meet corporate obligations of an organization. Internal Services refers to the activities and resources of the service categories that support Program delivery in the organization, regardless of the Internal Services delivery model in a department. The service categories are: Management and Oversight Services; Communications Services; Human Resources Management Services; Financial Management Services; Information Management Services; Information Technology Services; Real Property Services; Materiel Services; and Acquisition Services.

Results

The OIC’s internal services group successfully launched several key initiatives in support of the program, in addition to all of the regular work it carried out over the year. IT enhanced the monitoring of network security and performance, while also publishing the online complaint form in a test environment. Human Resources resolved many issues associated with the Phoenix pay system. Finance secured the temporary funding and provided strategic advice to senior management on numerous ongoing Government of Canada transformation initiatives.

Budgetary financial resources (dollars)

Human resources (full-time equivalents)

The $3.4 million in temporary funding the OIC received in 2016–17 accounts for the variation between the Main Estimates and the total authorities available for use.

Analysis of trends in spending and human resources

Actual expenditures

Budgetary performance summary for Program and Internal Services (dollars)

Spending trend graph

Text Version

This bar chart shows the OIC’s spending trend from 2014–2015 to 2019–2020 in three categories: anticipated sunset programs, statutory and voted. The figures for each are as follows:

Anticipated sunset programs: $2,690,000 in 2016–2017. There are no anticipated sunset programs in any year from 2014–2015 to 2015–2016 or 2017–2018 to 2019–2020.

Statutory: $1,284,000 for 2014–2015, $1,106,000 for 2015–2016, $1,105,000 for 2016–2017 and $1,284,000 for each of 2017–2018, 2018–2019 and 2019–2020.

Voted: $10,487,000 for 2014–2015, $9,732,000 for 2015–2016, $9,129,000 and $9,947,000 for each of 2017–2018, 2018–2019 and 2019–2020.

The total spending for each year is as follows: $11,771,000 for 2014–2015, $10,838,000 for 2015–2016, $12,924,000 for 2016–2017 and $11,195,000 for each of 2017–2018, 2018–2019 and 2019–2020.

The above figure illustrates the OIC’s spending each year from 2014–15 to 2019–20. The OIC spent $12.9 million in 2016–17 to carry out its program and meet its strategic outcome. The vast majority of the OIC’s spending (80 percent) is for salaries and associated employee costs. The Commissioner is committed to ensuring that the financial resources are used in the most strategic and responsible manner to continue to improve service delivery and ensure that investigations and other activities aimed at enhancing government openness and transparency have the most impact.

The OIC spent $2 million more in 2016–17 than in the previous year, due to the $3.4 million in temporary funding it received from Treasury Board. The OIC has received approval from the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat to reprofile $1.8 million in total lapsed funds to 2017–18. These additional funds are not included in the 2017–18 bar in the graph, above. Furthermore, at a press conference held on June 19, 2017, after Bill C-58 was tabled, the Honourable Scott Brison, President of the Treasury Board, stated that the government will be increasing the OIC’s “resources by $5.1 million over the next five years and $1.7 million on an ongoing basis.” These amounts are not reflected in the graph, above. The OIC would be looking to increase the number of FTEs in its investigations branch if its permanent annual funding were increased, while any temporary funds would be used to hire temporary investigators. By augmenting its investigative capacity, the OIC would be better able to protect information rights of Canadians and to promote an open and transparent government.

Actual human resources

Human resources summary for Program and Internal Services (full time equivalents)

Expenditures by vote

For information on the OIC’s organizational voted and statutory expenditures, consult the Public Accounts of Canada 2017.

Alignment of spending with the whole-of-government framework

Alignment of 2016–17 actual spending with the whole-of-government framework (dollars)

Total spending by spending area (dollars)

Financial statements and financial statements highlights

Financial statements

The OIC’s financial statements for the year ended March 31, 2017, are available on the OIC website.

Financial statements highlights

Condensed Statement of Operations for the year ended March 31, 2017 (dollars)

For more details, please consult the Future-Oriented Statements of Operations of the Office of the Information Commissioner of Canada.

The table above represents the condensed statement of operations for the OIC.

The OIC recorded a small amount of revenue in 2016–17 from the gain on the disposal of a capital asset.

All variations in planned or actual results are due to the temporary funding. The OIC was unable to spend all of this funding and has received approval to reprofile a total of $1.8 million to 2017–18.

Condensed Statement of Financial Position as at March 31, 2017 (dollars)

The above table represents the condensed statement of financial position for the OIC.

The variance in net liabilities is mainly due to an increase in accounts payable for outstanding payments at year-end to contracted investigators and an outstanding invoice for IT equipment. The OIC did not have contracted investigators in 2015–16.

The variance in total net financial assets is attributed to amounts due from the Consolidated Revenue Fund (CRF) as a result of differences at year-end between when a transaction affects the OIC’s authorities and when it is processed through the CRF. This amount varies from year-to-year.

Supplementary information

Corporate information

Organizational profile

Appropriate minister: Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada

Institutional head: Suzanne Legault, Information Commissioner of Canada

Ministerial portfolio: Department of Justice Canada

Enabling instrument: Access to Information Act (R.S.C., 1985. C-1)

Year of incorporation/commencement: 1983

Other: For administrative purposes, the Minister of Justice is responsible for submitting the organization’s Departmental Plan and Departmental Results Report.

Reporting framework

The Office of the Information Commissioner of Canada’s Strategic Outcome and Program Alignment Architecture of record for 2016–17 are shown below.

1. Strategic Outcome: Rights under the Access to Information Act are safeguarded.

1.1 Program: Compliance with access to information obligations
Internal Services

Graphical presentation

Text Version

This hierarchal chart shows the strategic outcome of the Office of the Information Commissioner as: Rights under the Access to Information Act are safeguarded. Linked below is the single program at the Office of the Information Commissioner that is the: Compliance with access to information obligations. Internal services is in a separate box parallel to the Program without further description.

Supplementary information tables

The following supplementary information tables are available on the OIC’s website:

• Departmental Sustainable Development Strategy;
• Internal audits and evaluations;
• Status report on projects operating with specific Treasury Board approval

Federal tax expenditures

The tax system can be used to achieve public policy objectives through the application of special measures such as low tax rates, exemptions, deductions, deferrals and credits. The Department of Finance Canada publishes cost estimates and projections for these measures each year in the Report on Federal Tax Expenditures. This report also provides detailed background information on tax expenditures, including descriptions, objectives, historical information and references to related federal spending programs. The tax measures presented in this report are the responsibility of the Minister of Finance.

Organizational contact information

Office of the Information Commissioner of Canada
30 Victoria Street
Gatineau QC
K1A 1H3

Tel. (toll free): 1 800 267-0441
Fax: 819-994-1768
Email: general@ci-oic.gc.ca
Website: www.ci-oic.gc.ca

Appendix: definitions

appropriation (crédit)
Any authority of Parliament to pay money out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund.

budgetary expenditures (dépenses budgétaires)
Operating and capital expenditures; transfer payments to other levels of government, organizations or individuals; and payments to Crown corporations.

Core Responsibility (responsabilité essentielle)
An enduring function or role performed by a department. The intentions of the department with respect to a Core Responsibility are reflected in one or more related Departmental Results that the department seeks to contribute to or influence.

Departmental Plan (Plan ministériel)
Provides information on the plans and expected performance of appropriated departments over a three-year period. Departmental Plans are tabled in Parliament each spring.

Departmental Result (résultat ministériel)
A Departmental Result represents the change or changes that the department seeks to influence. A Departmental Result is often outside departments’ immediate control, but it should be influenced by program-level outcomes.

Departmental Result Indicator (indicateur de résultat ministériel)
A factor or variable that provides a valid and reliable means to measure or describe progress on a Departmental Result.

Departmental Results Framework (cadre ministériel des résultats)
Consists of the department’s Core Responsibilities, Departmental Results and Departmental Result Indicators.

Departmental Results Report (Rapport sur les résultats ministériels)
Provides information on the actual accomplishments against the plans, priorities and expected results set out in the corresponding Departmental Plan.

Evaluation (évaluation)
In the Government of Canada, the systematic and neutral collection and analysis of evidence to judge merit, worth or value. Evaluation informs decision making, improvements, innovation and accountability. Evaluations typically focus on programs, policies and priorities and examine questions related to relevance, effectiveness and efficiency. Depending on user needs, however, evaluations can also examine other units, themes and issues, including alternatives to existing interventions. Evaluations generally employ social science research methods.

full-time equivalent (équivalent temps plein)
A measure of the extent to which an employee represents a full person-year charge against a departmental budget. Full-time equivalents are calculated as a ratio of assigned hours of work to scheduled hours of work. Scheduled hours of work are set out in collective agreements.

government-wide priorities (priorités pangouvernementales)
For the purpose of the 2017–18 Departmental Plan, government-wide priorities refers to those high-level themes outlining the government’s agenda in the 2015 Speech from the Throne, namely: Growth for the Middle Class; Open and Transparent Government;  A Clean Environment and a Strong Economy; Diversity is Canada's Strength; and Security and Opportunity.

horizontal initiatives (initiative horizontale)
An initiative where two or more federal organizations, through an approved funding agreement, work toward achieving clearly defined shared outcomes, and which has been designated (for example, by Cabinet or a central agency) as a horizontal initiative for managing and reporting purposes.

Management, Resources and Results Structure (Structure de la gestion, des ressources et des résultats)
A comprehensive framework that consists of an organization’s inventory of programs, resources, results, performance indicators and governance information. Programs and results are depicted in their hierarchical relationship to each other and to the Strategic Outcome(s) to which they contribute. The Management, Resources and Results Structure is developed from the Program Alignment Architecture.

non-budgetary expenditures (dépenses non budgétaires)
Net outlays and receipts related to loans, investments and advances, which change the composition of the financial assets of the Government of Canada.

performance (rendement)
What an organization did with its resources to achieve its results, how well those results compare to what the organization intended to achieve, and how well lessons learned have been identified.

performance indicator (indicateur de rendement)
A qualitative or quantitative means of measuring an output or outcome, with the intention of gauging the performance of an organization, program, policy or initiative respecting expected results.

performance reporting (production de rapports sur le rendement)
The process of communicating evidence-based performance information. Performance reporting supports decision making, accountability and transparency.

planned spending (dépenses prévues)
For Departmental Plans and Departmental Results Reports, planned spending refers to those amounts that receive Treasury Board approval by February 1. Therefore, planned spending may include amounts incremental to planned expenditures presented in the Main Estimates.

A department is expected to be aware of the authorities that it has sought and received. The determination of planned spending is a departmental responsibility, and departments must be able to defend the expenditure and accrual numbers presented in their Departmental Plans and Departmental Results Reports.

plans (plans)
The articulation of strategic choices, which provides information on how an organization intends to achieve its priorities and associated results. Generally a plan will explain the logic behind the strategies chosen and tend to focus on actions that lead up to the expected result.

priorities (priorité)
Plans or projects that an organization has chosen to focus and report on during the planning period. Priorities represent the things that are most important or what must be done first to support the achievement of the desired Strategic Outcome(s).

program (programme)
A group of related resource inputs and activities that are managed to meet specific needs and to achieve intended results and that are treated as a budgetary unit.

Program Alignment Architecture (architecture d’alignement des programmes)
A structured inventory of an organization’s programs depicting the hierarchical relationship between programs and the Strategic Outcome(s) to which they contribute.

results (résultat)
An external consequence attributed, in part, to an organization, policy, program or initiative. Results are not within the control of a single organization, policy, program or initiative; instead they are within the area of the organization’s influence.

statutory expenditures (dépenses législatives)
Expenditures that Parliament has approved through legislation other than appropriation acts. The legislation sets out the purpose of the expenditures and the terms and conditions under which they may be made.

Strategic Outcome (résultat stratégique)
A long-term and enduring benefit to Canadians that is linked to the organization’s mandate, vision and core functions.

sunset program (programme temporisé)
A time-limited program that does not have an ongoing funding and policy authority. When the program is set to expire, a decision must be made whether to continue the program. In the case of a renewal, the decision specifies the scope, funding level and duration.

target (cible)
A measurable performance or success level that an organization, program or initiative plans to achieve within a specified time period. Targets can be either quantitative or qualitative.

voted expenditures (dépenses votées)
Expenditures that Parliament approves annually through an Appropriation Act. The Vote wording becomes the governing conditions under which these expenditures may be made.