Proceedings of the Standing Committee on
Internal Economy, Budgets and Administration
Issue No. 2 - Minutes of Proceedings - March 24, 2016
OTTAWA, Thursday, March 24, 2016
(8)
[English]
The Standing Committee on Internal Economy, Budgets and Administration met this day at 7:33 a.m., in room 160- S, Centre Block, the chair, the Honourable Leo Housakos, presiding.
Members of the committee present: The Honourable Senators Batters, Campbell, Cordy, Downe, Housakos, Jaffer, Lang, Marshall, Mockler, Munson, Smith (Saurel), Tannas, Tkachuk and Wells (14).
Other senators present: The Honourable Senators Bellemare, McCoy and Mitchell (3).
Also in attendance: Nicole Proulx, Chief Corporate Services Officer and Clerk of the Standing Committee on Internal Economy, Budgets and Administration; Charles Robert, Clerk of the Senate and Chief Legislative Officer; Michel Patrice, Law Clerk and Parliamentary Counsel and Chief, Parliamentary Precinct Services; Blair Armitage, Principal Clerk, Committees Directorate; Shaila Anwar, Acting Deputy Principal Clerk, Committees Directorate; Hélène Bouchard, Director, Information Services Directorate; Pascale Legault, Chief Financial Officer and other senior Senate officials.
Also present: The official reporters of the Senate.
CIBA/2016-03-24/066(P)|211| — Adoption of Minutes of Proceedings
The committee considered the minutes of proceedings of March 10, 2016, in public portion.
It was moved by Senator Downe that the minutes of proceedings of March 10, 2016, in public portion, be adopted.
The question being put on the motion, it was adopted.
CIBA/2016-03-24/067(P)|295| — First Report of the Subcommittee on Committee Budgets
Senator Tannas, Chair of the Subcommittee on Committee Budgets, presented the First Report of the subcommittee as follows:
Thursday, March 24, 2016
The Subcommittee on Committee Budgets of the Standing Committee on Internal Economy, Budgets and Administration has the honour to present its
FIRST REPORT
Your subcommittee recommends the release of the following amounts for fiscal year 2016-17:
Aboriginal Peoples (Housing in First Nation and Inuit communities)
Activity 1: Nunavut, Nunavik, Nunatsiavut $ 212,550
Total $ 212,550
(includes funds for a fact-finding mission, as well as approval for sole source for charter flights; includes funds for 12 senators to travel)
Agriculture and Forestry (International market access priorities for the Canadian agricultural and agri-food sector)
Activity 1: Calgary, Alberta $ 100,188
Activity 2: Beijing and Shanghai, China —
Total $ 100,188
(includes funds for public hearings and fact-finding missions; includes funds for 12 senators to travel; decision on Activity 2 deferred)
Legal and Constitutional Affairs (Delays in Canada's criminal justice system)
Activity 1: Toronto $ 27,977
Activity 2: Montreal $ 20,774
Activity 3: Vancouver, Calgary and Saskatoon $ 104,326
Activity 4: Halifax $ 65,340
Total $ 218,417
(includes funds for public hearings and fact-finding missions; includes funds for 12 senators to travel)
National Security and Defence (Security threats facing Canada)
Activity 1: Halifax and Washington $ 91,986
Activity 2: Montreal and Regina —
Total $ 91,986
(includes funds for fact-finding missions; includes funds for 9 senators to travel; decision on Activity 2 deferred)
Transport and Communications (Connected and automated vehicles)
Activity: Conference on Automated Vehicles — Toronto $ 19,364
Total $ 19,364
(includes funds for a conference; includes funds for 4 senators to travel)
Your subcommittee also considered a request to permit senators' assistants (2) to travel with a committee. There is also a provision in the same budget for staff to travel by train in business class. These provisions are not in keeping with sections 2.6.5(c) and 2.13(b) of the Senators Travel Policy, nor with the thirty-eighth report (1990) of the Standing Committee on Internal Economy, Budgets and Administration regarding staff travel. These provisions would require approval from the Standing Committee on Internal Economy, Budgets and Administration.
Your subcommittee requests your guidance regarding senators' staff being permitted to travel using committee funds and further to that, requests guidance regarding staff travelling by train in business class.
Your subcommittee also received a request from a committee to consider hospitality meals to cover potential or hypothetical hospitality events they may wish to hold over the course of the year. The subcommittee did not feel comfortable recommending the release of these funds in the absence of a clear rationale or objective, in particular when there are other methods for the committee to arrange to meet with potential participants.
Respectfully submitted,
SCOTT TANNAS
Chair
After debate, it was moved by Senator Tkachuk that the First Report of the Subcommittee on Committee Budgets, be adopted.
The question being put on the motion, it was adopted.
CIBA/2016-03-24/068(P)|281| — Corporate System
Pascale Legault, Chief Financial Officer, provided information to the committee with respect to the procurement process to initiate the development of an integrated Enterprise Resource Planning system (ERP), following the December 10, 2015, funding approval by CIBA.
After debate, it was moved by Senator Tannas,
That, the Senate Administration leverage the competitive procurement process completed by the House of Commons and enter into a contract with Unit4 for software acquisition and professional services (per-diem resources) to complete the ERP project, with a dollar value in excess of $100,000; and
That, funds be reallocated in the current fiscal year to advance purchases of ERP software in the amount of $465,000.
The question being put on the motion, it was adopted, on division.
CIBA/2016-03-24/069(P)|294| — Multimedia Technical Support Agreement
Hélène Bouchard, Director, Information Services Directorate provided the committee with additional information regarding the existing Service Level Agreement (SLA) between the Senate and the House of Commons for the support and maintenance of all Senate owned multimedia equipment. She reminded the committee that funding was already approved in the 2016-17 Main Estimates.
After debate, it was moved by Senator Munson,
That, the multimedia SLA for services in excess of $100K between the Senate and the House of Commons multimedia support group, be renewed at $250K and be renewed automatically at the beginning of each fiscal year, as long as it can be established that the arrangement continues to be beneficial to the Senate.
The question being put on the motion, it was adopted.
At 8:08 a.m., the committee continued in camera.
At 9 a.m., the committee adjourned to the call of the chair.
ATTEST:
Nicole Proulx
Clerk of the Standing Committee on Internal Economy, Budgets and Administration
Jodi Turner
Recording Secretary