THE STANDING COMMITTEE ON INTERNAL ECONOMY, BUDGETS AND ADMINISTRATION
MINUTES OF PROCEEDINGS
OTTAWA, Thursday, June 1, 2023
(24)
[English]
The Standing Committee on Internal Economy, Budgets and Administration met in camera and then proceeded in public, this day at 9:01 a.m., in room C128, Senate of Canada Building, the chair, the Honourable Lucie Moncion, presiding.
Members of the committee present: The Honourable Senators Audette, Boehm, Boyer, Carignan, P.C., Dalphond, Forest, LaBoucane-Benson, Loffreda, Moncion, Moodie, Plett, Saint- Germain, Seidman, Smith and Tannas (15).
Participating in the meeting: Pascale Legault, Chief Corporate Services Officer and Clerk of the Standing Committee on Internal Economy, Budgets and Administration; Gérald Lafrenière, Interim Clerk of the Senate and Clerk of the Parliaments and Chief Legislative Services Officer; Philippe Hallée, Law Clerk and Parliamentary Counsel; senior Senate officials and other support staff.
WITNESSES:
The Honourable Senator Éric Forest, Member, Subcommittee on Senate Estimates and Committee Budgets;
Shaila Anwar, Clerk Assistant, Committees Directorate;
Maxime Fortin, Principal Clerk, Committees Directorate;
Joëlle Nadeau, Principal Clerk, Committees Directorate;
David Vatcher, Director, Information Services Directorate.
Pursuant to rule 12-7(1) of the Rules of the Senate, the committee continued its consideration of financial and administrative matters concerning the Senate’s internal administration.
At 10:13 a.m., the committee suspended.
At 10:17 a.m., the committee resumed in public.
The Chair made a statement.
The senators introduced themselves.
CIBA/2023-06-01/263(P) — Adoption of Minutes of Proceedings from May 11, 2023 (public)
The committee considered the Minutes of Proceedings from May 11, 2023 (public).
The Honourable Senator Saint-Germain moved that the Minutes of Proceedings of Thursday, May 11, 2023 (public), be adopted.
The question being put on the motion, it was adopted.
CIBA/2023-06-01/264(P) — Report from the Subcommittee on Senate Estimates and Committee Budgets - Committee Budget Report
The Honourable Senator Forest, member of the Subcommittee on Senate Estimates and Committee Budgets, presented the subcommittee’s Sixteenth Report as follows:
Thursday, June 1, 2023
The Subcommittee on the Senate Estimates and Committee Budgets of the Standing Committee on Internal Economy, Budgets and Administration has the honour to present its
SIXTEENTH REPORT
Your subcommittee met on May 16, 2023, to consider two budget requests for the 2023-2024 fiscal year as follows:
1. Agriculture and Forestry (AGFO)
(Special study on the status of soil health in Canada)
Activity 1: Rome, Italy
$ 134,764
TOTAL
$ 134,764
(includes funds for a fact-finding mission and 4 senators to travel, and is conditional on the committee taking steps to ensure that overall expenditures for this activity are reduced by 35%).
Your subcommittee notes that the committee formally withdrew a previous budget request in the amount of $66,940, for a similar activity, which they have now replaced with the above-mentioned revised budget request. These funds can therefore be returned to the pool of available funds for committee activities.
2. Social Affairs, Science and Technology (SOCI)
(Special study on issues relating to social affairs, science and technology generally)
Activity 1: New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island
$ 110,450
TOTAL
$ 110,450
(includes funds for a fact-finding mission and 8 senators to travel)
Summary
For your information, the total funds in the budgetary envelope available for Senate committee budgets (except for the Audit and Oversight Committee) for 2023-2024 is $2.2 million, less $320,820 for witness expenses, leaving $1.882 million for release to individual committee budgets. Today’s recommended release of $245,214 brings us to a total of $737,345 recommended for release for six committee travel activities, one conference and one general expenses budget, leaving $1,144,655 for the remainder of the fiscal year.
The budgets approved by the Senate for each travel activity are the maximum amount that can be spent for that activity. Typically, committees’ actual expenditures are closer to 40% of their total budget request. Any funds remaining at the conclusion of a travel activity will be clawed-back and can be made available for allocation to committees for other activities.
Copies of each committee’s budget application are appended to this report.
Respectfully submitted,
LUCIE MONCION
Chair
The Honourable Senator Forest made a statement and, together with Shaila Anwar and Gérald Lafrenière, answered questions regarding the Sixteenth Report.
After debate, the Honourable Senator Forest moved that the Sixteenth Report be adopted.
The question being put on the motion, it was adopted, on division.
CIBA/2023-06-01/265(P) — Report from the Subcommittee on Senate Estimates and Committee Budgets - Financial Policy for Committees
The Honourable Senator Forest, member of the Subcommittee on Senate Estimates and Committee Budgets, presented the subcommittee’s Seventeenth Report as follows:
Thursday, June 1, 2023
The Subcommittee on the Senate Estimates and Committee Budgets (SEBS) of the Standing Committee on Internal Economy, Budgets and Administration (CIBA) has the honour to present its
SEVENTEENTH REPORT
Your subcommittee met on May 16, 2023, to consider a proposal from the Committees Directorate to adopt a Financial Policy for Senate Committees (the Policy).
BACKGROUND
As part of the Senate Administration’s Policy Suite Renewal project, the Committees Directorate is proposing to consolidate long-standing CIBA decisions, rules, policies, practices and guidelines that are applicable to Senate committees in the areas of financial management and committee budgets into one comprehensive policy document. The Policy also seeks to clarify certain ambiguities or policy gaps that exist and proposes some changes to existing rules and practices.
Your subcommittee has reviewed the proposed changes and draft policy and now seeks CIBA’s approval for the adoption of the Policy, with a targeted effective date of September 30, 2023. A copy of the draft policy and a supporting document summarizing the proposed changes from current policies and practices are appended to this report.
RECOMMENDATIONS
Your subcommittee recommends the adoption of the Policy and makes the following consequential recommendations:
- That pursuant to the changes proposed in the Policy to the process for the adoption of a committee budget, subsections 1. (1) and (2) of Chapter 3:05 of the Senate Administrative Rules be repealed and section 2, of Chapter 3:05 of the Senate Administrative Rules be amended accordingly;
- That pursuant to the changes proposed in the Policy to comply with the Senate’s legislated public disclosure requirements, subsections 10. (2) and (3) and section 11 of Chapter 3:05 of the Senate Administrative Rules be repealed;
- That CIBA recommends to the Senate that rules 12-26(2), 12-26(3) and 12-26(4) of the Rules of the Senate, in relation to committee reports on expenses, be repealed;
- That all past decisions of CIBA related to the financial management of committees and committee budgets be repealed, once this policy comes into effect;
- That the Committees Directorate be authorized to communicate the effective date, its implementation and to publish the Policy on the Senate of Canada website upon its adoption by CIBA; and
- That the Policy come into effect on September 30, 2023.
Respectfully submitted,
LUCIE MONCION
Chair
The Honourable Senator Forest made a statement and, together with Shaila Anwar, answered questions regarding the Seventeenth Report.
After debate, it was agreed to make an editorial change to the policy.
The Honourable Senator Forest moved that the Seventeenth Report be approved.
The question being put on the motion, it was adopted.
It was further agreed that the Subcommittee on Senate Estimates and Committee Budgets would continue to consider appropriate guidelines for committee travel.
It was agreed that items 10 and 11 be postponed until the next committee meeting.
CIBA/2023-06-01/266(P) — Service Level Agreement with the House of Commons 2023-2024
David Vatcher made a statement regarding the Service Level Agreement with the House of Commons for the fiscal year 2023-2024.
After debate, the Honourable Senator Loffreda moved that the revised Appendix II (Summary of Services and Costs) of the master Service Level Agreement between the Senate and the House of Commons be approved.
The question being put on the motion, it was adopted.
CIBA/2023-06-01/267(P) — Membership to the Advisory Working Group on Artwork and Heritage
The Honourable Senator Audette moved that the Honourable Senator Cardozo be named as member of the Artwork and Heritage Advisory Working Group.
The question being put on the motion, it was adopted.
CIBA/2023-06-01/268(P) — Other Matters
The Honourable Senator Forest raised the issue of the travel agency used for international travel.
The Honourable Senator Saint-Germain, Co-Chair of the Joint Interparliamentary Council, undertook to look into the matter.
At 10:59 a.m., the committee adjourned to the call of the chair.
ATTEST:
Pascale Legault
Chief Corporate Services Officer and Clerk of the Standing Committee on
Internal Economy, Budgets and Administration
Keli Hogan
Recording Secretary