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Section IV: Other Items of Interest

4.1 Departmental Administration and Management Initiatives

Infrastructure Canada’s third Program Activity is Departmental Administration. The objective for this Activity is to promote excellence in program and corporate management in support of Infrastructure Canada’s priorities. Departmental Administration consists of:

• The Office of the Deputy Head;
  
• Corporate Services;
  
• Communications; and
  
• Legal Services.

The Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities, supported by the Deputy Head, is responsible for ensuring that Government priorities are pursued through the Transport, Infrastructure and Communities Portfolio. Infrastructure Canada is well-positioned to support the Government of Canada’s unprecedented commitment to rebuild and modernize our country’s infrastructure. Success requires all parts of the organization to recognize the complementary roles they play within the Portfolio, and their respective roles in supporting the Minister in his responsibilities to Parliament and Canadians.

Corporate Services

Divided into five key areas (Information Management and Information Technology, Finance and Administration, Human Resources, Evaluation and Internal Audit), Corporate Services not only provides support to all the employees of Infrastructure Canada, but also responds to the many requests from Central Agencies in reporting on the Department’s accounts and activities. Corporate Services is also responsible for monitoring the implementation of policies and strategies to safeguard the integrity of the Department’s financial planning and management programs.

Information Management and Information Technology

Information management and information technology (IM/IT) personnel provide advisory and technical services within Infrastructure Canada. IM/IT facilitates the management of several of Infrastructure Canada’s funding programs through the Shared Information Management System for Infrastructure (SIMSI). SIMSI is a secure, user-friendly, bilingual, web-based information management system that enables provincial, territorial and municipal governments to apply online for project funding through the Infrastructure Canada Program (ICP). Implemented in August 2001, SIMSI continues to allow users to register projects online, monitor project status and access benefits and payment information. Various stakeholders and the public can also use SIMSI to obtain updates and information on various facets of the infrastructure program.

IM/IT has developed a business model based on service management principles to promote continuous improvement, implement central government policies (such as the Management of Government Information and the Management of Information Technology Security) and facilitate the delivery of services through the Shared Services Initiative. The model recognizes that IM/IT services should be client-driven and should meet business needs through a structured framework of good governance, best practices and processes and continuous improvement.

Over the next three years, IM/IT plans to focus on five key directions: Client/Culture, Planning and Standards, People/Organization, Services and Projects. In 2006-2007, IM/IT completed the following:

• Enhancements to SIMSI to include all provinces that have signed agreements for the Municipal Rural Infrastructure Fund and to support intake rounds with their municipalities;
  
• Creation of an IT security section, in response to the Treasury Board’s Management of Information Technology Security requirements and promotion of a security culture within IM/IT; and
  
• Approval of the Information Management Policy for Infrastructure Canada in the area of information management, as required by the government-wide Management of Government Information policy.

Human Resources Strategy

Infrastructure Canada is an organization that respects the career aspirations of its employees, seeks their views and recognizes their achievements. As the Department continues to evolve, emphasis is being placed on optimizing human resources capacity to ensure the success of departmental operations. Infrastructure Canada’s human resources strategy focuses on the following four key areas:

• Building the workforce: Infrastructure Canada is continuing its efforts to fill positions quickly and efficiently and to recruit the right mix of people with the knowledge, competencies and skills required to accomplish the work of the organization. The department is developing strategies such as collective staffing to target recruitment to fill the gaps, to identify learning needs and to provide employees with a roadmap for career development. Despite INFC’s best efforts to recruit more employees, its population experienced no significant growth during 2006-2007.
  
• Public Service Modernization Act: Infrastructure Canada has successfully implemented all the essential requirements of the Public Service Employment Act, within established timeframes. A corporate priority for 2006-2007, the Department intensified its efforts to integrate business and human resources planning. A departmental human resources plan has been drafted. The Memorandum of Understanding with the Center for Values, Integrity and Conflict Resolution Office of Fisheries and Oceans Canada has been concluded, to provide informal conflict management services to employees and includes conflict management consultation (such as coaching, prevention and early intervention) and conflict resolution interventions (such as facilitated discussions, group intervention and mediation). Infrastructure Canada is an active member of the joint Labour Management Consultation Committee set up by a cluster of small agencies and departments.
  
• Representation: Infrastructure Canada is committed to ensuring that it has the capacity to communicate with and provide services to members of the public in the official language of their choice. The 2006-2007 Annual Review on Official Languages shows that the Department is successfully fulfilling this commitment. An Employment Equity (EE) self-identification campaign conducted in February and March of 2007 revealed that the Department’s efforts to advance diversity within the Public Service have achieved remarkable success – overall targets for the four EE groups (Aboriginal peoples, persons with disabilities, visible minorities and women) have been surpassed. The focus now is to retain these employees and support their career development.
  
• Values and Ethics: Infrastructure Canada is committed to raising awareness among employees of the values and ethics of the Public Service. The Department is putting measures into place to ensure it meets both the spirit and intent of the Federal Accountability Act. A Senior Officer for Internal Disclosure has also been appointed, as required by the Public Servants Disclosure Protection Act.

Internal Audit

During 2006-2007, a number of initiatives were undertaken in response to both the new Treasury Board Internal Audit Policy that came into effect on April 1, 2006, (with a three-year phased implementation) and Infrastructure Canada’s own internal audit plan of approved audits.

A proposal for incremental resources was prepared at the request of the Treasury Board Secretariat and staffing actions were initiated. As a result of stiff competition from both the public and private sectors, however and shortages in the audit professional group, the Department is encountering difficulties attracting senior-level qualified auditors with appropriate expertise. Insufficient capacity has caused some delays in the finalization of the audit reports (the Canada Strategic Infrastructure Fund, the Border Infrastructure Fund and Classification and Staffing),

The audit and evaluation functions in Infrastructure Canada were separated in 2006-2007 and new terms of reference for the Departmental Audit Committee (DAC) were drafted for the Deputy Head’s signature, incorporating many of the requirements of the new Treasury Board Internal Audit Policy. In keeping with the Government of Canada’s commitment to make audit committees much more independent from the management of the organizations they review, Infrastructure Canada’s DAC now includes one member from Transport Canada. The DAC met five times during the year to review and discuss items that are now part of its broader mandate, (including risk management, the departmental financial statements and Public Accounts reporting), in addition to its traditional responsibilities related to internal audit and follow-up on management action plans developed to respond to audit reports and recommendations of the Auditor General.

Infrastructure Canada was among the 24 departments included in the horizontal audit of departmental delegation of financial authority, led by the Office of the Comptroller General, which reviewed departmental delegation instruments and related documents.

Significant audit work was done in 2006-2007 on the management control framework of the Canada Strategic Infrastructure Fund (CSIF) and the Border Infrastructure Fund (BIF). The terms of reference for a staffing and classification audit were also prepared.

During the last quarter of 2006-2007, a three-year risk-based internal audit plan was developed, for approval at the next meeting of the DAC.

Evaluation

In 2006-2007, the evaluation and audit function were separated, and the Executive Committee acts as Departmental Evaluation Committee (DEC). The DEC main responsibilities are to approve the INFC evaluation policy, annual evaluation plan, and evaluation and review reports; to resolve any contentious issues relating to evaluations; and to ensure that evaluation results are acted upon. The evaluation follow-up process has been put in place and information will be collected on a periodic basis.

The DEC approved the three-year Evaluation Plan, in January 2007. As part of the 2006-2007 plan, the InfraGuide project transition year evaluation was performed during the summer 2006. The findings of the evaluation indicated that the financial sustainability of the project faces significant risk due to the lack of commitment of some of the key stakeholders. However, it recognized that the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM), which provided the lead role for this project, met most of its commitments with respect to products and activities.

Evaluation frameworks have been prepared for the Municipal Rural Infrastructure Fund (MRIF) and the Gas Tax Fund (GTF) and shared with the Treasury Board Secretariat’s Center of Excellence in Evaluation. Due to contracting delays, these evaluations will be performed in 2007-2008. A scheduled implementation review, or mid-term evaluation, of the Public Transit Fund (PTF) was withdrawn as the one-year program was completed in 2006-2007. However, the PTF summative evaluation will be performed in conjunction with the GTF summative evaluation.

Risk Management

During 2006-2007, Infrastructure Canada completed the development of its first Corporate Risk Profile. The profile identifies a series of key risk areas and corresponding potential risk events as well as mitigation strategies, grouped under five corporate risk areas:

• Legislation, regulations and policy instruments;
  
• Program accountability;
  
• Managing relationships;
  
• Measuring performance and results; and
  
• Organizational effectiveness.

Within these key risk areas, the highest risks were identified as program-focused relationships, measuring performance and results and human resources capability and capacity. The development of a risk profile is just one aspect of an ongoing and integrated risk management process. In 2007-2008, work will continue to advance the Department’s Integrated Risk Management (IRM) initiative, by monitoring corporate risk profile mitigation measures, drafting Infrastructure Canada’s IRM Policy and developing branch or operational risk profiles.

Communications

The Communications Directorate informs Canadians about infrastructure policies, programs and projects that contribute to improving Canada’s economy and environment and which support their communities. The Directorate also helps to ensure that the views of Canadians are considered in the development of new policies and programs. Communications initiatives are coordinated with Portfolio communications partner Transport Canada as well as regional development agencies and provincial, territorial and municipal governments.

Helping To Inform Canadians: During 2006-2007, the Communications Directorate issued 47 news releases and organized 27 media events across Canada. Federal partners also issued over 350 news releases and organized almost 200 events, in support of the infrastructure programs they deliver. Together, these efforts resulted in national and regional print and television media coverage and stories in community media across the nation, helping to inform Canadians of significant infrastructure investments being made on their behalf. Also, the Communications Directorate fielded over 600 public inquiries and more than 60 media calls, providing information in response to their questions. The latter represents an 84 per cent increase in activity over last year.

Sharing Information With Stakeholders: To support outreach activities and share information with key stakeholder audiences, the Directorate prepared 36 speeches for the Minister and senior management and provided several articles for publication. The Communications Directorate also supported Infrastructure Canada’s efforts at two major conferences, with the aim of raising awareness of federal infrastructure programs, cities’ and communities’ initiatives and associated research efforts. In June 2006, the annual conference of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) in Montreal and the UN-HABITAT’s World Urban Forum (WUF) in Vancouver succeeded in advancing knowledge of the Government of Canada’s interest and investments in infrastructure and communities. As well, INFC partnered with Ontario’s Public Infrastructure Renewal Ministry (Toronto, October 2006) and the Centre for Expertise and Research on Infrastructure in Urban Areas (Quebec City, November 2006) to support infrastructure-focused conferences.

Seeking Public Input: In February 2007, in seeking public input, the Communications Directorate scheduled 14 focus groups across the country to research Canadians’ views and opinions on a variety of topics related to the Transport, Infrastructure and Communities Portfolio. Topics probed included quality of life, community priorities, economic growth and the environment; and understanding infrastructure and the federal role. To view the results, visit http://www.infrastructure.gc.ca/mc-cm/pub_opinion/2007-06_e.shtml.

4.2 Additional Information on Infrastructure Investment Programs

In addition to the information presented in Sections I and II, the following tables provide details concerning the projects announced or approved in 2006-2007, plus cumulative data, for the major investment programs delivered or coordinated by Infrastructure Canada: the Canada Strategic Infrastructure Fund (CSIF), the Border Infrastructure Fund (BIF), the Infrastructure Canada Program (ICP), the Municipal Rural Infrastructure Fund (MRIF), the Gas Tax Fund (GTF) and the Public Transit Fund (PTF).

Canada Strategic Infrastructure Fund (CSIF)

Table 4.1: CSIF Projects Announced During 2006-2007

Province	Date	Project	Category	Contribution ($M)
Prince Edward Island	May 5, 2006	Highway 2	Highway or rail infrastructure	7.5
Manitoba	July 6, 2006	Red River Floodway (Phase 2)	Flood control	42.0
	Feb. 23, 2007	Red River Floodway (Phase 3)	Flood control	170.5
Alberta	Aug. 29, 2006	Highway 63	Highway or rail infrastructure	150.0
Yukon	Sept. 7, 2006	Dawson City/Carmacks Sewage Treatment Systems	Water and sewage treatment	9.0
Ontario	May 25, 2006	Toronto International Film Festival Group: Festival Centre	Tourism or urban development	25.01
	Dec. 20, 2006	Toronto’s Evergreen at the Brickworks	Tourism or urban development	20.0
	March 6, 2007	Mississauga Bus Rapid Transit (BRT)	Public Transit	83.0
	March 6, 2007	Brampton ‘Acceleride’ Bus Rapid Transit (BRT)	Public Transit	95.0
Quebec	April 6, 2006	Route 185	Highway or rail infrastructure	85.01
	May 30, 2006	Autoroute 35 (highway component)	Highway or rail infrastructure	44.01
	May 30, 2006	Autoroute 50	Highway or rail infrastructure	38.01
	May 30, 2006	Dorval Interchange	Highway or rail infrastructure	55.01
	Aug. 31, 2006	Atwater and Des Baillets Water Projects, Montréal	Water	58.51
Nova Scotia	Feb. 24, 2007	Highways 104 and 125	Highway or rail infrastructure	15.0
New Brunswick	March 16, 2007	Saint John Harbour Clean-up	Water and sewage treatment	26.6
Total				924.1

Table 4.2 CSIF Program Expenditures and Announced Projects as of March 31, 2007

Jurisdiction	Total CSIF Funding ($M)	Number of Announced Projects as of March 31, 2007	CSIF Share of Signed Project Agreements as of March 31, 2007 ($M)	Number of Signed Projects Agreements as of March 31, 2007	CSIF Share of Announced Projects as of March 31, 2007 ($M)	Federal Expenditures in Previous Years ($M)	Federal Expenditures in 2006-2007 ($M)
British Columbia		3	735.0	3	525.0	240.9	284.5
Alberta		3	300.0	2	150.0	44.3	68.2
Saskatchewan		5	120.0	4	92.7	48.8	27.3
Manitoba		3	347.5	3	135.0	42.8	74.0
Ontario		14	1,255.0	7	562.0	95.3	121.9
Quebec		11	674.4	3	64.9	10.2	9.7
New Brunswick		5	271.6	4	238.0	52.7	38.6
Nova Scotia		3	105.5	2	90.5	24.7	8.1
Prince Edward Island		7	30.0	3	11.2	1.7	8.3
Newfoundland & Labrador		3	60.0	3	60.0	16.2	21.2
Yukon		3	35.0	2	26.0	9.2	2.4
Northwest Territories		1	40.0	1	40.0	30.4	13.0
Nunavut		2	40.0	2	40.0	8.7	4.1
National Priority Projects2		4	150.0	5	129.8	-	-
Sub-total	4,961.0	653	4,164.0	44	2,165.2	626.0	681.2
Federal Coordination/Research	187.0
Total	5,148.01

1	The original $4 billion allocation for CSIF has been supplemented by addition funding from various sources for the following projects:		($M)
	New Brunswick Highways (New Brunswick)		140.0
	GO Transit (Ontario)		65.0
	Canada Line (British Columbia)		210.0
	Échangeur Dorval (Quebec)		12.0
	Toronto International Film Festival (Ontario)		25.0
	Budget 2006 CSIF Top Up		750.0
	Less:	Transfer to Parks Canada for Banff National Park Trans Canada Highway Improvements	(50.0)
		Spending Restraint – Smaller Ministry (Reduction taken by Department of Finance in 2007)	(4.0)
			1148.0
2	National Priority Project Details:
	Manitoba Floodway (Manitoba)		40.0
	Corridors for Canada (Northwest Territories)		25.0
	National Satellite Initiative		70.2
	Northwest Territories		7.0
	Nunavut		7.8
			150.0
3	Although the sum of the column adds up to 67, the displayed total is 65 because the Corridors for Canada project in the Northwest Territories and the Manitoba Floodway project are double-counted under the provincial jurisdictions and the National Priority projects.

Border Infrastructure Fund (BIF)

Table 4.3: BIF Projects Announced During 2006-2007

Date	Project	Federal Contribution ($M)
May 30, 2006	QC: Autoroute 55	7.5
May 30, 2006	QC: Route 173 / Autoroute 73	51.5
May 30, 2006	QC: Autoroute 35 (border component)	13.0
Total		72.0

Table 4.4: BIF Expenditures and Announced Projects as of March 31, 2007

Jurisdiction	Total BIF Funding ($M)	Number of Announced Projects as of March 31, 2007	BIF Share of Announced Projects as of March 31, 2007 ($M)	Number of Signed Projects Agreements as of March 31, 2007	BIF Share of Signed Project Agreements as of March 31, 2007 ($M)	Federal Expenditures in Previous Years ($M)	Federal Expenditures in 2006-2007 ($M)
British Columbia		2	90.0	1	88.0	43.2	19.2
Alberta		-	-	-	-	-	-
Saskatchewan		1	5.0	1	5.0	1.9	0.1
Manitoba		-	-	-	-	-	-
Ontario		4	338.1	3	158.1	59.6	28.5
Quebec		3	72.0	-	-	-	-
New Brunswick		1	30.0	1	30.0	6.3	5.4
Nova Scotia		-	-	-	-	-	-
Prince Edward Island		-	-	-	-	-	-
Newfoundland & Labrador		-	-	-	-	-	-
Yukon		-	-	-	-	-	-
Northwest Territories		-	-	-	-	-	-
Nunavut		-	-	-	-	-	-
Sub-total	535.1	11	535.1	6	281.1	111.1	53.1
Federal Coordination	46.9	-	46.9
Total	582.01	11	582.01

Infrastructure Canada Program (ICP)

Table 4.5: ICP Expenditures and Approved Projects as of March 31, 2007

Jurisdiction	ICP Funding Allocation ($M)	Number of Approved Projects as of March 31, 2007	ICP Share of Approved Projects as of March 31, 2007 ($M)	Federal Expenditures in Previous Years ($M)	Federal Expenditures in 2006-2007 ($M)
British Columbia	268.5	310	263.6	178.2	57.5
Alberta	171.0	778	166.7	142.2	17.1
Saskatchewan	56.7	365	55.5	51.8	2.4
Manitoba	60.9	174	60.3	54.4	3.5
Ontario	680.7	533	665.5	529.9	86.6
Quebec	515.5	900	507.2	293.8	91.1
New Brunswick	54.4	93	53.6	52.0	1.6
Nova Scotia	65.3	146	64.4	52.2	9.2
Prince Edward Island	12.8	81	12.6	12.4	0.4
Newfoundland & Labrador	51.2	381	50.1	38.3	8.6
Yukon	2.5	8	2.5	2.5	0.0
Northwest Territories	3.0	12	3.0	3.0	0.0
Nunavut	2.1	5	2.1	2.1	0.0
First Nations	31.1	97	30.4	29.4	1.0
Sub-total	1,976.0	3,883	1,937.6	1,442.2	279.1
Federal Coordination/InfraGuide	74.0
Total	2,050.0

Municipal Rural Infrastructure Fund (MRIF)

Table 4.6: MRIF Expenditures and Approved Projects as of March 31, 2007

	MRIF Funding ($M)	Number of Approved Projects as of March 31, 2007	MRIF Share of Approved Projects as of March 31, 2007 ($M)	Federal Expenditures in Previous Years ($M)	Federal Expenditures in 2006-2007 ($M)
British Columbia	75.0	-	0.0	0.0	0.0
Alberta	107.0	43	65.0	0.0	0.0
Saskatchewan	45.0	213	37.2	2.2	6.7
Manitoba	49.0	60	36.9	4.7	6.8
Ontario	362.0	280	288.8	2.7	47.6
Quebec	235.0	111	111.6	0.0	6.8
New Brunswick	40.0	40	28.2	0.4	9.1
Nova Scotia	45.0	69	34.6	0.0	0.0
Prince Edward Island	22.0	75	10.9	0.0	3.7
Newfoundland & Labrador	33.0	34	7.8	0.0	0.1
Yukon	19.0	17	12.8	0.0	0.8
Northwest Territories	19.0	20	12.3	0.0	0.0
Nunavut	19.0	1	2.2	0.0	0.0
First Nations	30.0	-	-	-	-
Sub-total	1,100.0	963	648.2	10.0	81.6
Federal Coordination	40.0
CSIF – BC Rapid Transit1	60.0
Total	1,200.0

Gas Tax Fund

Table 4.7: Gas Tax Funds Allocation and Expenditures

Jurisdiction	Total 2005-2010 Allocation ($M)	2006-2007 Allocation ($M)	Federal Expenditures in 2006-2007 ($M)	Federal Expenditures as of March 31, 2007 ($M)
British Columbia	635.6	76.3	76.3	152.5
Alberta	476.9	57.2	57.2	114.5
Saskatchewan	147.7	17.7	17.7	35.5
Manitoba	167.2	20.1	20.1	40.1
Ontario	1,865.5	223.9	223.2	446.3
Quebec	1,151.0	138.1	138.1	276.2
New Brunswick	116.1	13.9	7.0	20.9
Nova Scotia	145.2	17.4	17.4	34.8
Prince Edward Island	37.5	4.5	2.2	6.7
Newfoundland & Labrador	82.2	9.9	19.7	19.7
Yukon	37.5	4.5	4.5	9.0
Northwest Territories	37.5	4.5	2.2	6.7
Nunavut	37.5	4.5	4.5	9.0
First Nations	62.6	7.5	0.0	0.0
Total	5,000.0	600.0	590.2	1,172.1

Public Transit Fund

Table 4.8: Public Transit Funds Flowed 2006-2007*

Jurisdiction	Allocation ($M)	Federal Expenditures in 2005-2006 ($M)	Federal Expenditures in 2006-2007 ($M)
British Columbia	52.5	52.5	-
Alberta	40.1	40.1	-
Saskatchewan	12.5	12.5	-
Manitoba	14.7	14.7	-
Ontario	155.2	155.2	-
Quebec	94.4	94.4	-
New Brunswick	9.4	9.4	-
Nova Scotia	11.7	-	11.7
Prince Edward Island	1.7	1.7	-
Newfoundland & Labrador	6.5	-	6.5
Yukon	0.4	0.4	-
Northwest Territories	0.5	-	0.5
Nunavut	0.4	-	0.4
Total	400.0	380.9	19.1

4.3 Contacts

For more information, visit www.infrastructure.gc.ca, or contact Infrastructure Canada at:

Infrastructure Canada
90 Sparks Street, Suite 605
Ottawa, ON  K1P 5B4

Telephone: 613-948-1148
Telephone toll free: 1 800 O-Canada (1 800 622-6232)

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