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2010-11
Report on Plans and Priorities

National Parole Board

Supplementary Information (Tables)

Horizontal Initiatives

The Board will become involved in the National Anti-Drug Strategy following Royal Assent for legislative proposals calling for introduction of mandatory minimum penalties for serious drug offences. Current plans call for provision of $7.5 million for NPB over four years, including $2.2 million in 2010-11 to manage increased numbers of conditional release reviews as a result of mandatory minimum sentences. This following table illustrates the planned spending and expected results for each of the program activities.

**Federal Partner: National Parole Board of Canada**
($ millions)
Federal Partner Program Activity	Names of Programs for Federal Partners	Total Allocation (from Start to End Date)	Planned Spending for 2010-11	Expected Results for 2010-11
Conditional Release Decisions	Conditional Release Decisions	$4.4 M	$1.3 M	Note ¹
Conditional Release Decisions Openness and Accountability	Conditional Release Decisions Openness and Accountability	$1.8 M	$0.5 M	Note ²
Internal Services	Internal Services	$1.3 M	$0.4 M	Support programs
Total		$7.5 M¹	$2.2 M¹

¹ Note : Should the proposed legislation receive Royal Assent this funding will provide the NPB the capacity for effective management of its legislated responsibilities for parole decision-making for offenders in relation to the requirements of the new legislation. NPB will collect information and report on workloads and outcomes of parole for provincial offenders incarcerated as a result of new legislative provisions (e.g., the number and proportion of offenders who successfully complete their parole).

² Note : Should the proposed legislation receive Royal Assent this funding will provide the NPB the capacity for provision of information and assistance to victims of crime, observers at hearings and individuals who seek access to decision registry in relation to the requirements of the new legislation. In a similar manner, NPB will report on the extent of involvement of victims, and observers in conditional release processes and the level of satisfaction of these individuals with the information and assistance provided by NPB.

Effective management of both these responsibilities will contribute to public safety and reinforce public confidence in the justice system.

Upcoming Internal Audits and Evaluations

Subject	Status	Expected Completion Date	Electronic Link to Report
Evaluation of NPB initiatives related to the unique needs and circumstances of Aboriginal offenders, women offenders and ethno-cultural groups of offenders in the context of conditional release	Planned	March 31, 2012	will be provided when available
Evaluation of measures to provide victims with a more effective voice in criminal justice	Planned	March 31, 2011	will be provided when available
Review to assess the impact of processes to improve the pardon application process	Planned	March 31, 2011	will be provided when available
Evaluation of the impacts and effects of the strategic framework for citizen engagement, including expansion of the framework for citizen engagement to include rural, Aboriginal and culturally diverse communities	Planned	March 31, 2013	will be provided when available
Evaluation of departmental learning strategy	Planned	March 31, 2013	will be provided when available

Summary of Capital Spending by Program Activity

Non-Respendable Revenue
($ thousands)
Pardon Decisions/Clemency Recommendations Program	Forecast Spending 2009-10	Planned Spending 2010-11	Planned Spending 2011-12	Planned Spending 2012-13
Pardon user fees	933	1,000	1,000	1,000
Total Non-respendable Revenue	933	1,000	1,000	1,000

User Fees

Name of User Fee	Fee Type	Authority	Reason for Planned Introduction of or Amendment to Fee	Effective Date of Planned Change	Consultation and Review Process Planned
Processing pardon application	Regulatory Service	User Fee Act	The NPB is proposing to increase the user fee for the processing of pardon applications to enable it to manage workload increases associated with the processing of pardon applications, to ensure the provision of services to pardon applicants at a reasonable level and to establish sustainability for the pardon program. In recent years, the Board has experienced a significant increase in the number of pardon applications received annually. Historically, the Board received 15,000 to 20,000 pardon applications per year. In the past number of years however, application volumes have risen steadily, and are anticipated to reach approximately 33,000 in 2009-10. Looking to 2010-11 and future years, the Board anticipates that application volumes will continue to rise and could eventually reach 40,000 per year. Workload growth of this magnitude cannot be managed with the current level of resources available for pardons, nor can the Board reallocate internally to the pardon program without jeopardizing its capacity for effective management of its legislated responsibilities for conditional release, and therefore, its ability to contribute to public safety in an effective manner. While numerous steps have been taken to streamline pardon processes, the Board must also obtain access to increased revenues from the pardon user fee in order to establish sustainability for the pardon program.	2010-11	Implementation of this proposal, which will be consistent with the requirements of the User Fee Act, will be supported by a series of consultations involving: key federal partners with an interest in the pardon program; national offender advocacy groups representing potential pardon applicants; court organizations; selected police services; and victim advocates.

Name of User Fee

Fee Type

Authority

Reason for Planned Introduction of or Amendment to Fee

Effective Date of Planned Change

Consultation and Review Process Planned

Processing pardon application

Regulatory Service

User Fee Act

The NPB is proposing to increase the user fee for the processing of pardon applications to enable it to manage workload increases associated with the processing of pardon applications, to ensure the provision of services to pardon applicants at a reasonable level and to establish sustainability for the pardon program.

In recent years, the Board has experienced a significant increase in the number of pardon applications received annually. Historically, the Board received 15,000 to 20,000 pardon applications per year. In the past number of years however, application volumes have risen steadily, and are anticipated to reach approximately 33,000 in 2009-10. Looking to 2010-11 and future years, the Board anticipates that application volumes will continue to rise and could eventually reach 40,000 per year.

Workload growth of this magnitude cannot be managed with the current level of resources available for pardons, nor can the Board reallocate internally to the pardon program without jeopardizing its capacity for effective management of its legislated responsibilities for conditional release, and therefore, its ability to contribute to public safety in an effective manner.

While numerous steps have been taken to streamline pardon processes, the Board must also obtain access to increased revenues from the pardon user fee in order to establish sustainability for the pardon program.

2010-11

Implementation of this proposal, which will be consistent with the requirements of the User Fee Act, will be supported by a series of consultations involving:

key federal partners with an interest in the pardon program;
national offender advocacy groups representing potential pardon applicants;
court organizations;
selected police services; and
victim advocates.