Mandate

The mandate of the Standing Committee on Government Operations and Estimates enhances the traditional “government operations” committee mandate that focused on central agencies, with two innovations:

• First, it reflects recommendations of the 1998 Report of the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs (Catterall-Williams Report), by locating, within a single committee, broad responsibilities relating to the supply process, and financial reporting to Parliament by government organizations.
• Second, it reflects the new importance of information and communication technologies, as an aspect of government operations having potentially transformative impacts on all aspects of governance.

The Committee’s government operations mandate includes primarily the study of:

• the effectiveness of government operations;
• expenditure plans of central departments and agencies, commissions, selected Crown corporations  and organizations;
• new and emerging information and communications technologies (ICTs) in the government; and
• statutory programs, tax expenditures, loan guarantees, contingency funds and private foundations deriving the majority of their funding from the Government of Canada.

The mandate pertaining to Estimates includes the review of the process for considering the Estimates and supply as well as the format and content of all Estimates documents.  These include:  the Estimates for programs delivered by more than one department or agency; any Estimates delivered to other standing committees (the Standing Committee on Government Operations and Estimates has the authority to amend the corresponding votes referred to those committees); and specific operational and expenditure items across all government departments and agencies.

The Committee is specifically mandated to examine and conduct studies related to the following organizations, whose operational responsibilities extend across the government:

Central Agencies and Departments

• Privy Council Office / Prime Minister’s Office
• Treasury Board Secretariat
• Public Works and Government Services Canada

Organizations Related to Human Resources Matters

• Public Service Commission
• Public Service Human Resources Management Agency of Canada
• Canada School of Public Service

Other Organizations

• Office of the Governor General
• The Senate of Canada
• Public Service Staff Relations Board
• Canadian Intergovernmental Conference Secretariat

Crown Corporations

• Canada Lands Company Limited
• Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation
• Canada Post Corporation
• Defence Construction (1951) Limited
• Old Port of Montréal Corporation Inc.
• Public Sector Pension Investment Board
• Queens Quay West Land Corporation
• Royal Canadian Mint

Cross-Departmental Mandates

• Global review of supply process, including financial reporting to Parliament
• New and emerging information and communications technologies
• Jointly-delivered programs
• Operational activities in all departments
• Supplementary review of departmental expenditures considered in other committees
• General mandate relating to:
  • statutory programs,
  • tax expenditures,
  • loan guarantees,
  • contingency funds and private foundations deriving the majority of their funding from the government.

top of page