Office of Policy & Priorities; Treasury Board Office; and Executive Council Office 2010-2011 Accountability Report August 12, 2011 1
Table of Contents A. Accountability Statement...3 B. Message from the Minister...4 C. Priorities and Accomplishments...5 D. Financial Results...11 2
A. Accountability Statement The Joint Accountability Report of the Office of Policy & Priorities, Treasury Board Office, and Executive Council Office (the Offices) for the year ended March 31, 2011, is prepared pursuant to the Finance Act and government policies and guidelines. These authorities require the reporting of outcomes against the Offices joint statement of mandate for the fiscal year 2010-2011. The reporting of the Offices outcomes includes estimates, judgments, and opinions by management of the three offices. The report is, to the extent possible, a complete and accurate representation of outcomes relative to the goals and priorities set out in the joint statement of mandate for the year 2010-2011. The Honourable Darrell Dexter, President of the Executive Council, Minister of Policy and Priorities The Honourable Frank Corbett, Chair of Treasury Board Gregory P. Keefe, Clerk of/secretary to the Executive Council Deputy Minister, Office of the Premier Deputy Minister, Treasury Board Office Rick Williams, Deputy Minister Office of Policy and Priorities 3
B. Message from the President of the Executive Council, Minister of Policy and Priorities, and the Chair of Treasury Board We are pleased to present the joint accountability report of the Office of Policy & Priorities, Treasury Board Office, and Executive Council Office for the fiscal year 2010 2011. The Office of Policy and Priorities focussed on the priorities of government and provided ongoing policy direction. The Treasury Board Office ensured we properly managed the province s finances and the Executive Council Office acted as secretariat to the Executive Council. This report outlines the accomplishments of the Office of Policy & Priorities, Treasury Board Office, and Executive Council Office with respect to its core business areas as well as its financial results for the 2010 2011 fiscal year. The Honourable Darrell Dexter, President of the Executive Council, Minister of Policy and Priorities The Honourable Frank Corbett, Chair of Treasury Board 4
C. Priorities and Accomplishments The Offices identified four Core Business Areas for 2010-2011. Core Business Area 1: Support to Executive Council and its sub-committees Outcome: Effective and efficient support to Executive Council and its sub-committees Administrative Processes There have been significant changes to the internal processes of the ECO Office as a result of moving to one week in advance distribution of meeting materials and increased management of agendas for Executive Council and its Committees. The ECO Office will continue to monitor these processes and modify and improve them where necessary. In 2010-2011, a process was developed whereby the Recording Secretary for each Committee is responsible for preparing notes from the Committee (Treasury Board, Policy and Priorities, Legislation). The notes are reviewed each week at the Executive Council meeting so all Ministers are aware of all decisions made by each Committee; the Agenda Management Committee (a committee of senior officials) was established with the primary responsibility to review all submissions received by Executive Council Office and discuss future submissions to ensure they are channeled through the appropriate Committee in a timely and coordinated manner; a review of Chapter 3 of Management Manual 100 (Submissions to Executive Council) was conducted. This included updating the language of each policy and major changes to the existing templates used by all Departments and Agencies, Boards, and Commissions (ABCs) for submission of Report and Recommendations and Memoranda to the Executive Council and/or its Committees. ECO worked closely with the Treasury Board Office, the Office of Policy and Priorities, the Department of Finance, Communications Nova Scotia and Department of Justice to ensure that all revised documents were vetted through these central offices. FileNet FileNet is the Cabinet Agenda Management System used to store and manage all submissions to Executive Council. This system needed to be upgraded (to FileNet P8) during 2010-2011 as the version previously used by the Offices would no longer be supported by IBM after December 31, 2010. On December 6, 2010 the system was successfully migrated on time and on budget and on December 8, 2010 and FileNet was operational for all staff to use. Work continues on Phase II 5
of this project to develop and implement components captured outside of scope during 2010-2011. Business Continuity The Business Continuity Plan (BCP) for the Office of Policy & Priorities, Treasury Board Office, and Executive Council Office details the strategy for recovering from an emergency, provides for staff safety, and outlines particular roles in getting back up to normal capacity in the wake of unforeseen circumstances. In 2010-2011, a Business Continuity Policy was developed and approved to guide the implementation of the Business Continuity Plan and the development of a business continuity culture within the organizations. Staff in each of the offices have been made aware of the Policy and received training. Records Management Final approval for a new Standard for Operational Records (STOR) for Executive Council, Offices and Committees was approved in August, 2010 and the Standard for Administrative Records (STAR) was updated. This provides the Offices with a comprehensive records management schedule to ensure that all records of the Offices are properly classified and accessible to meet the needs of the Executive Council and its Committees. Core Business Area 2: Strategic planning, budgeting, and accountability Outcome: Effective and efficient strategic planning, budgeting and accountability The Treasury Board Office progressed through 2010-2011 and met its core priorities by providing financial analysis to support Treasury Board, leading the budget process, and leading the overall business planning and accountability reporting processes. The government s commitment to living within our means necessitated a continued focus on cost reduction strategies. In 2010-2011, TBO: With respect to internal business processes: finalized the analysis and implementation of business intelligence and reporting software to provide the reporting flexibility required for use by all government departments; 6
developed and released a Fall Capital Plan outlining the Government s plan for the next fiscal year and the financial requirements related to capital spending; this met the Government s commitment in this area; continued the Statement of Mandate process and introduced governmental core priorities into the process to link departments with the Government s overall priorities and directions; provided analysis and feedback to departments, agencies, and Crown Corporations for the Statement of Mandates and Accountability Reports; monitored departmental spending and reported to Treasury Board Committee on results; acted as the administrator for the TAGR 1 System, including supporting on-going initiatives: o implemented several enhancements related to reporting and assignment of recommendations. In addition, information sessions were conducted for all users of the system to increase knowledge of the processes and enhancements to the system; o the responses to the 2008 Auditor General recommendations were released to the Auditor General for their annual review. With respect to expenditure management measures TBO: implemented a Change and Innovation Fund that enabled departments and public sector funding partners to invest in new technologies and systems to achieve efficiencies and savings; initiated the review of government programs for cost effectiveness, current usefulness, and alignment with current priorities to achieve more efficient service delivery; introduced other processes such as the Professional Services Review, in attempts to control expenditures. 1 The Tracking Auditor General Recommendations (TAGR) System addresses a need for Government to have a corporate tool for tracking Auditor General Report recommendations and to have an efficient and timely means of tracking and reporting on the status of Auditor General Report Recommendations. The Department of Finance, Treasury Board Office and the Office of Policy and Priorities own the TAGR System. System administration resides with Treasury Board Office. 7
Core Business Area 3: Provide leadership to advance the development of policy capacity and horizontal government Outcome: Leadership that advances the development of policy capacity and horizontal government The Office of Policy and Priorities provides leadership in developing government policy. Much was accomplished in advancing initiatives related to the current core priority program 2 which sits at the implementation phase. Many of these initiatives were fine tuned and successfully taken through the approvals process during the year. The Office facilitated communication and coordination across government departments on core areas and provided direction in managing emerging issues to make certain government priorities were addressed. In addition to several other initiatives, the office developed a proposal for Executive Council approval which resulted in the establishment of the Deputy Ministers Leadership Team on Economy and Environment, the Jobs and the Economy Ministerial Committee, the Deputy Ministers Committee on Better Health Care and the Better Health Care Ministerial Committee to focus on the Core Priorities. The Office re-established the Senior Policy Executive Forum. Meetings were designed to bring senior policy executives from across the system up to date on the core program and to develop a way forward in using the group to identify significant horizontal issues and develop related initiatives; 2 The Government has identified four Core Priorities 1. Better health care; 2. Creating good jobs and growing the economy; 3. Helping people make ends meet; and 4. Ensuring government lives within its means 8
Core Business Area #4 Supporting effective corporate administration and governance Outcome: Effective and efficient corporate administration and governance Governance & Accountability The ECO provides policy support and guidance in respect to the governance and accountability of Provincial agencies, boards and commissions (ABCs). It also oversees the ABC appointments process. In 2010-2011, the position of Senior Corporate Policy Analyst, Governance was filled at ECO and work was conducted in the following areas: review of the current status of agency governance and accountability, including an assessment of the implementation of the 2005 recommendations to enhance agency governance and accountability; preparation of a three year work plan for the implementation of further initiatives provided training and assistance to departmental staff as required to improve the quality of information provided in Cabinet submissions relating to appointments to ABCs; provided training to ministerial staff and updated ECO s ABC website and promotional campaign in an effort to increase the number of applications for positions with ABCs. (Preliminary results indicated a 32% increase in number of applicants and 75% increase in applications.) provided introductory governance training to the boards of several provincial agencies. commenced review of the Personal Services Contract Regulations to prepare proposed amendments designed to address housekeeping issues and enhance Treasury Board s ability to monitor remuneration packages offered to employees of provincial agencies; and provided advice and assistance to departments and agencies with respect to other governance and accountability issues as and when requested to do so. 9
All Core Business Areas: Client Service Outcome: Effective leadership, service and support to all departments and agencies The Office of Policy and Priorities works closely with Executive Council Office (ECO) and Treasury Board Office (TBO) in ensuring Executive Council has the information it needs to make good decisions. To support Executive Council and its Committees, the Office of Policy and Priorities (OPP) works with Treasury Board Office to analyze proposals and help departments develop related documents submitted to Executive Council. During the year many of the 1,358 submissions were analyzed and/or developed by the office. OPP plays a leadership role in policy/priority advancement by actively participating in identification and development. It moves these policies through the approvals process and assists with implementation when needed. An example of this is the core priority process which was lead by the Office with system wide participation resulting in governments current priorities. The Office was restructured during the year to align with these priorities and worked with relevant departments to gain approval for specific strategies under each priority area. The restructuring also provided an opportunity to develop project management expertise within OPP so the office can better track initiative progress. 10
D. Financial Results Estimate 2010-2011 Total - Gross Current ($000's) Actual 2010-2011 Variance Office of Policy & Priorities $2,253 $1,662 ($591) Treasury Board Office $16,433 $5,651 ($10,782) 1 Executive Council Office $2,454 $2,100 ($354) Total $21,140 $9,413 ($11,727) Salaries and Benefits ($000's) Office of Policy & Priorities $1,851 $1,470 ($381) Treasury Board Office $1,356 $1,739 $383 Executive Council Office $1,746 $1,473 ($273) Total $4,953 $4,682 ($271) Funded Staff (FTEs) Office of Policy & Priorities 16.0 13.0 (3.0) Treasury Board Office 13.0 16.1 3.1 Executive Council Office 20.0 17.1 (2.9) Total 49.0 46.2 (2.8) 1 This variance was primarily a result of unallocated funds within Treasury Board Office related to the Change in Innovation Fund. 11