Parliament's budget boosted to $583,567,000 this year Parliamentary Budget Officer Kevin Page will get $2.8-million budget after high-profile national fight. By BEA VONGDOUANGCHANH Published March 8, 2010

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After a dramatic year of struggling with the House and Senate Speakers and the Parliamentary Librarian, Canada's Parliamentary budget officer will receive the full planned $2.8-million budget he was promised, according to the 2010-2011 main estimates.

"We are very pleased that our budget is back to the original planned level," budget officer Kevin Page told The Hill Times in an email. "This will allow us to do a better job at carrying out our legislative mandate."

Treasury Board President Stockwell Day (Okanagan-Coquihalla, B.C.) tabled the 2010-2011 main estimates totaling $259-billion last Wednesday when Parliament returned after a two-month break. According to the main estimates, the Library of Parliament has asked for $42,456,000, a 5.3 per cent increase from last year's budget. The Library has allocated $34,206,000 for "information support for Parliament" which allows the Library to provide "Parliamentarians with information, documentation, research and analysis services to help them fulfill their roles as legislators and representatives and to support them in their efforts to make Parliament and information about Parliament accessible to the public."

Another $8,250,000 has been allocated for "internal services" for such things as administrative support of the "needs of programs and other corporate obligations of an organization."

Mr. Page has been a controversial figure ever since he entered the national stage in 2008. He publicly aired a dispute between himself, Parliamentary Librarian William Young, and the House and Senate Speakers over a decrease in his planned spending. When he took the position in March 2008, the planned budget the following year was a $1-million increase to bring the total to $2.8-million. Instead he received the statutory 1.5 per cent in last year's budget, which amounted to $27,000. A debate about his "independence" and role within Parliament ensued. The Library of Parliament Joint Committee, which reports to the House and Senate Speakers, then got involved in "clarifying" his role and set out some conditions for him to receive the original $1-million increase. Mr. Page's office then received $484,000 in the supplementary estimates B, prorated for the 2009-2010 fiscal year, and it was unclear whether the office would receive the $2.8-million budget this fiscal year.

Mr. Young's office confirmed last Thursday, however, that the Library of Parliament submitted an estimates request that reflected the Joint Library Committee's report which recommended a $2.8-million budget.

Cynthia Cusinato, a spokesperson for the Library of Parliament, said last week that while the main estimates have not yet been approved by Parliament, the Library "submitted a 'business as usual' request which includes funding related to the PBO function in line with recommendations made by the Standing Joint Committee on the Library of Parliament in its June 2009 report. Additionally, it included a request for non-discretionary funding obligations such as collective bargaining settlements from prior years."

Liberal MP Marlene Jennings (Notre Dame de Grace-Lachine, Que.) said last week, however, that "Unless the government specifically states that that extra money which has been designated to the Library of Parliament is designated for the parliamentary budget officer, it means that the head of the Library of Parliament will determine where the money goes." She said without a line item, "it could still be an issue."

Mr. Young's office said the PBO's $2.8-million funding would be maintained throughout the 2010-2011 fiscal year. Mr. Page said that "given recent history ... there should be a separate line for the PBO" under the Library of Parliament's funding. Meanwhile, Mr. Page said the increased funding will allow him to sort out staffing issues. "We are continuing to work with the chief librarian to complete the staffing process. We have some key members on our team that have secondments due over the next few months and we are working together to secure some very talented and very dedicated staff," he said.

Parliament's total budget for the 2010 fiscal year is $583,567,000, which includes the Senate, the House of Commons, the Library, the Office of the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner, and the Senate Ethics Officer's budgets. This year's budget is a 3.2 per cent increase from last year's $565.3-million budget. Only the House Ethics Commissioner's Office did not receive a funding increase in these main estimates.

The Privy Council Office is also asking for a $15-million increase to funding, according to the main estimates, for a total of $143,948,000. This includes a $2,000 funding allowance each for the Minister of State (Democratic Reform) and the Chief Government Whip's motor car. In addition, $74,462,000 is for support and advice to the Prime Minister and portfolio ministers; $47,471,000 for "internal services"; $17,243,000 for advice and support to Cabinet and Cabinet committees; $4,650,000 for "public service leadership and direction" and $112,000 for commissions of inquiry. This represents an 11.77 per cent increase over last year's estimates.

Meanwhile, when the government prorogued Parliament, MPs and Senators lost five weeks of time in the House and Senate. The government introduced a motion last Wednesday to cancel the break weeks from March 15 to 19 and April 12 to 16. Prior to the House returning, however, Liberal Whip Rodger Cuzner (Cape Breton Canso, N.S.) told Government Whip Gordon O'Connor (Carleton-Mississippi Mills, Ont.) in a letter that the Liberals would support the motion if, among other issues, the government made ministers available to committees when requested. All of the department estimates will go directly to their respective committees, at which point ministers will have to appear before them to justify the estimates. In a letter in response to Mr. Cuzner, Mr. O'Connor said "ministers will be encouraged, as they always are, to appear at committees in support of their respective estimates."

Ms. Jennings said, however, that there is still no clear signal that ministers will comply with the requests, which would prevent a thorough and proper scrutiny of the estimates. We're still hopeful about that, but we'll have to wait and see," she said. "In the past there have been problems where ministers have not been available when the committee has requested them to come and it's been very difficult for some committees to get the ministers in front of them and to get the ministers there for the entire time. When ministers have said, 'I can only come for an hour,' but the committee has had say two hours scheduled for the response of the minister, the committee has said, 'Let your public servants remain because they can answer the questions,' the ministers have refused. That was our concern."

NDP Whip Yvon Godin (Acadie Bathurst, N.B.) said the government has indicated they will comply, but is also "waiting to see" if ministers show up reluctantly. "The last meeting we had the government said the ministers would be available. Now we'll see if they'll do it or not, because they have the responsibility of budgets for their department and they should be able to come in and defend their budget," he said.

Under the standing orders of the House of Commons, the opposition is allowed to choose two department's estimates and have the minister questioned for up to four hours on their estimates on the floor of the House during a committee of the whole. Ms. Jennings said her party has not decided yet which two ministers they will choose to appear before the committee of the whole.

The main estimates need to be approved before the June 23 supply period when the House rises for the summer break.

Meanwhile, Mr. Day also tabled the supplementary estimates C for 2009-2010, totaling more than $6-billion, last Wednesday. The House of Commons asked for $4.1-million for "additional operating costs for services to Members as well as economic increase for employees" and an "increase to services for Members such as travel and network costs." The Senate Ethics Officer requested $50,000 for "funding to conduct an inquiry regarding compliance with the Conflict of Interest Code for Senators." The supplementary estimates C have to be approved by Parliament before March 26, the end of the current supply period.

bvongdou@hilltimes.com

The Hill Times

STATUS OF GOVERNMENT BUSINESS AT THE END OF THE SECOND SESSION OF THE 40^TH PARLIAMENT

House of Commons

• C-6 Safety of Consumer Products Bill (concurrence of Senate amendments)

• C-8 Family Homes on Reserves and Matrimonial Interests or Rights Bill (second reading)

• S-8 Avoidance of Double Taxation and Prevention of Fiscal Evasion on Income Taxes between Canada and Colombia, Greece and Turkey Bill (second reading)

• C-13 Canada Grain Act Amendments Bill (second reading)

• C-15 Serious Drug Offences Bill (concurrence of Senate amendments)

• C-19 Investigative Hearing and Recognizance With Conditions Bill (second reading)

• C-20 Civil Liability and Compensation for Nuclear Damage (report)

• C-23 Columbia-Canada Free Trade Agreement (second reading)

• C-30 Senate Ethics Bill (second reading)

• C-31 Corruption of Foreign Public Officials Bill (committee)

• C-34 Protecting Victims From Sex Offenders (report)

• C-35 Deterring Terrorism and State Immunity Bill (second reading)

• C-37 An Action Plan for the National Capital Commission Bill (committee)

• C-40 Advance Polling Days Bill (second reading)

• C-42 Ending Conditional Sentences for Property and Other Serious Crimes (committee)

• C-43 Corrections and Conditional Release Bill (committee)

• C-44 Canada Post Corporation Bill (second reading)

• C-45 Foreign Nationals Working in Canada (second reading)

• C-46 Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters Bill (committee)

• C-47 Regulating Telecommunications Facilities to Support Investigations Bill (committee)

• C-52 Sentencing for Fraud Bill (committee)

• C-53 Accelerated Parole Review Bill (second reading)

• C-54 Parole Inadmissibility Period for Offenders Convicted of Multiple Murders Bill (second reading)

• C-55 Drug and Alcohol Relate Probation Compliance Bill (second reading)

• C-57 Canada-Jordan Free Trade Agreement Bill (second reading)

• C-58 Mandatory Reporting of Internet Child Pornography Bill (second reading)

• C-59 Amending the International Transfer of Offenders Act (second reading)

• C-60 Canada-U.S. Integrated Cross-Border Maritime Law Enforcement Operations Bill (second reading)

• C-61 Back to Work For Railway Operations Bill (second reading)

• C-63 First Nations Commercial and Industrial Development Act (second reading)

Senate

• S-5 Long-Gun Registry Repeal Bill (second reading)

• S-6 Accountability With Respect to Political Loans (second reading)

• S-7 Senate Term Limits Bill (second reading)

• C-26 Auto Theft and Trafficking in Property Obtained by Crime (second reading)

• C-27 Antispam Bill (committee)

• C-36 Early Parole Bill (second reading)

—Updated to Dec. 17, 2009