Report on annual expenditures for travel, hospitality, and conferences (for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2017)

As required by the Treasury Board Directive on Travel, Hospitality, Conference and Event Expenditures this report provides information on the total annual expenditures for each of travel, hospitality, and conferences for Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2017. It also provides the variance explanations from the previous fiscal year in each of these areas.

This information is updated annually and does not contain information withheld under the Access to Information Act or the Privacy Act.

Expenditures on travel, hospitality, and conferences fees incurred by federal departments and agencies are related to activities that support a departmental or agency mandate and the government’s priorities.

CSC is an agency within the Public Safety Portfolio which is comprised of five key federal agencies and three review bodies, including the Office of the Correctional Investigator, dedicated to public safety. CSC, as part of the criminal justice system and respecting the rule of law, contributes to public safety by actively encouraging and assisting offenders to become law-abiding citizens, while exercising reasonable, safe, secure and humane control. It delivers its mandate under four major program activities. A summary description of CSC’s program activities can be found in Part II of the Main Estimates.

CSC has locations throughout Canada that require travel for staff to provide service delivery and to oversee its operations. Other travel is required for CSC staff to attend training sessions to maintain or develop skills or to participate in various sessions to promote productive relationships with increasingly diverse partners, stakeholders, and others involved in public safety.

Travel by non-public servants is mainly attributable to costs incurred when transferring offenders. Additionally, it includes travel by individuals such as contractors that offer their services to CSC such as psychiatrists, doctors, lawyers, Elders and others that contribute to the care and custody of inmates and to the offender’s rehabilitation and successful reintegration into the community.

For more details on CSC mandate and priorities please refer to the CSC’s Departmental Plan (DP) and Departmental Results Report (DRR).

Public Servants: Compared to fiscal year 2015-2016, CSC’s travel expenditures by public servants increased, mainly due to:

• Increased staff on extended travel status due to urgent staffing requirements in the Prairies region, and
• Increased travel requirements related to staff training.

Non-Public Servants: Compared to fiscal year 2015-2016, there was no significant variance in CSC’s travel expenditures by non-public servants. The minor decrease can be attributed to continued efforts to ensure that travel expenditures are managed in the most effective and economical manner by promoting the use of available technologies such as teleconferencing and videoconferencing.

Compared to fiscal year 2015-2016, there was no significant variance in CSC’s hospitality expenditures.

During 2016-2017, CSC employees attended conferences, however compared to fiscal year 2015-2016 there was no significant variance in conference fees expenditures.