[BUDGET] or [OFF-CYCLE] PROPOSAL

Guidance

Budget and Off-Cycle proposals need to be detailed enough to answer any and all questions that may arise (e.g., costing methodology, policy rationale, stakeholder concerns, implementation feasibility, timelines, appropriate authorities), in order to inform decision-making by the Minister of Finance and Prime Minister. They should be concrete, including metrics, clear activities, and milestones where applicable. If the issue is a complex proposal, containing several sub-proposals, the submission should provide a detailed understanding of sub-elements as well as the whole.

Departments are encouraged to engage with working-level contacts at Finance Canada while drafting proposals, to address initial questions or feedback.

For horizontal proposals that implicate multiple organizations, one lead organization should submit a proposal package incorporating the relevant information from implicated organizations when possible. Other implicated ministers should reference the proposal and lead organization in their letter to the Minister of Finance.

Additional requirements or instructions may be communicated to ministers by the Minister of Finance at the beginning of each budgetary cycle.

Type of Proposal

Specify whether the proposal relates to a new initiative or activity, the modification (reduction or expansion) of an existing initiative or activity, or the renewal of an existing initiative or activity for which funding is slated to sunset (include the last fiscal year of funding).

Specify whether the proposal is submitted for off-cycle consideration (i.e., if it relates to an immediate, unanticipated pressure with in-year funding requirements). If an off-cycle decision is required, include a rationale in the space provided. The rationale must clearly explain why this proposal cannot wait to be considered as part of the budget process, and why it cannot be internally funded.

Specify whether the proposal requires new or amended legislation or regulation.

Green Bond Eligibility

If the proposal includes new or renewed expenditures, indicate whether they could be considered eligible green bond expenditures, based on the Green Bond Framework guidance, by checking the box in this section. This will trigger further review and due diligence by Finance Canada to confirm eligibility, when and if proposals are approved. Green bond eligible expenditures focus on programs which reduce Canada's GHG emissions and/or have other environmental benefits, such as renewable energy, pollution prevention and control, etc. and are outlined in section 2.1 of the Green Bond Framework.

Type of Expenditure

Select the applicable Classification of Functions of Government expenditure category (only for expenditure-related proposals). This classification is based on the OECD's Classification of the Functions of Government.

Provide a short description of the proposal, in 150 words or less, summarizing the funding proposal and expected results (i.e., the expected incremental change).

Describe the proposal in depth, focusing on the activities that proposed funding would support. The description should also include the following elements (this list is not exhaustive):

• Specification of what operating, grants and contributions, and capital costs (if applicable) will be used for.
• Authorities required and timelines (policy, legislative/regulatory and expenditure (i.e., supply)).
• Concrete discussion of expected outcomes, with clear and measurable deliverables wherever possible.
• Any legal/international obligations in relation to the proposal, including under the United Nations Declaration Act (UNDA).
• For complex or horizontal proposals containing multiple substantive sub-elements, information for each element of the proposal.

Provide contextual information, including (but not limited to):

• Connection to existing policies and programs, within or outside the organization (including, where applicable, provinces and territories). These policies and programs can be either explicitly connected with this proposal, play a complementary role in this space, or conversely detract from the objectives of the proposed program.
• Where applicable, references to past program evaluations, Auditor General reports, studies, or legal risk assessments; relevant Cabinet documents or public announcements; or government priorities (e.g., mandate letters) (links to documents referenced should be included, or copies attached to the proposal).

Present the rationale supporting the proposal and clearly explain objectives, issues and expected results. The rationale section must demonstrate:

• An issue – identify a clear public policy challenge the proposal aims to solve.
• How the proposal responds to the challenge.
• Why government intervention is necessary, and if so, why at the federal level (as opposed to other levels of government) and why intervention is necessary now (i.e., why consideration cannot be deferred to a future budget).
• Why new funding is required (as opposed to internal reallocation or cost recovery).
• Justification for ongoing funding amounts, if applicable.

Substantive costing information (annual cash and accrual profiles, and FTEs) associated with the proposal must be provided using the costing template (Annex A), in Excel format.

In this section, provide a summary of the costing information, including:

• The total gross and net cost of the proposal, including any new funding requirements and sources of funds.
• Detailed assumptions and key drivers of costs.  
• Breakdowns of costs and FTE requirements per activity.
• Costing models/formulae where appropriate.
• Where applicable, information on current funding and FTEs (dedicated to the program for proposals to renew or modify, or dedicated to the objective and departmental function for proposed new programs), as well as the regional distribution of FTEs.

Program integrity funding, where applicable, should be clearly identified.

Where costs are offset from internal reallocations (not including current ongoing funding for the same program), the amount and sources of this reallocation should be clearly identified.

For proposals to renew and/or modify existing programs, include a summary of previous funding authorities, funding allocations, and actual expenditures for recent fiscal years, including the current fiscal year ending, and explain any variance between expenditures and authorities (whether over, or under spent). Show the costs of renewing or modifying existing programs as separate top-level line items in the template.

Scalability

Describe the scalability of the funding proposal, including the impact on expected outcomes if the proposal were to be funded at a lower amount than requested. Include a full costing template (Annex A) for the scaled option(s).

Alternative Program/Delivery Options

Present at least one alternative program or delivery option that meets the proposal's objectives, including a full costing template (Annex A). Present at least one option that could be implemented with no new funding. Explain how these alternative options would affect the expected outcomes of the proposal.

Alternative Sources of Funding

Present alternative sources of funding for the proposal. This should include proposed opportunities to offset the costs of the proposal through internal reallocation of existing spending. Other alternatives may include cost recovery or reorienting existing activities. If reallocation or cost recovery are not possible, a robust justification should be included in the 'Rationale' section above.

Describe how and when the proposal would be implemented, including (but not limited to):

• Whether the proposal would be ready to implement in the short-term following announcement, including readiness to seek supply, staff up, and roll out programming at an early opportunity.
• The intended timing and key milestones for securing supply (and, for off-cycle proposals, funding decision), including the implications of any supply delays for implementation.
• Other key implementation steps and milestones, when would they be met, and how would they be monitored.
• Evidence of recent departmental experience implementing comparable proposals on similar timelines (and/or demonstrable progress towards implementing other recent commitments).
• The roles and responsibilities of organizations (e.g., other ministers, departments or agencies, outside partners, etc.) involved in delivering the proposal.
• Key implementation risks.

A detailed implementation plan is expected at the Treasury Board Submission stage.

Identify and describe any impacts the proposal may have on the delivery of government services and/or digital transformation. For example, potential impacts can include (but are not limited to):

• Improvements to current service delivery processes.
• Enhancements to client service experience.
• Efficiencies as a result of automation.
• Efficiencies as a result of implementing new IT systems, or integrating with existing ones.

For proposed digital solutions, indicate whether new IT elements are leveraging enterprise/common solutions or if they are standardized or customized. The long-term IT run (operational) costs should be outlined. The proposal should also provide an assessment of internal capacity or ability to attract digital talent necessary to deliver the solutions.

Indicate to what extent the Treasury Board Secretariat Office of the Chief Information Officer has been consulted and/or reviewed the proposal.

Overview

Canada's Quality of Life framework was released in Budget 2021, with a set of indicators to monitor Canadians' well-being now and into the future. The most recent data for most of the framework indicators can be found at Statistics Canada's Quality of Life Hub.

Budget proposals should highlight how they contribute to the components of quality of life in Canada, as measured by the framework domains and indicators. This will strengthen consistency across government in assessing the relative impacts of proposals across domains and over time.

Quality of Life — Domains and Indicators

This table includes drop-down lists of Quality of Life framework indicators, grouped by domain.

Please select up to four indicators per domain, to a maximum of 6 total indicators, for which the proposal can be reasonably expected to have a significant positive impact. There is no distinct timeframe that needs to be used when determining Quality of Life impacts. Instead, focus on significant impacts, regardless of when these impacts are expected to occur. Please delete unused domain rows. Please set all unused cells to the "blank" option.

In the primary domain column, select one domain, which is most impacted by the proposal. For example, while an environmental-focused proposal may have secondary impacts on health, the primary domain affected would be environment. In the evidence/explanation column, provide a brief explanation (a maximum of 10 words) of how or why each selected domain would reasonably be expected to be impacted positively by the proposal.

It is possible, although unlikely, that a proposal has no positive impact on any Quality of Life indicator (e.g., winding down of programs, minor regulatory additions). In these cases, remove the entire Quality of Life expected impact table from the proposal.

This table includes drop-down lists of the Gender Results Framework pillars, and the corresponding objectives and indicators.

For proposals that advance the Gender Results Framework, please indicate which is the lead pillar (only one) and delete unused cells. There is no distinct timeframe when determining implications for the Gender Results Framework. Instead, focus on impacts that have the potential to demonstrably affect the framework either in the short, medium or long-term.

In the evidence/explanation column, provide a brief explanation of why a pillar will be impacted.

If a proposal will not demonstrably advance the Gender Results Framework, then delete the entire Gender Results Framework table from the proposal.

Provide an overall summary, in 250 words or less, of the incremental impacts the proposal is expected to achieve; that is, what will be different if this initiative is funded. (Refer to the measure titled Investing in an Urban, Rural, and Northern Indigenous Housing Strategy in the Budget 2023 Impacts Report as an example of a concise summary.)

Provide indicators that will be used to assess the impact and effectiveness of the initiative, drawing on the Quality of Life framework's domains and indicators where relevant, and using other indicators as necessary.

While best practice is to include a forecast of some type, we recognize that in many cases this threshold of evidence will not be available. Nevertheless, the emphasis should be on looking to past evaluations of similar initiatives, academic research, etc. to substantiate claims about expected impacts. Please exercise your judgement and clarify the level of certainty in this section.

Please include any expected impact modelling results (e.g., number of beneficiaries affected, how, and over what time period). Include contributions to Government targets if relevant (e.g., the Sustainable Development Goals).

To complete this section, please draw on the completed GBA Plus analysis (Annex 2) and summarize which demographic groups will directly and indirectly benefit from this proposal, as well as any mitigation measures aimed at addressing barriers or negative impacts.

Please also include highlights of the Strategic Environmental Assessment (Annex 3A). For departments included in the Integrated Climate Lens pilot (ECCC, NRCAN, INF, ISED, TC, PS (emergency management only) and AAFC), please include highlights of qualitative and, if applicable, quantitative analysis of economic and environmental impacts, noting where assessments have been vetted by the Department of Finance and/or the ECCC Centre of Expertise.

In 150 words or less, please outline any regional and sectoral/or implications of the proposal, including the regional distribution of assets and resources.

For Integrated Climate Lens pilot departments, please include qualitative assessments of regional/sectoral economic impacts and indicate whether this assessment has been vetted by the Department of Finance. Please also include a quantitative estimate of expected economic impacts if one has been generated by the Department of Finance.

For proposals to renew, or that are connected to, existing policies and programs (as outlined in the background section), please provide an overview of results achieved to date, including findings from relevant horizontal and program specific evaluations and audits.

Where applicable, specify whether legislation or regulation is to be amended or enacted to implement the proposal, provide a description, and indicate the status of preparation.

Charter Statement (if legislation is necessary):

Under the Department of Justice Act, for every bill introduced in either House of Parliament, the Minister of Justice must table a statement that sets out potential effects of the bill on the rights and freedoms guaranteed by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. If legislation is required in order to implement the proposal, Justice should be consulted early to ensure a Charter statement is prepared in time for legislation to be tabled.

Note that for proposals that seek to secure an announcement of legislative/regulatory changes but have no associated costings, a complete proposal template is required, including a complete "Expected Impacts" section, Gender Based Analysis Plus (Annex 2) and Strategic Environmental Assessment (Annex 3A).

Identify stakeholder and communications considerations including any engagement undertaken to develop this proposal, anticipated stakeholder reaction, and recent media coverage. Note whether any aspects of the proposal are sensitive due to negotiation, commercial, security, confidentiality, or other considerations.

Describe in 150 words or less the proposed action(s), funding recipient(s), and expected result(s) and impact(s), in language suitable for publication (e.g., in the budget). For complex proposals, the use of charts, tables or infographics, as well as examples, is encouraged and the underlying data should be attached.

Include the name, title, email address and telephone number of the primary contact(s) in your organization for Department of Finance analysts to contact regarding this proposal.

Attach a completed costing template, in Excel format, containing substantive costing information (annual cash and accrual profiles, and FTEs) associated with the proposal. Include detail supporting the costing summary provided in the body of the proposal.

All budget and off-cycle proposals must include a comprehensive and rigorous    GBA Plus summary that explains the direct and indirect benefits of the proposal, as well as any mitigation measures where a barrier or negative impact has been identified. This analysis should also include a description of plans for disaggregated data collection. See the Department of Finance GBA Plus template and user guide.

Attach the results of your strategic environmental analysis in this annex. This should include analysis, any supporting documents, and a summary of key findings. If applicable, include an explanation of how the proposal is expected to affect the level of Canada's greenhouse gas emissions, and the extent to which it aligns with the Government of Canada's commitments to exceed Canada's 2030 emissions target and achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

For AAFC, ECCC, INFC, ISED, NRCan, PS (emergency management only) and TC – Attach the results of your Integrated Climate Lens analysis in this annex. It should include analysis and a summary of key findings. This includes an explanation of qualitative findings and, if applicable, quantitative economic and environmental impacts.