2015-2016 Departmental Performance Report: User Fees, Regulatory Charges and External Fees

User Fees, Regulatory Charges and External Fees

Reporting on the User Fees Act

General and Financial Information by Fee

General Information
Fee name	Environmental assessment review panels
Fee type	Regulatory
Fee-setting authority	Cost Recovery Regulations under the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act, 2012.
Year introduced	2012
Year last amended	2012
Performance standard	The Agency will recover from project proponents the direct and actual costs incurred in exercising its responsibilities, and those of the members of the review panel for environmental assessments by review panel, in accordance with the Cost Recovery Regulations.
Performance results	The Agency recovered or initiated the recovery of 100% of eligible panel review costs incurred within the 2015–16 reporting period.
Other information	Costs incurred late in the reporting period are expected to be recovered during the next fiscal year. The Agency operates in a continuously changing environment impacted by outside factors, such as the economy and changes to commodity prices that can vary the number, types and locations of projects subject to environmental assessment by review panels. This results in a limited ability to accurately predict the pace and levels of environmental assessments by review panels.

Financial Information, 2015–16 (dollars)
Forecast revenue	Actual revenue	Full cost
3,000,000	751,306	2,048,182

Financial Information, 2016–17, 2017–18 and 2018–19 (dollars)
Planning year	Forecast revenue	Estimated full cost
2016 –17	2,500,000	3,600,000
2017 –18	4,250,000	5,350,000
2018 –19	2,800,000	3,350,000

Fee name	Fees charged for the processing of access requests filed under the Access to Information Act (ATIA)
Fee type	Other Products and Services
Fee-setting authority	Access to Information Act, subsection 11(1) and paragraph 7(1)(a); Access to Information Regulations
Year introduced	1985
Year last amended	2013
Performance standard	A response is to be provided within 30 days following receipt of request; the response time may be extended pursuant to section 9 of the ATIA. A notice of extension must be sent within 30 days after receipt of the request. The Access to Information Act provides further details: http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/A-1/.
Performance results	The Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency received 39 requests in 2015–16. The Agency processed 43 requests, including some carried over from the previous year, and carried 8 requests forward to 2016–17. Ninety-eight per cent of requests processed in 2015–16 were completed within legislated timeframes. While the number of requests processed remains comparable to that of the previous year, the number of pages processed for requests completed in 2015–16 decreased over the previous year (from approximately 40,000 pages to 1195 pages).

Financial Information, 2015–16 (dollars)
Forecast revenue	Actual revenue	Full cost
1,000	120	261,448

Financial Information, 2016–17, 2017–18 and 2018–19 (dollars)
Planning year	Forecast revenue	Estimated full cost
2016 –17	500	261,448
2017 –18	500	261,448
2018 –19	500	261,448

Summary of Financial Information for All User Fees and Regulatory Charges, 2015–16 (dollars)
	Forecast revenue	Actual revenue	Full cost
Regulatory subtotal	3,000,000	751,306	2,048,182
Other products and services subtotal	1,000	120	261,448
Total, all fee types	3,001,000	751,426	2,309,630

Summary of Financial Information for All User Fees and Regulatory Charges, 2016–17, 2017–18 and 2018–19 (dollars)
	Planning year	Forecast revenue	Estimated full cost
Regulatory subtotal	2016 –17	2,500,000	3,600,000
	2017 –18	4,250,000	5,350,000
	2018 –19	2,800,000	3,350,000
Other products and services subtotal	2016 –17	500	261,448
	2017 –18	500	261,448
	2018 –19	500	261,448
Total, all fee types	2016 –17	2,500,500	3,861,448
	2017 –18	4,250,500	5,611,448
	2018 –19	2,800,500	3,611,448

Reporting on the Policy on Service Standards for External Fees

General Information by Fee

General Information
Fee name	Cost Recovery Regulations, Canadian Environmental Assessment Act, 2012 (CEAA 2012)
Service standard	Cost recovery under CEAA 2012 applies to environmental assessments conducted by review panels. CEAA 2012 requires that environmental assessments by review panels must be completed within 24 months from the referral of the project to a review panel. CEAA 2012 also requires the Minister of the Environment to establish timelines (which combined cannot exceed 24 months) for the review panel to be established following referral, the review panel to submit its report to the Minister of the Environment and Climate Change and for the Minister of the Environment and Climate Change to issue a decision statement. The timeline may be extended by the Minister of the Environment and Climate Change by up to 3 months. Extensions beyond 3 months may be granted by the Governor in Council.
Performance results	100 % of the six environmental assessments by review panels underway during the 2015–16 reporting period were conducted in accordance with the time periods established or approved by the Minister of the Environment.
Stakeholder consultation in 2015–16 or prior fiscal years	No stakeholder consultation related to cost recovery was conducted in the reporting period.