Reconciliation between the Main Estimates and the Public Accounts for the fiscal year 2015–16

The table below presents a reconciliation between the total authorities shown in the Main Estimates and the total expenses reported in the Public Accounts for fiscal year 2015-16.

The Estimates are designed primarily to support Parliament’s consideration of appropriation bills and control of annual voted authority to spend for departments, agencies and some crown corporations. Statutory forecasts are reported in the Estimates but do not require spending authority from Parliament.

The Public Accounts, which were tabled in Parliament on , present the financial consolidated statements for the government as well as the details of expenses and revenues for fiscal year 2015-16.

The reconciliation between the Estimates and the Public Accounts is presented in two steps: 1) the cash reconciliation (upper pane), and 2) the accrual adjustments (lower pane).

The cash reconciliation starts with the Main Estimates totals and goes to the Public Accounts expenditures by walking through the budgetary items presented in the Public Accounts (Vol. II, Table 7). In a second step, accrual components and other adjustments (available in Public Accounts Vol. II, Table 2a), are added to arrive at the total expenses.

Reconciliation between Main Estimates and Public Accounts 2015-16 ($M)

  Voted Statutory Total
Main Estimates 2015-16 88,184.1 153,390.2 241,574.3
Authorities available from previous years 393.0 1,619.3 2,102.3
Supplementary Estimates A 3,135.3 19.8 3,155.0
Supplementary Estimates B 810.1 2.7 812.8
Supplementary Estimates C 2,835.7 2,308.2 5,143.9
Adjustments, warrants and transfers 0 794.5 794.5
Lapsed authorities -9,700.6 -15.0 -9,715.6
Authorities available for use in subsequent years -487.9 -1,890.0 -2,377.9
Total Expenditures – Public Accounts 2015-16 85,169.7 156,229.7 241,399.4
Consolidated Specific Purpose Accounts N/A N/A 20,792.9
Accrual and other adjustments N/A N/A 16,882.7
Consolidated Crown Corporation and other entities N/A N/A 4,454.4
Tax Credits and repayments N/A N/A 13,780.1
Internal Expenses N/A N/A -870.0
Total Expenses – Public Accounts 2015-16 N/A N/A 296,439.5

Glossary

Supplementary Estimates:
Supplementary Estimates present information to Parliament on the Government of Canada’s spending requirements that were not sufficiently developed in time for inclusion in the Main Estimates, and will from time to time include urgent but unforeseen expenditures.
Adjustments, warrants and transfers:
This includes various items such as adjustments to items displayed in the Estimates to reflect actual spending and adjustments to authorities granted to statutes other than appropriation acts.
Lapsed authorities:
Spending authorities unused during the fiscal year.
Consolidated Specific Purpose Accounts:
Consolidated specified purpose accounts are particular categories of revenues and expenses whereby legislation requires that revenues received for purposes specified in the legislation be credited to these accounts and that related payments be charged to the accounts. They are principally used where the activities are similar in nature to departmental activities and the transactions do not represent future liabilities to third parties but in essence constitute Government revenues and expenses.
Accrual and Other Adjustments:
Expenditures reported in Volume II are reported under a partial accrual method of accounting, therefore these adjustments are required to reconcile to the Total expenses of the Government reported under the full accrual method of accounting.
Consolidated Crown Corporations and other entities:
For accrual accounting purposes certain Crown corporations and other entities are fully consolidated on a line-by-line and uniform basis of accounting. These adjustments reflect the elimination of significant intergovernmental transactions and the recognition of the expenses of the Crown corporations and other entities with third parties.
Tax credits and repayments:
This amount represents a reclassification between the expenses and revenues for the Canada Child Tax Benefit, Working Income Tax Benefit and other payments to industry through the tax system for presentation purposes.
Internal Expenses:
Organizations within the Government’s reporting entity transact with each other on a day-to-day basis contribute to the amount of revenues and expenses recorded in the accounts of Canada. In order to prepare the Government of Canada consolidated financial statements, these “internal transactions” are eliminated.

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