Procurement Reporting for Calendar Year 2011 (to be reported in 2012)

Contracting Policy Notice: 2012-1

File No: 7010-003 and 7010-004

Date: March 8, 2012

To: Functional Heads, Finance and Administration of all Organizations

Subject: Procurement Reporting for Calendar Year 2011 (to be reported in 2012)

Summary

For calendar year 2011 (to be reported in 2012) there are three main changes:

1. Organizations are to report on all individual standing offer call-ups

   As highlighted in previous call letters, organizations are now required to report on the basis of individual call-ups against a standing offer agreement versus an estimate of the total contracting activity from a standing offer agreement.

2. Instead of reporting an aggregate total for contracts under $25K, organizations are encouraged to fully report on each procurement contract

   Organizations are encouraged to only submit one transactional file listing all contracts, regardless of dollar value, rather than the current six separate reports. Public Works and Government Services Canada (PWGSC) officials will be able to compile and prepare the annual "Standing Offer or Supply Arrangement Business Volume Report" on behalf of the reporting entity. PWGSC consultations have determined that organizations have the ability to make this change.

3. In addition to the existing mandatory data fields, PWGSC is strongly encouraging organizations to report on four additional data fields for all contracts, regardless of dollar value

   As part of a broader effort to streamline and reduce multiple reporting requirements for organizations, PWGSC has identified four new data fields for calendar year 2011 applicable to all contracts, regardless of dollar value. To the extent possible, organizations are asked to submit this information for 2011, in advance of these data fields becoming mandatory for calendar year 2012. For a complete list of data fields, please refer to the Annex.

Introduction

Each year, organizations are asked to provide PWGSC with data on their contracting activities. PWGSC supplies the data to TBS, along with PWGSC data on the contracting that it undertakes on behalf of organizations.

This data is used to meet a number of the government's reporting obligations, including those required under various international and domestic trade agreements. In addition, it is used as the basis for statistics that are published by TBS on the Internet, as the annual TBS Purchasing Activity Report (PAR). The PAR promotes transparency in federal government contracting, and is a key source of information of interest to a broad audience, including federal organizations, oversight bodies, Canadian citizens, media, and other governments.

Reporting Entities

The entities that must report are contracting authorities as defined in the Government Contracts Regulations.

Authorization and Deadline

Please note that all organizations are responsible for the accuracy and comprehensiveness of their contracting data.

When sending data to PWGSC, the electronic transmittal document must indicate the name and position of the individual (Director General level or higher) who has reviewed, validated and approved the data for release on behalf of the organization. Otherwise, the data will be returned to the originator.

Organizations are required to submit their data to PWGSC no later than May 31, 2012. This will allow PWGSC to produce the various procurement reports on a timely basis.

Previous Reporting Process

In previous years, organizations were asked to produce six different reports (contracts below $25K, contracts above $25K, positive amendments, negative amendments, aboriginal set-asides and the standing offer/supply arrangement business volume report).

New Reporting Process for 2011

In order to reduce the reporting burden, organizations are strongly encouraged to report all contracts, regardless of dollar value, and to include four additional data fields on all contracts. Please note that the added fields will become mandatory for 2012. PWGSC has advised that there are particular benefits for organizations including these fields in files submitted for 2011; namely:

• Organizations will be able to submit one transactional file, rather than the various separate reports;
• PWGSC will also be able to compile and prepare the annual "Standing Offer or Supply Arrangement Business Volume Report" on behalf of the reporting entity; and
• Currently, PWGSC has resources available to assist organizations with these changes.

Please do not report acquisition card transactions. This information will be obtained from sources within the Treasury Board Secretariat.
For Standing Offers, either put in place by organizations themselves or by PWGSC, organizations are requested to report individual call-ups rather than entire standing offer agreements (effective January 2011).

If organizations are not able to report on the additional data fields this year, they can follow the previous process of using PWGSC's Datacap Software. The updated 2011 version of the Business Volume Report is located on the Datacap site.

Data Submission

Please send electronic data by e-mail to ncr.gwprs@pwgsc.gc.ca. Alternatively, you can mail your electronic files on diskette to: PWGSC, 11 Laurier Street, Phase III Floor 14A2, Gatineau, Québec K1A 0S5, Attention: Gérard Degrève.

Enquiries

For procurement reporting enquires, including those related to the new data fields, please contact Gérard Degrève 819-956-6500.

For information on all other matters, please contact Christiaan Shanahan at the Treasury Board Secretariat at 613-941-7182.

Please note all enquiries regarding the published data will be referred to officials in the appropriate organization.
Elisa Mayhew
Executive Director
Investment, Project Management, Procurement Policy Directorate
Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat
Distribution: TB06, TB07, TB21, T22, TB23, T23, T24, T161

Annex

Organizations are requested to provide the following data elements as part of their reports:

Existing Data Fields:

1. Department/Agency
2. Award Date
3. Agreement Type
   • Y : WTO/NAFTA/AIT
   • Z : WTO/NAFTA
   • X: WTO/AIT
   • C : NAFTA/AIT
   • W : WTO
   • N : NAFTA
   • I : AIT
   • A : ABSA
   • R : LCSA
4. Commodity Code - (4 digit GSIN code)
   • Goods = 4 numeric
   • Services = 1 alpha plus 3 numeric OR 2 alpha plus 2 numeric
   • Construction= "51" plus 1 or 2 numeric)
5. Country of Origin
6. Solicitation Procedure
   • ACAN
   • Open Bidding
   • Traditional Competitive
   • Traditional Non-Competitive
7. Limited Tendering Reason
   • No response to bid solicitation
   • Goods Purchased on a Commodity Market
   • Purchases Made Under Exceptionally Advantageous Conditions
   • Winner of an Architectural Design Contest
   • Exclusive Rights
   • Prototype Purchase
   • Interchangeable Parts
   • Extreme Urgency
   • Consulting Services Regarding Matters of a Confidential Nature
   • Additional Construction Services
   • New Construction Services
   • Prices and/or Sources Fixed by Government Regulations
   • Protection of Human, Animal, or Plant Life or Health
   • Government Objectives Representing Best Interests/Value
   • Low Dollar-value
8. Derogation
   • Shipbuilding and repair
   • Urban rail and urban transportation equipment systems, components and materials
   • Contracts respecting FSC 58 (communications, detection and coherent radiation equipment)
   • Set-asides for small and minority businesses
   • Agricultural products made in furtherance of agricultural support programs or human feeding programs
   • The Depts of Transport, Communications and Fisheries & Oceans respecting FSC 70, 74, 36
   • National security exemptions incl. oil purchases relating to any strategic reserve requirements
   • National security exceptions include procurements made in support of safeguarding nuclear materials or technology
   • Under exception circumstances exclude a procurement from the application of AIT, Chapter 5 for regional and economical development purposes
9. Canadian Value
10. Set-aside Program for Aboriginal Business (SPAB) Incidental Indicator
11. Intellectual Property Indicator
    • A1: Crown owned - exception 6.1
    • A2: Crown owned - exception 6.2
    • A3: Crown owned - exception 6.3
    • A41: Crown owned - exception 6.4.1
    • A42: Crown owned - exception 6.4.2
    • A43: Crown owned - exception 6.4.3
    • A65: Crown owned - exception 6.5
    • A8: Crown owned - exception 8
    • B: Contractor Owned
    • C: No IP Terms in Contract
    • D: Organization Not Subject to IP Policy

New Data Fields:

1. Document Number (Contract, Call-up)
2. Standing Offer Number
3. Document Type (for example, 942: Standing Offer Call-up, Contract, Amendment etc.)
4. Vendor Name

Purpose of Additional Data Fields:

Should organizations be able to provide these additional data fields, PWGSC will be capable of compiling and preparing the annual "Standing Offer or Supply Arrangement Business Volume Report" on their behalf. Specifically:

Document Number

this will allow PWGSC to extract and report below $25k transactions in detail, to satisfy the reporting requirements for the "Standing Offer and Supply Arrangement Business Volume" and increased visibility on PSAB procurements (and facilitate reporting to AANDC).

Standing Offer Number/Document Type

this will allow PWGSC to isolate standing offer call-ups within the data file, and to complete the "Standing Offer and Supply Arrangement Business Volume" report on behalf of organizations.

Vendor Name

this will allow PWGSC and AANDC to validate procurement activity against PSAB registered suppliers, ensuring greater accuracy in PSAB reporting.

For organizations that cannot provide all of the data fields, PWGSC Spend Reporting and Market Analysis Directorate will provide assistance. In the event that organizations cannot provide this additional data after consulting with PWGSC, the "Standing Offer or Supply Arrangement Business Volume Report" can be completed by the organization as in previous years.