SECTION 3: Supplementary Information

3.1 Organizational Information

The organizational chart below was effective from April 1, 2005 to March 31, 2007. Reporting to the Minister of Industry, the CSA Chief Executive Officer is the President, assisted by the Senior Vice-President and the Vice-President of Science, Technology and Programs. The Policy, Planning and Relations Branch, the Communications Directorate, the Canadian Astronaut Office, and the Space Operations Branch report directly to the President. Three of the core branches report to the Vice-President of Science, Technology and Programs. The five Corporate Services report directly to the Senior Vice-President. Legal Services are provided by the Department of Justice.

3.2 Financial Tables

3.2.1 Comparison of Planned to Actual Spending (including Full-time Equivalents)

3.2.2 Resources by Program Activity

3.2.3 Voted and Statutory Items

3.2.4 Services Received Without Charge

3.2.5 Sources of Respendable and Non-Respendable Revenue

Non-Respendable Revenue

3.2.6 Resource Requirements by Branch or Sector

3.2.7 User Fee Reporting - User Fees Act

3.2.8 Financial Statements of Departmental Corporations and Agents of Parliament

Click image to enlarge

Canadian Space Agency - Notes to the Financial Statements (unaudited)

1. Authorizations and goals

The Canadian Space Agency was decreed a "Department" on March 1^st, 1989 under the Financial Administration Act, Section 2, paragraph b).

For its part, the Canadian Space Agency Act, on legal notice of the Prime Minister, and under Section 29 of the Act to establish the Canadian Space Agency and to provide for other matters in relation to space, was sanctioned on May 10, 1990 under Chapter 13 of the Laws of Canada (L.C. 1990). His excellence, the Governor-in-Council, had fixed the effective date of this Act at December 14, 1990. The objectives of the Canadian Space Program (CSP) are to ensure the development and application of space science and technology to meet Canadian needs and to ensure the development of an international competitive space industry in Canada.

According to the approved Program Activity Architecture (PAA), the Statement of operations was detailed by the following Program Activities (Business Lines):

Space Based Earth Observation (EO)
The program activity objective is to develop and make operational the use of space Earth Observation for the benefits of Canadian, especially in the fields of environment, resource and land use management, as well as security and foreign policy. In doing so, the CSA will maintain and expand Canada's leadership in Earth Observation technologies to obtain the timely, relevant and essential information we need to make judicious decisions about that share our needs and goals.

Space Science and Exploration (SE)
The program activity objective is to better understand the solar system and the Universe; to expand our knowledge on the constituent elements and origins of life, and strengthen a human presence in space. In doing so, the CSA will sustain and increase Canada's contribution to humankind's scientific knowledge, to the exploration of our solar system and the Universe and to the development of related technologies. This will advance supporting technologies and our fundamental and applies knowledge of chemistry, physics, life sciences by carrying out leading-edge experiments in the unique environment of space.

Satellite Communications (SC)
The program activity objective is to provide all Canadians with the means to participate and fully benefit from the global information age. In doing so, the CSA will uphold Canada's status as a world leaser in Satellite Communications, and extend the most advances products and services to all Canadians, everywhere.

Space Awareness and Learning (AL)
The program activity objective is to further public understanding and engagement with regards to space related issues, ultimately leading to improving the scientific literacy of Canadians by carrying out a national awareness and learning initiative in support of the Canadian Space Program.

Generic Space Activities in support of EO, SE and SC (GSA) The program activity objective is to provide leadership, co-ordination and support to Earth Observation (EO), Space Science and Exploration (SE), and Satellite Communications (SC) Program Activities through technology research and space-qualification activities that are generic in their nature. CSA commits to provide technologies and innovative space techniques, conceptual methods and testing that will satisfy developmental requirements for future missions and Canadian space activities.

2. Summary of significant accounting policies

The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with Treasury Board accounting policies, which are consistent with Canadian generally accepted accounting principles for the public sector.

Significant accounting policies are as follows:

1. Parliamentary appropriations
   The Agency is financed by the Government of Canada through Parliamentary appropriations. Appropriations provided to the Agency do not parallel financial reporting according to generally accepted accounting principles since appropriations are primarily based on cash flow requirements. Consequently, items recognized in the statement of operations and the statement of financial position are not necessarily the same as those provided through appropriations from Parliament. Note 3 provides a high-level reconciliation between the two bases of reporting.
2. Net cash provided by the Government
   The Agency operates within the Consolidated Revenue Fund (CRF), which is administered by the Receiver General for Canada. All cash received by the Agency is deposited to the CRF and all cash disbursements made by the Agency are paid from the CRF. The net cash provided by Government is the difference between all cash receipts and all cash disbursements including transactions between departments of the federal government.
3. Change in net position in the Consolidated Revenue Fund
   Change in net position in the Consolidated Revenue Fund is the difference between the net cash provided by Government and appropriations used in a year, excluding the amount of non-respendable revenue recorded by the Agency. It results from timing differences between when a transaction affects appropriations and when it is processed through the CRF.
4. Revenues
   
   • Revenues are accounted for in the period in which the underlying transaction or event occurred that gave rise to the revenues.
   • Revenues that have been received but not yet earned are recorded as deferred revenues (see note 10).
5. Expenses
   Expenses are recorded on the accrual basis:
   • Grants are recognized in the year in which the conditions for payment are met.
   • Contributions are recognized in the year in which the recipient has met the eligibility criteria or fulfilled the terms of a contractual transfer agreement.
   • Vacation pay and compensatory leave are expensed as the benefits accrue to employees under their respective terms of employment.
   • Services provided without charge by other government departments for accommodation, the employer's contribution to the health and dental insurance plans and legal services are recorded as operating expenses at their estimated cost.
6. Employee future benefits
   
   • Pension benefits: Eligible employees participate in the Public Service Pension Plan, a multi employer plan administered by the Government of Canada. The Agency's contributions to the Plan are charged to expenses in the year incurred and represent the Agency's total obligation to the Plan. Current legislation does not require the Agency to make contributions for any actuarial deficiencies of the Plan.
   • Severance benefits: Employees are entitled to severance benefits under labour contracts or conditions of employment. These benefits are accrued as employees render the services necessary to earn them. The obligation relating to the benefits earned by employees is calculated using information derived from the results of the actuarially determined liability for employee severance benefits for the Government as a whole.
7. Accounts and loans receivables
   These are stated as amounts expected to be ultimately realized. A provision is made for external receivables where recovery is considered uncertain.
8. Contingent liabilities
   Contingent liabilities are potential liabilities, which may become actual liabilities when one or more future events occur or fail to occur. To the extent that the future event is likely to occur or fail to occur, and a reasonable estimate of the loss can be made, an estimated liability is accrued and an expense recorded. If the likelihood is not determinable or an amount cannot be reasonably estimated, the contingency is disclosed in the notes to the financial statements.
9. Environmental liabilities
   Environmental liabilities reflect the estimated costs related to the management and remediation of environmentally contaminated sites. The Agency does not have contaminated sites. In cases when the Agency feels obligated to incur costs related to contaminated sites, and when costs can be reasonably estimated following a detailed environmental analysis, a liability is accrued and an expense recorded when the contamination occurs or when the Agency becomes aware of the contamination and is obligated, or is likely to be obligated to incur such costs.
10. Inventories
    Inventories consist of parts, material and supplies held for future program delivery and not intended for resale. They are valued at cost. If they no longer have service potential, they are valued at the lower of cost or net realizable value.
11. Foreign exchange
    Transactions involving foreign currencies are translated into Canadian dollar equivalents using rates of exchange in effect at the time of those transactions. Monetary assets and liabilities denominated in a foreign currency are translated into Canadian dollars using the rate of exchange in effect on 31 March.
12. Tangible Capital assets
    All tangible capital assets and leasehold improvements having an initial cost of $10,000 or more are recorded at their acquisition cost. The department does not capitalize intangibles, works of art and historical treasures that have cultural, esthetic or historical value, assets located on Indian Reserves and museum collections.

    Amortization of tangible capital assets is done on a straight-line basis over the estimated useful life of the asset as follows:

    
    

    Property category	Useful life
    Buildings	30-40 years
    Works and infrastructures	30 years
    Material and equipment	10-20 years
    Computer material	5-7 years
    Computer software	3 years
    Other equipment including furniture	3-15 years
    Vehicles (non-military)	5 years
    Other vehicles	10 years
    Assets under construction	Once in service, in accordance with asset type

    
    
13. Measurement uncertainty
    The preparation of these financial statements in accordance with Treasury Board accounting policies, which are consistent with Canadian generally accepted accounting principles for the public sector requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenues and expenses reported in the financial statements. At the time of preparation of these statements, management believes the estimates and assumptions to be reasonable. The most significant items where estimates are used are contingent liabilities, the liability for employee severance benefits and the useful life of tangible capital assets. Actual results could significantly differ from those estimated. Management's estimates are reviewed periodically and, as adjustments become necessary, they are recorded in the financial statements in the year they become known.

3. Parliamentary appropriations

The Canadian Space Agency receives most of its funding through annual Parliamentary appropriations. Items recognized in the statement of operations and the statement of financial position in one year may be funded through Parliamentary appropriations in prior, current or future years. Accordingly, the Agency has different net results of operations for the year on a government-funding basis than on an accrual accounting basis. The differences are reconciled in the following tables:

4. Expenses

The following table presents details of expenses by category:

5. Revenues

The following table presents details of expenses by category:

6. Accounts receivables and advances

The following table presents details of accounts receivable and advances:

7. Prepaid expenses

The following table presents details of prepaid expenses:

8. Tangible Capital Assets

Amortization expense for the year ended March 31, 2007 is $ 90,963 (2006 - $92,000).

The land was transferred from Transport Canada to the Canadian Space Agency at the nominal value of $1. However, for consolidated purposes, the net book value was registered in CSA's books in order to eliminate any gain or loss at the government-wide level.

9. Accounts payable and accrued liabilities

The following table presents details of accounts payable and accrued liabilities:

10. Deferred revenue

The following table presents details of revenues:

11. Other liabilities

The following table presents details of revenues:

a) Non-monetary exchange CSA/NASA

Under the International Space Station Agreement, which was executed in 1998, and ratified by Canada in year 2000, following the passing of the Civil International Space Station Agreement Implementation Act, in 1999 the Agency signed a barter agreement with NASA in August 2001, which the fair value was estimated at $20.8 million U.S. Currently, all the costs are not available and the fair value of the yielded services must be revaluated when the identification of total costs will be possible. This agreement provides that the CSA exchanges a part of its utilization rights on the Space Station, access to the Canadian Microgravity Isolation Mount, and agrees to assume repair costs for its Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator. In return, NASA will provide to the CSA, astronaut training, satellite and launch services. The transactions under this Barter Agreement may take place over the lifetime of the Space Station. During the fiscal years 2002 to 2007, the CSA received a part of astronaut training valued at $11 million CDN. As NASA did not exercise the option to access its proportion of Canada's utilization rights on the Space Station, a liability of $11 million CDN has been created by CSA. Relative to this barter agreement or other agreements of the same kind that the CSA may enter into with its International Partners under the Agreement on the Space Station, the Treasury Board grants to the Agency an exemption under the Policy on Accounting for Non-Monetary Transactions and does not have to charge the transaction(s) to its appropriation.

b) Participation of provinces - RADARSAT-1

This specified purpose account was established to record moneys received for both cost-sharing and advance payments for RADARSAT scenes. RADARSAT-1 is an Earth Observation satellite to monitor environmental change and planets natural resources. It provides information to both commercial and scientific users in the fields of agriculture, cartography, hydrology, forestry, oceanography, ice studies and coastal monitoring.

12. Employee benefits

a) Pension benefits

The Agency's employees participate in the Public Service Pension Plan, which is sponsored and administered by the Government of Canada. Pension benefits accrue up to a maximum period of 35 years at a rate of 2 percent per year of pensionable service, times the average of the best five consecutive years of earnings. The benefits are integrated with Canada/Québec Pension Plans benefits and they are indexed to inflation.

Both the employees and the Agency contribute to the cost of the Plan. The 2006-2007 expense amounts to $6.54 million ($6.87 million in 2005-2006), which represents approximately 2.2 time (2.6 time in 2005-2006) the contributions by employees.

The Agency's responsibility with regard to the Plan is limited to its contributions. Actuarial surpluses or deficiencies are recognized in the financial statements of the Government of Canada, as the Plan's sponsor.

b) Severance benefits

The Agency provides severance benefits to its employees based on eligibility, years of service and final salary. These severance benefits are not pre-funded. Benefits will be paid from future appropriations. Information about the severance benefits, measured as at March 31, is as follows:

The following table presents details of revenues:

13. Contractual obligations

The nature of the Agency's activities can result in some large multi-year contracts and obligations whereby the Agency will be obligated to make future payments when the services/goods are received. Significant contractual obligations that can be reasonably estimated are summarized as follows:

14. Related party transactions

The Agency is related as a result of common ownership to all Government of Canada departments, agencies, and Crown corporations. The Agency enters into transactions with these entities in the normal course of business and on normal trade terms. Also, during the year, the Agency received services, which were obtained without charge from other Government departments as presented in part (a).

The Government has structured some of its administrative activities for efficiency and cost-effectiveness purposes so that one department performs these on behalf of all without charge. The costs of these services, which include payroll and cheque issuance services provided by Public Works and Government Services Canada and audit services provided by the Office of the Auditor General, are not included as an expense in the department's Statement of Operations.

15. Comparative information

For fiscal year 2006-2007, the Canadian Space Agency added a new program activity; consequently comparative information by program activity is not available.

Also, some amounts of the preceding exercise were re-examined and sometimes reclassified in order to reflect accordingly the presentation of the current year.

Contractual obligations. (note 13)

The accompanying notes form an integral part of these financial statements.

3.2.9 Response to Parliamentary Committees, Audits and Evaluations for Fiscal-Year 2006-2007

Response to Parliamentary Committees

No recommendation was received during the period covered by this report.

Response to the Auditor General

No recommendation was received during the period covered by this report. However, a Status Update for 2006-2007 on the 2002 recommendations was produced.

To learn more about the Status Update, go to: http://www.space.gc.ca/asc/eng/
resources/publications/pr-2005_response.asp

External Audits

The Public Service Commission tabled an Audit Report in May 2006.

To learn more about the Audit Report, go to: http://www.psc-cfp.gc.ca/audit-verif/reports/2006/csa/index_e.htm

Internal Audits or Evaluations

Several Audits and Evaluations were conducted in 2006-2007. The reports will be tabled in 2007-2008.

To learn more about previous year audits and evaluations, go to: http://www.space.gc.ca/
asc/eng/resources/publications/default.asp

Annexes

The following tables are reported on the CSA Web site at the following address:
http://www.space.gc.ca/asc/eng/resources/publications/default.asp

3.2.10) Policy on Service Standards for External Fees

3.2.11) Details on Project Spending

3.2.12) Status Report on Major Crown Projects

3.2.13) Details on Transfer Payments Programs (TPPs)

3.2.14) Procurement and Contracting

3.2.15) Travel Policies

3.2.16) Fuel Storage Tanks