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The financial highlights presented within this section are intended to provide additional information about TSB's financial position and operations.
The TSB started the year with authorities of $28.9 million in the Main Estimates. Additional authorities (Treasury Board vote transfers) in the amount of $3.3 million were approved during the year for total approved funding of $32.3 million. This included $0.6 million for the carry-forward of the previous year's lapse, $1.6 million for collective bargaining adjustments, and $0.6 million for severance and parental benefits expenditures.
As seen in Figure 5, over the past 10 years, TSB's funding has remained fairly consistent in the range of $31 to $32 million. For the period of 2002-2003 to 2004-2005, the TSB received short-term funding from Parliament to address specific resource pressures. Funding has subsequently leveled off and increases in funding in the last two years are primarily explained by employee salary increases negotiated through collective bargaining.
Expenditures for fiscal year 2009-2010 total $31.4 million, in line with the 2008-2009 expenditures of $31.6 million.
Figure 5: TSB's Funding and Expenditures from 2000-2001 to 2009-2010
The TSB prepares detailed annual financial statements on an accrual accounting basis, which are audited by the Office of the Auditor General of Canada. The audited financial statements of the TSB for the year ended 31 March 2010, as well as the related auditor's report, can be found in Appendix B.
On an accrual accounting basis, the TSB's expenses and net cost of operations were $34.8 million for 2009-2010 ($36.1 million in 2008-2009). These results include $3.8 million in services received without charge from other federal government departments. The significant decrease in expenses on an accrual basis is attributed to the calculated liability for employee severance benefits. This liability is determined for financial statement purposes but has no impact on the department's appropriations until severance benefits are paid. The rate provided by the Treasury Board Secretariat to calculate the liability decreased significantly in 2009-2010 compared to 2008-2009.
In general, all other categories of expenses remained consistent with the prior year or reduced slightly. Salaries and wages increased by $0.3 million or 1.7 per cent, consistent with employee collective bargaining salary increases. Professional and special services decreased by $0.4 million or 12 per cent as a result of reduced spending on consultant and training services.
The net cost of operations of the TSB represents an approximate cost of $1.02 per Canadian citizen. For this amount, Canada maintains the capability to investigate major failures in four different modes of the national transportation system.
The following graph shows TSB expenses by major categories.
Figure 6: TSB Expenses by Category
The electronic version of the following supplementary information tables can be found on the Treasury Board of Canada's website at http://www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/dpr-rmr/st-ts-eng.asp.
Additional information about the Transportation Safety Board of Canada and its activities is available on the TSB website at http://www.bst-tsb.gc.ca/eng/index.asp or by contacting us at:
Transportation Safety Board of Canada
Place du Centre
200 Promenade du Portage
4th Floor
Gatineau, Quebec
K1A 1K8
E-mail: communications@bst-tsb.gc.ca
Toll Free: 1 800 387-3557
Fax: 819-997-2239
Responsibility for the integrity and objectivity of the accompanying financial statements for the year ended March 31, 2010 and all information contained in these statements rests with management of the Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB). These financial statements have been prepared by management in accordance with Treasury Board accounting policies which are consistent with Canadian generally accepted accounting principles for the public sector.
Management is responsible for the integrity and objectivity of the information in these financial statements. Some of the information in the financial statements is based on management's best estimates and judgment and gives due consideration to materiality. To fulfil its accounting and reporting responsibilities, management maintains a set of accounts that provides a centralized record of the TSB's financial transactions. Financial information submitted to the Public Accounts of Canada and included in the TSB's Departmental Performance Report is consistent with these financial statements.
Management maintains a system of financial management and internal control designed to provide reasonable assurance that financial information is reliable, that assets are safeguarded and that transactions are in accordance with the Financial Administration Act, are executed in accordance with prescribed regulations, within Parliamentary authorities, and are properly recorded to maintain accountability of Government funds. Management also seeks to ensure the objectivity and integrity of data in its financial statements by careful selection, training and development of qualified staff, by organizational arrangements that provide appropriate divisions of responsibility, and by communication programs aimed at ensuring that regulations, policies, standards and managerial authorities are understood throughout the TSB.
The financial statements of the TSB have been audited by the Auditor General of Canada, the independent auditor for the Government of Canada.
Gatineau, Canada
July 23, 2010
To the Chair of the Transportation Safety Board of Canada
and to the President of the Queen's Privy Council for Canada
I have audited the statement of financial position of the Transportation Safety Board of Canada as at March 31, 2010 and the statements of operations, equity of Canada and cash flow for the year ended. These financial statements are the responsibility of the Transportation Safety Board of Canada's management. My responsibility is to express an opinion on these financial statements based on my audit.
I conducted my audit in accordance with Canadian generally accepted auditing standards. Those standards require that I plan and perform an audit to obtain reasonable assurance whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement. An audit includes examining, on a test basis, evidence supporting the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. An audit also includes assessing the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall financial statement presentation.
In my opinion, these financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Transportation Safety Board of Canada as at March 31, 2010 and the results of its operations and its cash flows for the year then ended in accordance with Canadian generally accepted accounting principles.
Régent Chouinard, CA
Principal
for the Auditor General of Canada
Ottawa, Canada
July 23, 2010
|
||
As at March 31 (in thousands of dollars) |
2010 | 2009 |
---|---|---|
|
||
Assets | ||
Financial assets | ||
Due from the Consolidated Revenue Fund | 1,625 | 3,090 |
Accounts receivable and advances (Note 4) | 120 | 176 |
Total financial assets | 1,745 | 3,266 |
Non-financial assets | ||
Prepaid expenses | 109 | 70 |
Inventory | 129 | 119 |
Tangible capital assets (Note 5) | 5,418 | 5,490 |
Total non-financial assets | 5,656 | 5,679 |
TOTAL Assets | 7,401 | 8,945 |
Liabilities and Equity of Canada | ||
Liabilities | ||
Accounts payable and accrued liabilities | 1,718 | 3,208 |
Vacation pay and compensatory leave | 1,044 | 919 |
Employee severance benefits (Note 6) | 4,165 | 4,707 |
Total liabilities | 6,927 | 8,834 |
Equity of Canada | 474 | 111 |
TOTAL Liabilities and Equity of Canada | 7,401 | 8,945 |
Contingent liabilities (Note 7) Contractual obligations (Note 8) The accompanying notes form an integral part of these financial statements. |
Gatineau, Canada
July 23, 2010
|
||
For the year ended March 31 (in thousands of dollars) |
2010 | 2009 |
---|---|---|
|
||
Expenses | ||
Salaries and wages | 20,832 | 20,486 |
Employee benefits | 4,943 | 5,989 |
Professional and special services | 2,661 | 3,034 |
Transportation and communications | 1,989 | 2,267 |
Accommodation | 1,950 | 1,948 |
Amortization | 1,121 | 1,012 |
Repairs and maintenance | 621 | 661 |
Utilities, materials, supplies and equipment | 397 | 445 |
Information | 144 | 84 |
Rentals | 114 | 125 |
Not loss on disposal and write-off of tangible capital assets | 11 | 19 |
TOTAL Expenses | 34,783 | 36,070 |
Revenues |
||
Miscellaneous revenues | 23 | 28 |
TOTAL Revenues | 23 | 28 |
Net Cost of Operations | 34,760 | 36,042 |
The accompanying notes form an integral part of these financial statements. |
|
||
For the year ended March 31 (in thousands of dollars) |
2010 | 2010 |
---|---|---|
|
||
Equity of Canada, beginning of the year | 111 |
761 |
Net cost of operations | (34,760) | (36,042) |
Net cash provided by the Government of Canada (Note 3(c)) | 32,746 | 30,653 |
Change in Due from the Consolidated Revenue Fund | (1,465) | 927 |
Services received without charge (Note 9(a)) | 3,842 | 3,812 |
Equity of Canada, end of the year | 474 | 111 |
The accompanying notes form an integral part of these financial statements. |
|
||
For the year ended March 31 (in thousands of dollars) |
2010 | 2009 |
---|---|---|
|
||
Operating activities | ||
Net cost of operations | 34,760 | 36,042 |
Non-cash items: | ||
Services received without charge (Note 9(a)) | (3,842) | (3,812) |
Amortization of tangible capital assets | (1,121) | (1,012) |
Net loss on disposal and write-off of tangible capital assets | (11) | (19) |
Variations in Statement of Financial Position: | ||
Decrease in accounts receivable and advances | (56) | (141) |
Increase in prepaid expenses | 39 | 32 |
Increase in inventory | 10 | 43 |
Decreas (increase) in liabilities | 1,907 | (1,619) |
Cash used for operating activities | 31,686 | 29,514 |
Capital investment activities |
||
Acquisition of tangible capital assets | 1,068 | 1,150 |
Proceeds from the disposal of tangible capital assets | (8) | (11) |
Cash used for capital investment activities | 1,060 | 1,139 |
Net cash provided by the Government of Canada | 32,746 | 30,653 |
The accompanying notes form an integral part of these financial statements. |
The Canadian Transportation Accident Investigation and Safety Board (CTAISB) was established in 1990 under the Canadian Transportation Accident Investigation and Safety Board Act and is a departmental corporation named in Schedule II to the Financial Administration Act. In its day-to-day activities the CTAISB is also known by the name Transportation Safety Board of Canada, or simply the TSB. The objective of the TSB is to advance transportation safety. It seeks to identify safety deficiencies in transportation occurrences and to make recommendations designed to eliminate or reduce any such safety deficiencies. In addition to investigations, including where necessary public inquiries into selected occurrences, the TSB may conduct studies into more general matters pertaining to transportation safety. The TSB has the exclusive authority to make findings as to causes and contributing factors when it investigates a transportation occurrence. The TSB's operating expenditures are funded by a budgetary lapsing authority whereas contributions to employee benefit plans are funded by statutory authorities.
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:
Amortization of tangible capital assets is done on a straight-line basis over the estimated useful life of the asset as follows:
|
|
Tangible Capital Asset class | Amortization Period |
---|---|
|
|
Buildings | 30 years |
Furniture | 10 years |
Office equipment | 5 years |
Laboratory equipment | 10 years |
Informatics hardware | 4 years |
Informatics software (purchased) | 3 years |
Informatics software (in house developed) | 10 years |
Motor vehicles | 7 years |
Other vehicles | 15 years |
Leasehold improvements | Lesser of the remaining term of the lease or useful life of the improvement |
The TSB receives 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 TSB 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:
|
||
(in thousands of dollars) | 2010 | 2009 |
---|---|---|
|
||
Net cost of operations | 34,760 | 36,042 |
Adjustments for items affecting net cost of operations but not affecting appropriations: Add (Less): |
||
Services received without charge | (3,842) | (3,812) |
Amortization of tangible capital assets | (1,121) | (1,012) |
Net loss on disposal and write-off of tangible capital assets | (11) | (19) |
Employee severance benefits | 542 | (905) |
Vacation pay and compensatory leave | (125) | 55 |
Refund of previous years' expenses | 1 | – |
Miscellaneous revenues | 23 | 28 |
Payables at year-end adjustment | 129 | 1 |
Other adjustments | (25) | 1 |
30,331 | 30,379 | |
Adjustments for items not affecting net cost of operations but affecting appropriations: Add (Less): |
||
Acquisition of tangible capital assets | 1,068 | 1,150 |
Increase in prepaid expenses | 39 | 32 |
Increase (decrease) inventory | 11 | 43 |
Current year Parliamentary appropriations used | 31,449 | 31,604 |
|
||
(in thousands of dollars) | 2010 | 2009 |
---|---|---|
|
||
Vote 10 - CTAISB Operating expenditures | 25,635 | 25,589 |
Transfer from Treasury Board - Vote 15 | 1,646 | 1,329 |
Transfer from Treasury Board - Vote 25 | 664 | 1,271 |
Transfer from Treasury Board - Vote 30 | 671 | 575 |
Spending of revenues as per Financial Administration Act section 29.1 | 14 | 19 |
Statutory contributions to employee benefit plans | 3,680 | 3,319 |
Statutory spending of proceeds from disposal of surplus Crown assets | 19 | 15 |
Total authorities | 32,329 | 32,117 |
Less: Lapsed appropriations - Operating | (880) | (513) |
Current year Parliamentary appropriations used | 31,449 | 31,604 |
|
||
(in thousands of dollars) | 2010 | 2009 |
---|---|---|
|
||
Net cash provided by the Government of Canada | 32,746 | 30,653 |
Proceeds from disposal of tangible capital assets | 8 | 11 |
Refund of previous years' expenses | 1 | - |
Miscellaneous revenues | 23 | 28 |
Payables at year-end adjustment | 129 | 1 |
Decrease in accounts receivable and advances | 56 | 141 |
(Decrease) increase in accounts payable and accrued liabilities | (1,490) | 769 |
Other adjustments | 24 | 1 |
Current year Parliamentary appropriations used | 31,449 | 31,604 |
The following table presents details of accounts receivable and advances:
|
||
(in thousands of dollars) | 2010 | 2009 |
---|---|---|
|
||
Receivables from other Federal Government departments and agencies | 99 | 164 |
Receivables from external parties | 13 | 3 |
Employee advances | 8 | 9 |
TOTAL | 120 | 176 |
|
||||
Cost (in thousands of dollars) |
Opening Balance |
Acquisitions | Disposals | Closing Balance |
---|---|---|---|---|
|
||||
Buildings | 2,875 | 26 | - | 2,901 |
Furniture | 1,191 | 27 | (281) | 937 |
Office equipment | 205 | 11 | (163) | 53 |
Laboratory equipment | 2,585 | 129 | (73) | 2,641 |
Informatics hardware | 3,767 | 222 | (1,527) | 2,462 |
Informatics software (purchased) | 763 | 87 | - | 850 |
Informatics software (in house developed/or in development)* | 2,592 | 504 | - | 3,096 |
Motor vehicles | 691 | 43 | (49) | 685 |
Other vehicles | 102 | - | - | 102 |
Leasehold improvements | 552 | 19 | - | 571 |
TOTAL | 15,323 | 1,068 | (2,093) | 14,298 |
|
||||
Accumulated amortization (in thousands of dollars) |
Opening Balance |
Amortization | Disposals | Closing Balance |
---|---|---|---|---|
|
||||
Buildings | 2,398 | 118 | - | 2,516 |
Furniture | 514 | 100 | (271) | 343 |
Office equipment | 205 | 4 | (163) | 46 |
Laboratory equipment | 1,855 | 115 | (73) | 1,897 |
Informatics hardware | 3,127 | 254 | (1,527) | 1,854 |
Informatics software (purchased) | 668 | 49 | - | 717 |
Informatics software (in house developed) | 574 | 268 | - | 842 |
Motor vehicles | 403 | 48 | (40) | 411 |
Other vehicles | 41 | 7 | - | 48 |
Leasehold improvements | 48 | 158 | - | 206 |
TOTAL | 9,833 | 1,121 | (2,074) | 8,880 |
|
||||
Net book value (in thousands of dollars) |
Opening Balance |
Closing Balance |
||
---|---|---|---|---|
|
||||
Buildings | 477 | 385 | ||
Furniture | 677 | 594 | ||
Office equipment | - | 7 | ||
Laboratory equipment | 730 | 744 | ||
Informatics hardware | 640 | 608 | ||
Informatics software (purchased) | 95 | 133 | ||
Informatics software (in house developed/ or in development)* | 2,018 | 2,254 | ||
Motor vehicles | 288 | 274 | ||
Other vehicles | 61 | 54 | ||
Leasehold improvements | 504 | 365 | ||
Net Book Value | 5,490 | 5,418 | ||
*The cost of assets under development, which are not amortized is $503,797. |
Both the employees and the TSB contribute to the cost of the Plan. The 2009-10 expense amounts to $2,657,286 ($2,396,269 in 2008-09), which represents approximately 2.6 times the contributions by employees, which amounts to $1,002,033.
The TSB'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.
|
||
(in thousands of dollars) | 2010 | 2009 |
---|---|---|
|
||
Employee severance benefits, beginning of year | 4,707 | 3,802 |
Expense for the year recorded as employee benefits | 6 | 1,359 |
Benefits paid during the year | (548) | (454) |
Employee severance benefits, end of year | 4,165 | 4,707 |
In the normal course of its operations, the TSB becomes involved in various legal actions. Some of these potential liabilities 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 in the TSB's financial statements.
The nature of the TSB's activities can result in some large multi-year contracts and obligations whereby the TSB will be obligated to make future payments when the services/goods are received.
Contractual obligations represent a total amount of $964,064, broken down as follows:
|
|||||
(in thousands of dollars) | 2010-2011 | 2011-2012 | 2012-2013 | 2013-2014 | 2014-2015 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|||||
Acquisition of goods and services | 896 | 58 | 10 | - | - |
|
The TSB is related as a result of common ownership to all Government of Canada departments, agencies and Crown corporations. The TSB enters into transactions with these entities in the normal course of business and on normal trade terms. Also, during the year, the TSB received services which were obtained without charge from other Government departments as presented in part (a). Services charged and payables outstanding at year-end with related parties are presented in (b) and (c).
During the year the TSB received without charge from other departments, accommodation, administration of workers' compensation, the employer's contribution to health and dental insurance plans, and external audit services. These services without charge have been recognized in the TSB's Statement of Operations as follows with a corresponding amount in the Equity of Canada:
|
||
(in thousands of dollars) | 2010 | 2009 |
---|---|---|
|
||
Accommodation | 1,950 | 1,948 |
Employer's contribution to health and dental insurance plans | 1,780 | 1,746 |
External audit services | 86 | 99 |
Administration of worker's compensation | 26 | 19 |
TOTAL | 3,842 | 3,812 |
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, are not included as an expense in the TSB's Statement of Operations given that a reasonable amount for those types of services cannot be determined.
During the year, the TSB reimbursed other departments for certain services purchased on a fee for service basis. The departments with which the TSB incurred significant expenses are as follows:
|
|||
(in thousands of dollars) | 2010 | 2009 | |
---|---|---|---|
|
|||
Treasury Board Secretariat | Employee benefit plans | 3,680 | 3,319 |
Transport Canada | Aircarft Services | 586 | 523 |
Public Works and Government Services Canada | Accommodation, translation and others | 615 | 612 |
TOTAL | 4,881 | 4,454 |
|
||
(in thousands of dollars) | 2010 | 2009 |
---|---|---|
|
||
Treasury Board Secretariat | 373 | - |
Public Works and Government Services Canada | 84 | 499 |
Transport Canada | 60 | 106 |
Other government departments and agencies | 3 | 18 |
TOTAL | 520 | 623 |
Comparative figures have been reclassificated to conform to the current year's presentation.