This policy takes effect May 1, 2003. It replaces the Treasury Board Management of Government Information Holdings policy. This policy will be subject to review five years from the date of its approval.
Information is a valuable asset that the Government of Canada must manage as a public trust on behalf of Canadians. Effective information management makes government program and service delivery more efficient, supports transparency, collaboration across organizations, and informed decision-making in government operations, and preserves historically valuable information.
The digital age has highlighted the importance of sound information management. The Government of Canada is increasingly using information technologies to serve Canadians and to record its business - which requires it to ensure that information collected or made available electronically must be accurate, complete, relevant, and clear, and is accessible and usable over time and through technological change. Reflecting the desire of Canadians for more responsive government, it is integrating programs and collaborating with other governments and with the private and not-for-profit sectors to improve service delivery - which requires that strong accountability frameworks be in place in situations where information is shared. Furthermore, the government must manage information to ensure that Canadians receive consistent service regardless of how they choose to obtain it - whether in-person, by telephone, through mail, or via the Internet.
Taking into account this complex environment, this policy provides direction on how federal government institutions should create, use, and preserve information to fulfill their mandates, support program and service delivery, achieve strategic priorities, and meet accountability obligations prescribed by law. It is based on the recognition that:
The purpose of this policy is to ensure that information under the control of the Government of Canada is managed effectively and efficiently throughout its life cycle. Federal government institutions must manage information in a privacy protective manner that supports informed policy and decision-making and the delivery of high quality programs, services, and information through a variety of channels and in both official languages.
The policy applies to all institutions listed in Schedules I, I.1 and II of the Financial Administration Act (FAA).
To deliver programs, services, and information cost-effectively and consistent with the needs of Canadians, institutions must:
To ensure the effective and efficient management of information, regardless of medium or format, throughout its life cycle, institutions must:
Responsibilities of Deputy heads include:
Responsibilities of senior executives accountable for implementing this policy include:
All public service employees are responsible for:
Information management specialists - including librarians, archivists, access to information and privacy officials, and records management specialists - will support information management efforts by:
The Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat has specific roles and responsibilities related to the management of information, which include:
The National Archives of Canada has specific roles and responsibilities related to the management of information, which include:
The National Library of Canada has specific roles and responsibilities related to the management of published government information, which include:
Statistics Canada ensures the integrity of the national statistical system by:
According to the Treasury Board Active Monitoring Policy, federal government institutions are responsible for ensuring that their programs and activities are well managed. To this end, they must actively monitor management practices and controls, take remedial action where significant deficiencies are encountered or improvements are needed, and inform the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat of significant management concerns in a timely manner. The Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat is responsible for actively monitoring the overall situation to maintain an ongoing awareness of the state of management practices and controls across government, and for supporting federal government institutions in addressing specific risks, vulnerabilities, control deficiencies, and other significant management issues.
Treasury Board has issued the Evaluation Policy and the Policy on Internal Audit. These policies require federal government institutions to develop evaluation plans and internal audit plans on the basis of assessed risk. Within this context, evaluation and internal audit planning should take into account the management of valuable information resources, so that government institutions can assess and report on their ability to implement the requirements of this policy. The Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat may periodically communicate to federal government institutions its own priorities regarding this policy, for consideration in institution-specific risk assessment.
The Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat will use the internal audit and evaluation reports to supplement their monitoring of compliance with this policy, effectiveness of its implementation, and its impact on federal government institutions.
The National Archives of Canada and National Library of Canada also have monitoring responsibilities with respect to this policy. These institutions will periodically communicate their findings on the state of information management to the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat and help it identify and resolve significant issues as they emerge.
This policy should be read in conjunction with relevant authorities and Treasury Board policies.
Financial Administration Act (FAA)
This policy is issued under the authority of section 7 of the FAA.
National Archives of Canada Act
National Library of Canada Act
Enquiries should be directed to the Information Policy Division of the Chief Information Officer Branch of the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat.
The definitions in this appendix pertain to terms used in the policy and to other terms that, though not in the policy, will facilitate understanding of its requirements.
Information management (Discipline de la gestion de l'information): a discipline that directs and supports effective and efficient management of information in an organization, from planning and systems development to disposal and/or long-term preservation.
Management of information (Gestion de l'information): is an element of every job function in the Government of Canada that has to do with treating the information used or produced in the course of performing job duties as a strategic business resource and in line with legal and policy requirements.
Government information (Information gouvernementale): information created, received, used, and maintained regardless of physical form, and information prepared for or produced by the Government of Canada and deemed to be under its control in the conduct of government activities or in pursuance of legal obligations.
Related terms under the umbrella term Government Information are as follows:
Records (Documents): Includes any correspondence, memorandum, book, plan, map, drawing, diagram, pictorial or graphic work, photograph, film, microform, sound recording, videotape, machine readable record, and any other documentary material, regardless of physical form or characteristics, and any copy thereof (National Archives of Canada Act; Access to Information Act)
Essential records (Documents essentiels): Records essential to continuing or re-establishing critical institutional functions; examples include records that:
(Protecting Essential Records: A Short Guide for Government Institutions, IM Forum, 2001)
Published information (Matériel publié): For the purposes of this policy, published material is library matter of every kind, nature, and description resulting from the act of publishing and released for public distribution or sale. Publications include material such as books, maps, periodicals, documents, working or discussion papers, audio or video recordings, online/networked publications (both static and dynamic), and compact discs. Publications can be in any format on or in which information is written, recorded, stored or reproduced. The National Library provides guidance on which documents on a government Internet site will be considered to be "books" for the purposes of the National Library Act.
Life cycle (Cycle de vie): The life cycle of information management encompasses the following: planning; the collection, creation, receipt, and capture of information; its organization, use and dissemination; its maintenance, protection and preservation; its disposition; and evaluation.