Quarterly Financial Report for the quarter ended September 30, 2020

Statement outlining results, risks and significant changes in operations, personnel and program

A) Introduction

Statistics Canada's mandate

Statistics Canada ("the agency") is a member of the Innovation, Science and Industry portfolio.

Statistics Canada's role is to ensure that Canadians have access to a trusted source of statistics on Canada that meets their highest priority needs.

The agency's mandate derives primarily from the Statistics Act. The Act requires that the agency collects, compiles, analyzes and publishes statistical information on the economic, social, and general conditions of the country and its people. It also requires that Statistics Canada conduct the census of population and the census of agriculture every fifth year, and protects the confidentiality of the information with which it is entrusted.

Statistics Canada also has a mandate to co-ordinate and lead the national statistical system. The agency is considered a leader, among statistical agencies around the world, in co–ordinating statistical activities to reduce duplication and reporting burden.

More information on Statistics Canada's mandate, roles, responsibilities and programs can be found in the 2020–2021 Main Estimates and in the Statistics Canada 2020–2021 Departmental Plan.

The Quarterly Financial Report:

  • should be read in conjunction with the 2020–2021 Main Estimates;
  • has been prepared by management, as required by Section 65.1 of the Financial Administration Act, and in the form and manner prescribed by Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat;
  • has not been subject to an external audit or review.

Statistics Canada has the authority to collect and spend revenue from other federal government departments and agencies, as well as from external clients, for statistical services and products.

Basis of presentation

This quarterly report has been prepared by management using an expenditure basis of accounting. The accompanying Statement of Authorities includes the agency's spending authorities granted by Parliament and those used by the agency consistent with the Main Estimates for the 2020–2021 fiscal year. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic (the pandemic) and limited sessions in the spring for Parliament to study supply, the Standing Orders of the House of Commons were amended to extend the study period into the fall. The agency is expected to receive the remainder of the full supply for the 2020-21 Main Estimates in December 2020. This quarterly report has been prepared using a special purpose financial reporting framework designed to meet financial information needs with respect to the use of spending authorities.

The authority of Parliament is required before moneys can be spent by the Government. Approvals are given in the form of annually approved limits through appropriation acts or through legislation in the form of statutory spending authority for specific purposes.

The agency uses the full accrual method of accounting to prepare and present its annual departmental financial statements that are part of the departmental results reporting process. However, the spending authorities voted by Parliament remain on an expenditure basis.

B) Highlights of fiscal quarter and fiscal year-to-date results

This section highlights the significant items that contributed to the net increase in resources available for the year, as well as actual expenditures for the quarter ended September 30. The pandemic has significantly affected the department's supply in the current fiscal year given that Main Estimates has not yet been approved by Parliament. Therefore the authorities available for use is not comparable to previous fiscal years.

Comparison of gross budgetary authorities and expenditures as of September 30, 2019, and September 30, 2020, in thousands of dollars
Description for Chart 1: Comparison of gross budgetary authorities and expenditures as of September 30, 2019, and September 30, 2020, in thousands of dollars

This bar graph shows Statistics Canada's budgetary authorities and expenditures, in thousands of dollars, as of September 30, 2019 and 2019:

  • As at September 30, 2019
    • Net budgetary authorities: $524,960
    • Vote netting authority: $120,000
    • Total authority: $644,960
    • Net expenditures for the period ending September 30: $280,632
    • Year-to-date revenues spent from vote netting authority for the period ending September 30: $32,079
    • Total expenditures: $312,711
  • As at September 30, 2020
    • Net budgetary authorities: $591,289
    • Vote netting authority: $120,000
    • Total authority: $711,289
    • Net expenditures for the period ending September 30: $320,562
    • Year-to-date revenues spent from vote netting authority for the period ending September 30: $12,727
    • Total expenditures: $333,289

Chart 1 outlines the gross budgetary authorities, which represent the resources available for use for the year as of September 30.

Significant changes to authorities

Total authorities available for 2020–2021 have increased by $66.3 million, or 10.3%, from the previous year, from $645.0 million to $711.3 million (Chart 1). An additional $44.9 million in authorities available for use to make up the full supply is expected to be received in December 2020. Based on the full supply, this net increase is mostly the result of the following:

  • An increase of $80.5 million for the 2021 Census of Population program for new cyclical funding received to cover planning and developmental activities;
  • An increase of $22.2 million for the ratification of collective agreements;
  • An increase of $13.8 million for Enabling Vision for Data-Driven Economy and Society, an initiative approved in 2018–2019 which will change the way the federal government collects, uses and shares data while ensuring the privacy of Canadians remains protected;
  • A decrease of $2.1 million for the Survey of Financial Security and Annual Household wealth.

The variance is also explained by the reception of authorities at different quarters throughout the year.

In addition to the appropriations allocated to the agency through the Main Estimates, Statistics Canada also has vote net authority within Vote 1, which entitles the agency to spend revenues collected from other federal government departments, agencies, and external clients to provide statistical services. The vote netting authority is stable at $120 million when comparing the second quarter of fiscal years 2019–2020 and 2020–2021.

Significant changes to expenditures

Year-to-date net expenditures recorded to the end of the second quarter increased by $40 million, or 14.3% from the previous year, from $280.6 million to $320.6 million (see Table A: Variation in Departmental Expenditures by Standard Object).

Statistics Canada spent approximately 54.2% of its authorities by the end of the second quarter, compared with 53.5% in the same quarter of 2019–2020.

Table A: Variation in Departmental Expenditures by Standard Object (unaudited)
Table summary: This table displays the variance of departmental expenditures by standard object between fiscal 2019-2020 and 2020-2021. The variance is calculated for year to date expenditures as at the end of the second quarter. The row headers provide information by standard object. The column headers provide information in thousands of dollars and percentage variance for the year to date variation.
Departmental Expenditures Variation by Standard Object: Q2 year-to-date variation between fiscal year 2019–2020 and 2020–2021
$'000 %
Note: Explanations are provided for variances of more than $1 million.
(01) Personnel  18,582  6.7
(02) Transportation and communications -5,335 -77.4
(03) Information -722 -18.0
(04) Professional and special services -1,024 -7.9
(05) Rentals  6,557  58.4
(06) Repair and maintenance  437  182.9
(07) Utilities, materials and supplies -51 -17.2
(08) Acquisition of land, buildings and works  90  3000.0
(09) Acquisition of machinery and equipment  1,773  153.4
(10) Transfer payments - N/A
(12) Other subsidies and payments 271 97.1
Total gross budgetary expenditures  20,578  6.6
Less revenues netted against expenditures:
Revenues -19,352 -60.3
Total net budgetary expenditures  39,930 14.2

Personnel: The increase is mainly due to the ratification of collective agreements and an overall increase in the agency's activities, partially offset by the reduction of seasonal, term and contract employees and students resulting from the pandemic.

Transportation and communications: The decrease is mainly due to postage costs of the 2019 Census Test that occurred last fiscal year, as well as travel being significantly reduced this fiscal year due to the pandemic.

Professional and special services: The decrease is mainly due to some surveys being delayed to the next fiscal year.

Rentals: The increase is mainly due to the cost of software licence maintenance being higher than last fiscal year, and to additional costs for logistical requirements for the Census 2021.

Acquisition of machinery and equipment: The increase is mainly due to the purchase of equipment, such as monitors and fingerprint scanners for the Census program, and to the acquisition cost of new software licences.

Revenues: The decrease is mainly due to timing differences in the receipt of funds for scheduled key deliverables and a decrease in cost recovery work and payments from clients due to the pandemic.

C) Risks and uncertainties

Statistics Canada is currently expending significant effort in modernizing its business processes and tools, in order to maintain its relevance and maximize the value it provides to Canadians. As a foundation piece for some of these efforts, the agency is working in collaboration with Shared Services Canada and Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat, Office of the Chief Information Officer, to ensure the agency has access to adequate information technology services and support to attain its modernization objectives and successfully transition its infrastructure and applications to the cloud. Activities and related costs are projected based on various assumptions that can change, depending on the nature and degree of work required to accomplish the initiatives.

Statistics Canada is facing fiscal pressures due to the sudden impact of the global pandemic. The agency faced significant reductions in its cost recovery activities in the first half of the year as well as increased operational costs associated with the delivery of the 2021 Census Program under a pandemic environment. Risks and uncertainties are being mitigated by the agency's proactive planning assumptions review, mitigation strategies and engagement with central agencies and partners.

D) Significant changes to operations, personnel and programs

The agency is planning changes in operations and program activities with financial implications including:

  • The Census program is ramping down operations from the 2016 Census of Population while ramping up for the 2021 Census which is in the advanced planning stage. As such, expenditures for this program are increasing. The program is also facing unanticipated financial pressures as it will be incurring additional expenditures due to new strategies adapted for the pandemic and economic increases that have materialized higher than planned;
  • New efforts and collaboration to provide data and insights related to the impact of the pandemic on the society and economy;
  • Reductions in the agency's cost recovery activities as a result of the pandemic. The revenue levels for 2020–2021 will be lower than 2019–2020.

Approval by senior officials

Approved by:

Anil Arora, Chief Statistician
Monia Lahaie, Chief Financial Officer
Ottawa, Ontario
Signed on: November 23, 2020

Appendix

Statement of Authorities (unaudited)
Table summary: This table displays the departmental authorities for fiscal years 2019-2020 and 2020-2021. The row headers provide information by type of authority, Vote 105 – Net operating expenditures, Statutory authority and Total Budgetary authorities. The column headers provide information in thousands of dollars for Total available for use for the year ending March 31; used during the quarter ended September 30; and year to date used at quarter-end of both fiscal years.
  Fiscal year 2020–2021 Fiscal year 2019–2020
Total available for use for the year ending March 31, 2021Tablenote 1 Used during the quarter ended September 30, 2020 Year-to-date used at quarter-end Total available for use for the year ending March 31, 2020Tablenote 1 Used during the quarter ended September 30, 2019 Year-to-date used at quarter-end
in thousands of dollars
Tablenote 1

Includes only Authorities available for use and granted by Parliament at quarter-end.

Return to tablenote 1 referrer

Vote 1 — Net operating expenditures  515,210   144,146   282,522   453,408   123,280   244,902 
Statutory authority — Contribution to employee benefit plans  76,079   19,020   38,040  71,552 17,865  35,730 
Total budgetary authorities  591,289   163,166   320,562   524,960   141,145   280,632 
Departmental budgetary expenditures by Standard Object (unaudited)
Table summary: This table displays the departmental expenditures by standard object for fiscal years 2019-2020 and 2020-2021. The row headers provide information by standard object for expenditures and revenues. The column headers provide information in thousands of dollars for planned expenditures for the year ending March 31; expended during the quarter ended September 30; and year to date used at quarter-end of both fiscal years.
  Fiscal year 2020–2021 Fiscal year 2019–2020
Planned expenditures for the year ending March 31, 2021 Expended during the quarter ended September 30, 2020 Year-to-date used at quarter-end Planned expenditures for the year ending March 31, 2020 Expended during the quarter ended September 30, 2019 Year-to-date used at quarter-end
in thousands of dollars
Expenditures:
(01) Personnel  571,289   150,469   294,126   547,364   138,125   275,544 
(02) Transportation and communications  22,460   1,375   1,562   18,654   3,579   6,897 
(03) Information  24,913   2,063   3,296   9,151   2,827   4,018 
(04) Professional and special services  57,029   6,568   12,022   39,089   7,507   13,046 
(05) Rentals  13,357   8,550   17,790   12,903   5,890   11,233 
(06) Repair and maintenance  881   29   676   678   142   239 
(07) Utilities, materials and supplies  2,119   157   245   2,238   162   296 
(08) Acquisition of land, buildings and works  671   84   93   625  3  3
(09) Acquisition of machinery and equipment  18,429   748   2,929   14,086   359   1,156 
(10) Transfer payments 100 - -  100  - -
(12) Other subsidies and payments 41  166   550  72 7  279 
Total gross budgetary expenditures  711,289   170,209   333,289   644,960   158,601   312,711 
Less revenues netted against expenditures:
Revenues 120,000  7,043   12,727  120,000  17,456   32,079 
Total revenues netted against expenditures 120,000  7,043   12,727  120,000  17,456   32,079 
Total net budgetary expenditures  591,289   163,166   320,562   524,960  141,145  280,632 

Annual Greenhouse, Sod and Nursery Survey - 2019

Why are we conducting this survey?

This survey collects up-to-date information on the production and value of greenhouse plants and vegetables, and on the production of nursery stock and sod in Canada.

Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, producer associations, and provincial agriculture departments use the data to perform market trend analysis and to study domestic production and imports. The data are also used to calculate farm cash receipts.

Your information may also be used by Statistics Canada for other statistical and research purposes.

Your participation in this survey is required under the authority of the Statistics Act.

Other important information

Authorization to collect this information

Data are collected under the authority of the Statistics Act, Revised Statutes of Canada, 1985, Chapter S-19.

Confidentiality

By law, Statistics Canada is prohibited from releasing any information it collects that could identify any person, business, or organization, unless consent has been given by the respondent, or as permitted by the Statistics Act. Statistics Canada will use the information from this survey for statistical purposes only.

Web scraping

We may also visit your website to search for additional information using automated methods; being careful not to impede the functionality of your website.

Record linkages

To enhance the data from this survey and to reduce the reporting burden, Statistics Canada may combine the acquired data with information from other surveys or from administrative sources.

Data-sharing agreements

To reduce respondent burden, Statistics Canada has entered into data-sharing agreements with provincial and territorial statistical agencies and other government organizations, which have agreed to keep the data confidential and use them only for statistical purposes. Statistics Canada will only share data from this survey with those organizations that have demonstrated a requirement to use the data.

Section 11 of the Statistics Act provides for the sharing of information with provincial and territorial statistical agencies that meet certain conditions. These agencies must have the legislative authority to collect the same information, on a mandatory basis, and the legislation must provide substantially the same provisions for confidentiality and penalties for disclosure of confidential information as the Statistics Act. Because these agencies have the legal authority to compel businesses to provide the same information, consent is not requested and businesses may not object to the sharing of the data.

For this survey, there are Section 11 agreements with the provincial statistical agencies of Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia. The shared data will be limited to information pertaining to business establishments located within the jurisdiction of the respective province.

Section 12 of the Statistics Act provides for the sharing of information with federal, provincial or territorial government organizations.

Under Section 12, you may refuse to share your information with any of these organizations by writing a letter of objection to the Chief Statistician, specifying the organizations with which you do not want Statistics Canada to share your data and mailing it to the following address:

Chief Statistician of Canada
Statistics Canada
Attention of Director, Enterprise Statistics Division
150 Tunney's Pasture Driveway
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0T6

You may also contact us by email at statcan.esdhelpdesk-dsebureaudedepannage.statcan@statcan.gc.ca or by fax at 613-951-6583.

For this survey, there are Section 12 agreements with the Prince Edward Island statistical agency as well as with the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and The Prince Edward Island Department of Agriculture and Land.

For agreements with provincial and territorial government organizations, the shared data will be limited to information pertaining to business establishments located within the jurisdiction of the respective province or territory.

Business or organization and contact information

1. Verify or provide the business or organization's legal and operating name and correct where needed.

Note: Legal name modifications should only be done to correct a spelling error or typo.

Legal Name

The legal name is one recognized by law, thus it is the name liable for pursuit or for debts incurred by the business or organization. In the case of a corporation, it is the legal name as fixed by its charter or the statute by which the corporation was created.

Modifications to the legal name should only be done to correct a spelling error or typo.

To indicate a legal name of another legal entity you should instead indicate it in question 3 by selecting 'Not currently operational' and then choosing the applicable reason and providing the legal name of this other entity along with any other requested information.

Operating Name

The operating name is a name the business or organization is commonly known as if different from its legal name. The operating name is synonymous with trade name.

  • Legal name
  • Operating name (if applicable)

2. Verify or provide the contact information of the designated business or organization contact person for this questionnaire and correct where needed.

Note: The designated contact person is the person who should receive this questionnaire. The designated contact person may not always be the one who actually completes the questionnaire.

  • First name
  • Last name
  • Title
  • Preferred language of communication
    • English
    • French
  • Mailing address (number and street)
  • City
  • Province, territory or state
  • Postal code or ZIP code
  • Country
    • Canada
    • United States
  • Email address
  • Telephone number (including area code)
  • Extension number (if applicable)
    The maximum number of characters is 10.
  • Fax number (including area code)

3. Verify or provide the current operational status of the business or organization identified by the legal and operating name above.

  • Operational
  • Not currently operational
    Why is this business or organization not currently operational?
    • Seasonal operations
      • When did this business or organization close for the season?
        Date
      • When does this business or organization expect to resume operations?
        Date
    • Ceased operations
      • When did this business or organization cease operations?
        Date
      • Why did this business or organization cease operations?
        • Bankruptcy
        • Liquidation
        • Dissolution
        • Other
          Specify the other reasons why the operations ceased
    • Sold operations
      • When was this business or organization sold?
        Date
      • What is the legal name of the buyer?
    • Amalgamated with other businesses or organizations
      • When did this business or organization amalgamate?
        Date
      • What is the legal name of the resulting or continuing business or organization?
      • What are the legal names of the other amalgamated businesses or organizations?
    • Temporarily inactive but will re-open
      • When did this business or organization become temporarily inactive?
        Date
      • When does this business or organization expect to resume operations?
        Date
      • Why is this business or organization temporarily inactive?
    • No longer operating due to other reasons
      • When did this business or organization cease operations?
        Date
      • Why did this business or organization cease operations?

4. Verify or provide the current main activity of the business or organization identified by the legal and operating name above.

Note: The described activity was assigned using the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS).

This question verifies the business or organization's current main activity as classified by the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS). The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) is an industry classification system developed by the statistical agencies of Canada, Mexico and the United States. Created against the background of the North American Free Trade Agreement, it is designed to provide common definitions of the industrial structure of the three countries and a common statistical framework to facilitate the analysis of the three economies. NAICS is based on supply-side or production-oriented principles, to ensure that industrial data, classified to NAICS, are suitable for the analysis of production-related issues such as industrial performance.

The target entity for which NAICS is designed are businesses and other organizations engaged in the production of goods and services. They include farms, incorporated and unincorporated businesses and government business enterprises. They also include government institutions and agencies engaged in the production of marketed and non-marketed services, as well as organizations such as professional associations and unions and charitable or non-profit organizations and the employees of households.

The associated NAICS should reflect those activities conducted by the business or organizational units targeted by this questionnaire only, as identified in the 'Answering this questionnaire' section and which can be identified by the specified legal and operating name. The main activity is the activity which most defines the targeted business or organization's main purpose or reason for existence. For a business or organization that is for-profit, it is normally the activity that generates the majority of the revenue for the entity.

The NAICS classification contains a limited number of activity classifications; the associated classification might be applicable for this business or organization even if it is not exactly how you would describe this business or organization's main activity.

Please note that any modifications to the main activity through your response to this question might not necessarily be reflected prior to the transmitting of subsequent questionnaires and as a result they may not contain this updated information.

The following is the detailed description including any applicable examples or exclusions for the classification currently associated with this business or organization.

Description and examples

  • This is the current main activity
  • This is not the current main activity

Provide a brief but precise description of this business or organization's main activity
e.g., breakfast cereal manufacturing, shoe store, software development

Main activity

5. You indicated that is not the current main activity.
Was this business or organization's main activity ever classified as: ?

  • Yes
    When did the main activity change?
    Date
  • No

6. Search and select the industry classification code that best corresponds to this business or organization's main activity.

Select this business or organization's activity sector (optional)

  • Farming or logging operation
  • Construction company or general contractor
  • Manufacturer
  • Wholesaler
  • Retailer
  • Provider of passenger or freight transportation
  • Provider of investment, savings or insurance products
  • Real estate agency, real estate brokerage or leasing company
  • Provider of professional, scientific or technical services
  • Provider of health care or social services
  • Restaurant, bar, hotel, motel or other lodging establishment
  • Other sector

7. You have indicated that the current main activity of this business or organization is: Main activity. Are there any other activities that contribute significantly (at least 10%) to this business or organization's revenue?

  • Yes, there are other activities
    • Provide a brief but precise description of this business or organization's secondary activity
      e.g., breakfast cereal manufacturing, shoe store, software development
  • No, that is the only significant activity

8. Approximately what percentage of this business or organization's revenue is generated by each of the following activities?

When precise figures are not available, provide your best estimates.

Approximately what percentage of this business or organization's revenue is generated by each of the following activities
  Percentage of revenue
Main activity  
Secondary activity  
All other activities  
Total percentage  

Type of production

1. Which of the following products did you grow for sale in 2020?

Please report Canadian production only.

Select all that apply.

Greenhouse products

Seedlings, potted plants, bedding plants, cuttings and other propagating material, vegetables and fruit grown for sale in a permanent, artificially heated enclosed structure made of plastic, plexiglass, poly-film or glass.

Any plants that you start cultivating in a greenhouse but are finished before sales in a nursery should be considered a nursery product.

Nursery products

A diverse range of non-edible, living plant material grown 'in field' or in containers outdoors and sold with their root system intact. Plants range from tree seedlings to full-grown trees.

Include annual and perennial plants.

Exclude field-grown cut flowers from this category.

Field-grown cut flowers should be reported in its own category only, not in the 'nursery products' category. Cut flowers produced in, and sold from, a greenhouse should be reported in the 'greenhouse products' category.

Christmas trees

Include only the Christmas trees that were cut during the year.

Exclude Christmas trees that were grown in a container with their root systems intact.

Sod

Grass or turf, which has its roots intact. Sod is grown 'in field' and sold as a single product.

Greenhouse products

Include vegetables, fruits, flowers and plants grown in heated structures.

Exclude:

  • vegetables and fruit grown outdoors or in non-heated covering tunnels or cold frames
  • all cannabis production.

Christmas trees

Field-grown cut flowers

Nursery products
e.g., trees, shrubs and plants

Sod

Did not grow any products for sale in 2020.

Greenhouse area - unit of measure

2. What unit of measure will be used to report your greenhouse area?

  • Square feet
  • Square metres
  • Acres
  • Hectares

Greenhouse area

3. What was your greenhouse area under the following materials in 2020?

Exclude non-heated covering tunnels, cold frames or any area surrounding a greenhouse.

What was your greenhouse area under the following materials in 2020?
  Unit of measure
Under glass  
Poly-film  
Rigid plastic, fibreglass or other enclosed area  
Total greenhouse area  

Greenhouse products - number of months in operation

4. How many months was your greenhouse in operation in 2020?

Report the number of months this operation was growing plants in a greenhouse.

Months

Greenhouse products

5. Which of the following greenhouse products were grown for sale in 2020?

Select all that apply.

For this survey, we are only interested in flowers, plants, vegetables, fruits, tree seedlings and bedding plants grown in, and sold from, the greenhouse. Production of vegetables and fruits covered by cold frames or covering tunnels should not be included in the greenhouse section of the survey.

Potted herbs

Plants that will be maintained in a pot by the consumer after purchase should be reported inside the 'potted plants' section. Herb plants sold in a package ready to be consumed should be reported inside the vegetable section.

Cut flowers

Include only cut flowers produced in, and sold from, a greenhouse.

Exclude field-grown cut flowers and dried cut flowers.

Fruit and Vegetables

Include products grown to completion in a greenhouse and sold from the greenhouse.

Exclude greenhouse vegetables and/or fruit that are transplanted for field crops. Bedding plants (transplants) grown in a greenhouse that will be planted in your own fields so that they can be sold as fully grown harvested vegetables at a later date should be excluded; they are reported in Statistics Canada's annual Fruit and Vegetable Survey.

Potted Plants - indoor and outdoor

Any plants grown and sold in a pot from the greenhouse.

Exclude Christmas trees sold in pots. Pots take many forms and sizes, such as baskets (wicker), peat pots, moss pots and plastic pots or ceramic pots.

Cuttings and tree seedlings

Plants (or sections of a plant) capable of developing into a greater number of plants or spreading out and affecting a greater area. Examples include Chrysanthemums, Poinsettias, Begonias, Petunias and shrubs.

Exclude tree seedlings for reforestation.

Bedding plants, also known as transplants

Young plants that are bought and then transplanted into a garden, field, container or basket by the purchaser. These include ornamental bedding plants and vegetable bedding plants. For this survey, the term "ornamental" refers to flowers or plants cultivated for their beauty rather than use.

Fruits and vegetables

Potted plants — indoor or outdoor

Include any prefinished or finished plants grown and sold in a pot.

Cuttings and tree seedlings

Exclude tree seedlings for reforestation.

Bedding plants, transplants or plugs — ornamental or vegetable

Include plants sold in cell packs or trays that are ready for transplanting by the purchaser.

Cut flowers

Exclude dried cut flowers.

Greenhouse products - fruits and vegetables

6. What was your greenhouse area for the following products in 2020?

What was your greenhouse area under the following materials in 2020?
  Unit of measure
Fruits and vegetables  
Potted plants – indoor or outdoor  
Cuttings and tree seedlings  
Bedding plants, transplants or plugs  
Cut flowers  
Total greenhouse area used to grow greenhouse products  

7. What area of your greenhouse was used to produce the following fruits and vegetables in 2020?

For any multiple plantings of the same fruit or vegetable, count the area only once.

Greenhouse vegetables and fruits are edible and ready to eat at the time of sale. They were grown into sellable products in a greenhouse, not in a field; and sold from the greenhouse by the producer. Field vegetable and fruit farmers should report their production in the Fruit and Vegetable Survey.

Exclude tobacco, ginseng, asparagus, mushrooms, ornamental and vegetable bedding plants (young plants that are bought and transplanted into a garden, field, container or basket by the purchaser; also known as transplants).

A number of greenhouses are expanding to the United States. For this survey, report Canadian production only.

If you produced a multiple crop of the same greenhouse vegetable or fruit in the same greenhouse space, report the area only once. For example, if 1,000 square feet were used for the first tomato crop planting and then the same space was later used for the second tomato crop planting, you would report 1,000 square feet (not 2,000 square feet).

If you produced two or more different types of vegetables or fruit in the same greenhouse space, you would count that area for each type of crop produced.

For example, if you used 2,000 square feet to grow tomatoes for your first crop planting, and then switched to growing cucumbers in that same space half-way through the summer, you would report a total area of 4,000 square feet (2,000 square feet for growing tomatoes, plus 2,000 square feet for growing cucumbers).

What area of your greenhouse was used to produce the following fruits and vegetables in 2020?
  Unit of measure
Greenhouse tomatoes  
Beefsteak tomatoes  
Large tomatoes on the vine  
Cherry and grape tomatoes  
Other tomatoes  
Total greenhouse tomatoes  
Greenhouse cucumbers  
English cucumbers  
Mini cucumbers  
Other cucumbers  
Total greenhouse cucumbers  
Other greenhouse fruits and vegetables  
Greenhouse eggplants  
Greenhouse Chinese vegetables  
Greenhouse herbs  
Sprouts grown in a controlled environment  
Greenhouse microgreens and shoots  
Greenhouse peppers  
Greenhouse lettuce  
Greenhouse beans (green and wax)  
Other greenhouse fruit or vegetable 1  
Other greenhouse fruit or vegetable 2  
Other greenhouse fruit or vegetable 3  
Total area of fruits and vegetables  

8. For the following fruits and vegetables, what were the quantity sold (i.e., marketed production) and sales in 2020?

For the following fruits and vegetables, what were the quantity sold (i.e., marketed production) and sales in 2020?
  Quantity sold Unit of measure Total Sales
Greenhouse tomatoes      
Beefsteak tomatoes      
Large tomatoes on the vine      
Cherry and grape tomatoes      
Total greenhouse tomatoes      
Greenhouse cucumbers      
English cucumbers      
Mini cucumbers      
Total greenhouse cucumbers      
Other greenhouse fruits and vegetables      
Greenhouse eggplants      
Greenhouse Chinese vegetables      
Greenhouse herbs      
Sprouts grown in a controlled environment      
Greenhouse microgreens and shoots      
Greenhouse peppers      
Greenhouse lettuce      
Greenhouse beans (green and wax)      
Total gross sales of fruits and vegetables      

9. Of the total gross sales reported at question 7, please provide the percentage breakdown of your greenhouse fruits and vegetables sales across the following distribution channels.

Sales distribution of greenhouse vegetables and fruit (total gross sales)

The sales of greenhouse vegetables and fruit that the operation produced and sold.

Please report the value of greenhouse fruite and vegetable sales in a percentage (%). The sum of different markets should be equal to 100% of the value reported in in question 7.

Wholesaler

The organisation primarily engaged as the intermediary in the distribution of merchandise. Meaning that a wholesaler is a reseller of manufactured goods in whole (without transformation, and rendering services incidental to the sale of merchandise).

A wholesaler provides the warehousing and trade abilities the manufacturer does not want to provide. It also prefers to sell batches, truckloads, pallets, etc. of goods. Often offers discounts as quantity increases. As a result, many wholesalers are therefore organized to sell merchandise in large quantities to retailers, and business and institutional clients.

In addition, wholesalers may frequently perform one of the following related functions; breaking bulk, providing delivery services to customers, or operating warehouse facilities for storage of goods they sell, or marketing and support services such as packaging and labelling, inventory management, shipping, handling of warranty claims, in-store or co-op promotions and training.

Of the total gross sales reported at question 7, please provide the percentage breakdown of your greenhouse fruits and vegetables sales across the following distribution channels.
  Percentage of total sales
Sales to domestic wholesalers  
Sales to mass market chain stores  
Sales to other greenhouses  
Sales of exports directly from your operation  
Sales to the public from your greenhouse, roadside stand or other outlets  
Sales through all other distribution channels  
Total sales of fruits and vegetables  

Greenhouse products - indoor and outdoor potted plants

10. For the following indoor and outdoor potted plants, how many pots did this greenhouse produce and sell in 2020?

Include only prefinished and finished potted plants grown and sold by this greenhouse operation.

Exclude:

  • bedding plants or plugs sold in cell packs, flats or trays for transplanting
  • nursery-grown stock, such as potted shrubs or fall mums
  • Christmas trees sold in pots
  • plants purchased or imported by this operation for immediate resale.

Include all ornamental potted plants (annuals, biennials and perennials) and all potted vegetable, fruit and herb plants that were produced and sold from your greenhouse in Canada.

Plants grown in containers outdoors should be reported in the 'nursery products' category.

Exclude anything produced outside Canada.

Exclude Christmas trees sold in pots; bedding plants or plugs sold in cell packs, flats or trays; and other nursery stock (non-edible, living plant material grown outdoors 'in field' or in containers outdoors and sold with their root system intact).

Any plant grown in a pot from the greenhouse with the intention of selling to the final consumer can be classified as a finished potted plant (including hanging potted plants, such as baskets (wicker), peat pots, moss pots and plastic pots or ceramic pots). Any plant sold in a pot before it has fully matured or is intended to be grown to maturity at another facility can be classified as a prefinished potted plant.

For the following indoor and outdoor potted plants, how many pots did this greenhouse produce and sell in 2020?
  Number of pots produced and sold
Azaleas  
Lilies  
Poinsettias  
African Violets  
Tropical foilage and green plants  
Gerberas  
Miniature Roses  
Orchids  
Kalanchoes  
Chrysanthemums or Potted Mums  
Primulas  
Cyclamens  
Tulips  
Indoor hanging pots  
Other indoor potted plants  
Outdoor potted plants  
Begonias  
Chrysanthemums, garden  
Geraniums, in pots only  
New Guinea Impatiens / Hawkeri  
Petunias  
Herbaceous perennials  
Argyranthemums  
Outdoor hanging pots  
Calibrachoas  
Dahlias  
Pansies  
Rudbeckias  
Heliopsis  
Verbenas  
Zinnias  
Potted herb plants  
Potted vegetable plants  
Other outdoor potted plants  
Total number of pots, indoor and outdoor, produced and sold  

11. What were the total gross sales of prefinished and finished potted plants in 2020?

Total gross sales

Greenhouse products - cuttings and tree seedlings

12. For the following cuttings, what was the total number of cuttings produced and sold in 2020?

Include only cuttings produced by this greenhouse operation.

Cuttings are sections of a plant stem capable of developing into a whole plant. Examples of species that may be sold as cuttings include murrayas, grevilleas, fuchsias, and gardenias.

Exclude ornamental and vegetable bedding plants, also known as transplants, which are young plants that are bought and then transplanted into a garden, field, container or basket by the purchaser.

For the following cuttings, what was the total number of cuttings produced and sold in 2020?
  Total number of cuttings produced and sold
Chrysanthemum  
Poinsettia  
Geranium  
Impatien  
Other cuttings not listed  
Total number of cuttings produced and sold  

13. What were the total gross sales of cuttings in 2020?

Total gross sales

14. What was the total number of tree seedlings produced and sold in 2020?

Include only tree seedlings produced by this greenhouse operation.

Exclude:

  • nursery products grown in a cold-frame or non-heated tunnel
  • tree seedlings for reforestation.

A tree seedling is a young tree grown from a seed in a nursery or greenhouse for transplanting typically at one or two years of age.

Include tree seedlings produced only inside a greenhouse. Do not report tree seedlings produced in cold frames or covering tunnels.

Number of seedlings

15. What were the total gross sales of tree seedlings in 2020?

Total gross sales

Greenhouse products - bedding plants/transplants - vegetable and/or ornamental

16. What were the number and total gross sales of bedding plants, transplants or plugs produced and sold in 2020?

Include plants ready for transplanting by the purchaser into gardens, fields, containers and baskets.

Report the number of individual plants. If the number is unknown, please estimate it by multiplying the number of trays by the average number of plants per tray.

Bedding plants, also known as transplants, are young plants that are bought and then transplanted into a garden, field, container or basket by the purchaser. Ornamental bedding plants are cultivated for their flowers and beauty, rather than their use. Vegetable bedding plants are not yet edible at the time of sale from your greenhouse.

Bedding plants may be sold in various containers, including plugs, cell packs, flats or trays. Report the number of individual plants. If this number is unknown, please estimate it by multiplying the number of trays by the average number of plants per tray.

Exclude vegetable and herb plants not sold directly from the greenhouse (for example, plants being transplanted from the greenhouse to the field by the producer).

What were the number and total gross sales of bedding plants, transplants or plugs produced and sold in 2020?
  Number of plants Total gross sales
Ornamental bedding plants    
Vegetable bedding plants    

Greenhouse products - cut flowers

17. For the following cut flowers, what was the total number of stems produced and sold in 2020?

Exclude:

  • dried cut flowers
  • field-grown flowers (these will be reported in question 22)
  • flowers grown by another operation.

Include only cut flowers that were produced in, and sold from, a greenhouse in Canada.

Exclude cut flowers that were initially cultivated in a greenhouse but then grown into sellable products in a field; these should be reported in the 'field-grown cut flowers' section, which is its own category in this survey. Some operators may start seeds in their greenhouse but transplant the flowers in the field in May or June and cut and dry them in August.

Exclude any cut flowers you purchased from other growers to re-sell from your own operation within a short period of time with minimal maintenance work (watering).

For the following cut flowers, what was the total number of stems produced and sold in 2020?
  Number of stems produced and sold
Alstroemerias  
Chrysanthemums  
Daffodils  
Freesias  
Gerberas  
Irises  
Lilies  
Roses  
Snapdragons  
Tulips  
Lisianthus  
Other cut flowers not listed  
Total number of stems produced and sold  

18. What were the total gross sales of cut flowers grown by this greenhouse operation in 2020?

Total gross sales

Greenhouse products - flowers and plants

19. What were your total gross sales of flowers and plants purchased from other greenhouses for immediate resale in 2020?

Total gross sales

Did not purchase and re-sell any flowers or plants

Summary - flowers and plants

20. This is a summary of your total gross sales of greenhouse flowers and plants in 2020?

This is a summary of your total gross sales of greenhouse flowers and plants in 2020?
  Sales
Total gross sales of potted plants  
Total gross sales of cuttings  
Total gross sales of tree seedlings  
Total gross sales of ornamental bedding plants, transplants or plugs  
Total gross sales of vegetable bedding plants, transplants or plugs  
Total gross sales of cut flowers  
Total sales of flowers and plants produced in your greenhouse  
Total gross sales of flowers and plants purchased from other greenhouses for immediate resale  
Total gross sales of greenhouse flowers and plants  

Greenhouse products - flowers and plants

21. Of your total gross sales [amount]$ reported, please provide the percentage breakdown of greenhouse flowers and plants sales across the following distribution channels.

Sales distribution of greenhouse flowers and plants (total gross sales)

The sales of greenhouse flowers and plants that the operation produced and purchased for immediate resales.

Please report the value of greenhouse flower and plant sales in percentage (%). The sum of different markets should be equal to 100%.

Wholesaler: the organisation primarily engaged as the intermediary in the distribution of merchandise. Meaning that a wholesaler is a reseller of manufactured goods in whole (without transformation, and rendering services incidental to the sale of merchandise).

A wholesaler provides the warehousing and trade abilities the manufacturer does not want to provide. It also prefers to sell batches, truckloads, pallets, etc. of goods. Often offers discounts as quantity increases. As a result, many wholesalers are therefore organized to sell merchandise in large quantities to retailers, and business and institutional clients.

In addition, wholesalers may frequently perform one of the following related functions; breaking bulk, providing delivery services to customers, or operating warehouse facilities for storage of goods they sell, or marketing and support services such as packaging and labelling, inventory management, shipping, handling of warranty claims, in-store or co-op promotions and training.

Of your total gross sales [amount]$ reported, please provide the percentage breakdown of greenhouse flowers and plants sales across the following distribution channels.
  Percentage of total sales
Sales to retail florists  
Sales to domestic wholesalers  
Sales to mass market chain stores  
Sales to other greenhouses  
Export sales made directly by your firm  
Sales made directly to the public from your greenhouse or roadside stands  
Sales to the government and other public institutions  
Other methods of sales not listed  
Total sales of flowers and plants  

Christmas trees

22. Please enter the total area used to grow Christmas trees, the number of trees produced and cut, and the total gross sales of trees in 2020?

Include only the Christmas trees that were cut during the year.

Exclude Christmas trees that were grown in a container with their root systems intact.

When reporting the area, include the total area used to grow Christmas trees, regardless of whether the trees were cut or not. Include naturally established or planted areas, regardless of stage of growth, that are pruned or managed with the use of fertilizer or pesticides.

When reporting the number of cut trees, exclude any Christmas trees that were grown in a container with their root systems intact.

Conversions

  • 1 arpent = 0.9986 acres
  • 1 acre = 1.0014 arpent
  • 1 acre = 0.41 hectares
  • 1 hectare = 2.47 acres

Total area

Unit of measure

  • acres
  • hectares
  • arpents

Number of cut trees

Total gross sales

Field-grown cut flowers

23. Please report the total area used to grow field-grown flowers, the number of cut stems produced and sold, and the total gross sales of field-grown cut flowers in 2020?

Include field-grown fresh and dried flowers, and any plant part used for floral or decorative purposes, such as seed heads, stalks and woody cuts.

Exclude cut flowers grown in a greenhouse from start to finish.

Total area

Unit of measure

  • acres
  • hectares
  • arpents

Number of cut stems

Total gross sales

Nursery products - nursery area

24. What was the total nursery area used for growing nursery stock in 2020?

What was the total nursery area used for growing nursery stock in 2020?
  Nursery area Unit of measure
Field area used for growing nursery stock    
Container area used for growing nursery stock    
Total nursery area    

Nursery products - nursery stock

25. How many field-grown and container-grown plants did this operation produce and sell in 2020?

Exclude:

  • stock purchased for immediate resale
  • Christmas trees without the root system intact
  • heated greenhouse production and unsold inventory.

A tree seedling is a young tree grown from a seed in a nursery for transplanting typically at one or two years of age.

Include only tree seedlings produced in a nursery.

Exclude tree seedlings produced in and sold from a greenhouse.

Exclude tree seedlings for reforestation.

Note: tree seedlings may be reported as nursery products if they were conditioned outside for part of the production cycle, after having been cared for inside the greenhouse first.

How many field-grown and container-grown plants did this operation produce and sell in 2020?
  Number of field-grown plants produced and sold Number of container-grown plants produced and sold
Trees — conifer    
Trees — fruit    
Trees — shade or ornamental    
Shrubs — evergreen and conifer    
Shrubs — evergreen and broadleaf    
Shrubs — deciduous    
Vines    
Perennials and annuals    
Small fruit bushes    
Tree seedlings    
Other type of plants    
Total number of field and container grown nursery stock    

26. What were the total gross sales of field-grown and container-grown nursery stock in 2020?

Exclude sales of stock purchased for immediate resale and revenue from landscaping activities.

Exclude:

  • any nursery stock that was purchased for immediate resale
  • Christmas trees without the root system intact
  • any greenhouse production
  • unsold inventory
  • value received for landscaping services.

Field-grown includes all bailed and burlapped, bare root field potted stock.

Container-grown includes all containers sizes of less than one gallon; one gallon; two gallons; and greater than two gallons.

Balled and burlapped is a method of transplanting that minimizes root disturbance. The tree is dug with a ball of soil around it and wrapped in burlap (method generally used for evergreens and deciduous plants in leaf).

Bare root describes plants dug up, with the soil shaken off (method generally used for deciduous plants in a dormant condition).

Field-potted describes stock which is grown in the field and placed into a pot when dug up for sale. Please report stock that was potted up from the field for a maximum of one full growing season; if potted up for more than one growing season, report under container.

Container-grown is nursery stock grown in a container for a minimum of one growing season before time of sale.

What were the total gross sales of field-grown and container-grown nursery stock in 2020?
  Total Gross Sales
Total gross sales of field-grown stock  
Total gross sales of container-grown stock  
Total gross sales of stock grown by this nursery operation  

27. What were the total gross sales of nursery stock purchased for immediate resale in 2020?

Nursery stock for immediate resale is any nursery stock you purchased from other growers to re-sell from your own operation within a short period of time with minimal maintenance e.g., watering. Please enter your total sales of the nursery stock you purchased from other operations.

Examples of stock that may be ready for immediate resale:
Plants, flowers, bulbs, trees, shrubs, etc.

Total gross sales

Did not purchase and re-sell any nursery stock.

28. This is a summary of your total gross sales of nursery stock in 2020.

This is a summary of your total gross sales of nursery stock in 2020.
  Sales
Total gross sales of stock grown by this nursery operation  
Total gross sales of stock purchased for resale  
Total sales of nursery stock  

29. Of the total gross sales [amount]$ reported, please provide the percentage breakdown of nursery stock sales across the following distribution channels.

Sales distribution of nursery stocks (total gross sales)

The sales of nursery stocks that the operation produced and purchased for immediate resales.

Please report the value of nursery stock sales in percentage (%). The sum of different markets should be equal to 100%.

Of the total gross sales [amount]$ reported, please provide the percentage breakdown of nursery stock sales across the following distribution channels.
  Percentage of total sales
Sales to the public  
Sales to fruit growers  
Sales to landscape contractors  
Sales to garden centres  
Sales to mass merchandisers  
Sales to other growers  
Export sales made directly by your operation  
Sales to public agencies  
Sales through other channels  
Total sales of nursery products  

Labour

30. How many seasonal and permanent workers, paid or unpaid, were employed by your operation in 2020?

Include all workers involved in growing, maintaining and harvesting on your operation, including the owners, family workers and foreign and seasonal workers. There must be at least one employee reported.

Exclude labour for retail and clerical help, and contract work, e.g., truck driver or landscaper.

How many seasonal and permanent workers, paid or unpaid, were employed by your operation in 2020?
  Greenhouse employees Nursery employees Total employees
Seasonal employees — employed for less than 8 months      
Full-time and part-time permanent employees — employed for 8 months or more      
Total number of employees      

31. Are any of the employees on your payroll?

  • Yes
  • No, only unpaid family labour is involved

Operating expenses

32. In 2020, what were your operating expenses?

Growing on is a term used by operators when stock is cultivated in the greenhouse or the nursery for the purpose of growing it to greater proportions. The operators will plant a seed or seedling in their greenhouse and care for it, by maintaining it (transplanting, fertilizing, etc.) until it becomes a sellable product.

Exclude any plant materials you may have purchased from other growers for immediate resale from your own operation (please report these purchases in row c).

In 2020, what were your operating expenses?
  Greenhouse expenses Nursery expenses Total expenses
Plant material      
Purchases of plant material for growing on      
Percentage of a. purchased from within your province      
Purchases of plant material for immediate resale      
Total plant material purchases      
Payroll      
Payroll      
Fuel expenses      
Natural gas      
Heating oil      
Other types of heating fuel      
Total fuel expenses      
Other expenses      
Electricity expenses      
Other crop expenses      
Other operating expenses      
Total operating expenses      

Sod operations - area and sales

33. What was the total sod area grown in 2020.

Conversions

  • 1 arpent = 0.9986 acres
  • 1 acre = 1.0014 arpent
  • 1 acre = 0.41 hectares
  • 1 hectare = 2.47 acres

Sod is grass or turf, which has its roots intact at the time of sale. Sod is grown in field and sold as a single product.

Report all the area of land used for growing and maintaining sod.

Include any sod grown that was not intended for sale within the survey year (the past calendar year).

Area

Unit of measure

  • acres
  • hectares
  • arpents

34. Of the total sod area, how much was grown for sale in 2020?

Report the area of sod intended to be sold within the survey year (the past calendar year).

The area of sod grown for sale may be less than or equal to the total area of sod reported in the previous question.

Area

35. What were the total gross sales of sod grown on your operation in 2020?

Exclude revenue from laying sod or reselling sod purchased from others.

Total gross sales

36. What were the total gross sales of sod purchased for immediate resale?

Total gross sales

Did not purchase and re-sell any sod.

Summary - total sales of sod

37. This is a summary of the total sales of sod in 2020.

This is a summary of the total sales of sod in 2020.
  Sales
Total gross sales of sod grown on your operation  
Total gross sales of sod purchased for immediate resale  
Total sales of sod  

Sod operations - labour

38. How many seasonal and permanent workers, paid or unpaid, were employed by your operation in 2020?

Include all workers in this operation involved in growing, maintaining and harvesting sod on your operation, including the owners, family workers and foreign and seasonal workers. There must be at least one employee reported.

Exclude all labour for retail and clerical help; laying sod; and contract work, e.g., truck driver or landscaper.

How many seasonal and permanent workers, paid or unpaid, were employed by your operation in 2020?
  Number of employees
Seasonal employees — employed for less than 8 months  
Full-time and part-time permanent employees — employed for 8 months or more  
Total number of employees  

39. Are any of the employees reported in question 37 on your payroll?

  • Yes
  • No, only unpaid family labour is involved

Sod operations - expenses

40. Please provide your sod operating expenses in 2020.

Please provide your sod operating expenses in 2020.
  Sod operating expenses
Purchases of sod for immediate resale  
Percentage of a. purchased from within your province  
Payroll  
Other sod operating expenses  
Total sod operating expenses in 2020  

Agricultural production

41.

  • Field crops
  • Hay
  • Summerfallow
  • Potatoes
  • Fruit, berries and nuts
  • Vegetables
  • Sod
  • Nursery products
  • Greenhouse products
  • Cattle and calves
  • Include beef or dairy.
  • Pigs
  • Sheep and lambs
  • Mink
  • Fox
  • Hens and chickens
  • Turkeys
  • Maple taps
  • Honey bees
  • Mushrooms
  • Other
    Specify agricultural products
  • Not producing agricultural products

Area in crops

42. What area of this operation is used for the following crops?

Report the areas only once, even if used for more than one crop type.

Exclude land used by others.

What area of this operation is used for the following crops?
  Area Unit of measure
Field crops    
Hay    
Summerfallow    
Potatoes    
Fruit, berries and nuts    
Vegetables    
Sod    
Nursery products    

Greenhouse area

43. What is the total area under glass, plastic or other protection used for growing plants?

Total area

Unit of measure

  • square feet
  • square metres

Livestock (excluding birds)

44. How many of the following animals are on this operation?

Report all animals on this operation, regardless of ownership, including those that are boarded, custom-fed or fed under contract.

Exclude animals owned but kept on a farm, ranch or feedlot operated by someone else.

How many of the following animals are on this operation?
  Number
Cattle and calves  
Pigs  
Sheep and lambs  
Mink  
Fox  

Birds

45. How many of the following birds are on this operation?

Report all poultry on this operation, regardless of ownership, including those grown under contract.

Include poultry for sale and poultry for personal use.

Exclude poultry owned but kept on an operation operated by someone else.

How many of the following birds are on this operation?
  Number
Hens and chickens  
Turkeys  

Maple taps

46. What was the total number of taps made on maple trees last spring?

Total number of taps

Honey bees

47. How many live colonies of honey bees (used for honey production or pollination) are owned by this operation?

Include bees owned, regardless of location.

Number of colonies

Mushrooms

48. What is the total mushroom growing area (standing footage) on this operation?

Include mushrooms grown using beds, trays, tunnels or logs.

Total area

Unit of measure

  • square feet
  • square metres

Changes or events

1. Indicate any changes or events that affected the reported values for this business or organization, compared with the last reporting period.

Select all that apply.

  • Strike or lock-out
  • Exchange rate impact
  • Price changes in goods or services sold
  • Contracting out
  • Organizational change
  • Price changes in labour or raw materials
  • Natural disaster
  • Recession
  • Change in product line
  • Sold business or business units
  • Expansion
  • New or lost contract
  • Plant closures
  • Acquisition of business or business units
  • Other
    Specify the other changes or events:
  • No changes or events

Contact person

1. Statistics Canada may need to contact the person who completed this questionnaire for further information.
Is the provided given names and the provided family name the best person to contact?

  • Yes
  • No

Who is the best person to contact about this questionnaire?

  • First name:
  • Last name:
  • Title:
  • Email address:
  • Telephone number (including area code):
  • Extension number (if applicable):
    The maximum number of characters is 5.
  • Fax number (including area code):

Feedback

1. How long did it take to complete this questionnaire?

Include the time spent gathering the necessary information.

  • Hours:
  • Minutes:

2. Do you have any comments about this questionnaire?

Residential and Non-residential Property Assessment Values at Current Prices 2019

Investment, Science, and Technology Division

Table of Contents

  1. Introduction
  2. Key definitions
    1. Price base date
    2. Volume state date
    3. Residential property
    4. Non-residential property
    5. Properties subject to municipal, provincial, territorial and federal payment-in-lieu
  3. Input data
    1. Data sources
    2. Unit reported
  4. Auxiliary Data
    1. Multiple Listing Service data
    2. Building permit and investment in construction data
    3. Census of Population
    4. Census of Agriculture
    5. List of CSDs from the Data Integration Infrastructure Division
  5. Classification
    1. Geography
    2. Property type
  6. Imputation for missing data
    1. Imputation of residential values
    2. Imputation of non-residential values
  7. Price adjustments
    1. Choice of Source Data Vintage
    2. Residential Price adjustment
      1. Overview of price adjustment methodology
      2. Calculating weighted monthly average resale price
      3. Residential price index for Nunavut
      4. Price adjustments when the following tax year's values are known
    3. Non-residential price adjustment
  8. Volume adjustments
    1. Residential volume adjustments
    2. Non-residential volume adjustments
  9. Removals and adjustments in accordance with typical property assessment and taxation practices
    1. Removal of CSDs on account of First Nations and other Aboriginal Groups
    2. Exclusion of exempt residential property
    3. Exclusions of schools, churches and hospitals
    4. Removal of properties subject to provincial-territorial and municipal payments-in-lieu of taxes
    5. Adjustments in the Northwest Territories and Nunavut
    6. Removal of machinery and equipment values in Alberta, Northwest Territories and Nunavut
    7. Removal of personal property values in Manitoba
    8. Mixed-use properties
  10. Quality control
    Annex 1. List of CSD types representing First Nations and other Aboriginal Groups

1. Introduction

The Property Values Program produces annual estimates of assessment values of properties at current prices across Canada. Finance Canada uses these estimates to determine fiscal capacity with respect to property taxes for the Equalization program and the Territorial Formula Financing (TFF) program. Footnote 1 In order to ensure comparability of the data, a number of adjustments are made, including: coding property categories to a common classification; adjusting to a common price base date and volume state (or stock) date; and imputation of missing property values in some areas. Additionally, other removals and adjustments are carried out in order to produce estimates of assessment values at current price that meet the requirements to determine fiscal capacity.

This document presents these adjustments in more detail.

2. Key definitions

a. Price base date Footnote 2

The price base date (also called the valuation date) corresponds to a fixed point in time as of when a property is valued.

b. Volume state date

The volume state date is the fixed point in time as of when the stock of properties is recorded, which also corresponds to the date where all properties are represented in an assessment roll data file.

c. Residential property

Defined as all types of property categorized as residential for assessment purposes in the majority of provinces and territories. It includes single and multi-unit properties, farm residences, cottages and vacation homes, mobile homes, and vacant lands which are lawfully usable for residential purposes.

d. Non-residential property

Defined as all types of property categorized as non-residential for assessment purposes in the majority of provinces and territories. It includes industrial, commercial and institutional properties, engineering construction and mining properties, and vacant lands which are lawfully usable for non-residential purposes.

Agricultural properties Footnote 3 (not including farm residences, which are part of residential property) as well as machinery and equipment properties are excluded from final estimates.

e. Properties subject to municipal, provincial, territorial and federal payment-in-lieu

Defined as municipal, provincial, territorial and federal government-owned property for which owners remit payment-in-lieu of tax to municipal governments or local taxation authorities for receiving municipal services. A payment-in-lieu of taxes is made to compensate a local government for some or all of the tax revenue that it loses because of the nature of the ownership or use of a particular piece of real property. Usually, no property tax is collected for buildings owned by government.

3. Input data

a. Data sources

Assessment data are collected from provincial, territorial and municipal assessment entities and are based on municipal assessment rolls. Data providers agree to provide the data on a regular basis either through formal agreements or responding per data request.

Starting in January 2018, assessment roll microdata is gradually being received from every jurisdiction, to replace the use of assessment roll aggregate data. The objective is to receive microdata from each province and territory within two years.

For the estimates released on November 20th 2020, microdata data were used to generate estimates for the following provinces and territories:

  • Nova Scotia
  • Ontario
  • British Columbia
  • Yukon Territory

b. Unit reported

Data are reported either at the municipality level, or at property or sub-property level.

4. Auxiliary Data

a. Multiple Listing Service data

Multiple Listing Service (MLS) data are produced by the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA). The data are obtained via Haver Analytics, a company that is the sole distributer of CREA MLS data. MLS data are for resale homes and are comprised of dollar volume sales and number of units sold by real estate board. Data are available for all provinces and territories with the exception of Québec and Nunavut.

b. Building permit and investment in construction data

Data on the number of residential and non-residential building permits issued, investment in construction completion, by type of work (e.g., new unit, conversion, etc.), is obtained from Statistics Canada's Building and Demolition Permits (BDP) and Investment programs. The data are produced monthly, by jurisdiction.

c. Census of Population

Data from Census of population are available every five years. Between census years, yearly values, referred to as "Intercensal" values, are derived using linear interpolation. Footnote 4 These values are used at various stages of the production cycle such as for the imputation of missing values and for the estimation of farm residences.

d. Census of Agriculture

Similar to the Census of population, data from Census of Agriculture are available every five years. Yearly values ("Intercensal" values) are also derived using linear interpolation and used during the production cycle. Census of Agriculture values are used to estimate the values of farm residences in Ontario, Saskatchewan and British Columbia, provinces where such values are embedded in totals or are missing.

e. List of CSDs from the Data Integration Infrastructure Division

The list of Census Subdivisions (CSD) is produced, maintained and updated annually by the Data Integration Infrastructure Division at Statistics Canada.

5. Classification

a. Geography

The municipalities covered by the collected data are assigned to Census Subdivisions (CSDs) updated annually by Statistics Canada's Data Integration Infrastructure Division, using the Standard Geographical Classification system. The assignment of CSDs is revised yearly to reflect changes (municipal amalgamations, legal status changes, etc.) that occur during the year.

CSDs containing First Nations or other autonomous or self-governing areas are out of scope for Fiscal Arrangements purposes (see Annex 1); consequently, estimates are not produced for these CSDs.

b. Property type

Property type concordance tables are developed at the provincial and territorial level to classify properties according to property attributes found on the input data. With the arrival of assessment roll microdata, the classification of properties is more precise using new property attributes now present on the source files. New types of properties are introduced in the classification to better represent the data sources.

6. Imputation for missing data

There exist municipalities or regions that are not assessed by provincial or territorial assessment bodies, and therefore no property taxes are levied. As a result, assessment values are missing for some jurisdictions, mostly in unorganized areas. Footnote 5 Additionally, on occasion, some municipalities submit their assessment values to assessment bodies later than when the data are required. Missing property assessment values for these municipalities are imputed.

For taxation year 2019, there were 149 jurisdictions with missing data that were imputed, 139 of which were in Newfoundland-and-Labrador, 8 were in Northwest Territories and 2 were in Saskatchewan.

a. Imputation of residential values

The imputed residential value for a CSD is calculated by multiplying the number of private dwellings by the average value of owner-occupied dwellings for the CSD from the intercensal Census of Population file.

In order to produce an imputed value that best reflects the desired price base and volume state dates:

  • the number of private dwellings value is taken from the yearly intercensal file of the same year as the volume state date of the raw file; and
  • the average value of owner-occupied dwellings is taken from the yearly intercensal file or derived from assessed values of the same year as the price base date of the raw file.

The resulting imputed values are then processed and adjusted Footnote 6 using the same methodology as for raw values.

b. Imputation of non-residential values

Unlike the imputation for residential property values where dwelling values from intercensal files can be used to estimate the value of residential properties, no similar direct indicator is available for non-residential properties. Therefore, non-residential values are imputed using data of CSDs with similar Census population counts within the same province or territory.

Ratios of the total non-residential values over the total population are calculated using data from CSDs for each population class (see table 1 below) for each province and territory. These ratios Footnote 7 are then applied to the population count of the missing CSD to derive the imputed non-residential value. Most of the missing CSDs are from rural areas.

Table 1 – Population class used for imputation on non-residential values Footnote 8
Population Class Description
1 Rural
2 Small Sized Municipalities
3 Medium Sized Municipalities
4 Large Sized Municipalities

7. Price adjustments

Due to differences in assessment practices and frequency of revaluation practices, data received do not always align with the target price base date of July 1 of the year preceding the taxation year.

a. Choice of Source Data Vintage

In order to minimize price adjustments, the data from the file whose price base date most closely aligns with the target price base date is used to produce the estimates of a given taxation year. In the event that two input files have the same time interval between their price base date and the target price base date, the file with the closest volume state date is selected.

b. Residential Price adjustment

Price adjustments for residential properties are derived using monthly sales data for the resale housing market from MLS and FCIQ. Nunavut is the only region for which resale housing data does not exist; therefore, a residential price index is constructed for this territory.

i. Overview of price adjustment methodology

For a given province or territory, the price adjustment calculations are done at two geographic levels:

  • CSDs within a Census Metropolitan Area (CMA)
  • CSDs outside CMAs (or rest of the province)

For Newfoundland and Labrador, Footnote 9 Prince Edward Island, Yukon and Northwest Territories, there are no data available at the CMA level; therefore, the price adjustment calculations are performed on the provincial and territorial totals.

ii. Calculating weighted monthly average resale price

In order to smooth seasonal fluctuations that can exist in monthly data, weighted monthly average prices are used in the calculation of the residential price adjustment. For a given month, twelve consecutive months of data (period beginning six months before and ending five months after the month) are used.

For a given month k, the formula for calculating the weighted monthly average is as follows:

Weighted_Monthly_Averagek=k-6k+5ResDollarVolkk-6k+5ResUnitSoldk

Where ResDollarVol is the total dollar value of the monthly residential sales and ResUnitSold is the monthly total number of residential units sold.

The residential price adjustments are performed at the CSD level. To arrive at the price adjusted assessment value, the ratio of the weighted monthly average for the month of the target price date over the weighted monthly average for the month of the price base date is calculated. The ratio that is applied to the assessment value of a given CSD is dependent on if the CSD is located in a CMA, and is dependent on the province or territory that it is located in.

iii. Residential price index for Nunavut

As resale data do not exist for Nunavut, Statistics Canada uses data for the region of northern Quebec (NQC) Footnote 10 as a proxy for this territory. Footnote 11 The property assessment data are provided by the provincial Government of Quebec.

The Nunavut residential index is calculated using an unweighted average of residential and non-residential property values reported. Footnote 12

An annual series is generated and converted into a monthly series by adding one twelfth of the dollar difference between two observations to each successive month between observed values (linear interpolation), creating a monthly index. Residential price-adjustments are then applied to Nunavut property values using the same algorithm (for ratios) designed for resale data.

iv. Price adjustments when the following tax year's values are known

In certain provinces and territories such as Prince-Edward-Island and New-Brunswick, assessment roll values are received yearly. In both these cases, the price base date is January 1st of the tax year. Recall that the target price base date is 6 month earlier, i.e. July 1st of the year preceding the tax year. Assessment values are therefore known for January 1st of the tax year and January 1st of the year preceding the tax year. In order to make better use of the assessment data available, a price index is developed using true assessment values on their price base date, which excludes the effect due to yearly changes in volume (new construction and demolition). This index is used to price adjust assessment values in Price-Edward-Island and New-Brunswick.

c. Non-residential price adjustment

Unlike residential properties, non-residential properties (more specifically industrial, commercial, and industrial (ICI)) are not often for sale. It is therefore comparatively more difficult to find appropriate market indicators to use for non-residential price adjustment. To overcome this, the correlation between residential and non-residential price changes was analysed.

A regression analysis was performed and a model was constructed using aggregate raw data from four provinces: Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, Quebec and British Columbia. The reasons for using these specific four provinces are twofold: (1) these provinces evaluate their property stock on an annual basis, Footnote 13 and (2) they report data for both assessment values and numbers of properties. This level of detail allowed the derivation of the annual non-residential price movements.

Based on the regression analysis using data from the four provinces mentioned above, the conclusion was to use the model coefficient of 0.73336 as a discount factor to the residential series and also to the residential price index in Nunavut. Footnote 14 The resulting series, generated by applying the discount factor to the residential series, is used for the price adjustment of non-residential values for all provinces and territories.

8. Volume adjustments

Volume adjustments ensure that properties reflect a common volume state date of January 1st of the taxation year. For assessment data that reflects a volume state date earlier or later than the target volume state date, the value of all completed construction that occurred in the period between the two dates is estimated using Statistics Canada's monthly Building and Demolition Permits (BDP) Program or from the Investment Program and then added or subtracted, as the case may be, from the total property values. This methodology is used for both residential and non-residential property values.

a. Residential volume adjustments

For residential properties, the volume adjustment is calculated by estimating the construction that was completed in between the volume state date and the target volume state date using the number of permits from the BDP survey and monthly resale values, or from using the investment in construction completion values.

Based on an analysis of residential construction data, the assumption is made that a residential property being newly built can be considered to be a substantially finished (assessable) unit approximately three months after a building permit is issued. Therefore, for a given month, the BDP data used for the volume adjustment is that of the given month minus three (so for example for June we would use the March BDP data).

For each month falling in the period between the volume state date and target volume state date, the number of permits is multiplied by the average monthly resale value from MLS (for all provinces and territories other than Nunavut), to obtain a monthly volume adjustment value. The monthly volume adjustment values are summed for each month to arrive at the total volume adjustment for the period. For Nunavut, the average assessment value for Northern Québec is used.

Similarly, construction completion values represent the total investment in construction available upon completion of construction. Monthly values that fall between the volume state date and the target volume state date are summed for an estimated total volume adjustment for the period.

Although the two methods are comparable, volume adjustments calculated using investment in construction completion values are slightly more accurate than those calculated using building permit values. When investment in construction completion values are available, they are used in the calculations over the use of building permit values. Residential volume adjustments account for approximately 2% of total values.

Volume adjustments calculated using investment in construction completion values were used to produce residential estimates.

b. Non-residential volume adjustments

For non-residential construction, the assumption is that a property undergoing construction can be considered to be a substantially finished (assessable) unit approximately eight months after a building permit is issued. As non-residential construction projects vary significantly in scope, size, and values, using an average value is not recommended; therefore, the volume adjustment methodology for residential properties cannot be applied to the non-residential.

Instead of using the number of permits, the total value of all permits issued, by month, is used. Consequently, "total values of the non-residential permits" that were issued during the period (using an 8-months lag to allow for construction to be completed) is used to obtain the volume adjustment value. This estimate of new property construction value is used to adjust the total estimates.

As for residential volume adjustments, when non-residential investment in construction completion values are available, these used in the calculations of volume adjustments over the use of building permit values. Non-residential volume adjustments account for approximately 2% of total values.

Volume adjustments calculated using investment in construction completion values were used to produce non-residential estimates.

9. Removals and adjustments in accordance with typical property assessment and taxation practices

a. Removal of CSDs on account of First Nations and other Aboriginal Groups

Census subdivisions containing First Nations reserves, and autonomous or self-governing areas are removed as they are deemed out of scope. Such CSDs are identified based on their CSD type. Footnote 15 For taxation year 2019 estimates there were 14 CSDs that were classified as out of scope and removed from final estimates.

b. Exclusion of exempt residential property

In some provinces, certain properties are identified as exempt from property taxes as presented in the input files received from the assessment bodies. Any value associated with these properties are excluded from estimates for the purposes of fiscal arrangements.

c. Exclusions of schools, churches and hospitals

The most important non-residential properties which are generally exempt from property taxes are schools, churches and hospitals (S/C/H).

Some provinces and territories provide detailed breakdowns of S/C/H in their assessment data. For these provinces and territories, the exact proportion of S/C/H is removed from the final estimates.

For provinces and territories where the S/C/H breakdowns are not available, the proportion of the S/C/H assessment values relative to total assessment values for non-residential properties is estimated by calculating and applying the proportion of S/C/H property values from a similar reporting province or territory. It should be noted that values for engineering and mining properties are excluded from the total assessment value for non-residential properties used in the calculation of the S/C/H proportions.

The list of provinces and territories used in the calculation of estimated S/C/H proportion depends on data availability and can change from one year to the next as microdata is received.

d. Removal of properties subject to provincial-territorial and municipal payments-in-lieu of taxes

Instead of regular property taxes, federal, provincial or municipal government usually remit a payment in lieu of taxes (PILT) for their exempt properties. However, only federal PILT property represents fiscal capacity for the consolidated provincial-territorial-municipal-local sector; provincial, territorial and municipal (PTM) PILT properties are excluded.

When breakdowns of values of PILT properties are not available, as is the case for a number of provinces and territories, these values are estimated. The estimation of PM-PILT values takes into account the S/C/H values, some of which are also PTM-PILT properties, which have already been removed. Only the "remaining" PILT values are estimated and removed.

Although the estimation methodology using aggregate assessment roll data is successful in estimating the remaining proportion to remove, the arrival of assessment roll microdata allows for a more precise estimation of remaining PILT proportions to remove.

e. Adjustments in the Northwest Territories and Nunavut

Unlike in provinces and the Yukon, property assessments in the Northwest Territories and Nunavut do not consistently follow market value standards.

Land values within the municipal taxation areas (Iqaluit in Nunavut; Yellowknife, Fort Simpson, Fort Smith, Hay River, Norman Wells and Inuvik in NWT), reflect full market value, while land values in the remainder of the two territories (i.e. in the General Taxation Areas) are, according to the data provider, based on average regional development costs.

Improvements (i.e. buildings) in both territories are assessed based on depreciated Edmonton construction costs, using Alberta's depreciation schedule. The value so determined for Yellowknife is then multiplied by a factor of 1.35, which is set out in regulations. According to the assessment data provider, this was done to reflect Yellowknife's actual construction costs relative to Edmonton's. Yellowknife's assessed building values therefore approximately reflect market value. Footnote 16

Outside of Yellowknife, in the two territories, a discount factor of 0.666 has been applied to building values initially assessed at depreciated Edmonton construction costs. This factor is also set out in regulations and, according to the assessment data provider, was introduced to encourage development. Upon data entry, this embedded 0.666 scaling factor is removed from the building values in the Northwest Territories outside of Yellowknife and Nunavut.

f. Removal of machinery and equipment values in Alberta, Northwest Territories and Nunavut

Property values for machinery and equipment (M&E) components in the non-residential category are deemed to be out of scope.

The data received from Northwest Territories and Nunavut contain a sizeable share of M&E components in the non-residential total. They are mainly embedded in the following three non-residential classes: mineral, transmission and hydrocarbon. The M&E components are removed by multiplying the reported improvement values by a deflationary factor for each of the previously mentioned three non-residential classes. These factors are provided yearly by the respondents. This treatment ensures that only real property values are included in final estimates, and that the M&E components are excluded.

In Alberta, property values for the M&E components are reported separately by the data providers and are excluded from the final estimates.

g. Removal of personal property values in Manitoba

The assessment roll in Manitoba includes personal property such goods and chattels, which are not considered real property. Such property values are excluded from the estimate.

h. Mixed-use properties

Some properties are used for both residential and non-residential purposes. In cases where no further breakdowns are available, the values of mixed-use properties are redistributed between residential and non-residential property types according to the existing distribution of total residential and non-residential property values by CSD. In cases where further breakdowns are available, mostly in jurisdictions where microdata was received, the values are assigned according to the exact breakdown. The mixed-use properties represent 0.16% of the total valuation of properties in Canada.

One of the most common cases of mixed-use type properties are of a building consisting of ground level commercial with one or more floors of residential units above.

10. Quality control

Statistics Canada's quality assurance framework requires an assessment of data relevance, accuracy, timeliness, accessibility, interpretability and coherence. The quality of the raw input data collected from provincial, territorial and municipal assessment departments and agencies cannot be evaluated in this framework. However, confrontational analysis is performed to compare the source data to existing statistical programs and public information such as annual reports obtained from Provincial websites. Any irregularities identified are carefully reviewed and analyzed before the official release of the data.

Total adjusted residential estimates, for both taxable and exempt properties, are compared to Statistics Canada's Census of Population. The coherence of the values is examined by census coverage analysis, which compares the source data to private dwelling counts and values found in Statistics Canada's Census of Population.

Annex 1. List of CSD types representing First Nations and other Aboriginal Groups Footnote 17

The following are the list of CSD types representing First Nations and other Aboriginal groups presented by province and territory.

Annex 1. List of CSD types representing First Nations and other Aboriginal Groups
Province / Territory CSD Type CSD Type description Legal Code Legal Code description Number of CSDs
NS IRI Indian reserve FL Federally legislated 2
NB IRI Indian reserve FL Federally legislated 1
ON IRI Indian reserve FL Federally legislated 1
MB IRI Indian reserve FL Federally legislated 1
SK IRI Indian reserve FL Federally legislated 3
SK S-É Indian settlement U Not legal municipality - aboriginal geography 1
AB IRI Indian reserve FL Federally legislated 1
BC IGD Indian government district PL Provincially legislated - legal municipality 2
BC IRI Indian reserve FL Federally legislated 5
BC NL Nisga'a land FL Federally legislated 1

CVs for operating revenue - Accounting, tax preparation, bookkeeping and payroll services - 2019

CVs for operating revenue - Accounting, tax preparation, bookkeeping and payroll services - 2019
Table summary
This table displays the results of CVs fo operating revenue - Accounting. The information is grouped by Regions (appearing as row headers), CVs for operating revenue, calculated using percent units of measure (appearing as column headers).
Geography CVs for operating revenue
percent
Canada 0.01
Newfoundland and Labrador 0.00
Prince Edward Island 0.00
Nova Scotia 0.01
New Brunswick 0.01
Quebec 0.02
Ontario 0.01
Manitoba 0.02
Saskatchewan 0.02
Alberta 0.03
British Columbia 0.02
Yukon 0.02
Northwest Territories 0.11
Nunavut 0.00

Protected workloads on public cloud

By: Reginald Maltais, Statistics Canada

This summer saw an increased need for flexible services that could be accessed outside of traditional networks and scale rapidly, all while maintaining the security of information entrusted to the public service. The opportunity for data science to provide timely insights to help decision makers and the public alike has never been so great, but at the same time data scientists need to be able to ensure data and workflows operate in secure environments. The use of cloud computing has obvious benefits to data scientists, and recent developments in Government of Canada (GC) policy and cloud services made available through Shared Services Canada have made it possible to provide even greater benefits through the use of cloud services for protected workloads.

New cloud policy directives

The GC initiated the adoption of public cloud infrastructure as early as 2014. At the time, the policy on the use of cloud was unclear. It was considered a high-risk proposition to put any protected information on the cloud, so only data science projects using unclassified data could be performed.

In response to the lack of clear direction on the use of public cloud, the Cloud Adoption Strategy was developed in 2016. Along with the Direction on the Secure Use of Commercial Cloud Services and the Direction for Electronic Data Residency, both released in 2017, it became clear how to make use of public cloud infrastructure for unclassified workloads in a way that aligned with GC policy. Starting in 2018, the GC adopted a cloud-first policy stance, and began to put the groundwork in place for the adoption of public cloud services for protected workloads. The Cloud Services Framework Agreements from Shared Services Canada and the newly released Directive on Service and Digital provide the final pieces of policy direction for departments to move workloads up to Protected B, Medium Integrity, Medium Availability (PBMM).

At this point, not using cloud infrastructure requires an exception at the GC Enterprise Architecture Review Board. The roadblocks to the use of cloud infrastructure and highly-distributed data processing have been removed at the policy level, and data science teams can work with their IT services to leverage cloud to effectively support their workloads.

Data residency vs. data sovereignty

Description - Map of data paths A map showing two potential paths for data. One that keeps data domestically, and one that crosses an international border.

The residency of data refers to the physical or geographical location of an organization’s digital information while at rest. It is the responsibility of the departmental Chief Information Officer (CIO) to ensure that Protected B data has geographic residency in Canada, thus ensuring the data are subject to the protections afforded by Canadian laws. It does not apply to data while they are in transit.

Data sovereignty relates to other nations wishing to apply their laws to Canadian data, irrespective of where the data are residing geographically. This covers access to the data both while in transit and at rest. The question of sovereignty is one of risk, and for this reason the whitepaper on Data Sovereignty and Public Cloud was produced.

While there is an expectation that the vast majority of protected data would stay in Canada, there are provisions for considering options when this may not be possible. CIOs are responsible for evaluating options against a set of criteria, the minimum of which are:

  • reputation of the department and GC
  • legal aspects and agreements
  • business value provided by the service
  • market availability
  • technical capabilities

The distinction between data at rest and data in transit is important for data science workloads, as some aspects of the cloud providers’ services may run outside your preferred data storage region. Allowing data to be transmitted securely across geographic regions may be the difference between using a pre-built machine learning service and having to build your own. Whether or not using these types of services is beneficial to the project needs to be assessed on a case by case basis with the business owner. Understanding the data flows and risks associated with using different platforms and tools is an important step to get projects deployed into production.

Building on a secure, compliant foundation

Under the traditional IT infrastructure deployment, meeting organizational compliance requirements can take a significant amount of time. This often resulted in delays to the delivery of systems, slowing down the pace of business units. Making matters more difficult for data scientists, compliance requirements vary and evolve over time. It takes a dedicated professional to keep up with them. Developing and maintaining a controlled environment requires an ongoing investment at multiple levels of the IT stack. The adoption of public cloud infrastructure allows the GC to inherit from the provider’s implementation of global security and compliance controls, helping to ensure high standards of privacy and data security.

Public cloud providers also often have integrated security services, allowing aspects of monitoring and security to be automated by the appropriate unit in your organization. This not only reduces the effort required to configure aspects of the security infrastructure, but supports the organization in a timely response to events that reduces overall risk. By adopting multiple independent layers of security the momentum and effectiveness of an attack is decreased, and the effort required to mount a successful attack becomes difficult and costly. Setting up infrastructure in this way also allows data scientists to work closely with IT and security partners while allowing everyone to focus on their specialty, and helps reduce the overall time required to put products into production.

The shared security model

Using public cloud infrastructure introduces the concept of a shared security model, in which the cloud provider is responsible for security of the cloud, and the department is responsible for security in the cloud. This means that the cloud provider will ensure that their facilities and services are secure up to the point when the departments start using and configuring the services provided. Exactly which aspects of the services are the responsibility of which group depends on how the department uses the services.

Description - Data science A cloud behind held up by two hands representing a cloud vendor and departmental IT support teams.

A preliminary set of baseline controls is provided through the GC Cloud Guardrails, which help to ensure that cloud-based environments are protected upon receipt of an enrollment under the GC Cloud Services Framework Agreement. Work is also actively underway to help automate the implementation of the guardrails across multiple cloud providers, helping to ensure consistency and successful implementation in a rapid service delivery window. With the baseline set of controls in place and the deployment of new infrastructure configured automatically, data scientists can work with their IT partners to leverage common configurations which help deploy their workloads quicker while assuring the client their data are secure.

Similar to how the responsible use of cloud infrastructure requires a shift in how application architecture is implemented, a shift in security control implementation is required as well. The basic set of requirements are the same, but cloud providers can show who made what change from where. This allows data scientists to focus on deploying high-performing models, while security personnel can detect misconfigurations and noncompliance, and respond quickly to prevent risks from materializing.

Cloud security vision for the Canadian public sector

The Canadian Centre for Cyber Security (CCCS) provides a means to watch all cloud operations across multiple vendors, helping to catch distributed attacks. They act as a support mechanism to the Security Operations Centre, helping to catch events before they escalate to large-scale issues. Through the use of vendor evaluations, security documentation and the use of cloud-based sensors, the CCCS provides another security mechanism, and helps security practitioners and data scientists show their departments that they are managing the risks associated with the use of public cloud infrastructure.

A whole of government approach

The CCCS can act as an enabler of cyber security not only for the GC, but for all Canadian organizations. Similarly, the GC Cloud Guardrails are a set of best practices for anyone deploying workloads in public cloud infrastructure. These work hand in hand with the work by Shared Services Canada as part of the GC Cloud Brokering Service to get public cloud vendors certified for PBMM workloads. The set of policies, practices and protections outlined represent the solid foundations on which departments, or any Canadian organization interested in protecting the privacy of Canadians, can build secure and reliable services. Taken together, they allow the deployment of data science workloads focusing on providing services using protected data within a manageable risk level.

With the recent advances in cloud policy, this is an exciting time to be doing data science work in the GC. The opportunities to derive new insights and provide benefits to Canadians are at an all-time high right now. You can start to get your workloads into public cloud by reaching out to your IT partners and finding out how you can best leverage your Cloud Services Framework Agreement. If your department is not ready to leverage cloud services, reach out to the Data Analytics as a Service (DAaaS) team at Statistics Canada to see if the DAaaS platform is right for you.

Date modified:

Using data science and cloud-based tools to assess the economic impact of COVID-19

By: Razieh Pourhasan, Statistics Canada

As COVID-19 continues to impact the economy at a rapid pace, it is more important than ever for Canadians and businesses to have reliable information to understand these changes. A team of data scientists and analysts at Statistics Canada are working hard to meet this information need by automating the extraction and near real-time analysis of text data from a variety of sources. These sources include Government of Canada (GoC) NewsDesk, corporate websites, and potentially corporate Twitter and LinkedIn accounts. However, the inclusion of social media is subject to obtaining required permissions. The project focuses on the economic impacts of significant social or political events, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, on the lives of Canadians.

The rapid spread of the virus and the impact of the pandemic created the need for timely, high-quality data at an unprecedented pace to inform Canadians and support decision-making. The COVID-19 events completely changed the way work is conducted and have set different expectations in a new digital reality. Timeliness is more important than ever and Statistics Canada is using data science tools to respond quickly to the changing situation and better understand the impacts on our country and economy.

To produce different types of analytical products for decision makers and Canadians, analysts are interested in different types of information. For instance, those who are carrying out COVID-19 analyses look to detect relevant news such as:

  • which companies are most involved in or affected by the pandemic?
  • did these companies have a branch closure?
  • are these companies involved in the production of personal protective equipment?
  • how many job losses have been reported?

The project has two phases based on the extraction source and the available permission for web scraping. In phase one, the extraction is limited to the GoC NewsDesk and a handful of companies’ news websites. In phase two, the extraction will potentially include more Canadian companies, as well as Twitter and LinkedIn data—conditional on obtaining the approvals to access and use these data sources.

Meeting the needs of analysts

To better meet the varying needs of analysts in their effort to provide timely information to Canadians, the data science team optimizes the extraction procedure and real-time analyses to include as much information as possible from different sources. The team establishes their workflow using a robust infrastructure that is accessible through the designated Statistics Canada platform on the Microsoft Azure Cloud. Next, Kubeflow is used to create python-based Jupyter notebooks, Elasticsearch (ES) is used for data ingestion and integration and Kibana dashboards are used to build dashboards and visualizations to present the results to the analysts.

Description - Azure cloud

Chart showing icons for Azure cloud, Kubeflow, Elasticsearch and Kibana.

  • The Kubeflow steps are: web scraping, Selenium and Python; text processing, Pandas, Re et NLTK; machine learning, topic modelling and feature selection.
  • The Elasticsearch steps are: data ingestion; keyword search, Elasticsearch engine; data analysis.
  • The Kibana steps are: dashboard; custom visualization, Vega.

The next step is to develop a Kubeflow pipeline to automatically extract text data by scraping companies’ news website using Selenium and Python modules, pre-process and clean the data with Pandas, Regular Expression and Natural Language Toolkit, and finally, ingest the extracted data into ES for further analysis. The data scientists then perform the exploratory data analysis, which can be as simple as word count or keyword search using an ES search engine, or as sophisticated as a machine learning algorithm such as topic modelling for document clustering applied through integrated python code.

The results of analyses are then visualized on Kibana dashboard using bar or pie charts, word clouds, scatter plots or customized combinatory graphs using Vega interface on Kibana. These dashboards are the final products which are delivered to analysts, either by providing them with a URL link that they can access through their cloud account or by setting an email notification so that they receive the desired products in their inbox.

Looking ahead

Currently the project is focused on corporate data, however, it could be scaled up to include other web-based information sources. It could also be adapted to include different units of analysis such as products, employment, financial data, health and social behaviours, sentiments, etc.

An analyst usually allocates 5 to 30 hours per month to search the web, find useful information, extract and compile it. This project can potentially reduce this time by a factor of three or even more, making it a very efficient option for analysts.

With the automated data extraction, the application of machine learning algorithms and the cloud-delivery model, it is easier to perform real-time analyses in a broader sense and to provide results to decision-makers in a timely manner. Both businesses and individual Canadians benefit from this timely information as our society seeks to better understand the impact of COVID-19 on our economy and our society.

Team members

Data scientists: Chatana Mandava, Razieh Pourhasan, Christian Ritter

Analysts: Tracey Capuano, Lisa Fleury, David Glanville, Francois Lavoie, Joanne Moreau, Anthony Peluso

Date modified:

Guidelines – Financial Information of Community Colleges and Vocational Schools (FINCOL)
For the fiscal year ending in 2020

I. Introduction

The main objective of this survey is to obtain detailed revenue and expenditure data on each college and vocational school in Canada. Coupled with what is already available for the university sector, this gathering of data will provide a complete picture of the financial statistics of postsecondary education as well as vocational training in Canada.

The following notes provide the principles, definitions and guidelines necessary for the completion of the data form. Since it is desirable to obtain figures as comparable as possible from one institution to another, each respondent is requested to:

  • provide accompanying notes of explanation in the observations and comments section of the submission for figures that do not follow the guidelines;
  • provide comments on items which are excluded from the data, such as cases where provinces are making contributions to repay debt on behalf of an institution or material gifts received as donated service along with their estimated market value;
  • estimates should be made whenever possible if income and expenditure figures are not readily available in the required format from the financial records of the institution. When estimates are made they should be indicated with an asterisk (*).

II. Submission

The final deadline for the submission is indicated in the covering letter. The completed questionnaire(s) should be returned in the self-addressed envelope provided.

A copy of the institution's Audited Financial Statements is also requested with your submission. If a copy is not available, please advise Statistics Canada as to the date on which they will be forwarded.

III. Coverage

With the exception of private institutions that only offer courses at the trade and vocational level, the survey covers all private and public non-degree granting institutions that offer educational programs at the postsecondary level and/or at the trade and vocational level. For statistical purposes, institutions are classified as follows:

  1. Colleges/Institutes/Polytechnics

    Included in this classification are the colleges of applied arts and technology (CAAT's) in Ontario, general and vocational colleges (CEGEP's) in Quebec, institutes of technology and any other institutions providing education in fields such as paramedical technologies, nursing, agriculture, forestry, nautical sciences, etc.. These institutions offer programs at the postsecondary level, and may offer trade-vocational level programs.

  2. Vocational Schools

    This classification includes Community Colleges in Saskatchewan and Vocational Centres in Alberta, government training schools, vocational training centres and any other institution offering programs at the trade-vocational level only.

  3. Training in hospitals

    Included in this classification are educational centres located in hospitals, which offer educational or training programs, independently of the community college system, in nursing, radiotherapy, radiography, medical technology, etc..

    To ensure full coverage, it is important that each reporting officer indicates on section 2 of the questionnaire the affiliated campuses included in and/or excluded from the submission.

IV. Confidentiality

Statistics Canada is prohibited by law from releasing any information it collects which could identify any person, business or organization, unless consent has been given by the respondent or as permitted by the Statistics Act.

V. Authorization to Release

In order for Statistics Canada to release the information provided an 'Authorization to release' form must be signed. The form provided authorizes Statistics Canada to release the information in aggregation to the provincial/territorial level only.

VI. Principles of Reporting

1. Accrual Concept

For the purpose of this survey, the revenue and expenditure data should be reported on an accrual basis. That is, all revenues and expenditures should be reflected in the period in which they are considered to have been earned and incurred respectively. For example, major adjustments, such as retroactive salary and their related benefit costs, should be reported on that basis.

2. Total Income and Expenditures

All income and expenditures of the institution are to be reported. In this regard particular attention should be paid to the following:

  • when an institution is provincially governed or consists of a branch of a department, all costs related to the operation, maintenance and administration of the institution are to be reported; the actual funds used to finance those expenditures should be shown as a provincial source of funds;
  • consultations may be required with the institution's research department to obtain detailed breakdowns of income sources and expenses related to sponsored research;
  • capital expenditures, as well as related revenues, that are financed by a government Department or Ministry other than the one responsible for the institution must be included in this report; the reporting officer is responsible for obtaining and providing this information;
  • the figures reported should not include income or expenditures for the purpose of creating or eliminating an appropriation; however, any actual income or expenditure transaction recorded directly in reserve accounts should be included in the figures reported; this also applies to other assets and liability accounts; provisions for replacement of assets are considered to be transfers to reserve or appropriation accounts and should not be reported as expenses;
  • receipts and expenses relating to special purpose, trust and other funds of the institution should, as well, be included in the report.

3. Ancillary Enterprises

An ancillary enterprise is an entity that exists to furnish goods and services to students, staff or others, and that charges a fee directly related to, although not necessarily equal to, the cost of the goods or services. To reflect properly the full cost of these enterprises, you should report their total gross revenues and total gross expenditures in the appropriate cells in the Schedule 1 and Schedule 2A. In addition, a breakdown by type of ancillary enterprises (bookstores, food services, residences, parking) must be completed on the Supporting Schedule A.

4. Reporting of Income

When reporting the sources of funds in the operating, sponsored research and capital income in Schedule 1, it is important to show the revenues under the headings that correspond to the immediate source of funds for the institution. For example, if an institution offers training courses for which Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) purchases seats, then the amount of money paid by ESDC should be shown under "Federal" only if the money is received directly by the institution. If the money is received by a third party (provincial government) and then transferred to the institution, then the direct source of funds is the "Provincial Government".

VII. Definitions

1. Program Cost Groups

This section defines the program cost groups to be used in the reporting of direct instruction expenditures on Schedule 2B of the questionnaire.

The criteria used to define the various program cost groups originates from those used in other surveys conducted by Statistics Canada and also from analysis of different educational systems across Canada. Note that these statistical definitions may not correspond identically to other existing definitions used by other organizations or governments.

a) Postsecondary Programs

This program cost group includes all direct expenditures incurred in providing instruction to students enrolled FULL-TIME or PART-TIME in postsecondary programs offered by Colleges/Institutes (see section III). These programs are of two kinds: university transfer programs and semi-professional career programs.

i) University transfer programs

University transfer programs require secondary school completion to enter and provide a student with standing equivalent to the first or second year of a university degree program with which one can apply for admission to subsequent senior years at a degree granting institution.

ii) Career programs

These programs usually require high school graduation for admission and have a duration of at least one year. More commonly these programs last two, three or four years. Career programs lead to a certificate or a diploma in technology, business, applied arts, nursing, agriculture, etc., and they prepare a student to enter a career directly upon completion of the program, at a level between that of the university trained professional and the skilled tradesperson.

b) Trade and Vocational Programs

This program cost group includes all direct expenditures incurred in providing instruction (or training) to students (or trainees) enrolled FULL-TIME in vocational programs at the trade level for credit towards a recognized standing of proficiency or certification. Also included are direct expenditures related to students enrolled in academic upgrading programs for entry into a vocational program. Such students normally attend regular day classes in provincial trade schools, trade or industrial divisions of community colleges, adult vocational centres and other similar schools. These programs or courses prepare the student (trainee) for an occupational role below the professional or semi-professional level. A period of less than one year is normally sufficient to complete courses at this level. For less complex occupations, a program may last only a matter of weeks. Completion of grade 9 or 10 is usually required for entrance to these courses.

Included are, for example, pre-employment programs, language, skill or academic upgrading programs, refresher courses, apprenticeship programs, training on the job or training in-industry programs associated with educational institution, nursing assistant, etc..

c) Continuing Education Programs

This program cost group includes all direct expenditures incurred in providing instruction to students enrolled PART-TIME in courses, mostly in the evening, offered under the auspices of subsidiary divisions of schools designated by various names such as Division of Continuing Education, Adult Education Division and so on. Excluded are activities which have no sustained instruction or educational purpose such as recreational activities, presentations in the performing arts, art exhibitions and displays, debates fairs, conferences or conventions of clubs or associations.

Included are, for example, courses such as pre-employment programs, language, skill or academic upgrading programs, refresher, professional development, general interest, etc., which are offered on a PART-TIME basis.

2. Funds

a) Operating

This fund accounts for the cost of credit and non-credit instruction, non-sponsored research, academic support services, administration, plant maintenance and other operating expenses of the institution financed by fees, grants and other operating income. This fund will normally include all revenues and expenses regarding materials, supplies or services that are consumed within the year and which the institution considers to be operating, within the functional operating areas referred to in section 3 below.

b) Sponsored Research

Sponsored Research is a restricted fund that accounts for income and expenditures for all sponsored research as well as Research and Development (R&D). For an activity to qualify as R&D, there must be an appreciable element of novelty. Income is to be reported following the funds flow approach.

Sponsored Research covers the following activities:

Basic Research is any experimental or theoretical work undertaken primarily to acquire new knowledge of the underlying foundation of phenomena and observed facts, without any particular application or use in view;

Applied Research is the original investigation undertaken to acquire new knowledge, and directed primarily towards a specific practical objective;

Experimental Development is systematic work drawing on existing knowledge gained from research and/or practical experience that is directed to producing new materials, products or devices, installing new processes, systems and services, or improving those already installed.

The following activities should not be counted as R&D:

  • all education and training of personnel; however, research by graduates and postgraduate students should be counted;
  • scientific and technical information services such as collecting, coding, recording, classifying, analyzing, disseminating, translating, and evaluating, except where conducted solely or primarily for R&D support;
  • routine testing of materials, components, products, processes, soils, etc.;
  • maintenance of national standards;
  • administrative and legal work connected with patents and licenses;
  • investigations of proposed engineering projects using existing techniques; however feasibility studies on research projects are part of R&D;
  • policy-related studies at the national, regional and local levels, as well as those of business enterprises in pursuit of economic activity;
  • routine software development, computer maintenance, quality assurance, routine data collection, and market research;
  • the many steps other than R&D necessary for the development and marketing of a manufactured product;
  • the raising, management, and distribution of R&D funds; and
  • routine investigation and normal application of specialized medical knowledge.

Sponsored Research accounts for the institution's income paid in the form of a contract (legally enforceable arrangements under which the institution, or an individual within the institution, agrees to undertake a research project, using the institution's facilities and/or personnel, for a sponsor that provide funds to meet all or part of the costs of the project) or a grant (unconditional payment for which service is not necessarily expected) from a source external to the institution.

Income sources include government, private industry and donors. Income may also include investment income, if the corresponding expenditures are reported in Sponsored Research.

Expenditures include activity funded from Sponsored Research income and exclude activity funded from the General Operating fund. It also includes the purchase of capital assets, if the corresponding income is reported as Sponsored Research.

c) Capital

The uniform reporting practice in the annual return for capital expenditures is to follow the funds flow approach, rather than to capitalize and amortize. Funds received to acquire capital assets are reported as income in the period in which the funds are received or receivable. Funds used to acquire capital assets are reported as expenditures in the year they take place.

For reporting purposes, capital expenditures are to be reported in the same fund as the corresponding income. Specifically, capital expenditures are only reported in the Capital fund when the corresponding income is reported in the Capital fund.

It is a restricted fund that accounts for resources provided to the institution for capital purposes and not reported in any other fund. Fund income includes grants and related investment income, donations and other resources made available to the institution by external funding sources, such as government and donors, specifically for capital purposes. Fund expenditures include building programs, acquisitions of major equipment and furniture, major renovations and alterations, space rental and buildings, land and land improvements.

Capital expenditures, as well as related revenues, being financed by a Government Department or Ministry other than the one responsible for the institution must be included in this report. The reporting officer should be responsible for obtaining and providing this information.

3. Functions (Schedule 2A)

a) Instruction and non-sponsored research

This includes all direct costs related to credit and non-credit courses, summer courses, extension programs and all other academic functions related to instruction and non-sponsored research such as offices of academic department heads, audio-visual services, laboratories, etc..

b) Library

This includes all the operating costs of the main library as well as the campus libraries, if there are any. All costs of library acquisitions from the Operating fund should be shown under this function.

c) General Administration

This includes costs for activities whose primary function is to provide administrative support for the operation of the institution. It includes the activities of the president's office, vice president, registrar, finance, personnel, public relations, secretariats, etc.. It also includes expenditures on convocations, ceremonies, legal and audit fees, long distance phone calls, the internal portion of debt repayments and costs for computing facilities.

d) Physical Plant

This includes the costs related to physical facilities, such as physical plant offices, maintenance of buildings and grounds, fire insurance, telephone service, security, repairs and furnishing, renovations and alterations, mail delivery service.

e) Student Services

This includes costs for activities whose primary purpose is to assist students in their educational or employment pursuits and which are outside of, but supplemental to, the instruction of academic programs. It includes the costs of: counselling, placement, health services, athletics (not physical education), student accommodation services (not residences), student transportation services, bursaries, scholarships and prizes, student financial aid office, cultural activities, etc..

4. Types of Income

a) Government Grants and Contracts

Lines 1 to 10 include grants from, and contracts with, federal government departments and agencies, provincial/territorial government departments and agencies, and municipal governments.

Government grants provide financial support to institutions and the grants may or may not be restricted.

Government contracts provide financial support to institutions under certain stipulations and conditions, including the provision of a deliverable product, such as a piece of equipment, a service or a report. A contract normally includes provisions for institutions to recover certain indirect or overhead costs, with the contract specifying or documenting the basis for the calculation of the recoverable costs.

Federal

Lines 1 to 6 include all research grants, research contracts, grants and contributions from the Government of Canada and its departments and agencies. Income received from the five major federal government agencies is reported on lines 1 to 5 as applicable.

The line items under "Federal" are as follows:

  • Line 1: Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC)
  • Line 2: Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI)
    CFI income is reported under the Sponsored Research fund.
  • Line 3: Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)
  • Line 4: Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC)
  • Line 5: Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council
  • Line 6: Other federal
    Income from all other federal government departments and agencies is reported on this line.
Provincial/Territorial

Lines 7 to 9 include income from provincial government departments and agencies. For example, Provincial/Territorial CFI matching grants, Provincial/Territorial CFI matching income (line 8) from the Ministry responsible for the institution is reported under the Sponsored Research fund.

In the case of a provincially/territorially administered institution, direct provincial funding is to be included here.

Municipal

Examples of income to be reported on this line include grants from urban transit, communication and parking authorities.

b) Fees

This includes all mandatory student fees for credit and non-credit courses (with the exception of residence fees, parking fees and other similar fees which should be reported under 'ancillary enterprises - gross') paid by, or on behalf of all FULL-TIME and PART-TIME students.

All other fees charged to students such as laboratory fees, transcript, late registration, application, athletic fees, etc., are to be reported under the heading 'other'.

Normally, whenever revenues from fees are reported in Schedule 1 under specific program(s), related expenditures should be reported for the corresponding program(s) in Schedule 2B.

Note: Fees that are "flow through" (such as student activity fees collected for the students' council, etc.) should not be reported as college revenue.

c) Bequests, Donations, Non-Government Grants

This includes receipts from business, industry, foundations, individuals and religious organizations, as well as the value of services donated by various organizations.

d) Investment Income

This includes income from all investments such as dividends, bonds, mortgages, short-term notes and bank interest. Realized gains (or losses) should also be included if they are treated as income in the operating and/or capital funds.

e) Ancillary Enterprises (gross)

This includes total revenues from all ancillary enterprises such as residence or parking fees, and sales of services and products from bookstores, food services (dining hall, cafeterias and vending machines), publishing, laundry services, etc..

It should also be noted that the reporting officer is asked to report, on Supporting Schedule A, a breakdown of total income for the institution's ancillary enterprises.

f) Borrowings

This includes only those borrowings which are used to finance expenditures when repayment is to be made by the institution. Note that borrowings should be reported on an accrual basis.

g) Miscellaneous

This includes net income from rentals (other than ancillary enterprises), library fines and fines for other similar charges, and any income not reported elsewhere.

h) Interfund Transfers

When income from one fund is used to finance expenditures in another fund, report the amount as an interfund transfer. Total interfund transfers must net to zero.

5. Types of Expenditures

a) Salaries and Wages

Salaries and wages (excluding fringe benefits) as well as payments for leave of absence, shown under the appropriate functions and programs, are to be broken down into the following two categories:

i) Teachers

Included in this category are salaries and wages paid to full-time and part-time teaching staff.

ii) Other

This category includes all salaries not reported in part (i) above. Specifically, it includes salaries and wages paid to tutors, monitors, demonstrators, markers, laboratory technicians, maintenance personnel, office and technical staff, research and teaching assistants, etc..

b) Fringe Benefits

This includes the institution's contribution (in respect of all salaries and wages) to pensions, group life insurance, workmen's compensation, unemployment insurance, Canada pension, salary contribution insurance, long term disability insurance and other similar benefits. Also include staff development costs paid for by the institution.

c) Library Acquisitions

This includes all purchases of books, periodicals, audio/visual material and other reference material for the library. Costs of binding may also be included if normally considered part of the acquisition costs.

d) Operational Supplies and Expenses

This includes all expenditures for supplies which are normally consumed in the fiscal year, including postage, teaching supplies, photocopying, publications, long distance telephone charges, repair materials, all supplies to operate laboratories, etc..

e) Utilities

This includes all expenditures for fuel, electricity, water, gas, telephone equipment rental, etc..

f) Furniture and Equipment

This includes all expenses for furniture and equipment, such as laboratory equipment (other than consumables), administrative equipment and furnishings, copying and duplicating equipment, computing equipment maintenance equipment, etc.. Rental and maintenance costs as well as other related operating expenses should be shown under the appropriate operational function. Costs for replacing or acquiring new furniture and equipment should be reported under the capital fund.

g) Scholarships and Other Related Students Support

This includes all payments to students including scholarships, bursaries, prizes, fee remissions, gifts, etc..

h) Fees and Contracted Services

This includes all expenses for services contracted to external agencies (except for renovations, alterations and major repairs). Examples would be cleaning contracts, security services, snow removal, etc.. Also included are fees paid to legal counsellors (including retainers for negotiations of collective contracts), auditors' fees, consultant's fees, etc..

i) Debt Services

This includes all payments made to service debts of the institution such as bank interest, mortgage or debenture interest payments, and related charges. Principal payments on loans, mortgages, debentures or repayable grants should be excluded.

j) Buildings

This includes all capital expenditures which are normally considered part of construction costs, except for furniture and equipment as well as land and site services which are to be reported under their respective item. Costs for space rental, building insurances, taxes, minor renovations and alterations on buildings, and all other related operating expenses should be shown under the Physical Plant operational function. Depreciation is not to be included as an expenditure.

k) Land and Site Services

This includes capital expenditures on acquisitions of and improvements to land such as landscaping, sewers, tunnels, roads, etc.. Capitalized professional fees and planning costs related to this category are also to be included. Rental, maintenance and insurance costs as well as other related operating expenses for this item should be shown under the Physical Plant operational function.

l) Miscellaneous

This is to be used when the institution has an operating or capital expenditure not classified in the other categories.

m) Transfers To/From

This item is used for internal transfers of costs between funds or functions whenever it is not feasible to directly adjust the appropriate expenditure items.

The total internal transfers of costs should net to zero.

n) Ancillary Enterprises (gross)

Includes all gross expenditures incurred in the operating of ancillary enterprises (see section 4 (e) above).

It should be noted that the reporting officer is asked to report, on the Supporting Schedule A, a breakdown of total expenditures for the institution's ancillary enterprises.

VIII. Supporting Schedule A

Additional information is to be provided in this section for the total revenue and expenditures of institutional ancillary enterprises (bookstores, residences, food services and parking).

IX. Suggestions

Statistics Canada would welcome any suggestions made to improve this survey.

Questionnaire – Financial Information of Community Colleges and Vocational Schools
For the fiscal year ending in 2020

Canadian Centre for Education Statistics

This information is collected under the authority of the Statistics Act, Revised Statutes of Canada, 1985, Chapter S19.

Confidential when completed
(Le français est disponible)

Voluntary survey

Although your participation in this survey is voluntary, your cooperation is important so that the information collected will be as accurate and complete as possible.

Survey purpose

Results from this survey allow users a better understanding of the financial position (income and expenditures) of all community colleges and public vocational schools in Canada. Your information may also be used by Statistics Canada for other statistical and research purposes.

Confidentiality

Statistics Canada is prohibited by law from releasing any information it collects which could identify any person, business, or organization, unless consent has been given by the respondent or as permitted by the Statistics Act. Statistics Canada will use the information from this survey for statistical purposes.

Financial Year Ending: Day, Month, Year (2020)

Identification of the institution

  • Name of institution
  • Address (number and street)
  • City
  • Province
  • Postal code
  • Check the appropriate boxes
    • Type
      • Public
      • Private
    • Governing authority
      • Province or territory
      • Board

Identification of the reporting officer

  • Name and title of reporting officer
  • Address (number and street)
  • City
  • Province
  • Postal code
  • Email address
  • Telephone number
  • Fax number
  • Signature of the reporting officer
  • Day, Month, Year

Does your institution offer courses at the elementary-secondary level, other than those academic upgrading courses such as Adult Basic Education which should be reported in this questionnaire?

  • Yes
  • No

If yes, please exclude revenues and expenditures relating to that level of education.

Instructions

  1. Please read the guidelines carefully.
  2. All amounts should be expressed in thousands of dollars ($'000).
  3. Indicate estimated amounts with an asterisk (*).

Affiliated institutions or campuses included in this report

Affiliated institutions or campuses partially included in this report

Affiliated institutions or campuses excluded from this report

Schedule 1 – Operating, Sponsored Research and Capital Income
Table summary
This is an empty data table used by respondents to provide data to Statistics Canada. This table contains no data.
Types Funds
Operating
($'000)
Sponsored Research
($'000)
Capital
($'000)
Total
($'000)
Government Grants and Contracts        
FederalSchedule 1 footnote *        
1. Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC)
       
2. Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI)
       
3. Canadian Institutes of Health Research
       
4. Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada
       
5. Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council
       
6. Other federal
       
Provincial        
7. Regular Grants
       
8. CFI Matching Fund
       
9. Other
       
10. Municipal
       
Fees        
11. Postsecondary Programs
       
12. Trade Vocational Programs
       
13. Continuing Education Programs
       
14. Other
       
Bequests, Donations, Non-Government Grants        
15. Business Enterprises and Individuals
       
16. Non-profit Organizations and Foundations
       
17. Sub-total
       
18. Investment Income        
19. Ancillary Enterprises (Gross)Schedule 1 footnote **        
20. Borrowings        
21. Miscellaneous        
22. Interfund TransfersSchedule 1 footnote ***        
23. Total Income        
Schedule 1 footnote *

As highlighted in Section VI.4 in the Guidelines, amounts reported here should relate only to payments received directly by the institution.

Return to Schedule 1 footnote * referrer

Schedule 1 footnote **

Total should correspond with figures reported in the supporting schedule A.

Return to Schedule 1 footnote ** referrer

Schedule 1 footnote ***

Total interfund transfers must equal to zero.

Return to Schedule 1 footnote *** referrer

Schedule 2A – Operating, Sponsored Research and Capital Expenditures by Function and by Type
Table Summary
This is an empty data table used by respondents to provide data to Statistics Canada. This table contains no data.
Types of Expenditures Functions
Operating Sponsored Research
($'000)
Capital
($'000)
Total
($'000)
Instruction and non-sponsored researchSchedule 2A footnote * ($'000) Library
($'000)
General Administration
($'000)
Physical Plant
($'000)
Student Services
($'000)
Total Operating
($'000)
Salaries and Wages                  
1. Teachers
                 
2. Other
                 
3. Fringe Benefits                  
4. Library Acquisitions                  
5. Operational Supplies and Expenses                  
6. Utilities                  
7. Furniture and Equipment                  
8. Scholarships and Other Related Students Support                  
9. Fees and Contracted Services                  
10. Debt Services                  
11. Buildings                  
12. Land and Site Services                  
13. Miscellaneous                  
14. Transfers to/from                  
15. Ancillary Enterprises (Gross)Schedule 2 footnote **                  
16. Total Expenditures                  
Schedule 2A footnote *

The figures in this column should be identical to the appropriate ones in column 5 (column total), schedule 2B.

Return to Schedule 2A footnote * referrer

Schedule 2A footnote **

Total should correspond with figures reported in the supporting schedule A.

Return to Schedule 2A footnote ** referrer

Schedule 2B – Direct Instruction Expenditures by Program Cost Groups
Table Summary
This is an empty data table used by respondents to provide data to Statistics Canada. This table contains no data.
Types of Expenditures Programs
Postsecondary Programs Trade and Vocational Programs
($'000)
Continuing Education Programs
($'000)
TotalSchedule 2B footnote * ($'000)
University Transfer
($'000)
Career
($'000)
Salaries and Wages          
1. Teachers
         
2. Other
         
3. Fringe Benefits          
4. Operational Supplies and Expenses          
5. Furniture and Equipment          
6. Fees and Contracted Services          
7. Miscellaneous          
8. Transfers to/from          
9. Total Instruction Expenditures          
Schedule 2B footnote *

The figures in this column should be identical to the appropriate ones in column 1 (column instruction and non-sponsored research), schedule 2A.

Return to Schedule 2B footnote * referrer

Supporting Schedule A – Ancillary Enterprises
Table Summary
This is an empty data table used by respondents to provide data to Statistics Canada. This table contains no data.
  Total Income Total Expenditures
Operating
($'000)
Capital
($'000)
Operating
($'000)
Capital
($'000)
Bookstores        
Food Services        
Residences        
Parking        
Other        
TotalSchedule A footnote *        
Schedule A footnote *

Total should correspond with figures reported in schedules 1 and 2A.

Return to Schedule A footnote * referrer

Observations and Comments
Table Summary
This is an empty data table used by respondents to give their observations and comments. This table contains no data.
Description
(Fund, Function, Type of Income, Expenditure)
Comments
   
   
   
   
   
   

Retail Trade Survey (Monthly): CVs for Total sales by geography - September 2020

CVs for Total sales by geography - September 2020
Table summary
This table displays the results of Annual Retail Trade Survey: CVs for Total sales by geography - September 2020. The information is grouped by Geography (appearing as row headers), Month and Percent (appearing as column headers).
Geography Month
202009
%
Canada 0.6
Newfoundland and Labrador 1.1
Prince Edward Island 1.0
Nova Scotia 1.5
New Brunswick 2.2
Quebec 1.4
Ontario 1.1
Manitoba 1.6
Saskatchewan 2.5
Alberta 0.9
British Columbia 1.3
Yukon Territory 1.3
Northwest Territories 0.4
Nunavut 1.1