Home Programs Emergency management Recovery DFAA Manual to assist in the interpretation of federal guidelines EPC 22/88 General Adminstrative Procedures

General Adminstrative Procedures

1. When a disaster occurs, it is usually apparent, within a few days, as to whether it will qualify for federal assistance. If the disaster appears to be sufficiently severe, and if the province affected wants federal financial assistance, then a request must be made by the province. This usually takes the form of a letter or Telex from the provincial Minister responsible for emergency measures to the federal Minister Responsible for Emergency Preparedness. Provinces should be encouraged to submit requests for assistance as soon as possible after the event. If, as has happened, the threshold is subsequently not met, no harm is done. Early federal involvement permits damage assessment before restoration begins and a mutually beneficial joint determination, from the beginning, of provincial expenditures acceptable for federal assistance.
2. The Regional Director of OCIPEP is the federal official who initially provides liaison with provincial officials in responding to the immediate effects of a disaster. Subsequently, the Regional Director co-ordinates federal participation in damage assessment and in the review of provincial requests for assistance. These activities are usually carried out through a co-ordinating procedure which the Regional Director administers in conjunction with provincial emergency preparedness officials. Federal departments may be requested to provide advice and assistance to the Regional Director in determining reasonable costs for recovery and restoration.
3. Assessment and appraisal teams will be established jointly by the federal and provincial governments to review and assess public sector damage. The practice has been for federal and provincial officials to inspect the damaged areas, appraising the cost to restore public works, lands, buildings, dykes, rivers and streams to pre-disaster condition. For private sector requests, insurance appraisers are brought in, when needed, to appraise damage. These public and private sector appraisals form the basis of overall estimates of damage. In the public sector, these estimates are of particular importance since actual costs in repairing damage to public works must be reconciled with these initial damage estimates.
4. In the public sector, accounting procedures must be such that work required to restore publicly owned facilities can be separated from ongoing maintenance and other routine work. Accounts should be maintained for each project showing the costs that are additional to those normally incurred.
5. Together, these private and public sector appraisal reports form the basis for deciding whether damage is sufficient to warrant a request for federal financial assistance. These reports should be prepared as soon as possible after the event.
6. Experience has demonstrated that initial immediate post-disaster cost estimates are generally exaggerated. Appraisals and detailed estimates prepared by federal and provincial experts indicate whether DFA might be applicable but actual expenditures form the basis of federal financial assistance provided. At the request of the province, an advance payment of a portion of the federal contribution may be made as soon as the estimates and expenditures sufficient to justify an advance payment have been compiled. Overpayments will be avoided by conducting an interim audit or at least an interim review prior to the federal payment of an advance. Additional advance payments can always be requested should the situation warrant.
7. OCIPEP's Regional Director should be in close liaison with the provincial disaster assistance administrators to advise on eligible costs under the arrangements, to make specific interpretations of the guidelines and to acquire knowledge that will help the federal auditors when the final audit of provincial assistance is undertaken.
8. Audits will be conducted by the Audit Services Bureau of Supply and Services Canada.
9. Provincial population is the Statistics Canada population estimate for June of the calendar year in which the disaster occurs.
10. Provinces and/or municipalities should endeavour to identify and make available records that will assist in determining the pre-disaster condition of the disaster site. It is recognized that in the case of rivers and streams, pre-disaster conditions can be difficult to determine and requests for financial assistance, in these instances, should be assessed case by case.
11. To assist in applying the guidelines to determine eligible costs for public works, provinces should be encouraged to maintain the following records:

    1) Provincial Works
    For work started in the immediate post-disaster period when there is no time to obtain estimates, the records should provide:

    • a description of the damage and work required to restore the facility to pre-disaster condition
    • an assessment by the appropriate federal official of the reasonableness of the costs for material, labour and equipment
    • the actual cost records by project/location indicating labour, material and equipment charge
    • a determination of appropriate rates for labour, material and equipment.

    For work commenced later for which estimates were prepared by provincial or contract specialists, the records should include:

    • a description of the damage and work to be done to restore to pre-disaster condition
    • a provincial estimate of the cost, including labour, material and equipment
    • a determination of appropriate rates for labour, material and equipment
    • an assessment by the appropriate federal official of the reasonableness of the cost estimate
    • actual cost data on completion of the work.

    2) Municipal Works
    Records should include:

    • a damage estimate prepared by the local engineer or other appropriate official, by specific location and project or sub project
    • a provincial verification of the estimate of cost to repair the damage to pre-disaster condition ensuring that costs for maintenance and improvements are not incorporated
    • a determination of appropriate rates for labour, material and equipment provincial records of payments
    • confirmation by the province that the work has been completed
    • when considered necessary by OCIPEP's Regional Director, an assessment of the reasonableness of the cost estimate.
12. Provincial officials should inform the appropriate federal officials before beginning and after completion of each project or major sub-project.