Home Programs Emergency management Emergency preparedness JEPP JEPP manual The JEPP process

The JEPP process

The annual Federal/Provincial/Territorial Conference of Senior Officials Responsible for Emergency Preparedness will review the national priorities and make recommendations to the Senior Assistant Deputy Minister responsible for Emergency Management and National Security (SADM). The SADM will take into account these recommendations as well as those from the PSEPC JEPP Committee and include the approved national priorities in the Annual Update Instructions (AUIs). The AUIs also serve to amend this manual as required with any changes normally taking effect one year after the publication date.

Provinces/Territories should establish a Provincial/Territorial JEPP Committee, which may include the PSEPC Regional Director or designate as an adviser or ex officio member. Expertise from other agencies may also be sought by the province/territory to evaluate proposals from within its jurisdiction according to the criteria and guidelines set out in Chapter 3. The Provincial/Territorial JEPP Committee will score all of its proposals and establish a rank ordered list of proposals based on these scores. A line will be drawn through the list at the point at which the total Government of Canada share of the proposals reaches the maximum allowed for each province/territory based on the funding formula. This funding line will separate those proposals that will be funded out of the provincially/territorially Earmarked Funds and those that will compete nationally for the remaining Regular Funds administered by PSEPC.

The lists of proposals and supporting documentation are forwarded to the PSEPC regional offices for consideration and the PSEPC Regional Director, once satisfied with the eligibility and priority of each proposal, recommends the list of proposals to the PSEPC JEPP Committee by February 1.

The PSEPC JEPP Committee will recommend acceptance, rejection or acceptance with amendments to the SADM of all proposals being funded from Earmarked Funds. Those proposals competing for the Regular Funds will be evaluated by the PSEPC JEPP Committee from a national perspective and will be ranked according to their relative scores. The Committee will then recommend acceptance of those proposals to the SADM to the extent of the remaining Regular Funds. In addition, the Committee will maintain a prioritized list of proposals which could not be funded due to insufficient funds. These proposals can be recommended for acceptance as funds become available during the year.

The SADM then renders a decision on all proposals and advises provinces/territories through the PSEPC Regional Office by April 1. Any Earmarked Funds remaining at this time will revert to Regular Funds.

Once a proposal is approved, it is expected to be completed in accordance with the approved application. Provinces/Territories must monitor the progress of all projects and report annually on their status to the PSEPC regional office by October 1. In the event a province/territory determines that a project will not require any or all of the approved funding, it may request that the surplus be applied to one or more of its qualifying non-funded proposals previously submitted to the PSEPC priority list.

When a project has been completed or a measurable milestone has been achieved, a claim for full or partial payment is presented to the PSEPC regional office. Once satisfied with the claim and supporting documentation, the PSEPC Regional Director will recommend payment. The claim must also be supported by a certified auditor's signature for those projects with a Government of Canada contribution of $50,000 or more. The certification by a designated provincial/territorial official with appropriate fiscal accountability under provincial/territorial financial administration acts is required for those projects with a Government of Canada contribution of less than $50,000.

The claim is reviewed by officials at PSEPC headquarters and, if satisfied that all conditions have been met, they recommend payment to the SADM. The SADM authorizes payment and a cheque is provided to the province/territory.

All claims must be submitted to the PSEPC regional office no later than April 10 of the fiscal year following that in which the project was completed. Claims that cannot be supported administratively by that date are identified to the PSEPC regional office by April 10 for inclusion in the federal PAYE (payables at year-end) procedures. These claims can then be submitted no later than June 15 of the same year.

The PSEPC regional office is crucial to the smooth functioning of this cycle from project proposal, evaluation, approval, project adjustment, reallocation of unused funds, audit, claim and payment. It follows that a representative of that office should be consulted at each stage of the project cycle to ensure timely and favourable resolution of problems. The appropriate form of that consultation is determined by the individual province/territory.