Q.            How often will these reports be produced?

A.            New reports will be posted on a quarterly basis.   The information will be posted within 30 days following the reporting period.  The schedule for the 2004-05 fiscal year is as follows:

Reporting Period	Information to be posted on web site by
April 1 – June 30, 2004	October 31, 2004
July 1 – September 30, 2004	October 31, 2004
October 1 – December 31, 2004	January 31, 2005
January 1 – March 31, 2005	April 30, 2005

Q.            Why is this information being disclosed?

A.           On March 23, 2004, as part of the 2004 Budget, the government committed to “publicly disclose all contracts entered into by the Government of Canada for amounts over $10,000, with only very limited exceptions such as national security.  These new requirements will be phased in over time, starting with procurement contracts for goods and services.”   

Q.            What types of contracts will be reported?

A.           A phased approach to the disclosure of contract information is being adopted to permit institutions to make the necessary adjustments to business processes.  At this point in time, only procurement contracts for goods and services are to be reported.  Contracts for legal services and real property transactions([1]) are excluded; as are Grants and Contributions (can be viewed on the ACOA’s Project Information site at http://www.acoa-apeca.gc.ca/e/about/index.shtml); service level agreements between federal government institutions; and memoranda of understanding with other levels of government and foreign governments.  Institutions are not required to report amendments at this time. 

Call-ups against standing offers, task authorizations, and contracts pursuant to supply arrangements are to be reported in the quarter in which each individual contract was raised.  Information on the original standing offer, task authorization contract, or supply arrangement, is not to be reported at this time.

Q.           What types of contracts do ACOA have in relation to this disclosure?

A.            ACOA enters into contracting agreements for a variety of reasons.  It includes contracting for the acquisitions of goods as well as contracting for professional and non-professional services to assist in carrying out the Agency’s mandate. 

ACOA follows the Treasury Board Contracting Policy when contracting for goods and services.

Q.            What information is included?

A.            The following information is required for each reporting period:

• Vendor Name:  The legal name of the company, as indicated on the contract.

• Reference Number:  The number used in the Agency’s financial system to record the transaction, for example, the requisition number, commitment number, or Contract Number. 

• Contract Date:  The hard commitment date (the date the financial commitment is recorded in the Agency’s financial system).  This would normally be the date the contract is signed by ACOA.

• Description of the Work:  The Economic Object Code and its description. 

The Economic Object is one component of the government’s system for classifying financial transactions for the Public Accounts of Canada.  For budgetary expenditures, the Economic Object classifies expenditures according to the type of resources (goods and services) acquired.

A list of Economic Object Codes and descriptions can be found on Public Works and Government Services Canada’s website at http://www.pwgsc.gc.ca/recgen/gw-coa/0304/text/objA-7-3-e.html.

Notes

·         Where procurement involves more than one economic object, the economic object associated with the largest dollar value has been used.

• Contract Period/Delivery Date:  For goods contracts, the date that the goods are to be delivered.  If the contract involves multiple items, the last delivery date has been used. 

For services contracts, the period of time over which the services are to be provided, for example, April 1 – August 31, 2004, has been used.

• Contract Value:  The amount of the hard commitment recorded in the Agency’s financial system at the time of contract signing.  This represents the total liability to the government at the time of contract signing.  Reported amounts are in Canadian currency, GST/HST, and any other applicable taxes included.

This amount excludes the cost of any options, e.g. option years, optional items, and optional quantities.  For multi-year contracts, the total amount of the contract for all years has been recorded.

• Comments (Optional):  An optional field that ACOA may complete when the data reported would benefit from additional context.