The International Cooperation Group

Publications

NATIONAL SURVEY OF LEGISLATIVE DRAFTING SERVICES

2002

WORKLOAD MANAGEMENT

39   NUMBER OF FILES

How many files does a drafter carry at any point?
How many active files does the drafting section have on average?

In most provinces and territories, the limited data that is available in this area must be viewed with caution as fluctuations in workload volume may be extreme and non-representative and the scope and scale of difficulty may similarly vary and be difficult to quantify.

Manitoba estimates that it produces approximately 800 pages of bills and 1,500 pages of regulations each year.

In British Columbia, there were, at the time of this survey, 93 items on the legislation list. The office processes 35 to 40 regulations per month.

The number of bills passed in Nova Scotia in recent years is as follows : 2001, 27 at the date of the survey ; 2000, 41 ; 1999, 36 ; 1998, 45 ; 1997, 25 ; 1996, 42 ; 1995-1996, 35 ; 1995, 17 ; 1994-1995, 34 ; 1994, 96 ; 1993, 76. Of course, these figures do not take into account bills introduced but not passed and draft bills that did not proceed to introduction. Also, these numbers are a little misleading because of the increasing tendency toward omnibus bills that amend different Acts altogether (7 in 2001, 5 in 2000, 4 in 1999 and 3 in 1998).

In New Brunswick, during the 2000-2001 fiscal year, 78 bills drafted in the Legislative Services Branch were introduced in the Legislative Assembly. Also, 116 regulations drafted in the Branch were filed with the Registrar of Regulations.

Saskatchewan drafters annually prepare, on average, 85 bills and 130 regulations.

At the time of the survey, the Yukon office had approximately 300 active files and estimated that a typical caseload would consist of at least 30 files per drafter.

In the Northwest Territories, there were, at the time of this survey, 41 ongoing bills and 108 ongoing regulations distributed among 4.7 drafters.

At the time of the survey, drafters in Newfoundland and Labrador had caseloads of 15 to 20 legislation files.

Alberta has an average of 40 to 50 bills each session, with a workload of about 5 to 8 bills for each drafter. At any one time, there are over 200 regulations in progress.

The number of files per drafter varies in Nunavut but is still fairly low because of the lack of experienced policy officers.

In Ottawa, in 1997 there were 94 active files, 31 Acts assented to and 38 bills introduced ; in 1998, 78 active files, 40 Acts assented to and 42 bills introduced ; in 1999, 77 active files, 36 Acts assented to and 45 bills introduced ; in 2000, 72 active files, 35 Acts assented to and 24 bills introduced ; finally, in 2001, 34 active files, 41 Acts assented to and 46 bills introduced. In addition, 745 motions to amend were tabled in 1997, 353 in 1998, 578 in 1999, 1073 in 2000 and finally 806 in 2001. Approximately 1,200 regulations are processed, that is, drafted or reviewed, each year.

As of 8 November 2001, the Legislative Counsel Office of the House of Commons had received 428 requests for private members' bills since the opening of the parliamentary session on January 29, 2001. Two hundred and eleven bills arising from the 428 requests had received first reading.

40   NUMBER OF LEGISLATION FILES AND REGULATION FILES

How many of the files carried by a drafter are :
• legislation files?
• regulation files?

In Manitoba, the proportion of bills files versus regulations files in a typical caseload varies too widely to allow any useful general estimate. In British Columbia, there are also variations in caseload breakdown due to the size and complexity of the file and the fact that individual drafters may specialise in drafting either bills or regulations. In New Brunswick, the workload tends to be divided between approximately 35% for bills and 65% for regulations. In Alberta, each drafter will typically work on 5 to 8 bills and 20 to 30 regulations. Newfoundland and Labrador drafters will have a workload of 15 to 20 bills and 1 to 5 regulations. Drafters in the Northwest Territories manage, on average, 8.7 bills and 23 regulations. Drafters' workloads in the Yukon will comprise at least 5 bills and between 15 and 20 regulations. In Nunavut, drafters carry as many legislation files as regulations files.

In Ottawa, drafters in the Headquarters Legislation Section of the Department of Justice may have 6 to 10 open files, of which 4 or 5 are active. The number of files carried by drafters in the Regulations Sections may vary widely depending on size and complexity. Generally, bills files will remain open longer (an average of a year) while regulations files will be turned around more quickly (an average of two months). Drafters in the Headquarters Legislation Section usually draft only bills, while drafters in the Headquarters Regulations Section and the Transport, Health and Environment Drafting Services Sections draft only regulations. House of Commons drafters generally have 6 to 12 active files at a time.

41   NUMBER OF FILES BEING DRAFTED AT A TIME

Do drafters tend to work primarily on one file at a time or on several legislative texts simultaneously?

Drafters in all provinces and territories tend to work on several projects simultaneously. In the Headquarters Legislation Section of the federal Department of Justice, the period of time between the granting of drafting authority by Cabinet and the bill introduction date has become increasingly shorter, with the natural result of a tendency for drafters to work more intensively on one or two files at a time.

In theory, drafters at the House of Commons work on one file at a time on a "first-come, first-served" basis ; in practice, they work on several at a time.

42   SEASONAL OR SESSIONAL VARIATIONS IN THE WORKLOAD

Is the workload relatively constant, or are there seasonal, sessional variations?

All provinces and territories noted seasonal or sessional variations in workload volume. The volume of work associated with the drafting of bills increases when the legislature is sitting ; as well, there is a decrease in the volume of both bills-related and regulations-related work in the summer due to the fact that many instructing officers are on holidays. The Yukon respondent noted that work volume tends to increase significantly just before and during the fall legislative session.

These phenomena are also experienced by drafters at the Headquarters Legislation Section of the federal Department of Justice ; however, in recent years, there have been more and more larger "omnibus" bills that have required drafters to work intensively even during non-peak periods. There is certainly more pressure on drafters just before Parliament reconvenes or when Parliament is sitting, due, in part, to the last-minute work involved in preparing a text for printing and to the drafting of motions to amend legislation that is being studied by committees of the Senate or House of Commons. In addition, due to a constant shifting of Cabinet priorities, workload may temporarily vary greatly between drafters.

Regulations Sections drafters tend to have steady workloads but may experience peak periods in September, at the end of December and at the end of the fiscal year, which is 31 March.

The volume of work at the Legislative Counsel Office of the House of Commons is heavy and steady in the case of private members' bills. In the case of motions to amend government bills, it is prone to increases in the four to six weeks before the Christmas break and in the six to eight weeks before the summer recess. A similar situation can be observed in the Senate.

43   PRIORITY OF LEGISLATION OVER REGULATIONS

Where the same drafters draft legislation and regulations, is work of these types of equal priority or does the priority shift depending on whether Parliament is sitting or not?

In most provinces and territories, bills have a higher priority than regulations when the legislature is sitting. However, this is not always the case. Alberta, Ontario and New Brunswick noted that certain regulations sometimes take priority over legislation.

At the Legislative Services Branch of the federal Department of Justice, the question of priority is generally a moot point as an individual drafter's workload will consist of either all bills or all regulations, except in the Finance Tax Drafting Services Section, where drafters specialised in tax legislation are responsible for both. The relative priority of bills to each other can usually be determined by consulting the government's legislative agenda, which is updated at least once a week.

44   TEMPORARY (CONTRACTUAL) ARRANGEMENTS TO DEAL WITH UNEXPECTED VOLUME INCREASES

Are there temporary, contractual arrangements in place to deal with unexpected volume increases?

Most jurisdictions do not provide for temporary workload volume increases ; however, Manitoba, British Columbia, New Brunswick, Nunavut, the Yukon and the Northwest Territories make ad hoc arrangements as the need arises. In very exceptional circumstances, Quebec makes such arrangements. The Northwest Territories have ongoing arrangements for supplementary translation services. As to Ontario, it occasionally uses the services of outside counsel to draft legislation.

The Headquarters Legislation Section of the federal Department of Justice has, on rare occasions, contracted drafting work to drafters outside the Legislative Services Branch, who are usually former drafters of the Section. However, for security reasons, such arrangements are rare.

In the Regulations Sections, special arrangements have been made whereby a drafter (hired by a particular department) has both drafted and reviewed regulations on behalf of the Sections.

The Office of the Law Clerk and Parliamentary Counsel of the Senate and the Legislative Counsel Office of the House of Commons have also, on occasion, hired outside consultants to draft legislation.