Departmental Plan 2017-2018

Table of Contents

• Institutional Head's Message
• Plans at a Gance
• Raison d'être, Mandate and Role: Who We Are and What We Do
  • Raison d'être
  • Mandate and Role
• Operating Context: Conditions Affecting Our Work
• Key Risks: Things that Could Affect Our Ability to Achieve Our Plans and Results
• Planned Results: What We Want to Achieve this Year and Beyond
  • Civilian Review of RCMP Members’ Conduct in the Performance of their Duties
  • Internal Services
• Spending and Human Resources
  • Planned Spending
  • Planned Human Resources
  • Estimates by Vote
  • Future-Oriented Condensed Statement of Operations
• Supplementary Information
  • Corporate Information
  • Supporting Information on Lower-Level Programs
  • Supplementary Information Tables
  • Federal Tax Expenditures
  • Organizational Contact Information
• Appendix: Definitions
• Endnotes

Institutional Head’s Message

Our 2017–18 Departmental Plan provides parliamentarians and Canadians with information on what the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission for the RCMP (Commission) does and the results we are trying to achieve during the upcoming year. To improve reporting to Canadians, we are introducing a new, simplified report to replace the Report on Plans and Priorities.

The title of the report has been changed to reflect its purpose: to communicate our annual performance goals and the financial and human resources forecast to deliver those results. The report has also been restructured to tell a clearer, more straightforward and balanced story of the actual results we are trying to achieve, while continuing to provide transparency on how tax payers' dollars will be spent. We describe our programs and services for Canadians, our priorities for 2017–18, and how our work will fulfill our departmental mandate commitments and the government's priorities.

The Commission's mission is to enhance the accountability of the RCMP by providing an effective, independent and transparent process by which RCMP activities and member conduct are thoroughly examined and reported on.

This public accountability is not only an essential part in helping ensure that police officers exercise their considerable authority legally and appropriately but also a key element in the checks and balances necessary to ensure the safety, security and democratic freedoms of Canadians.

To effectively deliver on its mandate, the Commission's strategic plans must recognize and be responsive to, the evolution of law enforcement practices and changing social, cultural and community expectations. Nowhere is this more important than in the area of Canada's Indigenous peoples, given the significant role the RCMP plays in policing First Nations Communities across Canada.

This Departmental Plan outlines how the Commission is responding to these forces and where it will focus its energies and resources over the coming fiscal year.

_____________________________
Ian McPhail, Q.C.
Chairperson

Plans at a Glance

The Commission's plans and priorities are focused primarily on providing the public and the RCMP with an independent and transparent process through which to address concerns about RCMP activities and how members conduct themselves while carrying out their duties.

With the recent expansion of its mandate and authorities, the Commission has begun to strategically assess specific RCMP activities, policies and practices, with a view to identifying and addressing systemic issues which are of concern to the public and which challenge the success of the RCMP.

In this reporting period, the Commission will expand on its efforts aimed at providing specialized services to Indigenous communities. This will be accomplished by:

• encouraging informal resolution of complaints;
• increasing the timeliness of direct reporting to complainants;
• engaging more directly with indigenous communities and stakeholders to identify matters which should be investigated in the first instance by the Commission rather than the RCMP; and
• closely monitoring the implementation of its recommendations by the RCMP.

What began as a pilot project in response to the unique needs of indigenous people in northern British Columbia, will be expanded, as current resources permit, to other parts of Canada.

With this approach, the Commission is assuming a leading role in addressing the policing concerns of indigenous people in Canada and the evolution of civilian oversight of police required to effectively respond to these concerns.

The Commission will also be releasing its report on the review of the RCMP's handling of harassment complaints. This comprehensive review, requested by The Honourable Ralph Goodale, Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness, will examine implementation of recommendations made in the Commission's 2013 Report on Harassment in the RCMP. It will also examine the RCMP's implementation of its Gender and Respect Action Plan and RCMP culture more broadly. Given RCMP Commissioner Paulson's public statements acknowledging the problems of workplace harassment in the RCMP, the Commission's Report will focus on immediate and actionable solutions.

The Commission will also continue its examination of the RCMP's implementation of recommendations made in Justice Dennis O'Connor's 2006 Report of the Commission of Inquiry into the Actions of Canadian Officials in relation to Maher Arar. This review will examine more broadly the RCMP's effectiveness in addressing national security threats in Canada.

The Commission will continue its efforts to inform Canadians, community partners and stakeholders about its mandate and processes. Outreach to Indigenous communities and stakeholders will be a priority in this fiscal period. The Commission will also maintain its strategic leadership role with the Canadian Association for Civilian Oversight of Law Enforcement, bringing to bear the perspectives, resources and influence of the larger police oversight community to issues that challenge policing in Canada.

The Commission will continue to refine its structure and business model, identifying efficiencies which reduce administrative costs and enhance operational processes. Past success in this has allowed the Commission to invest in the new initiatives, noted in this report, without the need for additional funding. It is anticipated that further expansion of these initiatives or the development of additional programing will require resources beyond the Commission's current appropriations.

For more information on the Commission's plans, priorities and planned results, see the “Planned results” section of this report.

Raison d’être, Mandate and Role: Who We Are and What We Do

Raison d'être

The Commission is an independent agency created by Parliament and is not part of the RCMP. The Commission's fundamental role is to provide civilian review of the conduct of the RCMP members in carrying out their policing duties, thereby holding the RCMP accountable to the public. The Commission ensures that complaints about the conduct of RCMP members are examined fairly and impartially. Its findings and recommendations help identify and remedy policing problems which stem from the conduct of individual RCMP members or from deficiencies in RCMP policies or practices. The Commission also conducts reviews of specified RCMP activities, reports to provinces which contract RCMP services, conducts research, program outreach and public education, and provides independent observers to investigations of serious incidents involving RCMP members.

Mandate and Role

The Commission is an agency of the federal government, distinct and independent from the RCMP. Its mission is to enhance the accountability of the RCMP by providing civilian review of RCMP activities and member conduct.
As set out in Parts VI and VII of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Act, the mandate of the Commission is to:

• Receive complaints from the public about the conduct of RCMP members;
• Conduct reviews when complainants are not satisfied with the RCMP's handling of their complaints;
• Initiate complaints and investigations into RCMP conduct when it is in the public interest to do so;
• Review specified activities; and
• Report findings and make recommendations.

For more general information about the department, see the “Supplementary information” section of this report. For more information on the department's organizational mandate letter commitments, see the Minister's mandate letter on the Prime Minister of Canada's website.^{Footnote i}

Operating Context: Conditions Affecting Our Work

The public accountability of policing organizations and the civilian oversight of police conduct continues to be of concern to Canadians. In this era of social media and citizen journalism, public scrutiny of police actions has reached new levels. Timely, thorough and independent review of police conduct, especially in circumstances that attract wide public interest, is essential to maintaining public confidence in law enforcement.

The Commission's authorities provide for the investigation of public complaints about the conduct of RCMP members and the policies and practices that guide their delivery of policing services across Canada.

Recent enhancements to these authorities and calls for greater oversight of police action have generated increased expectations from the public as well as provincial and municipal governments who contract for policing services from the RCMP.

This expectation is particularly significant in the many remote communities with unique social and cultural needs where the RCMP provides policing services. In recent years the RCMP's relationship with Indigenous communities has been the focus of criticism both in terms of the conduct of individual RCMP members and the RCMP's organizational response to broader issues such as missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls.

The Commission must provide valued input not only with respect to the conduct of individual RCMP members in the performance of their duties but also in the evolution of law enforcement practices to ensure they adapt to and reflect changing social, cultural and community dynamics.

To remain responsive to these and other environmental pressures, the Commission must manage its limited resources in a way that allows it the flexibility to adjust its strategic priorities and operations to emerging issues and the needs of citizens it is mandated to serve. Although growing demand for services has not exhausted the Commission's current resource level, a continuation of this trend will require further prioritization and additional resources.

Key Risks: Things that Could Affect Our Ability to Achieve Our Plans and Results

Key Risks

In recent years, the RCMP's relationship with Indigenous communities has been the focus of criticism both in terms of the conduct of individual RCMP members and the RCMP's organizational response to broader issues such as missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls.

Calls for greater oversight of the RCMP and its members have generated increased expectations of the Commission, from the public as well as provincial and municipal governments who contract for policing services from the RCMP.

The Commission's ongoing outreach and stakeholder engagement initiatives and its development of specialized services to Indigenous communities have also contributed to greater awareness and expectations from Indigenous leaders and the communities they represent.

Inherent in this emerging dynamic is the risk that the Commission's current appropriations and resources are not sufficient to meet these expectations.

While the Commission's operating budget and in-house resources are sufficient to manage current public complaint levels it has minimal surge capacity. By tracking complaints and monitoring trends, the Commission can respond to priority areas and files providing some mitigation of this risk. The Commission also maintains a strategic reserve in the event of a surge in demand for services and has a procurement strategy in place to call up additional investigative resources to meet short-term surge requirements.

Failure to respond promptly to public complaints about the RCMP risks undermining the credibility of the public complaint process, the Commission and the RCMP. The Commission's ability to provide timely responses to public complaints is dependent on the RCMP's prompt and complete disclosure of information relevant to Commission reviews and investigations. The Commission continues to work with the RCMP to enhance the exchange of this information which is essential to its reviews of RCMP operations and the conduct of its members. The Commission will also continue to provide stakeholders with timely updates on the status of public complaints.

Planned Results: What We Want to Achieve This Year and Beyond

Civilian Review of RCMP Members' Conduct in the Performance of their Duties

Description

The Commission is an independent agency created by Parliament to provide fair and independent civilian review of RCMP members' conduct in the performance of their duties. The Commission accomplishes this by receiving complaints from the public about the conduct of RCMP members, and monitoring the RCMP's investigation of such complaints. Where a complainant is not satisfied with the outcome of the RCMP's response to a complaint, a request can be made to the Commission for an independent review of the members' conduct and the RCMP's handling of the matter. In reviewing complaints, the Commission may find that it is satisfied with the RCMP's handling of the complaint, or it may make findings and recommendations to the RCMP Commissioner and the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness with respect to matters addressed in the complaint. The Commission also has the mandate to conduct reviews of specified RCMP activities; report to provinces and territories which contract RCMP services; conduct research, program outreach and public education; and provide independent observers to investigations of serious incidents involving RCMP members.

Planning highlights

Guided by the objectives outlined in its enabling legislation, the Commission strives to increase public confidence in the RCMP by enhancing its transparency and accountability to the public as well as to the provinces and territories which contract for its services.
The Commission's strategic approach to achieving this objective includes initiatives, new and ongoing, designed to improve the delivery of the Commission's core programs and services to Canadians. These include:

1) Strengthening the public complaint process

A strong, accessible and timely complaint process is essential to the credibility of both the Commission and the RCMP. The Commission has been experimenting with various tools and approaches to enhance public accessibility to its services. Making use of leading edge communication tools and online technology to provide Canadians with an accessible and efficient way to voice their concerns is a central element of the Commission's strategy to connect with Canadians and ensure that they understand the role of the Commission and trust it to provide effective, independent oversight of RCMP members in the conduct of their duty. The Commission has streamlined and simplified its online complaint process resulting in a significant increase in the number of complaints received on-line and improved processing times. Additional enhancements will be pursued in this fiscal period.

Through effective monitoring of the RCMP's response to public complaints, as well as a robust review process which leads to findings and recommendations when necessary, the Commission aims to effect change and foster public confidence in the RCMP.

By augmenting its capacity to conduct independent investigations, gather and analyze relevant data, and track the manner in which its recommendations are accepted and implemented by the RCMP, the Commission can add to the credibility of the complaint and review processes. In the fiscal 2017-18 period the Commission will:

• Continue its refinement of the complaint and review intake processes.
• Develop the Commission's Informal Resolution Program.
• Continue to track actions taken by the RCMP on recommendations contained in public reports, and establish a tracking mechanism for the implementation of recommendations contained in individual reports.
• Enhance the Commission's data collection, statistical integration and reporting functions.

2) Strengthening the Commission's investigative capacity

It is equally important that the review of police conduct, policy and practice be conducted independently, particularly where an incident attracts wide public interest and there is a public perception that the RCMP may not be impartial in its investigation of the incident. This is of particular significance in British Columbia given the results of the Commission's review of RCMP policing in northern BC released in February 2017. In the fiscal 2017-18 period the Commission will:

• Establish and resource a regional office in British Columbia with a focus on responding to public complaints from Indigenous communities.
• Reallocate operating budgets to support increased investigative capacity in British Columbia.
• Establish an effective major case management system in support of investigations at HQ and in British Columbia.

3) Enhancing relations with provincial and territorial governments, as well as police and federal review bodies

The Commission is required to report on its activities to provincial and territorial governments. Enhancing the Commission's relationships with provincial and territorial governments as well as police and review bodies ensures that its programs and services respond to the unique nature and specific needs of each jurisdiction. This will assist the Commission in enhancing the accountability and transparency of the RCMP towards the contracting provinces and territories.

• Conduct regular meetings with provincial and territorial governments, as well as police review bodies.
• Develop MOUs with provincial police review bodies that support collaboration, integration of services and joint investigations where applicable.
• Enhance cooperation with other federal review bodies or inquiries, such as the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls.
• As required, share reports and other information regarding the Commission's activities with provincial and territorial governments as well as police review bodies.
• Maintain its annual government relations strategy.

4) Conducting specified activity reviews of RCMP programs, policies and practices

Conducting reviews of specified RCMP activities will contribute to the increased transparency and public accountability of the RCMP. The reviews will be supported by independent research and will include systemic examinations of policies, procedures and training, among other issues, and the results will be made public. Specified activity reviews can be undertaken based on any number of criteria, including at the request of provincial ministers responsible for policing where the RCMP provides service under contract.

For the fiscal 2017-18 period, the Commission will focus on two ongoing specified activity reviews, namely:

• A review of the RCMP's implementation of Justice O'Connor's recommendations concerning national security activities;
• A review of workplace harassment in the RCMP.

5) Increasing outreach, public education and engagement efforts

Public awareness and understanding of the Commission's role and processes is key to its success. The Commission's recent investigation of policing in northern BC revealed that some communities and cultural groups were not well informed about the Commission's role and consequently did not feel they had recourse when they had concerns about RCMP member conduct. This was particularly significant in Indigenous communities. Developing engagement and outreach initiatives that inform all parties about the services the Commission provides and clearly outline how to access these services will strengthen public confidence in the Commission and its capacity to ensure RCMP accountability. To this end the Commission will:

• Establish annual engagement targets and priorities with a particular focus on Indigenous communities.
• Identify key community stakeholders and partners, and develop suitable engagement strategies and information materials for their use with a particular focus on Indigenous communities in northern BC.

The information presented in this report is at the lower-level program for the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police's and is also available in the TBS InfoBase.^{Footnote ii}

Internal Services

Description

Internal Services are those groups of related activities and resources that the federal government considers to be services in support of programs and/or required to meet corporate obligations of an organization. Internal Services refers to the activities and resources of the 10 distinct service categories that support Program delivery in the organization, regardless of the Internal Services delivery model in a department. The 10 service categories are: Management and Oversight Services; Communications Services; Legal Services; Human Resources Management Services; Financial Management Services; Information Management Services; Information Technology Services; Real Property Services; Materiel Services; and Acquisition Services.

Planning highlights

Ensure that the most effective and efficient tools and administrative support are in place to facilitate the transition to the new mandate.

To respond to the requirements of its expanded mandate, the Commission must continue to ensure that its resources are deployed in the most effective and efficient manner possible. Its operational and administrative structures, tools and processes must be focused on supporting the delivery of its priorities. Streamlining business processes and employing strategies and technologies which enhance operational efficiency will reduce the internal services costs. Key objectives for this reporting period include:

• Completing the final phase of the Commission's IT transformation plan.
• Continuing the refinement of the case management system and its use in all aspects of the complaint and review processes.
• Enhancing the efficiency of the Commission's Human Resources program by establishing an in-house service, replacing the current services model which is delivered by Public Safety Canada through an MOU.

Spending and Human Resources

Planned Spending

The Commission's expenditures and planned expenditures have remained stable with no sunsetting funding anticipated. There is a small increase in forecast spending in 2016-17 due to augmenting investigative capacity in British Columbia and focusing resources on public interest investigations of complaints originating from Indigenous peoples in the northern communities of the province.

Planned Human Resources

There have been no major changes to the Commission's FTEs.

Estimates by Vote

For information on the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission for the RCMP's organizational appropriations, consult the 2017–18 Main Estimates.^{Footnote iii}

Future-Oriented Condensed Statement of Operations

The Future-Oriented Condensed Statement of Operations provides a general overview of the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission for the RCMP's operations. The forecast of financial information on expenses and revenues is prepared on an accrual accounting basis to strengthen accountability and to improve transparency and financial management.

Because the Future-Oriented Condensed Statement of Operations is prepared on an accrual accounting basis, and the forecast and planned spending amounts presented in other sections of the Departmental Plan are prepared on an expenditure basis, amounts may differ.

A more detailed Future-Oriented Statement of Operations and associated notes, including a reconciliation of the net cost of operations to the requested authorities, are available on the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police's website.^{Footnote iv}

Supplementary Information

Corporate Information

Organizational profile

Appropriate minister(s): The Honourable Ralph Goodale, P.C., M.P.

Institutional head: Ian McPhail, Q.C.

Ministerial portfolio: Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness

Enabling instrument(s): Royal Canadian Mounted Police Act

Year of incorporation / commencement: 2014

Other:

Reporting framework

The Civilian Review and Complaints Commission for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Strategic Outcome and Program Alignment Architecture (PAA) of record for 2017–18 are shown below:

• 1. Strategic Outcome: Public Confidence in the RCMP
  • 1.1 Program: Civilian review of RCMP members' conduct in the performance of their duties

Internal Services

Supporting Information on Lower-Level Programs

The information presented in this report is at the lower-level program for the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police's and is also available in the TBS InfoBase.^{Footnote v}

Supplementary Information Tables

The Civilian Review and Complaints Commission for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police does not have any supplementary information tables.

Federal Tax Expenditures

The tax system can be used to achieve public policy objectives through the application of special measures such as low tax rates, exemptions, deductions, deferrals and credits. The Department of Finance Canada publishes cost estimates and projections for these measures each year in the Report on Federal Tax Expenditures .^{Footnote vi} This report also provides detailed background information on tax expenditures, including descriptions, objectives, historical information and references to related federal spending programs. The tax measures presented in this report are the responsibility of the Minister of Finance.

Organizational Contact Information

E-mail:
Media@crcc-ccetp.gc.ca

Telephone:
From anywhere in Canada: 1-800-665-6878
TTY: 1-866-432-5837

Fax:
613-952-8045

Mail:
P.O. Box 1722, Station B,
Ottawa, ON K1P 0B3

Web:
http://www.crcc-ccetp.gc.ca

Appendix: Definitions

appropriation (crédit)
Any authority of Parliament to pay money out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund.

budgetary expenditures (dépenses budgétaires)
Operating and capital expenditures; transfer payments to other levels of government, organizations or individuals; and payments to Crown corporations.

Core Responsibility (responsabilité essentielle)
An enduring function or role performed by a department. The intentions of the department with respect to a Core Responsibility are reflected in one or more related Departmental Results that the department seeks to contribute to or influence.

Departmental Plan (Plan ministériel)
Provides information on the plans and expected performance of appropriated departments over a three-year period. Departmental Plans are tabled in Parliament each spring.

Departmental Result (résultat ministériel)
A Departmental Result represents the change or changes that the department seeks to influence. A Departmental Result is often outside departments' immediate control, but it should be influenced by program-level outcomes.

Departmental Result Indicator (indicateur de résultat ministériel)
A factor or variable that provides a valid and reliable means to measure or describe progress on a Departmental Result.

Departmental Results Framework (cadre ministériel des résultats)
Consists of the department's Core Responsibilities, Departmental Results and Departmental Result Indicators.

Departmental Results Report (Rapport sur les résultats ministériels)
Provides information on the actual accomplishments against the plans, priorities and expected results set out in the corresponding Departmental Plan.

full-time equivalent (équivalent temps plein)
A measure of the extent to which an employee represents a full person-year charge against a departmental budget. Full-time equivalents are calculated as a ratio of assigned hours of work to scheduled hours of work. Scheduled hours of work are set out in collective agreements.

government-wide priorities (priorités pangouvernementales)
For the purpose of the 2017–18 Departmental Plan, government-wide priorities refers to those high-level themes outlining the government's agenda in the 2015 Speech from the Throne, namely: Growth for the Middle Class; Open and Transparent Government;  A Clean Environment and a Strong Economy; Diversity is Canada's Strength; and Security and Opportunity.

horizontal initiatives (initiative horizontale)
A horizontal initiative is one in which two or more federal organizations, through an approved funding agreement, work toward achieving clearly defined shared outcomes, and which has been designated (e.g. by Cabinet, a central agency, etc.) as a horizontal initiative for managing and reporting purposes.

Management, Resources and Results Structure (Structure de la gestion, des ressources et des résultats)
A comprehensive framework that consists of an organization's inventory of programs, resources, results, performance indicators and governance information. Programs and results are depicted in their hierarchical relationship to each other and to the Strategic Outcome(s) to which they contribute. The Management, Resources and Results Structure is developed from the Program Alignment Architecture.

non-budgetary expenditures (dépenses non budgétaires)
Net outlays and receipts related to loans, investments and advances, which change the composition of the financial assets of the Government of Canada.

performance (rendement)
What an organization did with its resources to achieve its results, how well those results compare to what the organization intended to achieve, and how well lessons learned have been identified.

Performance indicator (indicateur de rendement)
A qualitative or quantitative means of measuring an output or outcome, with the intention of gauging the performance of an organization, program, policy or initiative respecting expected results.

Performance reporting (production de rapports sur le rendement)
The process of communicating evidence-based performance information. Performance reporting supports decision making, accountability and transparency.

planned spending (dépenses prévues)
For Departmental Plans and Departmental Results Reports, planned spending refers to those amounts that receive Treasury Board approval by February 1. Therefore, planned spending may include amounts incremental to planned expenditures presented in the Main Estimates.

A department is expected to be aware of the authorities that it has sought and received. The determination of planned spending is a departmental responsibility, and departments must be able to defend the expenditure and accrual numbers presented in their Departmental Plans and Departmental Results Reports.

plans (plan)
The articulation of strategic choices, which provides information on how an organization intends to achieve its priorities and associated results. Generally a plan will explain the logic behind the strategies chosen and tend to focus on actions that lead up to the expected result.

Priorities (priorité)
Plans or projects that an organization has chosen to focus and report on during the planning period. Priorities represent the things that are most important or what must be done first to support the achievement of the desired Strategic Outcome(s).

program (programme)
A group of related resource inputs and activities that are managed to meet specific needs and to achieve intended results and that are treated as a budgetary unit.

Program Alignment Architecture (architecture d'alignement des programmes)
A structured inventory of an organization's programs depicting the hierarchical relationship between programs and the Strategic Outcome(s) to which they contribute.

results (résultat)
An external consequence attributed, in part, to an organization, policy, program or initiative. Results are not within the control of a single organization, policy, program or initiative; instead they are within the area of the organization's influence.

statutory expenditures (dépenses législatives)
Expenditures that Parliament has approved through legislation other than appropriation acts. The legislation sets out the purpose of the expenditures and the terms and conditions under which they may be made.

Strategic Outcome (résultat stratégique)
A long-term and enduring benefit to Canadians that is linked to the organization's mandate, vision and core functions.

sunset program (programme temporisé)
A time-limited program that does not have an ongoing funding and policy authority. When the program is set to expire, a decision must be made whether to continue the program. In the case of a renewal, the decision specifies the scope, funding level and duration.

target (cible)
A measurable performance or success level that an organization, program or initiative plans to achieve within a specified time period. Targets can be either quantitative or qualitative.

voted expenditures (dépenses votées)
Expenditures that Parliament approves annually through an Appropriation Act. The Vote wording becomes the governing conditions under which these expenditures may be made.