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Proactive Publication Q&A

Please note that some sections are still under review. For more information, please email OCIO-APCDO-BDPI-BPCAP@tbs-sct.gc.ca.

ATIOGPD is part of the Office of the Chief Information Officer of Canada at the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat (TBS). TBS is a Central Agency of the Government of Canada, alongside the Privy Council Office and the Department of Finance. ATIOGPD’s mandate is to support the President of the Treasury Board as the minister responsible for the government-wide administration of the Access to Information Act (ATIA). Over 260 federal institutions are subject to the ATIA, including departments, agencies, Crown corporations, and statutory bodies.

General Questions

What is the difference between a government institution and a government entity?

The Access to Information Act differentiates the proactive publication requirements for “government institutions” and “government entities”.

Government institutions are all institutions subject to the Access to Information Act. Proactive publication requirements for government institutions are:

• Travel and hospitality expenses of senior officials
• Reports tabled in Parliament

Government entities are government institutions that are also listed in Schedules I, I.1, or II of the Financial Administration Act. Proactive publication requirements for government entities are:

• Travel and hospitality expenses of senior officials
• Reports tabled in Parliament
• Briefing packages for new deputy heads
• Titles and tracking numbers of briefing notes
• Binders for Parliamentary Committee appearances
• Grants and contributions over $25,000
• Contracts over $10,000

In addition, government institutions for which the Treasury Board is the employer are subject to the requirement of reclassification of positions.

Further details regarding the publication requirements for government institutions and government entities can be found here.

Who is the "head of the government institution" for my institution?

Section 3 of the Access to Information Act defines the “head of the government institution” as follows:

head, in respect of a government institution, means

(a) in the case of a department or ministry of state, the member of the Queen’s Privy Council for Canada who presides over the department or ministry, or

(b) in any other case, either the person designated under subsection 3.2(2) to be the head of the institution for the purposes of this Act or, if no such person is designated, the chief executive officer of the institution, whatever their title; (responsable d’institution fédérale)

Institutions are encouraged to consult with their legal counsel if there is any uncertainty about how this definition applies in their organization.

This definition applies to both Part 1 (request-based system) and Part 2 (proactive publication) of the Access to Information Act.

Who is the "deputy head or person of an equivalent rank" in my institution?

In most departments there is only one deputy head; it is the top public servant appointed to manage the institution. However, there are some exceptions, such as in the case of the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat which has four deputy heads.

Institutions are encouraged to consult with their legal counsel to determine who would be subject to the requirements for deputy heads within their institution.

TBS considers that a “deputy head or person of an equivalent rank” would include:

A deputy head within the meaning of section 11(1) of the Financial Administration Act or subsection 2(1) of the Public Service Employment Act; Any officer who, by any Act of Parliament, is or is deemed to be a deputy head or who has, or is deemed to have, the rank of a deputy head; and Any other person appointed pursuant to subsection 127.1(1)(b) of the Public Service Employment Act, other than associate deputy heads or persons of a rank equivalent to associate deputy heads.

How will compliance with the new proactive publication requirements be monitored?

Within government institutions, heads or their delegates are responsible for monitoring compliance with the requirements of the Access to Information Act. Accordingly, each institution is responsible for implementing the appropriate governance and processes for proactive publication within their organization, including monitoring compliance.

As well, since the requirements and timelines are transparent in the legislation, the public will be able to monitor compliance by institutions.

Can someone make a complaint to the Information Commissioner about information that is proactively published?

The Information Commissioner does not have an oversight role with respect to the proactive publication requirements in Part 2 of the Access to Information Act (see ATIA section 91(1)).

However, an individual can make an access to information request for records that have been proactively published. A requester can make a complaint to the Information Commissioner respecting records released in response to a request.

Can I request an extension to proactively publish material as I can for responding to an access to information request?

No. There are no provisions under Part 2 that allow institutions to delay proactive publication beyond the timelines set out in the legislation.

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Publishing Information Online

Where will institutions be required to proactively publish information?

Ministers and government entities must publish the following to open.canada.ca:

• titles and reference numbers of memoranda
• Question Period notes
• travel expenses
• hospitality expenses
• contracts over $10,000
• grants and contributions over $25,000
• reclassification of positions

Ministers and government entities may publish other proactive publication requirements to open.canada.ca as an ‘Open Information’ resource, or to their institutional page along with a metadata record on open.canada.ca. This ensures that all proactive publications are searchable on open.canada.ca. For more information on how to publish data and information to open.canada.ca, please refer to the Open Government Guidebook.

Crown corporations and other government institutions may publish information to their own websites or to open.canada.ca. Wholly-owned subsidiaries publishing to a parent Crown Corporation’s website should publish as clearly identifiable entities.

All publications must meet official language and accessibility standards as per the Government’s Policy on Communications and Federal Identity.

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Travel and Hospitality Expenses

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Contracts over $10,000

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Grants and Contributions

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Ministers' Offices Expenses

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Reports tables in Parliament

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Question Period Notes

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Titles and tracking numbers of memoranda

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Package of briefing materials of new Minister or deputy head

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Package of briefing materials for Parliamentary Committee appearances of Ministers and deputy heads

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Reclassification of positions

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