Related Initiatives and Planning Processes

Deregulation and Regulatory Reform

The ministry is committed to streamlining and simplifying the taxation system in support of the government deregulation and regulatory reform initiative.

Since the start of the deregulation program in June 2001, the ministry's efforts have resulted in a significant reduction in the amount of information required of taxpayers. For example, the ministry has eliminated unnecessary procedures, forms, licenses and regulations, reduced reporting burden by consolidating reporting requirements and reducing duplication, and has made it easier, faster and more efficient for businesses to deal with several levels of government.

The following provides several examples of the ministry's most significant deregulation and regulatory reform initiatives for the period of this service plan.

• Zero per cent increase to regulatory burden through 2007/08. At a minimum, the ministry will maintain regulatory requirements at the June 2004 baseline.
• Deregulation. The ministry will continue to focus on improving customer service by streamlining reporting requirements and making the completion of required forms easier. The ministry's forms will continue to be monitored and reviewed to maintain the benefits that have been achieved over the last three years. New forms will only be introduced after careful scrutiny to ensure that as few regulatory requirements as possible are introduced.
• Regulatory reform. The ministry has identified several opportunities for regulatory changes and business process improvements that will result in improved customer service. For example, over the next three year period, the ministry will develop and implement regulatory changes to resolve grace period variances and consolidate the number of interest rate schedules used for the calculation of interest on the late payment of financial obligations. The application of consistent policies and procedures will reduce confusion and increase fairness and equity for taxpayers. Proposed amendments to the Petroleum and Gas Royalty and Freehold Production Tax Regulation will reduce the regulatory and reporting burden on oil producers and increase the accuracy of returns, while the introduction of an electronic filing option will facilitate ease of payment.

Overviews of the Human Resource Plan and the
Information Resource Management Plan

The ministry's Human Resource Plan (HRP) and Information Resource Management Plan (IRMP) support the achievement of all ministry goals. Overviews of these plans are available on the ministry website at http://www.rev.gov.bc.ca/budget/hrp.pdf (HRP) and http://www.rev.gov.bc.ca/budget/irmp.pdf (IRMP).