Related Initiatives and Planning Processes

Regulatory Reform

The ministry will support government’s Regulatory Reform initiatives by committing to control regulatory burden and improve regulatory quality by:

• Identifying at least one regulatory reform opportunity that will shift the ministry’s regulations to be more citizen centred, cost-effective, results-based, and responsive to our clients by reducing and/or streamlining the steps or business processes involved in complying with ministry regulations; and
• Adhering to the regulatory criteria set out in the Regulatory Reform Policy, and targeting a zero per cent net increase in regulation through 2008/09.

Since the start of the regulatory reform initiative in June 2001, the ministry has significantly reduced the amount of information required from taxpayers. Customer service has been improved by streamlining reporting requirements and making the completion of forms easier. This reduces the cost of doing business with government, making it easier, faster and more efficient to deal with government, and enhances ministry efficiency.

Regulatory reform. In response to the commitment in the government’s strategic plan, the ministry has launched a comprehensive review of British Columbia’s provincial sales tax (PST). This review will develop revenue-neutral options for simplifying, streamlining and enhancing fairness. In addition, the ministry will develop and implement regulatory changes to resolve grace period variances for late payments. The application of consistent policies and procedures will reduce confusion and increase fairness and equity for taxpayers. The ministry, in partnership with the Ministry of Energy, Mines, and Petroleum Resources, is also proposing changes that will reduce regulatory and reporting burden on the oil and gas industry.

Zero per cent increase to regulatory burden through 2008/09. The ministry will maintain regulatory requirements at the June 2004 baseline. The ministry will continue to monitor and review legislation, regulations and forms to maintain the benefits achieved over the last four years. The ministry is committed to controlling regulatory burden and improving regulatory quality through compliance with the Regulatory Reform Policy.

Information Resource Management Plan

The ministry’s Information Resource Management Plan (IRMP) supports the achievement of all ministry goals. An overview of this plan is available on the ministry website at http://www.sbr.gov.bc.ca/budget/IRMP_06-07.pdf.

Citizen-Centred Service Delivery

Citizen-centred service is a priority for government and the ministry, and is a success factor identified as critical to the achievement of government’s Five Great Goals. Citizen-centred service means public services that are more accessible, easier to deal with, and more responsive to individuals and communities. A citizen-centred service delivery approach will better meet the diverse needs of British Columbians.

The ministry is committed to providing excellent customer service. The following initiatives are some examples of the ministry’s work to ensure citizen-centred service delivery.

A citizen-centred corporate culture

• The ministry is organized to support citizen-centred service. The ministry’s Customer Service and Information Branch works with ministry business areas to identify customer service requirements and provide advice, expertise and resources to support citizen centred service delivery. With this support, the ministry delivers bulletins, pamphlets, educational seminars, information on its Internet site and other client-centred services to assist customers.
• The Taxpayer Fairness and Service Code formalizes the ministry’s commitment to a culture of service excellence.
• The ministry has developed service delivery standards based on customers’ expectations. Refer to Goal 1 (page 20) and Appendix E.

Determining customer requirements

• The ministry regularly obtains customer feedback through formal and informal means. This includes business area-specific surveying to identify both satisfaction with services and priorities for improvement. The ministry has piloted the use of the Common Measurement Tool (CMT), developed specifically for the public sector to bring consistency to customer satisfaction measurement to allow comparison of results among organizations and to measure progress over time. The ministry is currently exploring surveying customers across business areas using the CMT.
• The ministry has implemented several formal consultative processes that provide effective forums to hear directly from ministry customers and stakeholders on a wide variety of issues related to the ministry’s mandate (for example, the permanent Small Business Roundtable, the Revenue Programs Advisory Committee and the British Columbia Provincial Sales Tax review consultations).

Improving Citizen-Centred Service Delivery

Integrated service delivery. The ministry is a partner in the OneStop Business Registration, a web-enabled, electronic service delivery system designed to simplify government registration requirements for business owners. This service allows entrepreneurs to register with multiple participating federal and provincial public sector agencies and local governments through a ‘single window’.

Improving information. New and existing public information will be rewritten using plain language to help customers better understand their tax obligations and entitlements.

The ministry conducts seminars for new and existing businesses to provide useful tax information and increase taxpayers’ understanding of how to access the ministry’s information and services. It also offers industry-specific seminars to business associations and organizations that are either proactively developed by the ministry or are requested by the industry.

The ministry is developing new information materials specific to a business or industry. The ministry has identified approximately 60 diverse industry groups and is in the process of validating the proposed products with both internal and external stakeholders. The ministry will continue to consult with stakeholders throughout the design to ensure the information produced meets their needs.

Improving access to information. Adding to its dedicated telephone contact centre and ‘front counter’ service, the ministry officially opened its first ‘store front’ office in Victoria in July 2005. The centre provides walk-in access and personal service, access to many provincial tax services including, face-to-face business registration and responses to general enquires, and an OneStop kiosk. Since the opening of the new ‘store front,’ monthly service has increased by 40 per cent (approximately 1,600 customers per month).

Recognizing accurate and clear information is critical to increase customer compliance with financial obligations, the ministry has established a dedicated team to provide tax rulings to the public and ministry staff. Service standards and turn-around times are documented and will be reported on through the Taxpayer Fairness and Service Code.

Reducing regulatory burden. One of the primary benefits of regulatory reform is reduced government involvement in the lives of British Columbians, making it easier, faster and more efficient to access government programs and services, and comply with government regulations. The ministry, working with ministries across government, will implement a new citizen-centred regulatory reform process for government. Refer to Regulatory Reform in British Columbia (page 18) and ministry regulatory reform initiatives (page 32).

Making it as easy as possible to comply with financial obligations. To facilitate ease of payment, the ministry is participating in a cross government initiative to explore the expanded use of credit cards as a means for customers to make payments. Other enhancements may arise over time as the new Revenue Management System becomes operational and allows for 24/7 customers access through electronic technologies.

Risk Management

The ministry proactively identifies the threats and opportunities that potentially could impact its success, and addresses areas of high risk. The ministry employs a risk management approach to identify and evaluate the risks associated with ministry projects that support service plan goals and objectives, for example, information management/information technology projects with a budget or duration beyond certain thresholds. The ministry has an internal audit committee and regularly conducts audits to identify areas of management or operational risk and develop mitigation strategies. Risk management techniques are also applied to specialized areas including financial risk, occupational health and safety, and business continuity.