Appendix E: Data Methodology

The following section provides an overview of the data methodology and data sources of the performance information provided in this report.

Percentage of ministry revenue received without enforcement action.

This measure refers to the percentage of revenue identified by the ministry or self-identified by individuals and businesses without audit intervention. The measure is calculated for the fiscal year.

Revenue includes taxation (social service, fuel, tobacco, property, property transfer, corporation capital, insurance premium and hotel room), non-taxation (e.g., medical service plan premiums), resources (natural gas royalties, petroleum royalties, permits and fees and mineral taxes and royalties) and other revenues (e.g., ruling fees, clearance certificates). Revenue, for the purposes of this measure, does not include personal and corporate income tax that is collected by the Canada Revenue Agency on behalf of the ministry. All revenue information is available through ministry data systems.

Basis of calculation: revenue (as defined above) less incremental revenue divided by revenue to determine the percentage of ministry revenue received without enforcement action.

Percentage of client-initiated electronic payments received by the ministry.

This measure reports on the proportion of revenue that was received electronically during the fiscal year. All payments received are recorded in ministry data systems, including the payment portfolio (e.g., social services tax, rural property tax, MSP debt collections), and amount and type of payment. Payments include both tax and non-tax payments and can be voluntary payments, payments made as a result of an audit assessment (incremental revenue) or debt collection. Electronic payments include those received through electronic funds transfer, electronic data interchange payments from financial systems, credit card payments, personal computer and telephone banking, preauthorized payments, pay direct e-banking and group e-banking. Non-electronic payments (referred to as physical payments) include cash, cheques and bank drafts.

Percentage of on-time tax payments.

There are three specific tax areas where the ministry is able to identify both the number of payments that should be received and the payment due date. For social service tax, rural property tax and mineral, oil and gas taxes, the ministry is able to determine the percentage of payments made on or before their legislative due date. These three tax areas represent 73 per cent of revenue paid to the ministry and 21 per cent of the total number of payments received. Data is collected and maintained in ministry data systems (see electronic payments above) and reporting is for the fiscal year.

Incremental revenue.

Incremental revenue is monies identified, or remitted primarily in response to audit and enforcement activities. The information for this measure is tracked through ministry business information systems and is reported for the fiscal year. Incremental revenue is identified for ministry tax programs including consumption, income, property, and mineral, oil and gas taxes.

Debt collections.

This measure reports on the amount of outstanding receivables recovered by the ministry during the fiscal year as tracked through ministry business information systems. This includes debt collection related to tax statutes administered by the ministry — income and capital taxes, consumption taxes, property taxes and mineral, oil and gas royalties and taxes — as well as the collection of debts associated with Medical Services Plan Premiums, the Immigrant Sponsorship Program, the B.C. Ambulance Service, the British Columbia Student Assistance Program, Employment and the Assistance Program and court fines.

Number of audits performed.

The ministry undertakes a variety of activities that are counted as audits. Audit selection size and content varies from the review of grant claims, tax expenditure and exemptions and compliance with legislation to the examination of financial records and legal documents. Audit data is collected and maintained by ministry staff in business information systems that report on the total number of audits performed during the fiscal year.

Currently, there is a lack of consistency across the ministry in what is included in the count of audits. For example, for some tax statutes, only those audits that result in an assessment or refund are included in the count of number of audits performed (nil audits are not included in the count), while nil audits are included under other tax statutes. The ministry is working to resolve this issue.

Annual tax assessment per audit position.

Basis of calculation: the total amounts identified in audit assessments by the ministry for the fiscal year divided by the average number of audit positions filled over the course of the year to determine the annual tax assessment per audit position. The ministry has allocated specific positions to the audit function and determines the average number of audit positions occupied on a rolling monthly basis. Financial information is available through ministry business information systems.

Average payment recovered per collection position.

Basis of calculation: the total ministry debt collection for the fiscal year is tracked through business information systems and is divided by the average number of collection positions filled over the course of the year to determine the average payment recovered per collection position. The ministry has allocated specific positions to the collection function and determines the average number of collection positions occupied on a rolling monthly basis. Financial information is available through ministry business information systems.

Percentage of total government accounts receivable more than 90 days overdue.

This measure reports on the percentage of debt owed to government that is over 90 days past due. Data reflects input from all ministries with debt administration responsibilities. Data are provided by the Office of the Controller General on a quarterly basis. This measure is a point in time measure as of March 31st of the fiscal year.

Elapsed time from receipt of appeal to final decision.

This performance measure reports on the average elapsed time from receipt of an appeal to the final decision as of March 31st of the fiscal year. The ministry appeal process involves receiving appeals to the minister, analyzing the basis for the original assessment, disallowance of refunds or decisions, analyzing the grounds for the appeal, verifying that the submission contains all the required documentation, gathering additional information and/or documentation, contacting taxpayers to ensure a full understanding of their position, assessing the merits of the appeal, making recommendations to the minister regarding disposition of appeals and managing litigation arising from appeals. Appellants may withdraw from the appeal process at any time.

The measure is calculated by dividing the sum of elapsed time for all resolved appeals by the total number of appeals resolved during the fiscal year. Elapsed time includes the total number of days from the date of receipt of the appeal in the ministry up to and including the date of decision on the appeal by the minister. The progress of an appeal through the administrative process is tracked electronically and the data for this measure is calculated by this system.

Meet annual regulatory reduction target.

Regulations are counted according to the Regulatory Reform Policy of the Deregulation Office of the Ministry of Small Business and Economic Development (see http://www.deregulation.gov.bc.ca/). Each ministry is responsible to update the deregulation database whenever there is new legislation, policy or regulation introduced or there is an addition or deletion to existing legislation, policy or regulations administered by that ministry. This measure is reported as of March 31st of the fiscal year.

Receipt to deposit turnaround.

The receipt to deposit turnaround is a point in time measure, as of March 31st of the fiscal year. Performance is measured based on physical monitoring of transaction volumes and estimated time for deposit of payment following account update. This measure includes all physical payments (cheques, cash or bank drafts). Turnaround time is calculated from the date a payment enters payment processing until it is deposited.

Cost per transaction.

This measure calculates the average cost to process a transaction, both payments and nil-remittances, during the fiscal year. Each piece of documentation required to process a payment is counted as an individual transaction (for example, a cheque and coupon is counted as two transactions). This measure includes all ministry transactions processed centrally by the ministry's service provider. Cost per transaction is based on salaries and benefit costs associated with payment processing, associated equipment, hardware and software costs, contracted services and supplies. Costs are calculated based on expenditure estimates, while the numbers of transactions are recorded in ministry data systems.

Cost to collect $1 of debt.

This measure reports on the average cost to recover $1 of overdue accounts receivable. Costs include salaries and benefit costs associated with collection activities, and building and infrastructure costs, not including data system maintenance or amortization which cannot accurately be attributed at the business unit level. Costs are based on actual expenditures, while debt recoveries are recorded in ministry business information systems.

Risk Maturity Model.

The ministry has employed the "Risk Maturity Model", a tool recommended to ministries by the Ministry of Finance, as the basis for assessing its progress in developing and implementing a risk management approach. The model evaluates risk management for five criteria: Organizational Philosophy, Risk Management Leadership and Commitment, Integration with other Management Practices and Systems, Risk Management Capabilities and Reporting, and Control. Each of these criteria is evaluated, based on further sub-criteria, on a scale of 1—5. The ministry has self-assessed its level of achievement during the fiscal year.

Percentage of employees with Employee Development and Learning Plans.

This measure identifies the percentage of permanent employees, in their position for six or more months, with an Employee Development and Learning Plan (EDLP) by the target date of April 30 of each fiscal year. Employees in auxiliary positions or on temporary assignment are not included in this measure. The information is generated by the ministry's EDLP system, which contains electronic learning and development plans for each employee meeting the measure criteria.

Percentage of employees satisfied with training and development opportunities.

This measure is an index based on the percentage of employees indicating they either agree or strongly agree with statements about identification of training needs, opportunities to develop skills, opportunities for career enhancement and receiving support for professional development. Each statement receives the same weighting in the calculation of the index. This measure is a point in time measure, representing employee views as at the date of the survey.

Due to a change in the response categories (addition of a neutral response category) in the 2004/05 survey, a direct comparison with previous years' results is not possible. 2004/05 results for agree and strongly agree responses will become the new baseline for comparison in future years.

Employee morale.

This measure is an index based on the percentage of employees indicating they either agree or strongly agree with 16 statements on — workload, working conditions, training and development, hiring practices, teamwork, communication, employee recognition, performance expectations and job satisfaction. Each statement receives the same weighting in the calculation of the index. This measure is a point in time measure, representing employee views as at the date of the survey.

Due to a change in the response categories (addition of a neutral response category), a direct comparison with previous years' results is not possible. 2004/05 results for agree and strongly agree responses will become the new baseline for comparison in future years.