Highlights of the Year
Fiscal Stewardship
- Balanced Budgets: The ministry played a central role in maintaining the government's balanced budget plan and achieving British Columbia's second consecutive budget surplus. The 2005/06 Public Accounts recorded a $3.1 billion surplus, $1.8 billion higher than originally estimated in the September Budget Update. The improvement reflected stronger than expected revenues, lower debt service costs and savings in ministry budgets, offset by negotiating framework incentive payments.
- On-going Balanced Budgets: The ministry continued to maintain government's commitment to balancing the budget on an ongoing basis. On February 21, 2006, government tabled a fiscal plan in the Legislature with planned surpluses of $600 million in 2006/07, $400 million in 2007/08 and $150 million in 2008/09. These planned surpluses will be achieved while increasing funding for health care, education, services for children, and compensation for public sector employees, and ensuring a competitive taxation system in BC.
- Debt Reduction: For the second consecutive year, British Columbia's total debt declined. Total debt for 2005/06 was $34.4 billion, a $1.5 billion reduction from the year previous.
- Taxpayer Supported Debt to GDP Ratio: Lower debt levels and a robust provincial economy also served to reduce B.C.'s taxpayer supported debt to GDP ratio – a key measure of debt affordability. The debt to GDP ratio fell to 16.2 in 2005/06, down from 18.2 the year previous.
- Credit Rating Upgrade: The province received its fourth credit rating upgrade since 2004. Standard and Poor's upgraded its rating of British Columbia from AA to AA+, citing a robust economy, a low and declining debt to GDP, and larger than planned budget surpluses.
Support for a strong economy
- Competitive Tax Environment: The September Budget Update confirmed $1.4 billion in tax reductions to keep British Columbia's taxes fair and competitive. These included new measures targeted to low and modest income earners, including the B.C. Tax Reduction, the lower PST rate, and enhanced MSP premium assistance. New measures to enhance British Columbia's economic competitiveness and support job creation included: a reduction in the general corporate income tax rate to 12 per cent from 13.5 per cent, an improvement to the small business income tax threshold, and a tax incentive for the international commercialization of life science patents to support B.C.'s growing stature as a centre for biotechnology research and development.
- Increased Business Registrations: Bolstered by the strong economy and availability of online business registration, new registrations increased by over 10 per cent.
- Technological Innovation and Online Service Delivery:
— By the end of 2005/06, nearly 98 per cent of the estimated 200,000 B.C. companies completed the transition to British Columbia's new electronic corporate registry. This two-year process successfully moved the registration of B.C. companies from a paper-based approach to a self-serve, electronic registry. The new registry provides significant cost savings for taxpayers, more timely and accurate filings, and real time registration for companies.
— OneStop is an integrated e-government service that allows businesses in B.C. to register with several government agencies at once, be numbered, seek name approval, and change their address. OneStop's 24 hours a day, seven days a week online service became available to the public in June 2005 and new partners and access providers joined the program. By the end of 2005/06, OneStop had already reached a milestone 100,000 filing transactions.
Financial Reporting
- Accurate Financial Reporting: The annual Public Accounts released in June 2005 were the first in eight years that did not contain a statement of qualification by the provincial auditor and were fully GAAP-compliant, including information from school districts, universities, colleges, and health authorities (the SUCH sector). Fiscal 2005/06 is the second year in succession that the Auditor General has accepted the accuracy of the Public Accounts of the government without reservation.
Financial Reporting and Resource Management
- New Public Sector Negotiating Framework: The ministry set out a $6 billion, multi-year negotiating framework to guide public sector labour agreements. As of March 31, 2006 negotiators reached 55 agreements covering 75 per cent of British Columbia's 308,000 public sector workers. All agreements extended four years or more in duration and the vast majority received ratification approvals in excess of 90 per cent. Major components include:
— $1 billion as an incentive to reach new agreements before the expiry of current agreements;
— $4.7 billion over four year (2006/07 – 2009/10) for annual compensation increases; and
— up to $300 million dividend in 2009/10 for agreements that extend to March 31, 2010 or later, subject to the surplus exceeding $150 million
- Procurement Management Award: The Office of the Comptroller General won the national Summit Award for the government's Procurement and Contract Management Program, and was selected as a finalist for the Premiers Award in the category "Promoting Innovation and Excellence" for a project that moved government toward a fully integrated Electronic Procurement system.
- A Leader in Auditing:
— The Payment Review Office (PRO) in the Office of the Comptroller General is a leader in Canada in performing post-payment expenditure reviews. In 2005/06, the PRO's review system saved the government in excess of $10 million in accounts payable processing time.
— Internal Audit and Advisory Services conducted "first in Canada" joint audits with the federal government; joint audits reduced the disruption to government agencies, reduce costs, and provided a more comprehensive view to both governments.
- Lower Debt Service Costs: Debt service costs on the taxpayer supported debt portfolio were $96 million lower than the prior year.
- A progressive, engaged, knowledgeable workforce: As part of its workforce planning strategy, the ministry has identified the need to develop innovative recruitment and retention strategies to meet forecasted retirement and succession planning requirements:
— By providing challenging, interesting work, supporting development opportunities and promoting employee involvement in planning activities the ministry improved organizational performance and employee job satisfaction through increased staff engagement. Connecting employees to the activities of the ministry through an integrated planning framework has strengthened the linkages between individuals and ministry objectives. The development of a detailed business plan has integrated day-to-day employee activities with the strategic direction of the ministry. Employees contribute to ministry planning activities through participation in program area planning sessions, attendance at informal discussion forums held by the ministry Executive and participation in ministry human resource planning initiatives. These strategies have resulted in a 14 per cent increase in performance relating to employee engagement across the ministry.
— The Graduate Development Program was developed and successfully piloted for Treasury Board Staff. This targeted approach recruits talented university graduates into a two-year program to prepare for management and leadership positions within the ministry and throughout the British Columbia Public Service. The Graduate Development Program provides development opportunities, including job rotation to allow candidates exposure and determine where they best fit. The ministry has also taken on a stronger outreach role, conducting site visits to BC universities to promote the GDP and co-op opportunities, as well as conducting visits to career fairs. In 2006/07 the ministry will continue to build partnerships with academic and financial institutions, including continuation of the Graduate Development Program.
