News from CGA-Canada
FROM: MAY-JUN 2003 ISSUE
Public Practice Rights Progress
The quest for full public practice rights for CGAs in all parts of Canada continues with recent progress on three fronts.
In Nova Scotia, Robert McNeil, CGA, of McNeil Porter Hétu, became the first CGA to receive his licence to practice public accounting in the province under the new standards approved in December 2002 by the Public Accountants Board of Nova Scotia (PABNS).
While the changes in standards are welcome, concern remains about the structure of the five-member PABNS, presently made up entirely of chartered accountants. A delegation of representatives from CGA-Nova Scotia and CGA-Canada met in February with Peter Christie, the cabinet minister responsible for the PABNS, to present the rationale and background as to why the composition of the board should be changed. Legislative action is not expected before the legislature sits in the fall of 2003; however, Christie promised further consultation.
In P.E.I., Derek Huestis, CGA, the CGA-P.E.I. president at the time, was given the opportunity in February to brief the Progressive Conservative caucus, including Premier Pat Binns, on the public practice rights issue. CGA-Canada senior academic adviser David Harrison, PhD, and CGA-Canada's Atlantic region adviser Allan Savidant, FCGA, also attended the briefing. Draft legislation is expected to be introduced, perhaps this spring, to provide full access for qualified CGAs in P.E.I. to practice public accounting.
In Ontario, at the time of writing, Dean Ron Daniels of the University of Toronto Faculty of Law, was evaluating two models for public accountant licensing in Ontario. The provincial government appointed Dean Daniels to design a new governance regime for public accounting after the passage of the Justice Statute Law Amendment Act 2002, which allows qualified accountants from all three professional designations (CGAs, CMAs and CAs) to apply for licences.
Events were expected to move quickly through the spring. Members are encouraged to check the CGA-Ontario and CGA-Canada Web sites for the latest developments.
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Laurentian University's Online H.B.Com Recruitment Update
The application period for the first course in the first session of the new Online Honours Bachelor of Commerce (H.B.Com) program offered through a CGA-Canada partnership with Laurentian University has now ended.
The initial session of the program is being offered on a limited enrolment basis. Organizational Behaviour (COMM 2045/OR1) is slated to run from September to December 2003 with a maximum of 160 participants. Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Ontario are participating in this inaugural course offering. Registration for the H.B.Com program will be open to all other affiliates in Canada and some internationally in the near future.
The H.B.Com is an ideal complement to a CGA designation, as it was designed specifically for students who require a bachelor degree to complete their CGA requirements. More information on the program is available from Laurentian University's Web site at cga.laurentian.ca.
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Disappoints CGA-Canada
CGA-Canada is disappointed that there is no CGA representation among the final 10 directors named to the new Canadian Public Accountability Board (CPAB) on February 26. One of those 10 positions was reserved for a member of the accounting profession; however, it went to chartered accountant Ron Gage, former chairman and CEO of Ernst & Young and a past chair of the CICA. The 14-member board also includes seats reserved for the senior executives of three provincial CA institutes. The board is chaired by former Bank of Canada Governor Gordon Thiessen.
"The new directors are all distinguished people of very high calibre," noted former CGA-Canada COO Guy Legault, MBA, CAE, FCGA, at the time of the announcement. However, he expressed disappointment at the lack of inclusiveness on the board.
"We strongly believe that if the CPAB is to be successful, it must be an inclusive and consultative organization and must be seen to be so," said Legault. "In addition to being inclusive of all accounting professional groups, the CPAB must also take into account the unique needs of Canada's small and medium-sized enterprises and the small and medium-sized practices, which comprise the majority of Canada's accounting professionals."
CGA-Canada will now move its efforts toward understanding the role of the CPAB's National Inspection Unit (NIU), seeking involvement in the development of the rules that will emerge from the CPAB, as well as building the relationship between the CPAB and CGA firms involved in public practice.
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Romanow Speaks on Health Care
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Roy Romanow, QC, and Dr. Dana W. Hanson, MD, FRCPC, President of the Canadian Medical Association, at CGA-Canada's Economic News Luncheon. |
Roy Romanow, QC, spoke of pride in a speech on health care accountability given April 3 to a crowd of about 70 politicians, journalists and members of the health care profession attending CGA-Canada's Economic News Luncheon in Ottawa.
Romanow said he felt pride not only in the recommendations that resulted from the 18-monthcross-country consultations he had as the one-person Commission on Health Care Reform, but also in the government's response to those recommendations. "The prime minister and provincial premiers listened to the plea of Canadians," he said, indicating that this was the first step to the renewal of health care in Canada.
Romanow said five principal issues identified by the commission have been addressed: access to quality care, public reporting, transparency and accountability, monitoring of population health, and the agreement of the first ministers to work collaboratively with the creation of the Health Council of Canada. The former Saskatchewan premier expressed some concerns, though, mainly related to the amount and timing of the funds available to implement this reform.
He saved his final remarks for commentary on the creation of the Health Council of Canada, which he sees as becoming a trusted source of advice for Canadians, a fact-finding mechanism and neutral ground for resolving disputes.
Romanow's presentation was the fourth in the 2002-03 series of Economic News Luncheons, presented by CGA-Canada at the National Press Club in order to stimulate debate on public policy issues. The event was organized in collaboration with the Government Relations Institute of Canada and the Information Technology Association of Canada. Further events will feature the Secretary of State (International Financial Institutions), Hon. Maurizio Bevilacqua, and the President of the Canadian Bar Association, Simon Potter.
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Senate Hears of Need for Changes to Standard-Setting System
Changes are needed to Canada's accounting standard-setting system to ensure that the principles of transparency and independence are respected and enforced. This was the message delivered by outgoing CGA-Canada President and COO Guy Legault, MBA, CAE, FCGA, in a presentation to the Senate Standing Committee on Banking, Trade and Commerce on February 6.
Legault explained that the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants (CICA) funds and operates the Accounting Standards Board, which is accountable to the Accounting Standards Oversight Council, which, in turn, is accountable to the CICA board of directors. This leads, he said, to an unacceptable appearance of conflict of interest.
The creation of the Canadian Public Accountability Board is recognition that there are problems with the current system and is a welcome step in the right direction. However, Legault pointed out that it is also flawed in its non-inclusive structure.
The Association's position was backed up by a report on accounting standard-setting structures prepared by April Mackenzie, FCA, who has been involved in the interpretation and development of financial reporting standards for 20 years. The report, commissioned by CGA-Canada and tabled with the Senate committee, found Canada has not followed other economies in moving toward fully independent accounting standard-setting organizations. Canada is the only country in a group comprising the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, Japan, Australia and New Zealand that does not have a base of funding for its standard setters that is independent of any one professional accounting body. The study also found that, of those countries considered, Canada is the only one that does not have a separate entity approving accounting standards.
CGA-Canada believes that the setting of accounting standards is a matter of broad public interest and must be removed from the control of the accounting profession. "The current process of standard setting in Canada does not meet the test of independence," Legault told the Senate committee.
Legault also tabled a recent report by Don Lenihan of the Centre for Collaborative Government entitled A Question of Standards: Accounting in the 21st Century . The paper, commissioned by CGA-Canada and published by the Centre for Collaborative Government, was the result of a "virtual round table" of distinguished Canadians. It illustrates the diversity of opinions on many of the questions around financial reporting and identifies some basic principles that should be followed in establishing a new standard-setting system in Canada. Lenihan also appeared before the Senate committee at a later date to present the paper in detail.
Legault's Senate appearance followed a presentation to the same committee last May, at which he put forward the Association's concerns surrounding accounting standards and corporate governance issues. The complete text of Legault's remarks to the Senate committee as well as the Mackenzie and Lenihan reports are available on the CGA-Canada Web site at www.cga-canada.org.
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Input for Next Budget Response Welcome
The federal budget day is always a busy one for members of the Tax and Fiscal Policy Committee and CGA-Canada staff as they analyze the budget, prepare a response to it, and communicate relevant information to CGA members across the country. For many CGAs, a quick and thorough analysis of the budget's tax implications is vital information.
Preparations for budget day actually begin almost a year in advance as positions are developed and researched. On budget day itself, much depends on a team of four — this year including James Dunphy, FCGA, Johanne Leduc, FCGA, CGA-Canada Government Relations Director Carole Presseault, and a media consultant — who spend the day in the budget lockup analyzing the documents so that a response is ready as soon as the Finance Minister rises to speak. Among the materials prepared in the lockup are a news release, a scorecard, a budget highlights document, a tax measures highlights document and a key messages document. As soon as the lockup is released, these materials are sent to the CGA-Canada offices in Vancouver where staff edit, translate and publish the materials on the CGA-Canada Web site.
Other activities on budget day include a conference call with CGA Affiliates, e-mail communication of budget highlights, media appearances and responses to media inquiries. The CGA-Canada Web site is the primary method of communication due to its immediacy, and the first items to be posted are the actual budget documents, thanks to an arrangement with the Department of Finance.
Planning is now underway for next year's federal budget response, including discussion of possible new products such as a newsletter summarizing tax changes, which would be available the morning after the budget speech. If you require information or analysis of the federal budget and have ideas on how CGA-Canada can better meet your needs, please send your suggestions or questions to Carole Presseault at cpresseault@cga-canada.org.
You can view CGA-Canada's response to Budget 2003 at www.cga-canada.org.
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CGA-Canada Names Interim COO
Lynda Carson, FCGA, has been named Interim President and Chief Operating Officer (COO) of CGA-Canada, replacing Guy Legault, MBA, CAE, FCGA, who left the Association at the end of March to become President and CEO of the Ottawa-based Canadian Payments Association (see last issue's "News from CGA-Canada"). Carson has been with CGA-Canada for 21 years, most recently as Vice-President of Education and Professional Affairs.
At the time of writing, the selection process for a permanent replacement for Legault was underway. Executive search firm Spencer Stuart is conducting the national search for candidates. The final selection will be made by the CGA-Canada Board of Directors upon recommendations from the Board Selection Committee and Executive Committee.
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CGA Appreciates Saskatchewan Staffer's Extra Effort
Migration to the Common Association Management System (CAMS), an information tracking and management system, is a major undertaking for the provincial and international affiliates and the CGA-Canada Information Technology department. However, the extra efforts of one employee at CGA-Saskatchewan have helped to simplify the process for everyone.
Saskatchewan, like many other affiliates, runs a system called Member/Academic Information System (MAIS). CGA-Saskatchewan's Director of Student Services Leanne Michener, CGA, developed a process to convert MAIS databases to a format that can be migrated to the CAMS system. This required many extra hours of her time. However, her efforts saved countless hours of work at CGA-Canada and at other affiliates.
"Leanne's role was really invaluable," says CGA-CanadaVice-President of Information Technology John Yu. "It requires a special set of skills. Leanne is both a user of the system and a person with very advanced IT skills. Her extensive knowledge of the business applications of the two systems led to the development of processes that made everyone else's jobs much easier."
Leanne also provides support and assistance to five other affiliates faced with the challenge of migrating other applications to CAMS. CGA-Saskatchewan COO Howard Janzen is accustomed to people relying on Leanne. "She's extremely important to our association," he says. "Beyond her technical expertise, she is responsible for all aspects of student services and is well-known throughout the association."
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