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CHAIRPERSON’S MESSAGE

I am pleased to present the 2012-2013 Report on Plans and Priorities (RPP) for the Canadian International Trade Tribunal (the Tribunal).

The Tribunal’s mandate is to provide the fair, transparent, timely and effective disposition of international trade cases, government procurement reviews and certain appeals. The Tribunal conducts inquiries into complaints relating to unfair trading practices (i.e. dumping and subsidizing), requests for protection against rapid increases in imports (safeguards) and complaints regarding federal government procurement. The Tribunal hears appeals from decisions of the Minister of National Revenue under the Excise Tax Act and of the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) under the Customs Act and the Special Import Measures Act (SIMA). In its advisory role, the Tribunal undertakes general economic inquiries for the Governor in Council and tariff references for the Minister of Finance. The Tribunal’s activities contribute to maintaining a competitive, fair and secure marketplace in Canada.

The Tribunal’s main operating challenge is managing its resources to meet the strict legislative deadlines applicable to a caseload that is unpredictable in both volume and complexity. In response, the Tribunal tracks factors that tend to influence the number and complexity of cases before it, including the state of the Canadian, U.S. and global economies, the global trade environment and Canadian government priorities.

For example, based on experience from prior recessions, the Tribunal predicted an increased caseload following the 2008 global recession and, in 2009, received Treasury Board funding for a period of two years to help it meet this challenge. However, the increased caseload only partially materialized and the additional funding expired, as planned, at the end of December 2011.

As a result, for 2012-2013, the Tribunal has re-aligned its expenditures with its normal funding level by reducing O&M spending and reallocating work within the Tribunal to promote greater efficiencies and produce cost savings.

In 2012-2013, the Tribunal expects an increase in its overall caseload. In addition to up to four expiry reviews, the Tribunal expects that current economic conditions will yield a number of new trade remedy cases. The procurement mandate will remain a significant line of business for the Tribunal in 2012-2013, even though the number of cases has returned to historical norms. The number of appeals is expected to remain high relative to historical norms. In addition, the Tribunal notes a sharp increase in the complexity of the appeal cases before it.

The Tribunal’s main priority for 2012-2013 continues to be the fair, timely and effective disposition of cases. In this regard, the Tribunal will continue to pursue initiatives aimed at further improving its management practices as well as its ability to deliver on its legislative mandates.

Of particular note, the Tribunal will continue amending its rules of procedure to further streamline proceedings and reduce the paper burden imposed on parties. A new initiative is an electronic questionnaire that will allow respondents to save time and check for errors before providing information to the Tribunal. Through these initiatives, the Tribunal will contribute to advancing government priorities by enhancing its services to Canadians, improving its accountability and ensuring the transparency of its operations.

Finally, I am pleased to report that the 2012-2013 fiscal year will see the coming into force of the Tribunal’s new Code of Conduct. The code outlines the values and principles to which we aspire and through which we intend to continue our tradition of excellence.

SECTION I—TRIBUNAL OVERVIEW

Raison d’être

Responsibilities

The Tribunal was established in December 1988 under the Canadian International Trade Tribunal Act(CITT Act). It acts as an independent investigative and quasi-judicial decision-making body that reports to Parliament through the Minister of Finance. The Tribunal also derives authority from SIMA, the Customs Act and the Excise Tax Act. The Tribunal’s office is located in Ottawa, Ontario.

The Tribunal fulfils the following roles within the Government of Canada:

• holds inquiries, under SIMA, into whether dumped or subsidized imports have caused, or are threatening to cause, injury to a domestic industry;
  
• holds inquiries into complaints by potential suppliers concerning procurement by the federal government that is covered by the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), the Agreement on Internal Trade (AIT), the World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreement on Government Procurement (AGP), the Canada-Chile Free Trade Agreement (CCFTA), the Canada-Peru Free Trade Agreement (CPFTA) and the Canada-Columbia Free Trade Agreement (CCOFTA);
  
• hears appeals from decisions of the CBSA made under the Customs Act and SIMA and of the Minister of National Revenue under the Excise Tax Act;
  
• holds inquiries into and provides advice on such economic, trade and tariff issues as are referred to the Tribunal by the Governor in Council or the Minister of Finance;
  
• undertakes investigations pursuant to requests from Canadian producers for tariff relief on imported textile inputs used in their production operations and makes recommendations to the Minister of Finance; and
  
• undertakes safeguard inquiries into complaints by domestic producers that increased imports are causing, or threatening to cause, injury to domestic producers and, if directed, makes recommendations to the Government on an appropriate remedy.
  

Strategic Outcome and Program Activity Architecture

The chart below illustrates the Tribunal’s complete framework of program activities and program sub-activities.

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Organizational Priorities

Priority	Type	Strategic Outcome and/or Program Activities
Process cases within legislative and internal deadlines and maintain quality standards	Ongoing	Fair, timely and transparent disposition of international trade cases, procurement cases and government-mandated inquiries within the Tribunal’s jurisdiction
Description
Why is this a priority? The Tribunal has a statutory obligation to hear cases and make sound decisions on matters that fall within its jurisdiction within legislative and internal deadlines. In so doing, the Tribunal supports a fair marketplace in Canada, maintains its strong reputation both within Canada and throughout the world and complies with its legislative requirements. Plans for meeting the priority In 2011-2012, as part of the Tribunal’s response to its Management Accountability Framework (MAF) assessment, the Tribunal retained an independent research firm to conduct its first client satisfaction survey. The survey measured the level of client satisfaction with the Tribunal’s services, tools and processes, and with clients’ interaction with Tribunal staff. In 2012-2013, the Tribunal will look at ways to improve the delivery of its services to its users and stakeholders based on the results of this survey. The Tribunal will continue reviewing its Rules of Procedure to further streamline proceedings, reduce the paper burden imposed on parties and increase overall efficiency and transparency while preserving procedural fairness and the protection of confidential information.

Priority	Type	Strategic Outcome and/or Program Activities
Improve service delivery	Ongoing	Fair, timely and transparent disposition of international trade cases, procurement cases and government-mandated inquiries within the Tribunal’s jurisdiction
Description
Why is this a priority? The Tribunal continuously works towards improving its service delivery in order to provide efficient and reliable services to its stakeholders. Moreover, the Tribunal must protect the personal and confidential information filed by parties appearing before it. Plans for meeting the priority The Tribunal will continue to invest in information technology in order to further enhance the security of its network. The Tribunal will also continue building its off-site capacity in order to improve its business-continuity readiness. As part of the Tribunal’s information management strategy, a new structure for its corporate files, developed in 2011-2012, will be implemented in 2012-2013. A new initiative in 2012-2013 is an electronic questionnaire that will allow respondents to save time and check for errors when they provide information to the Tribunal. This will translate into significant efficiency gains for Tribunal stakeholders and the Research Branch of the Tribunal, as it will reduce the time and resources spent on entering and validating data.

Priority	Type	Strategic Outcome and/or Program Activities
Invest in its people	Ongoing	Fair, timely and transparent disposition of international trade cases, procurement cases and government-mandated inquiries within the Tribunal’s jurisdiction
Description
Why is this a priority? The Tribunal’s reputation of excellence depends largely on its highly specialized workforce working closely together to deliver on its mandate. Plans for meeting the priority The Tribunal will implement its Code of Conduct, which outlines the four guiding principles of the Tribunal: Integrity, Excellence, Respect and Teamwork. The Tribunal will encourage a positive, respectful and cooperative work environment and will continue to offer professional development opportunities through an emphasis on learning, knowledge transfer and career development. As such, the Tribunal will also continue offering training to ensure that employees have the proper knowledge to do their jobs and to ensure that managers and employees are up to date with changes to the Government of Canada’s policies and procedures. During this period of anticipated high workload and budgetary constraints, the Tribunal will continue to provide to its employees the necessary support to maintain their well-being while ensuring that the Tribunal’s legislative mandates are met. For example, the Tribunal will implement initiatives adopted by management in response to the results of the Public Service Employee Survey. A new initiative for 2012-2013 is the publication of the Tribunal’s Employee Orientation Guide, which will provide information to new and existing employees regarding employee services and key Tribunal policies and guidelines.

Priority	Type	Strategic Outcome and/or Program Activities
Sound management practices	Ongoing	Fair, timely and transparent disposition of international trade cases, procurement cases and government-mandated inquiries within the Tribunal’s jurisdiction
Description
Why is this a priority? These practices form part of a group of government-wide management accountability priorities, including measures introduced under the Federal Accountability Act. The Tribunal will continue evaluating and improving its management practices to enhance its performance and accountability. Plans for meeting the priority The Tribunal will continue reviewing internal processes to find efficiencies and synergies. In 2011-2012, through an internal reorganization, the Tribunal transferred work under the procurement and appeals mandates from the Research Branch to the Legal Branch. These transfers will provide significant savings and promote greater efficiencies in the workload of the Tribunal as a whole. The Tribunal will take advantage of the findings of the core control audit conducted by the Office of the Comptroller General of the Treasury Board Secretariat in 2011-2012 to improve its internal control processes and ensure that employees who have delegated financial or HR authorities are provided with all the tools and training required. The Tribunal will also continue reducing the number of hard copies of documents being reproduced internally by encouraging staff and members to rely, to the greatest extent possible, on its electronic case management system.

Risk Analysis

Operating Environment

Economic conditions in Canada and the rest of the world are key determinants of the Tribunal’s workload.

The outlook for the global economy weakened in the final months of 2011, and the pace of recovery in Canada is likely to be more modest than previously projected.¹ The prices of non-energy commodities are expected to fall in 2012 in reaction to diminished prospects for global economic growth.²

Given this outlook, it is likely that the number of new trade remedy cases will remain at the Tribunal’s baseline level of two to four per year. In addition, the fact that four or five expiry reviews could materialize each year for the next three years means that the Tribunal will be busy in this mandate. The number of appeal cases has significantly increased in recent years and shows no signs of decreasing despite Canada’s low average tariff rates. Procurement cases are also likely to remain a significant line of business given recent trends.

The Tribunal has adjusted to the expiration of the temporary additional funding it had been receiving since 2009 by reducing its workforce and revisiting its internal processes to maximize its resource allocations across all mandates.

Challenges and Key Risks

As a result of the environmental assessment, the Tribunal has identified four key risk areas for 2012-2013.

1. Ability to maintain well-being, morale and productivity in a period of budgetary constraints

During a period of budgetary constraints, the well-being, morale and productivity of employees may be affected due to organizational changes and economic uncertainty. Proactive and timely communication with employees about the direction and challenges of the organization will be important in maintaining employee engagement.

2. Ability to deliver high-quality work in a period of increased workload and budgetary constraints

Managing a projected increase in workload with fewer resources due to budgetary constraints will increase pressure on management and staff to deliver quality and timely decisions. In response, management has undertaken a number of risk management strategies designed to manage resources better, including initiatives to improve case management.

3. Ability to continue reducing the risk of losing corporate memory due to outdated Information Management (IM) systems

Over the past two years, the Tribunal has developed a comprehensive IM action plan to address the risk of losing corporate memory due to outdated IM systems. As part of the Tribunal’s information management strategy, a new structure for its corporate files, developed in 2011-2012, will be implemented in 2012-2013.

4. Ability to continue maintaining an up-to-date IT infrastructure, efficient safeguards against cyber attacks and proper recovery processes during a period of budgetary constraints

The Auditor General’s 2010 report on aging infrastructure and the latest MAF assessment report provided the Tribunal’s management with an overview of the areas of its IT function that are at risk. The Tribunal has since invested in hardware and software to upgrade its infrastructure and implemented a new service standard to improve service delivery. To mitigate the current risks associated with IT, the Tribunal plans to invest resources to upgrade the security of its network and to continue to document its recovery procedures to improve its business continuity readiness, despite limited human and financial resources in its IT operations.

Planning Summary

Financial Resources ($ thousands)

2012-2013	2013-2014	2014-15
9,895	9,895	9,895

Human Resources (full-time equivalents)

2012-2013	2013-2014	2014-2015
77	77	77

Strategic Outcome: Fair, timely and transparent disposition of international trade cases, procurement cases and government-mandated inquiries within the Tribunal’s jurisdiction

Performance Indicators	Targets
Tribunal decisions overturned by the Federal Court of Appeal or international appeal bodies	Not more than 2 percent of all decisions rendered over the most recent five-year period are overturned by the Federal Court of Appeal and/or international appeal bodies.
Soundness of the Tribunal’s decisions—Overturned decisions with “due process”	Less than 1 percent of all decisions rendered are overturned by the Federal Court of Appeal or international appeal bodies on judicial review dealing specifically with “due process”.
Tribunal notices, decisions and guidelines are accessible to the public.	All notices, decisions and guidelines for all areas of its mandate and practice notices are accessible to the public through the Tribunal’s Web site, the Canada Gazette and/or MERX (Canada’s electronic tendering system).
Decisions are rendered within statutory deadlines.	All decisions are published within the statutory deadlines.
Appeal decisions are rendered within internal deadlines.	Seventy percent of decisions on appeals are published within internal deadlines.
Recommendations meet the terms of reference and provide requested information.	All recommendations and reports meet the terms of reference and provide requested information.
Reports, determinations and recommendations are published within statutory deadlines.	All reports and recommendations to the Government or the Minister of Finance are published within the statutory deadlines.

Financial Resources by Program Activity ($ thousands)

Program Activity3	Forecast Spending 2011-2012	Planned Spending			Alignment to Government of Canada Outcomes
		2012-2013	2013-2014	2014-2015
Adjudication of Trade Cases (quasi-judicial role)	6,376	7,263	7,362	7,293	Fair and secure marketplace
General Economic Inquiries and References (advisory role)	101	89	89	89	Fair and secure marketplace
Total	6,477	7,352	7,451	7,382

Program Activity4	Forecast Spending 2011-2012	Planned Spending
		2012-2013	2013-2014	2014-2015
Internal Services	3,644	2,543	2,444	2,513
Total	3,644	2,543	2,444	2,513

Expenditure Profile

Planned and Actual Spending ($ thousands)

	Actual Spending 2008-2009	Actual Spending 2009-2010	Actual Spending 2010-2011	Forecast Spending 2011-2012	Planned Spending 2012-2013	Planned Spending 2013-2014	Planned Spending 2014-2015
Net Cost of Program	9,819	10,952	10,922	10,121	9,895	9,895	9,895

For the 2008-2009 to 2011-2012 periods, total spending includes all parliamentary appropriations: Main Estimates, Supplementary Estimates and Treasury Board Vote 15, and carry-forward adjustments. For the 2012-2013 to 2014-2015 periods, total spending corresponds to planned spending. Supplementary funding and carry-forward adjustments are unknown at this point and are therefore not reflected. Below is a graph showing the spending trend since 2008-2009.

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The fluctuations in spending and planned spending since 2008-2009 can be explained by the fact that, from 2009-2010 to 2011-2012, the Tribunal received additional funding to cover a predicted operating budget shortfall resulting from an expected post-recession increase in caseload. The funding increase was $525,000 for 2009-2010, $2.1 million for 2010-2011 and $1.575 million for 2011-2012.

The figure below displays the percentage allocation of the Tribunal’s funding by program activity for 2012-2013.

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Estimates by Vote

For information on the Tribunal’s votes and statutory expenditures, please see the 2012-2013 Main Estimates publication. An electronic version of the Main Estimates is available at http://publiservice.tbs-sct.gc.ca/est-pre/20122013/me-bpd/info/info-eng.asp..

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