Site MenuExecutive Summary – 2022 Audit of Financial Management by Returning Officers
The audit of financial management by returning officers (ROs) was identified as a priority in Elections Canada's 2021–23 risk-based audit plan.
What we examined
ROs are appointed by the Chief Electoral Officer of Canada to administer federal elections, by-elections and referendums in each of the 338 federal electoral districts in Canada. They are responsible for the fair and impartial management and control of events in their electoral district, including the financial management of their office during an event.
The objectives of this audit were to:
- assess the adequacy and effectiveness of the financial management control framework over RO activities
- determine if RO financial activities are undertaken in accordance with applicable policies, procedures, acts and regulations
- determine if the training and tools provided to ROs are adequate to support the efficient exercise of their authorities
The scope of the audit included the financial management activities that took place within RO offices during the 44th general election in September 2021.
Why it is important
Elections Canada's core responsibility is to deliver elections. ROs are, in turn, the personnel who execute the election activities at the electoral district level and bring the opportunity to vote directly to Canadians. During a general election period, ROs spend more than $200 million and hire up to 250,000 election officers to conduct the election. All of these financial transactions take place within a short time frame and at widely dispersed locations across the country.
What we found
With respect to the first objective, we found that a sound governance and control framework is in place. However, the dual oversight structure of headquarters operations and finance functions for certain activities caused confusion and sometimes resulted in an inappropriate level of controls being applied. We also found that the performance management process for ROs could be enhanced to encourage better financial performance.
The second audit objective focused on compliance with the Canada Elections Act (CEA) and various policy instruments. The overall compliance and application of individual controls by ROs were found to be good. It was noted that the role and training of financial officers (FOs), who assist the RO, should be re-examined to leverage the expertise of this group. As well, additional monitoring procedures for payroll transactions are needed at the headquarters level to compensate for the manual nature of pay entry. Finally, it was observed that the introduction of overtime pay for many poll and RO office workers in the 44th general election was a source of confusion and that processes should be reviewed and clarified prior to future electoral events.
With respect to the third objective, it was found that ROs received adequate training and had useful resources available to support them in exercising their authorities. However, it was revealed that Elections Canada's information systems lacked integration, hampered efficiency and required many manual processes, contributing to errors and frustration.
Seven recommendations have been made to management to address the opportunities for improvement observed during the audit.
Management's response
Management agrees with the audit findings, has accepted the recommendations included in the report and has developed management action plans to address the recommendations. In certain cases, management has proposed alternatives to the recommendations that will address the risk identified. The management action plan has been integrated into this report.