This report is brought to you on behalf of the 14 sector members of the Charity Sector Advisory Committee. Revenue was asked to respond to the recommendations on behalf of the Government of Canada. ACCS has been guided in its work by a number of Senate Committee recommendations.
Summary of recommendations
The Minister of National Revenue met with the ACCS and expressed her support for our efforts. The sector members of the ACCS are confident that the Minister is listening to our advice and we hope that we will see positive changes taking place as we continue to prepare a third report.
Recommendations
Reconciliation as beneficial to the community under the fourth head of charity
That the Charities Directorate update its Guidance Documents, including but not limited to Benefits for Aboriginal Peoples of Canada (CPS-012), Registration of Charities Promoting Racial Equality (CPS-021), and. This decision supports our premise that purposes that benefit the Indigenous community are “good charitable purposes.”
Improving the relationship between the
Charities Directorate and Indigenous communities or Indigenous- led charities
Building cultural awareness and competency
That the Charities Directorate is committed to a comprehensive and long-term commitment to building greater cultural competence among its staff. The purpose of these recommendations is to encourage Charities Directorate staff to develop their cultural competence to better understand, build trust and deepen relationships with Indigenous-led charities. The Charities Directorate must allocate resources, realign structural and performance evaluation and appoint managers to support its efforts.
Obtaining qualified donee status as a
- Towards a national data strategy
- Improving data completeness, timeliness, and accuracy
- Building data on diversity
- Simplifying categories of charity under the Income Tax Act
That the Government of Canada develop a cross-departmental national charitable sector data strategy to support the coordination. That the Government of Canada, as part of the national data strategy, establish a permanent unit with a mandate and dedicated and ongoing resources for charitable sector data collection, integration and analysis within Statistics Canada. And further, that the federal government creates a Federal-Provincial-Territorial (FPT) table to support its national data strategy for the.
That the CRA facilitates consistency in data reporting and reduces the burden on the charity sector by leveraging existing data and data. That the CRA move more quickly to the online filing of Form T3010, Registered Charity Information Return (the T3010), by making the paper form available only exceptionally within the next 5 years. That the CRA update the charity identification category codes to more appropriately describe the work of charities.
That the Government of Canada is working with the Sector Advisory Group on Data to interpret diversity data collected on the charity sector. That the Government of Canada replace the current categories of registered charities with two new categories: public charities and private charities.
Working Group Updates
Indigenous Peoples Working Group (IPWG)
There are inherent challenges in the relationship between Indigenous peoples and Indigenous-led organizations and the Charities Directorate. The Charities Directorate's rules on applying for and maintaining QD's status as a registered charity, including municipal and public body (MPB) status, are cumbersome, particularly for communities and. There is a perception that obtaining charity status is complicated and expensive; that organizations should hire a lawyer with expertise in charity law to look into their case; and that ongoing compliance poses a significant burden for assistance to Indigenous communities.
The concept of QD status, including MIA status, is not well understood and many do not know how such status can benefit them. During the pandemic, this has proven particularly problematic as having QD, including MIA status, has made the difference between being eligible or not eligible to access emergency funds. For those in rural and remote communities and in the north, the current regulatory regime does not take into account their sparse population and vast geography.
There is legitimate fear that QD status, including MPB status, could jeopardize and affect other financial agreements with the federal government. During our consultations, respondents recommended that the Charities Directorate adopt a supportive model that educates and promotes.
Charitable Sector Data Working Group (CSDWG)
This forms the basis for a faster effort on databases for the sector that are open, shareable and. However, there is no such activity at national level for the sector as a whole. In consultation with sector organisations, researchers and users of the T3010 data and the Charity Directorate itself, the working group heard concerns about the timeliness and accuracy of data on the sector, i.e.
Within the sector itself, there is a lack of human capacity, as many charities are understaffed and used. In addition, we've heard that more and more organizations want to use CRA data to help "tell the story" of the sector. The sector and government rely on ad hoc surveys by Statistics Canada and other researchers for information on diversity.
Optional data provides the federal government and the sector with a benchmark and a mechanism to track change. And due to lack of funding and gaps in data, institutional knowledge and expertise about the sector is difficult to maintain within Statistics Canada.
Purposes and Activities Working Group (P&AWG)
Statistics Canada Satellite Account/Human Resources Module Several participants suggested that Statistics Canada collect diversity information through the Non-Profit and Volunteering Satellite Account and the HR module that follows. And until guaranteed or sustainable core funding is available, Statistics Canada cannot restore the Satellite Account. The Satellite Account reconfigures administrative data according to internationally agreed standard methods to measure the economy.
It was suggested that the government could use periodic long and short census forms specifically designed for charities and the not-for-profit sector to collect information on the diversity of the population. It was also suggested that Corporations Canada include questions about board diversity in annual returns.
Vulnerable Populations Working Group (VPWG)
This feedback will help to form the basis for the next steps in our work plan. We will share the summary of comments we collected in the next ACCS report.
Regulatory Framework Working Group (RFWG)
Appendices
Additional context: Indigenous Peoples Working Group (IPWG) recommendations
In December 2015, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, in its Calls to Action #43, called on the Government of Canada to adopt the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP): "We do ' calling on federal, provincial, territorial, and municipal governments to fully adopt and implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of the Canadian Government's formal adoption of UNDRIP in May 2016, forms part of the Government of Canada 's commitment to reconciliation An update of the CRA's guidance documents to include reference to the obligations under UNDRIP will demonstrate that the Government is working to fulfill its obligations.
The Government of Canada defines reconciliation as an ongoing process through which Indigenous peoples and the Crown work together to establish and maintain a mutually respectful framework for living together to promote strong, healthy and sustainable Indigenous peoples. In short, the Government of Canada has undertaken, through the honor of the Crown, to foster. In this context, reconciliation has been recognized by the Government of Canada as beneficial to society.
The Canadian government has made a significant commitment to recommendations no. 50 and no. 57 Truths and reconciliations. In terms of charity law, however, Canada's Western concept of charity has not yet caught up to include recognition of the community traditions and reciprocity of Indigenous peoples.
Additional context: Charitable Sector Data Working Group (CSDWG) recommendations
That the Government of Canada develop and implement a standardized set of reporting categories and an online tool for charities and not-for-profit organizations to submit financial reports based on these categories. That the Government of Canada prioritize data on the charitable and non-profit sector in all Statistics Canada economic surveys, including the Non-Profit Satellite Account and the General Social Survey on Giving, Volunteering and Participation; and. That the Government of Canada support collaboration between Statistics Canada and the charitable and non-profit sector to determine what.
The Satellite Account of Not-for-Profit Institutions and Volunteerism was first published by Statistics Canada in 2004 and initially covered the years 1997 to 2000. A sector initiative to give greater importance to not-for-profit and voluntary activities in the Canadian economy. Further development and maintenance of the account was suspended in 2011, when the central national accounts began to include non-profit institutions as a separate institutional sector (although voluntary activities that do not have a market valuation were not included).
The last release of the satellite account for non-profit institutions and voluntary work was in In March 2019, Statistics Canada released on a one-time basis updated annual data on the financial contribution of not-for-profit institutions and voluntary work covering the period 2007 to 2007. 2017.
Membership, biographies of members, terms of reference, readouts, and meetings
Koreans, Filipinos, South Asians (Indo-Pakistani), Visible Minority West Asians or North Africans, South East Asians (Burmese, Cambodian, Laotian, Thai, Vietnamese, etc.), Oceanic (Melanesian, Micronesian, Polynesian) , Visible Minority Latin Americans or any combination of the above visible minority groups. People with disabilities: people who may be considered disadvantaged for the purposes of employment, consider themselves or believe that a potential employer is likely to consider them disadvantaged because of any persistent physical, mental, psychiatric, learning or sensory disability. In his 2020 mandate letter to the Minister of National Revenue, the Prime Minister affirmed that the Government remains "committed to evidence-based decision-making that considers the impact of policies on all Canadians." He ordered the minister to “apply on the basis of gender.
Analysis Plus (GBA+) in the decisions you make and consider public policies through an intersectional lens to address systemic inequalities, including: systemic racism; unconscious bias; discrimination based on gender; barriers for the disabled; discrimination against the LGBTQ2 community; and inequalities faced by all vulnerable population groups. The terms of reference, composition and roles of ACCS members and the framework for meetings are described in its Terms of Reference available at. Below is a compilation of all ACCS meetings between January 2020 and March 2021, including those of the ACCS Working Groups.
Footnotes