British Columbia Order in Council — Order under Farm Income Insurance The Minister to sign the Canada-British Columbia Operational Document for Delivery of the Agricultural Income Disaster Assistance Program (O.C. 919/2000)

O.C. 919/2000

British Columbia — Orders in Council

PROVINCE 4%4 BRITISH COLUMBIA ORDER OF THE LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR IN COUNCIL Order in ColunE T No. 919 , Approved and Ordered JUN 2 9 2000 diatersurteZectiggP ididnIstrator Executive Council Chambers, Victoria .Admhattrater On the recommendation of the undersigned, the liiMVSIffaSirannor, by and with the advice and consent of the Executive Council, orders that approval is given to the Minister of Agriculture, Food and Fisheries and Minister Responsible for Rural Development, on behalf of the Province, to sign the Canada-British Columbia Operational Document for Delivery of the Agricultural Income Disaster Assistance Program, substantially in the form attached.

Minister of Agriculture, Food and Fisheries and Presidi g Me ber of the Executive Council Minister Responsible for Rural Development (This

part is for administrative purposes only and is not part of the Ordel.) Authority under which Order is made: Act and section: Farm Income Insurance Act (RSBC 1996, c. 130, s. 5)

Draft No. 5a May 2, 2000 CANADA - BRITISH COLUMBIA OPERATIONAL DOCUMENT FOR DELIVERY OF THE AGRICULTURAL INCOME DISASTER ASSISTANCE PROGRAM THIS OPERATIONAL DOCUMENT made this day of May, 2000. BETWEEN: THE GOVERNMENT OF CANADA (referred to as "Canada"), as represented by the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, OF THE FIRST PART; - and- THE GOVERNMENT OF THE PROVINCE OF BRITISH COLUMBIA (referred to as "British Columbia"), as represented by the Minister of Agriculture and Food, OF THE SECOND PART.

Page 2 The Parties agree that: Certain aspects of the AIDA program, as referred to in the Federal - Provincial Agreement Establishing The Agricultural Income Disaster Assistance Program (referred to as the "Agreement"), as well as issues related to AIDA, require further clarification in terms of how they will be administered in the province. These clarifications are provided for in this Operational Document or in program guidelines published by Canada and British Columbia.

The roles Canada and British Columbia shall play in the delivery of the AIDA program, and their contributions to AIDA in British Columbia, shall be determined on the basis of the Agreement, this Operational Document, and the program guidelines published 'by both Canada and British Columbia. In the event of any conflict between the Agreement and this Operational Document, the terms of the Agreement shall prevail.

Definitions used in the Agreement also apply to this Operational Document unless otherwise specified herein. PURPOSE: The purpose of this Operational Document is to set out the responsibilities, conditions and processes that will govern how Canada and British Columbia will conduct themselves in the delivery of AIDA in British Columbia. Specifically, the Parties agree to the following: I. CANADA & BRITISH COLUMBIA

Definitions 1.1 The "AIDA program" means the national agricultural income assistance program, as set out and agreed to by Canada and British Columbia in the Federal - Provincial Agreement Establishing the Agricultural Income Disaster Program (the Agreement) and including the British Columbia Provincial Annex to the Agreement. 1.2 Depending upon the context in which the term is used, Canada - British Columbia Operational Document for the Delivery of the Agricultural Income Disaster Assistance Program r'

Page 3 Responsibility for Delivery of AIDA "AIDA" may refer to the AIDA program, as described in subsection 1.1, or the organization within Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada delegated the responsibility for administering the AIDA program on behalf of Canada. 1.3 "Fiscal year" refers to the twelve month period from April to March 31' after giving consideration to all year end adjustments and recognizing all payments processed against payables at year end. 1.4 "Irrespective of the cost centre to which costs are charged" means that the source of funding for AIDA-related administrative activities does not have any bearing on the cost sharing eligibility of such activities, or the resources used to deliver them. 1.5 "Program guidelines" means generally any information officially made available to applicants by the AIDA and WFIP Administrations.

This includes any information found in the programs' application forms or handbooks, in the technical information circulars made available by the program Administrations and on the programs' Internet websites. 1.6 "Provincial Annex" means the British Columbia Provincial Annex to the Agreement. 1.7 "Whole Farm Insurance Program" (WFIP) means the provincial farm income insurance program established in British Columbia. 1.8 "WFIP Administra:ion" and "British Columbia" may be used interchangeably, as appropriate. 1.9 The AIDA program shall be delivered in British Columbia through the Province's WFIP program.

The WFIP Administration shall be responsible for administration of the AIDA program in the province, including application processing and issuing of payments on behalf of both British Columbia and Canada, except as Canada - British Columbia Operational Docuinent for the Delivery of the Agricultural Income Disaster Assistance Program

Page 4 set out in Appendix 1, Rogunsibilittimadivscal AIDA.

Periodic Review of the Operational Document Program Support 1.10 Prior to the start of processing for each claim year, or if requested by either party, Canada and British Columbia shall review this Operational Document and amend it as necessary to ensure that it remains consistent with the Agreement and continues to reflect the parties' wishes with respect to how the AIDA program is to be delivered in the province. 1.11 AIDA program support in British Columbia may include promoting awareness of the WFIP and AIDA programs, providing current information related to these programs, facilitating the distribution of program-related materials (including application forms and related schedules), and assisting individuals in acquiring WFIP- and/or AIDA- related expertise.

Support shall be provided through various media including, but not limited to, the provision of toll-free telephone lines, Internet websites, and training related to various aspects of the WF'1P and AIDA programs. Specifically, such support in British Columbia shall be provided by the WFIP and AIDA Administrations, as agreed to in Appendix 2, Program SUPPlui. 2.

PROGRAM COMMUNICATIONS Development of 2.1 In preparation for the start of processing for each claim Communications year, Canada and British Columbia shall share their Products respective communications plans for the AIDA program in the province with each other.

Canada and British Columbia each agree to obtain each other's prior approval on the development of all cost shared AIDA communication products. 2.2 All communications products developed by the AIDA Administration, including brochures and posters, shall be Canada - British Columbia Operational Document for the Delivery of the Agricultural Income Disaster Assistance Program

Page 5 made available to British Columbia. 2.3 In general, the costs of all communication products developed by AIDA and used in British Columbia shall be shared by Canada and British Columbia, on a 60:40 basis, respectively.

However, if British Columbia chooses not to place its wordmark on a communications product being developed by Canada, Canada shall bear 100% of the development and production costs attributable to that product's use in the province. 2.3.1 Notwithstanding this, in respect of AIDA advertising, the development costs of AIDA advertisements developed by Canada will be borne solely by Canada, unless British Columbia requests that these national advertisements be tailored to suit the province, in which case the development costs of the tailored advertisements will be cost-shared by Canada and British Columbia on a 60:40 basis, respectively. 2.3.2 Advertising placement costs will be cost-shared by Canada and British Columbia on a 60:40 basis, respectively, unless British Columbia requests that its wordmark not be placed on the advertisement, in which case Canada shall have final authority on content in the advertisement and shall bear the full cost of developing and placing the advertisement. 2.4 In the event that Canada chooses not to place its wordmark on an advertisement developed by British Columbia, British Columbia shall have final authority on the content in the advertisement and shall bear the full cost of developing and placing the advertisement. 2.5 The approval of Canada on communications materials rests with the Managing Director of the AIDA Administration.

British Columbia's approval on communications materials rests with its Director of Communications. Canada - British Columbia Operational Document for the Delivery of the Agricultural Income Disaster Assistance Program

Page 6 3. APPLICATION PROCESSING Adjustments for Expanding Operations Structural Change 3.1 The rules that shall be followed with respect to calculating an applicant's program margin are set out in the WFIP program guidelines. 3.2 Beginning farmer reference period program margins shall be developed by the WFIP Administration on an as-required basis. These enterprise margins shall be based upon standard per-unit margins produced by the British Columbia Ministry of Agriculture and Food, with adjustments to expenses, production, and revenues as required.

The rules with respect to how such beginning farmer reference period margins shall be calculated and implemented are set out in the WFIP program guidelines. 3.3 For the purpose of British Columbia's share of AIDA payments to applicants in the province, no adjustments shall be made to address farm expansion.

For the 1999 claim year, Canada's share of AIDA payments to applicants in the province shall be adjusted to address farm expansion in a manner equivalent to that set out in the AIDA program guidelines. 3.4 For the purpose of British Columbia's share of a payment to an AIDA applicant, the rules that shall be followed with respect to how structural change is addressed are set out in the WFIP program guidelines. The rules that shall be followed with respect to how structural change is addressed for Canada's share of a payment to an AIDA applicant are set out in the AIDA program guidelines.

Calculation of An Applicant's Program Margin Calculation of Beginning Farmer Reference Period Program Margins 3.5 Subsections 3.1 to 3.4 notwithstanding, in the event that the AIDA and WFIP Administrations cannot agree on a 3.6 Information about a WFIP/AIDA applicant or the applicant's financial affairs obtained by a WFIP official or an AIDA official through information disclosure the applicant has consented to shall only be used for the purpose of verifying the accuracy of information Canada - British Columbia Operational Document for the Delivery of the Agricultural Income Disaster Assistance Program

Page 7 methodology for calculating a particular aspect of the program calculations necessary to calculate an applicant's WFIP/AIDA payment, either Administration may choose to require, for the purposes of its share of WFIP/AIDA payments to applicants in the province, that applicants' program payments be calculated according to its preferred methodology for that particular aspect.Potential Uses of Information Obtained Through Information Disclosure Program Benefit Proration by Canada 3.10 Canada shall make provided on the applicant's WFIP/AIDA application and may be shared by the WFIP and AIDA Administrations for this purpose. 3.7 Any WFIP/AIDA applicant information released to Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada or the British Columbia Ministry of Agriculture and Food shall only be used for the purposes of audit, analysis, evaluation, program development and making special assistance payments. 3.8 Canada's share of AIDA program costs for a given claim year shall consist of an amount representing its share of AIDA benefits paid to applicants across all provinces, as well as an amount representing its share of the administrative costs of delivering the AIDA program across all provinces for the same claim year.

AIDA benefits and administrative costs for a claim year may be incurred over several fiscal years. 3.9 Irrespective of the fiscal year, if Canada chooses to prorate its share of AIDA program costs for a claim year, only that portion of its share of AIDA costs during the fiscal year which applies to benefits paid to AIDA applicants across all provinces for the claim year in question shall be prorated.

The administrative costs of delivering the AIDA program across all provinces shall not be prorated. 3.11 British Columbia's share of WFIP/AIDA program costs Canada - British Columbia Operational Document for the Delivery of the Agricultural Income Disaster Assistance Program

Page 8 known its decision as to whether it will prorate its share of total AIDA benefits for a claim year within six weeks after the application deadline for that claim year has passed.Program Benefit Proration by British Columbia for a given claim year shall consist of an amount representing its share of WFIP/AIDA benefits paid to applicants in the province, as well as an amount representing its share of the administrative costs of delivering the WFIP/AIDA program in the province for the same claim year.

WFIP/AIDA benefits and administrative costs for a claim year may be incurred over several fiscal years. 3.12 Irrespective of the fiscal year, if British Columbia chooses to prorate its share of WFIP/AIDA program costs for a claim year, only that portion of its share of WFIP/AIDA costs during the fiscal year which applies to benefits paid to WFIP/AIDA applicants in the province for the claim year in question shall be prorated.

The administrative costs of delivering the WFIP/AIDA program in the province shall not be prorated. 3.13 British Columbia shall make known its decision as to whether it will prorate its share of total WFIP/AIDA benefits for a claim year within six weeks after the application deadline for that claim year has passed. 4. PROGRAM ADMINISTRATION Verification Standards and Procedures Cost Sharing of AIDA-related Administrative Costs 4.1 Pursuant to subsection 8.6 and

Schedule A of the Agreement, the standards and procedures that shall be adhered to with respect to verification are set out in Appendix 3, Verification Standards and Procedures. 4.2 As the AIDA program is being delivered through the WFIP program in British Columbia, it is recognized that a portion of the administrative expenses incurred in the delivery of the WFIP program will be 'AIDA-related' and therefore cost-shareable under the AIDA program. 4.3 Pursuant to subsection 8.7 and

Schedule B of the Agreement, and for the purpose of cost sharing the administrative costs of delivering the AIDA program in Canada - British Columbia Operational Document for the Delivery of the Agricultural Income Disaster Assistance Program

Page 9 the province, 'program start up' activities shall be differentiated from 'ongoing program administration' activities by reference to December 1, 1998.

All costs incurred for activities completed or in process prior to or on December 1, 1998 will be considered to pertain to ineligible program start up initiatives, while all costs pertaining to activities started after this date will be treated as pertaining to either ineligible ongoing program administration, ineligible ongoing federal/provincial negotiations or eligible AIDA-related delivery services being provided to applicants. 4.4 Eligibility for cost sharing of costs for administrative activities started after December 1, 1998 shall be governed by the following principle: 4.4.1 "Irrespective of the cost centre to which costs are charged, all operating costs (to acquire the non-capital resources needed to deliver the AIDA program in the province) and fixed costs (to acquire the incremental capital resources needed to deliver incremental AIDA-related delivery activities) incurred by the party requesting payment shall be eligible for reimbursement by the party providing the funding." 4.5 The guidelines that shall be followed with respect to cost sharing and cost sharing submissions for AIDA-related administrative costs are set out in Appendix 4, Cost SharingDLALDA=BslattilAdmainigratitt Costs.

Cost Sharing of 4.6 As the AIDA program is being delivered through the AIDA-related Benefit WFIP program in British Columbia, it is recognized that Payments a portion of the program benefit payments issued under the WFIP program will be 'AIDA-related' and therefore cost-shareable under the AIDA program. 4.7 The guidelines that 4.8 Pursuant to subsections 8.3 8.10 of the Agreement, the shall be followed with rules and guidelines that shall be followed with respect to Canada - British Columbia Operational Document for the Delivery of the Agricultural Income Disaster Assistance Program

Page 10 Reconciliation of AIDA Contributions for a Claim Year Set-Offs of Other Crown Debts reciprocal data sharing are set out in Appendix 6, RttiprinalDitaSharing. 4.9 From an accounting perspective, regardless of which party to the delivery of the WFIP/AIDA program in British Columbia makes an interim payment, the interim payment shall be cost shared by Canada and British Columbia in proportion tc the shares which each party has agreed to contribute to the interim payment. 4.10 The accounting process that shall be followed to reconcile Canada's and British Columbia's contributions to the AIDA program in a claim year is set out in Appendix 7, RgioncilialigaidAIDAContribMions for a Claim Year. 4.11 The rules that shall be followed with respect to British Columbia's use of its share of producer payments to AIDA-eligible WFIP applicants in the province to set off provincial Crown debts owed by those applicants are set out in the WFIP program guidelines. respect to cost sharing and cost sharing submissions for AIDA-related program benefits are set out in Appendix 5, Cost Sharing of AIDA-related Program Benefits.Reciprocal Data Sharing Interim Payments 5.

PROGRAM FOLLOW UP Review of Applications 5.1 British Columbia, in consultation with Canada, shall establish a Review Committee to respond to British Columbia producers' requests for reviews of their WFIP applications insofar as the requests for review arise from application processing performed by WFIP. The makeup of the Committee, and the terms and conditions under which it shall operate, are set out in Appendix 8A, Review of WFIP-Processed WFIP Applications. Canada - British Columbia Operational Document for the Delivery of the Agricultural Income Disaster Assistance Program

Page 11 5.2 Canada shall also establish a Review Committee to respond to British Columbia producers' requests for reviews of their WFIP applications insofar as the requests for review arise from application processing performed by the AIDA Administration. The makeup of this Committee, and the terms and conditions under which it shall operate, are set out in Appendix 8B, Review of AIDA-Processed WFIPApalications. 6.

THE OPERATIONAL DOCUMENT Coming Into Force of the Operational Document Amendments to the Operational Document Termination of the Operational Document 6.1 The parties to this Operational Document agree that the terms of the Operational Document became effective on December 1, 1998 and shall remain so until the Operational Document is terminated. 6.2 Canada and British Columbia may amend this Operational Document at any time by mutual written agreement. 6.3 The termination of the Agreement between Canada and British Columbia automatically terminates this Operational Document effective the same date. 6.4 Despite the termination of the Operational Document, any provisions of the Agreement and this Operational Document relating to the following obligations of Canada and British Columbia shall continue in force and effect until such time as these obligations have been fulfilled. 6.4.1 All AIDA-related payments to eligible applicants in British Columbia have been made for the claim years for which the AIDA program was in effect in the province; 6.4.2 The reporting, accounting and reconciliation of Canada's and British Columbia's shares of all AIDA-related program costs for the claim years for Canada - British Columbia Operational Document for the Delivery of the Agricultural Income Disaster Assistance Program

Page 12 which the AIDA program was in effect in the province has been completed; 6.4.3 The WFIP and AIDA Review Committees' obligation to deal with outstanding requests by British Columbia applicants for reviews of their applications for the claim years for which the AIDA program was in effect in the province has been fulfilled; 6.4.4 The program evaluation to follow the termination of the AIDA program has been completed; and 6.4.5 The program audit to follow the termination of the AIDA program has been completed. Canada - British Columbia Operational Document for the Delivery of the Agricultural Income Disaster Assistance Program

Page 13 IN WITNESS THEREOF this Operational Document is duly executed by the authorized representatives of the Parties. WITNESS SIGNATURE DATE Managing Director Agricultural Income Disaster Assistance A• istration Minister of Agriculture and Food for British Columbia Canada - British Columbia Operational Document for the Delivery of the Agricultural Income Disaster Assistance Program

Page 14 LIST OF APPENDICES Appendix 1: Responsibility for Delivery of AIDA Appendix 2: Program Support Appendix 3: Verification Standards and Procedures Appendix 4: Cost Sharing of AIDA-Related Administrative Costs Appendix 5: Cost Sharing of AIDA-related Program Benefits Appendix 6: Reciprocal Data Sharing Appendix 7: Reconciliation of AIDA Contributions for a Claim Year Appendix 8A: Review of WFIP-Processed WFIP Applications Appendix 8B: Review of AIDA-Processed WFIP Applications LIST OF ATTACHMENTS Attachment 1: Data Fields for Sharing Between Federal & Provincial Administrators Canada - British Columbia Operational Document for the Delivery of the Agricultural Income Disaster Assistance Program

Page 15 APPENDIX 1 RESPONSIBILITY FOR DELIVERY.Iff AIDA The AIDA Administration shall be responsible for providing additional application processing as necessary for WFIP/AIDA applications from British Columbia, through its staff located in Alberta, in relation to the following program differences between AIDA and WFIP: 1. Differences in payment caps between WFIP and AIDA; 2. Differing treatments of Optional Inventory Adjustment (OIA)/Mandatory Inventory Adjustment (MIA) by the two programs (WFIP includes OIA/MIA in its verification of the reference period margin while AIDA does not.

For British Columbia WFIP/AIDA applications, AIDA shall adopt WFIP's verification process by including OIA/MIA); 3. Differing treatment of agricultural custom trucking income (AIDA includes agricultural custom trucking income in the program margin calculation while WFIP does not); 4. Minimum shareholder requirements for corporations (AIDA has minimum shareholder requirements for corporations while WFIP does not); 5.

Treatment of status Indians (WFIP requires that status Indians have filed tax returns during the reference and claim year periods to be eligible to apply for a payment under WFIP while AIDA does not require status Indians to have filed tax returns during either period); 6. Treatment of crop-share income (AIDA includes eligible crop-share income in the claim year and reference period program margins while WFIP excludes crop-share income from both periods); 7.

Treatment of negative program margins (AIDA includes negative margins in its claim and reference year program margins while WFIP zeros out negative margins in both the claim and reference years); 8. Administration fees (the WFIP program assesses an administration fee against WFIP applications while the AIDA program does not); 9.

Treatment of farm expansion (for the 1999 claim year, the AIDA program adjusts for farm expansion by adjusting the reference period margin; the WFIP program does not adjust for farm expansion in either the 1998 or 1999 claim years); Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 1: Responsibility for Delivery of AIDA

Page 16 10. Calculation of reference period margin (although both AIDA and WFIP use the same methodology to calculate the reference period margin, the fact that the two programs treat farm expansion differently can result in the programs calculating different reference period margins for the same applicant); 11. Treatment of family labour (for the 1999 claim year, the AIDA program includes family labour in all years of the reference period and claim year margin calculations. Conversely, the WFIP program does not include family labour in the reference and claim year margin calculations); 12. Inventory valuation (the WFIP program values commodities on the price list at 'end of year' prices

whereas AIDA values commodities at 'average' prices for the 1998 claim year and the applicant's choice of either 'beginning' and 'end of year' prices or just 'end of year' prices for the 1999 claim year). The specific process AIDA staff in Alberta shall follow in addressing each of these program differences shall be as agreed upon by the AIDA and WFIP Administrations and as documented to that effect by exchange of correspondence between the two organizations. Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix I: Responsibility for Delivery of AIDA

Page 17 APPENDIX 2 PROGRAM SUPPORI Toll-free Telephone Support: The AIDA Administration shall provide adequate toll-free telephone line support, in both official languages as required, to respond to all calls from British Columbia to the AIDA toll-free telephone line. AIDA toll-free staff shall be knowledgeable in the workings of the AIDA program, including its linkage to the NISA program.

In addition to being able to provide callers with current information regarding the AIDA program and caller-specific NISA information required for their WFIP/AIDA application, AIDA operators will be able to initiate a process whereby AIDA application forms, related schedules and materials requested by callers will be sent to them. Alternatively, if callers request forms specific to the WFIP program delivered in British Columbia, AIDA operators shall be able to direct these callers to the appropriate source of the information they are seeking.

British Columbia shall also make available a toll-free telephone line staffed by operators knowledgeable in the details of the WFIP program. In addition, these toll-free telephone line staff shall have some knowledge of the basic differences between the WFIP and AIDA programs and shall be able to direct callers who are requesting information specific to the AIDA program to the AIDA toll-free telephone lines.

In general, British Columbia toll-free staff shall respond to inquiries from British Columbia which are specific to the WFIP program, while AIDA toll-free staff shall respond to British Columbia questions which pertain to the national AIDA program. The extent to which these activities overlap shall be determined by mutual agreement of British Columbia and the AIDA Administration. British Columbia shall provide AIDA toll-free staff with speaking points regarding the WFIP program, which shall determine which questions AIDA staff answer and which they refer to the British Columbia toll-free line.

Conversely, AIDA shall provide British Columbia with speaking points concerning the AIDA program, which Shall determine which questions British Columbia staff answer and which they refer to the AIDA toll-free line. However, if callers requiring French language support call the British Columbia toll-free line, these calls shall be directed to the AIDA toll-free line to be responded to by AIDA French language toll-free support. The AIDA French language toll-free staff shall then obtain whatever information has been requested by the caller from WFIP staff before responding back to the caller in French.

Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 2: Program Support

Page 18 Internet Websites: The AIDA Administration shall provide, maintain, and update, in both official languages, an Internet website related to the AIDA program. In addition to explaining how AIDA is funded, how a payout is triggered and how AIDA is to be delivered in each province, the website shall also provide detailed, downloadable information on all aspects of the AIDA program. The website shall also provide a compilation of frequently asked questions and their answers and make available all AIDA application forms and an instructional guide.

As with other information on the website, the application forms and instructional guide shall be downloadable in several electronic formats. Alternatively, the website shall provide the capability for users to leave their name and mailing address and have information and forms mailed to them. Additionally, the website shall provide users with the capability of leaving comments or questions regarding the AIDA program, together with their email addresses, to which the AIDA Administration shall respond.

The AIDA website shall also provide links to various other federal government agricultural websites, as well as to any provincial agriculture website should the province request it. The British Columbia Ministry of Agriculture and Food Internet website shall provide information about the WFIP, including program guidelines, technical information, price information and downloadable applications and related forms. In addition, the provincial website shall provide a reciprocal link to the AIDA website.

Training: As agreed to on an 'as needed' basis by the AIDA and WFIP Administrations, AIDA and/or WFIP may provide instructional training to farmers, accountants and provincial agricultural staff to address three areas in the delivery of the AIDA program. These areas include awareness of the AIDA and WFIP programs, forms and guides instruction, and application verification. The extent to which any one of these types of training is provided in the province shall be as agreed to by the AIDA and WFIP Administrations, and shall take into account the target audience and the circumstances of the claim year in question.

Unless otherwise agreed to by the AIDA and WFIP Administrations, the party responsible for delivering the AIDA program in the province shall also be responsible for ensuring that the training requirements for a given claim year are provided for. Training shall be provided in both official languages as required by the target audience.

Meeting the training requirements for the province within a claim year may include, but shall not be limited to, organization of the training sessions, provision of instructors to make presentations at the training sessions, and provision of presentational and/or instructional materials in various forms. The extent and form of training to take place for a claim year, and who shall provide the various component parts of the training, Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 2: Program Support

Page 19 shall be as agreed to by the AIDA and WFIP Administrations and shall be documented by an exchange of correspondence to that effect between AIDA and WFIP. Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 2: Program Support

Page 20 APPENDIX 3 YERLEICATIONSTANDARDSAND_PROCEDURES 13. The AIDA and WFIP Administrations and their agents shall make every attempt to harmonize their verification and on-farm audit activities to ensure that all WFIP/AIDA participants are treated consistently ant equitably and that the program and payment approval principles outlined in

Schedule A of the Agreement are adhered to. Eligibility 14. The WFIP and AIDA Administrations, or their agents, shall develop and follow written procedures to confirm that the applicant has filed a tax return reporting farming income. Procedures may include, but are not limited to, obtaining appropriate documents such as copies of tax returns or equivalent data. Where practical, both Administrations and/or their agents shall coordinate their respective procedures in this regard to minimize duplication of effort. 15.

The WFIP and AIDA Administrations, or their agents, shall develop and follow written procedures by which the postmark date of each application received is compared to the claim year application deadline to identify those applications which were not mailed by the prescribed deadline. Where practical, both Administrations and/or their agents shall coordinate their respective procedures in this regard to minimize duplication of effort. 16.

The WFIP and AIDA Administrations, or their agents, shall develop and follow written procedures for corporate applicants to validate that each shareholder making a claim holds at least ten percent of the common (voting and non-voting) shares of the corporation and is actively participating in the day-to-day farming operations of the corporation. Where practical, both Administrations and/or their agents shall coordinate their respective procedures in this regard to minimize duplication of effort. 17.

In order to establish applicants' eligibility to apply to the WFIP/AIDA program for the current claim year, the WFIP and AIDA Administrations, or their agents, shall develop and follow written procedures in order to identify those applicants who have previously been deemed to be ineligible as a result of submitting false or misleading information for the purpose of receiving an. WFIP/AIDA payment. Where practical, both Administrations and/or their agents shall coordinate their respective procedures in this regard to minimize duplication of effon.

Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operationai Document Appendix 3: Verification Standards and Procedures

Page 21 18. In order to establish applicants' eligibility to apply to the WFIP/AIDA program for the current claim year, the WFIP and AIDA Administrations, or their agents, shall develop and follow written procedures by which applications are reviewed to confirm that a minimum of one production cycle was completed during the claim year or that circumstances existed during the claim year whereby applicants were unable to complete a production cycle for reasons beyond their control.

Where practical, both Administrations and/or their agents shall coordinate their respective procedures in this regard to minimize duplication of effort. Plausibility 19. The WFIP and AIDA Administrations, or their agents, shall develop and follow written procedures by which tests are conducted of the reasonableness, within tolerances, of applicants' information. These tests may include, but shall not be limited to, a comparison of applicants' reported revenue, production, purchases, input expenses and inventories, to industry or geographic averages.

The degree and timing of testing may vary to take into account reasonable tolerance levels based on the value of claims. Appropriate written procedures shall also be developed and implemented to contact applicants where additional information or clarification is required and to make any necessary corrections to an application. Where practical, both Administrations and/or their agents shall coordinate their respective procedures in this regard to minimize duplication of effort. 20.

The WFIP and AIDA Administrations, or their agents, shall develop and follow written procedures to undertake additional verification steps or tests where: 1. a greater risk for overpayment may exist, or 2. a reference margin must be established or adjusted. Applying additional verification steps or tests may be based on criteria which include, but shall not be limited to, the applicant's business structure, the type of transactions reported, the method of accounting used, and/or whether the applicant is entering or leaving the farming sector.

Appropriate written procedures shall also be developed and implemented by both Administrations or their agents to contact applicants where additional information or clarification is required and to make any necessary corrections to an application. Where practical, both Administrations and/or their agents shall coordinate their respective procedures with respect to additional verification steps and procedures to minimize duplication of effort. On-farm Audits 21.

The WFIP or AIDA Administrations, or their agents, shall undertake on-farm audits: 1. in order to create a visible verification presence; Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 3: Verification Standards and Procedures

Page 22 2. to gain assurance of the effectiveness of office-based verification procedures; and 3. to examine supporting documentation where office-based verification procedures are inconclusive or where a serious/material discrepancy has been identified. 22. The WFIP and AIDA Administrations' on-farm audits shall include, but not be limited to, an interview with the applicant(

s) and/or their representatives, a review of the pertinent books and records and, where required, a verification of information with third parties.

The on-farm audit shall also include, but not be limited to, verification techniques that: 1. substantiate sales, contract work and other income through a review of source documents, ledger entries, and/or bank statements; 2. substantiate purchases and expenses through a review of expense vouchers, cancelled cheques and/or ledger entries; 3. substantiate shareholdings through a review of corporation minutes or shareholder registers; 4. substantiate partnerships through a review of partnership agreements; and 5. substantiate the productive capacity of the farm for each of the claim and reference years in question.

Where practical, both Administrations and/or their agents shall coordinate their respective procedures in this regard to minimize duplication of effort. Review 23. As provided for in subsection 8.26 of the Agreement, the AIDA and WFIP Administrations shall have the right, at their own expense, to conduct a review of each other's verification and payment approval procedures in order to verify that these procedures and the resultant invoices submitted for applicants' claim payments are in accordance with the principles set out in

Schedule A of the Agreement. Staffing 24. The WFIP and AIDA Administrations agree to have any required verification work performed by persons having appropriate training and knowledge of accounting and auditing, farming operations and practices, and the rules governing the AIDA and WFIP programs. Confidentiality 25. The AIDA and WFIP Administrations agree to share information, on a reciprocal basis, pursuant to subsections 8.8 and 8.26 of the Agreement. Any information disclosed for this Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 3: Verification Standards and Procedures

Page 23 purpose shall be in accordance with the provisions of the Privacy Act and similar provincial legislation. 26. The WFIP and AIDA Administrations agree to have each employee who has access to the confidential information of an applicant read and sign a declaration document attesting that they are aware of the confidentiality requirements thereof and of the consequences of non-compliance. Security 27.

The WFIP and AIDA Administrations agree to protect information provided under this Operational Document with procedures equivalent to those listed in Revenue Canada-Taxation's Master Guidelines for the Protection of Information. Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 3: Verification Standards and Procedures

Page 24 APPENDIX 4 COSIMARINCUAIDA=RELATEDADMIMSTRATIVE COSTS A.

Definitions The following

definitions pertain to cost sharing and cost sharing submissions for AIDA-related administrative costs. 28. 'Claimant' means a party to the delivery of the AIDA program in the province who has incurred cost-shareable AIDA-related expenses and who is seeking reimbursement from the other party to the delivery of the AIDA program in the province. 29. 'Payer '2 means a party to the delivery of the AIDA program in the province who is being asked to reimburse the other party to the delivery of the AIDA program in the province for cost-shareable AIDA-related expenses the other party has incurred. 30. `Mutually-agreed-to' means that the parties to the AIDA Agreement, an AIDA Provincial Annex, or an AIDA Operational Document, as the case may be, have reached a documented, joint decision on a specific cost sharing issue.

In most cases, the claimant will be the party responsible for delivering the AIDA program in the province. However, a non-delivering party may also incur cost-shareable expenses and therefore be a claimant in certain instances. 2 In most cases, the payer will be the party to the Agreement in the province who is not delivering the AIDA program. However, in instances where the non-delivering party has also incurred cost-shareable AIDA-related expenses, the delivering party may also be considered to be a payer.

Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 4: Cost Sharing of AIDA-Related Administrative Costs

Page 25 31. 'AIDA program delivery systems' refers to AIDA-related administration structures and processes designed to: 1. Create awareness of the WFIP/AIDA programs and communicate' with potentially eligible applicants in order to solicit correctly completed applications for AIDA-related benefits; 2. Provide communication between AIDA and the Province in order to disseminate information about the federal AIDA initiative, resolve all cost sharing concerns, monitor compliance with same, and finalize all reimbursement request issues; 3.

Monitor the activities of, information systems maintained by, and the cost submissions prepared by the WFIP Administration or AIDA; 4. Answer applicants' questions about form completion issues; 5. Screen all completed applications; 6. Contact applicants to obtain missing information or to clarify confusing or contradictory applicant responses to previously requested information; 7. Review all 'screened in' applications; 8. Verify any application information whenever doing so is warranted by application circumstances (either through desk audit or field audit techniques); 9. Calculate AIDA-related benefits; 10.

Process payments to AIDA-eligible WFIP applicants and/or reject ineligible or incomplete applications; 11. Record and track all eligible AIDA-related benefit payments and administration costs; 12. Prepare cost reimbursement submissions/invoices; 13. Audit cost reimbursement submissions; and 14.

Hire, train and manage staff needed to perform eligible AIDA-related delivery functions. 32. 'Incremental resources' refers to the cost of additional capital asset resources acquired by a claimant after December 1, 1998 in order to develop or operate mutually-agreed-to AIDA 3 This may occur through the use of information meetings conducted

b) trained WFIP/AIDA experts, telephone call centres, multi- or bilateral advertisements in print and/or electronic media, Internet websites, compact disc recordings and printed guides. Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 4: Cost Sharing of AIDA-Related Administrative Costs

Page 26 program delivery systems. These costs shall not include the costs of capital assets transferred from a claimant's excess capital asset pool ur capital assets redeployed from existing claimant initiatives. 33. In relation to operating and fixed asset costs, the term 'program delivery activities f 0 refers to those activities which were undertaken after December 1, 1998 in order to develop, implement, operate or monitor mutually-agreed-to AIDA program delivery systems, or to track costs incurred in relation to such systems.

Program delivery activities may also include preparing reimbursement requests for processed AIDA-related applicant payments, or for the costs incurred in developing, implementing, operating, monitoring and tracking the mutually-agreed-to AIDA program delivery systems, or to audit such submitted AIDA-related reimbursement requests. 4 Program delivery activities do not include activities associated with policy development and/or review, overall program planning, federal-provincial negotiations required to obtain signed multi- or bi- lateral cost sharing agreements (including discussions and meetings designed to familiarize parties with other parties' view points) or the design and ongoing operation of administration systems not readily identifiable with the development and delivery of eligible AIDA-related benefits to eligible applicants.

Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 4: Cost Sharing of AIDA-Related Administrative Costs

Page 27 34. 'Out-of-pocket costs is incurred by the claimant responsible for the administration of the AIDA program in the province refers to the actual amount incurred by the claimant for eligible personnel costs and for purchases of goods and services from third parties. 5 Eligible out-of-pocket costs shall only include purchases of goods and services required to deliver the AIDA program in the province. No charges shall be made for staff, services or materials provided free of charge to (or by) the claimant.

Out-of-pocket costs can only be the actual amount which a claimant has paid to its employees, or suppliers of material and services. There shall not be any profit margins, contributions to overhead, or imputed costs built into these amounts. Distributions of out-oi-p,x-ket costs common to several claimant programs shall be reasonable in terms of the manner in which WFIP/AIDA is administered, as well as being verifiable and supported by appropriate information management systems that are based upon formal management approval processes.

If out-of-pocket costs for the WFIP/AIDA program are based upon a system that relies upon cost estimates and projections, these estimates and projections shall be adjusted to actual payment amounts. If a claimant administers the delivery of another claimant's AIDA initiative, and does not charge the latter for its services, then the former shall be allowed to claim the eligible administrative costs it incurred on behalf of both itself and the other claimant for whom it is delivering the AIDA program. The claimant benefiting from this method of service delivery shall not be allowed to claim these costs.

If the claimant contracted to deliver the AIDA program on behalf of another charges the latter for doing so, then all monies recovered by it for doing so must be netted against its previously incurred, eligible out- Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 4: Cost Sharing of AIDA-Related Administrative Costs

Page 28 35. 'Common or shared costs' mean those administrative expenses, the share of which cannot be specifically identified as relating to the AIDA or WFIP programs. 36. 'Charged directly to' means that the claimant shall identify all expenses which specifically pertain to each program (or programs) that it was administering at the time the expenses were incurred. The claimant shall also record expenses which are clearly identifiable with a specific program or group of programs in separate general ledger expense accounts.

Such amounts shall not be included in any reported "common" (i.e., shared) costs. of-pocket costs. In such a case, the claimant paying for this service shall be allowed to report the amount it paid for this service delivery process as its own out-of-pocket costs. Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 4: Cost Sharing of AIDA-Related Administrative Costs

Page 29 37. 'Reasonable allocation f6 means the portion of a claimant's common or shared expenses which were consumed by the AIDA-related program. The claimant shall only allocate expenses to the WFIP/AIDA program for which it can provide verifiable documentation or independent studies which support that the amount allocated reflects the WFIP/AIDA program's share of such costs. B. Cost Sharing Guidelines The following guidelines shall be adhered to with respect to cost sharing of AIDA-related administrative costs: 38.

In general, only out-of-pocket costs incurred by an AIDA delivery party in a province to deliver AIDA-related benefits to WFIP applicants in the province shall be eligible for cost-sharing. The implications of this guideline are set out in item #1 of Implications of Cost Sharing Guidelines in this Appendix. 39.

Costs of services normally provided free of charge to the claimant, or the costs of services associated with claimant employees other than those directly employed in the WFIP/AIDA program, are eligible for cost sharing provided that these costs have been identified in the Operational Document and have been accepted by the payer. 40.

For the purpose of this Operational Document, any remuneration paid to the members of mutually-agreed-upon (in writing) claimant committees' shall be considered an eligible administrative expense. 6 It is anticipated that the major allocated WFIP/AIDA program expense will relate to payroll costs. Consequently, all common or shared expenses of the claimant may be allocated to the WFIP/AIDA program in the same proportion as the claimant's cost-shareable WFIP/AIDA program payroll costs relative to its total payroll costs.

If the claimant wishes to allocate other shared expenses on any other basis, verifiable documentation shall be required to support such allocation. The WFIP/AIDA application review committee(

s) would qualify as such (

a) claimant committee(s). Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 4: Cost Sharing of AIDA-Related Administrative Costs

Page 30 41. Prior to March of each fiscal year, or accompanying the initial claim for AIDA-related administrative cost sharing, a claimant shall submit written, annual "administration" budgets to the payer showing expenditure projections for all categories of eligible AIDA-related administrative costs and revenues. The implications of this guideline are set out in item #2 of Implications of Cost Sharing Guidelines in this Appendix. 42. Payers reserve the right to offset their cost reimbursement obligations to a claimant with any eligible administration costs they incur.

Claimants retain the right to audit any such costs used by payers to offset their requests for reimbursement. The implications of this guideline are set out in item #3 of Implications of Cost Sharing Guidelines in this Appendix. 43. The reporting cycle for AIDA-related administrative costs shall be on a fiscal (March 3l") basis rather than on a calendar (December 31') basis. The implications of this guideline are set out in item #4 of Implications of Cost Sharing Guidelines in this Appendix. 44.

Prior to March of each fiscal year, or accompanying the initial claim for AIDA-related administrative cost sharing, a claimant shall submit in writing, for the payer's approval, a description of the methodology to be used by the claimant to apportion any common administrative costs and administrative revenue between the various programs to be administered by the claimant in the following fiscal year. 45.

Each party to the delivery of the AIDA program in the province shall submit periodic reports and reimbursement submissions to the other AIDA funding party in the province, invoicing them for their share of its payments towards eligible AIDA-related administration costs. The implications of this guideline are set out in item #5 of Implications of Cost Sharing Guidelines in this Appendix. 46.

When allocating the cost of operating and incremental fixed asset resource use to mutually-agreed-to AIDA-related program delivery activities, it is only necessary to separate the cost of acquiring the operating and incremental fixed asset resources into two groups: 1. Cost-shareable (mutually-agreed-to) AIDA-related program delivery activities; and 2. All other non-cost-shareable AIDA-related activities and to report the amounts applicable to each group s.

It is not necessary to allocate operating and incremental fixed asset resource use on an individual Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 4: Cost Sharing of AIDA-Related Administrative Costs

Page 31 47. No amount shall be contributed by a payer under this Operational Document for capital expenditures on equipment, machinery or vehicles greater than $100,000 total cost without the payer's prior written approval. 48.

Any administration fees the WFIP Administration may wish to charge applicants shall be used solely to offset the Province's share of the costs of administering the WFIP/AIDA program in the Province and should not be applied against any of the administration costs for which it is seeking reimbursement in accordance with the cost sharing formula documented in the multi-lateral Agreement and Provincial Annex. 49.

Payer contributions towards a claimant's AIDA-related administrative costs may be withheld or denied on amounts in dispute until the issues related to their eligibility under the Agreement or this Operational Document are resolved. The implications of this guideline are set out in item #6 and item #7 of Implications of Cost Sharing Guidelines in this Appendix. C. Implications of Cost Sharing Guidelines It is agreed that the application of the preceding guidelines to cost sharing of AIDA-related administrative costs shall have the following imp'ications: `activity by activity' basis.

Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 4: Cost Sharing of AIDA-Related Administrative Costs

Page 32 50. In relation to the cost sharing of out-of-pocket costs (guideline #1), administrative salary payments shall only be eligible for reimbursement if the salary payments pertain to the utilization of the staff needed to deliver AIDA-related benefits to WFIP applicants9.

The cost sharing eligibility of AIDA-related administration costs shall be limited to: 1. the out-of-pocket costs incurred by ep,e claimant responsible for the administration of the AIDA program in the province that were directly charged to the WFIP/AIDA program insofar as: 9 Administrative salary payments for staff used to develop WFIP/AIDA program policies, negotiate federal-provincial cost sharing arrangements, or manage, on an ongoing basis, processes not related to the provision of AIDA-related program benefits to applicants, are not eligible for reimbursement.

Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 4: Cost Sharing of AIDA-Related Administrative Costs

Page 33 1. Payroll and related payroll benefits for claimant personnel working on the administration of the WFIP/AIDA program. Eligible costs for this category would include Canada Pension Plan contributions, Employment Insurance contributions, severance payments'', holiday pay, "vested" superannuation contributions, and insurance plan premiums. To be eligible for reimbursement, these contributions must be funded and can only pertain to employee service which matches the AIDA program's delivery time frames; 2.

Payments to third parties for travel, vehicle rentals, mileage allowances, vehicle insurance premiums, postage, freight, express and telecommunication services; 3. Payments to third parties for the development and preparation of audio-visual and print advertising materials, the recording, filming, printing of advertising copy, public relations, and promotional materials"; 4.

Third party payments for purchased services'', the maintenance of previously developed client services/accounting systems to the extent their benefits apply to AIDA, audit and program evaluation fees, fees paid to operate WFIP/AIDA enquiry call centres, fees paid to process WEEP applications, fees paid to agricultural WFIP/AIDA specialists and fees paid to engage informatics specialists; 5. Third party payments for the rental of office accommodation, furnishings and equipment, telecommunications and informatics equipment, vehicles; 6.

Third party payments for utilities, materials, consumable supplies, publications, and office supplies, as long as each such item costs less than $1,500 : 7. Third party payments for the repair and maintenance of computer, office equipment, telecommunications equipment, office accommodations, furnishings and vehicles (if not included as part of a mileage allowance); 8.

Depreciation" of all non-capital asset purchases in excess of $1,500 and amortizations" of all leasehold improvements"; and 10 Severance payments must have been made in accordance with collective agreements and/or employment contracts which are consistent with established claimant policies and which were for terminations intended to further the operational needs of the claimant as it relates to the delivery of the AIDA program.

II T he underlying objective for this advertising and promotion must be exclusively related to public information and WFIP/AIDA program awareness. 12 i.e., legal expenses necessary for the ongoing administration of WFIP/AIDA, the development of mutually agreeable ad hoc AIDA-related client service and accounting systems at a cost in excess of $1,500 and the benefits of which are not transferrable to other claimant programs. in accordance with rates that are reflective of the shorter of the expected life of the AIDA Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 4: Cost Sharing of AIDA-Related Administrative Costs

Page 34 program or the non-capital asset purchase. 14 • in accordance with rates that are reflective of the shorter of the expected life of the AIDA program or the leasehold improvement. 15 This means that, except as provided for above with respect to third party payments for purchased services (such as systems development), capital outlays for equipment, vehicles, and leasehold improvements are not eligible for reimbursement under AIDA Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 4: Cost Sharing of AIDA-Related Administrative Costs

Page 35 9. Third party payments insofar as any other expenditures whose eligibility has been approved in writing (via the Provincial Annex and/or this Operational Document) by all participants to the AIDA process. 2. A reasonable allocation of the out-of-pocket costs to the claimant of common or shared costs for: 1. Payroll and benefits of claimant personnel working in part on the administration of the WFIP/AIDA program; 2. Payroll and benefits of other provincial personnel working in part on the administration of the WFIP/A1DA program; 3. Travel, postage, freight, express and long distance communications; 4.

Advertising, publishing, printing, audio-visual and public relations; 5. Legal expenses, computer system development, actuarial services, audit and evaluation; 6. Rental of office accommodation and equipment; 7. Utilities, materials and supplies; 8. Repair and maintenance of equipment; 9. Personnel and travel expenses related to the administration of the WFIP/AIDA program; and 10.

Other "mutually agreed upon" (in writing) expenditures; 3. charges representing the fair market value of accommodations which are specifically authorized in writing by the payer; 4. such other amounts as are specifically authorized in writing by the payer; and 5. federal GST for the goods and services listed above (net of any applicable input tax credits and/or rebates) and any other taxes described in this Operational Document between a claimant and a payer. 51.

In relation to the submission of administrative budgets (guideline #4), both the AIDA delivery party as well as the non-delivering party (incurring offsetting expenses) shall submit such budgets to the other respective party for review. After a payer has obtained any necessary clarification about the budget's contents, and provided the payer finds the budget to be acceptable, both parties shall formally approve the finalized "administration" budget for the fiscal period in question. 52.

In relation to payer submissions for offsetting expenses (guideline #5), monies spent by the AIDA cost sharing party not making direct AIDA-related benefit payments (other than Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 4: Cost Sharing of AIDA-Related Administrative Costs

Page 36 those attributable to WFIP/AIDA program differences) to acquire both operating and incremental fixed asset resources in order to deliver AIDA-related benefits to applicants shall be: 1. Clearly defined by the payer in the administrative budget they submit to the claimant prior to March 1st of each fiscal year in terms that describe the nature of the offsetting expense, its AIDA-related purpose, cost sharing eligibility, timing and budgetary limitations; 2. 'Mutually -agreed-to' by both parties to the AIDA program in the province in terms of the foregoing; 3. Subject to audit; and 4.

Formally accepted by a claimant through a signed letter approving the payer's administrative budget for offsetting costs before the payer is able to use them to offset the claimant's submitted reimbursement request. For example, AIDA may wish to submit as offsetting expenses to the WFIP Administration's submitted reimbursement requests costs which AIDA has incurred to acquire operating resources and incremental fixed asset resources to deliver the following AIDA-related services: a. Creating awareness of the AIDA program and disseminating AIDA-related information in the province; b.

Discussing and resolving AIDA-/WFIP-related management issues; c. Monitoring the WFIP/AIDA delivery activities of the WFIP Administration; d. Auditing the WFIP Administration's requests for reimbursement; e. Other activities agreed to by both parties. 53.

In relation to the reporting cycle (guideline #6), and in order to avoid any time management conflicts that may arise by having the annual attest audit conducted concurrently with ongoing producer application processing, the following time frames and deadlines shall be adhered to: Reporting of Administrative Costs by Fiscal Period Fiscal Period 1 (December 1, 1998 to March 31, 2000) includes costs associated with: a. 1998 claim year processing; and b. 1999 interim payment processing, if applicable.

Fiscal Period 2 (April 1, 2000 to March 31, 2001) includes costs associated with: a. 1998 claim year processing; and b. 1999 claim year processing. Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 4. Cost Sharing of AIDA-Related Administrative Costs

Page 37 Fiscal Period 3 (April 1, 2001 to March 31, 2002) includes costs associated with: a. Any remaining 1998 claim year processing; and b. 1999 claim year processing. Deadlines for Invoicing, Audit and Final Settlement of Administrative Costs For Fiscal Period 1 (December 1, 1998 to March 31, 2000): a. Final Submission/Invoice: July 31, 2000 b. Audit Report: October 31, 2000 c. Final Settlement: December 31, 2000 For Fiscal Period 2 (April 1, 2000 to March 31, 2001): a. Final Submission/Invoice: July 31, 2001 b. Audit Report: October 31, 2001 c.

Final Settlement: December 31, 2001 For Fiscal Period 3 (April 1, 2001 to March 31, 2002): a. Final Submission/Invoice: July 31, 2002 b. Audit Report: October 31, 2002 c. Final Settlement: December 31, 2002 When warranted by WFIP/AIDA delivery operating plans, and provided both parties to the AIDA program in the province agree, the aforementioned reporting periods and deadlines may be amended as required. 54. In relation to reporting and reimbursement requirements for AIDA-related administrative costs (guideline #8): 1. The party delivering AIDA in the province shall submit: 1.

Interim quarterly reports and cost sharing submissions (from April to December), invoicing the other AIDA funding party for their share of the AIDA delivery party's payments towards eligible administration costs; 2. Interim monthly reports and cost sharing submissions (from January to March), invoicing the other AIDA funding party for their share of the AIDA delivery party's payments towards eligible administration costs; and 3.

A final annual report and submission ("for the fiscal year ended") invoicing the other AIDA funding party for their share of the AIDA delivery party's program payments towards eligible administration costs. Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 4: Cost Sharing of AIDA-Related Administrative Costs

Page 38 When warranted by WFIP/AIDA delivery operating plans, the foregoing reporting/invoicing requirements may be amended as required by an exchange of correspondence wherein both parties agree to the proposed change. 2. If the funding party not delivering the AIDA program in the province incurs any cost-shareable offsetting AIDA--elated administrative expenses, it may, if it so chooses, submit reports and invoices to the delivering party (for its share of these offsetting administrative expenses) on a less frequent basis than is required of the delivering party.

The non-delivering party shall make its intentions with respect to frequency of reporting and invoicing of offsetting administrative expenses known to the delivering party at the beginning of each fiscal year. 3. Unless waived by mutual written agreement of the parties involved, payment of invoiced amounts for co.3t-shareable AIDA-related administrative expenses by a payer is due ninety (90) days after receipt of the invoice and all supporting documentation in accordance with the Agreement and this Operational Document. 4.

In order to facilitate timely reporting and the development of a quality assurance process for the AIDA program nationally, the following steps may be undertaken: 1. An initial visit may be undertaken by a funding party (payer) to the AIDA delivery party (claimant) in the province to develop contacts, to assess the extent of the delivering party's knowledge about any companion program(

s) applicable to the AIDA program, to acquire/make arrangements to receive any claimant information necessary to understand claimant submissions, and to clarify and/or resolve any outstanding issues; 2. The ongoing payer monitoring of the electronic information supplied by a claimant with its monthly submissions; 3.

Quarterly visits to a claimant (if deemed necessary by the initial visit and/or monitoring of a claimant's electronic information) to discuss issues, confirm concerns (via the use of a randomly selected 'attributes' statistical sample), and quantify the significance of these concerns (via the use of a randomly selected `variables' statistical sample); 4. Yearly attest audits (which may be on a fiscal year basis) of all interim, monthly and final, fiscal year submissions by an independent external auditor.

Representatives of the independent, external auditor may accompany a payer's quality assurance representatives on some or all of their visits to a claimant in order to facilitate the attest audit process and reduce the cost of its completion. 55. In relation to cost sharing eligibility disagreements (guideline #12), the parties to this Operational Document shall establish a process to provide prompt resolution to these issues Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 4: Cost Sharing of AIDA-Related Administrative Costs

Page 39 so that appropriate cost sharing of AIDA-related administrative expenses is not unnecessarily delayed. An Issue Resolution Committee (IRC), to be composed of appropriate officials from AIDA and British Columbia, may be established to provide such a process. Where possible, a claimant shall expedite the issue resolution process by identifying potential application-related eligibility/cost sharing issues to the payer rather than putting the sinus on a payer to identify them. These issues shall then be referred to the IRC, or other WFIP/AIDA issue resolution process in the province, for timely resolution.

All agreed-upon decisions on these issues shall then be documented and recorded by both parties to the Operational Document for future reference and use in relation to the administration of the AIDA program in British Columbia as well as in other provinces. As may be required, the payer's AIDA monitoring function or the independent, external auditor hired to express an opinion on cost sharing submissions may also bring such issues to the attention of the IRC or other issue resolution process for resolution. 56.

In relation to cost sharing eligibility disagreements (guideline #12) and further to item #6 above, if a claimant includes unsupported, unverifiable administrative cost prorations in any of its monthly cost sharing submissions, external audit shall be instructed to initiate the following process: I . Document the issue and bring it to the attention of the IRC or other issue resolution mechanism for resolution in a time frame that allows the attest auditor to comply with his/her reporting deadline; 2. Include all costs deemed by these officials to be AIDA-eligible in 'audited amounts'; 3.

Exclude from audited amounts (by a recommended adjustment to submitted amounts) all costs deemed by these officials to be AIDA-ineligible; and 4. Exclude from audited amounts (by setting aside for payer decision) all costs whose status was not resolved by these officials within the required time frame. D. Required Elements of a Request for Contribution to Administrative Expenses Claimant submissions for contribution to AIDA-related administrative costs shall include the following information: 57. Claim Number: The number which the claimant assigns to the particular claim being submitted to the payer.

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Page 40 58. Claimant: The name of the AIDA-related party submitting a claim for reimbursement. 59. Period Covered: The period which a particular claim covers. Specifically, this shall include: From: the specified starting date for the AIDA program, or one day later than the ending date of the previous claim submitted; and To: a specific ending date. 60. Date: The date the claim was prepared, 61. Cost Categories' 16 Each of the following cost categories shall be broken down by sub-program (i.e., all "like" programs identified as "AIDA eligible" in province-specific arrangements).

The basis for any such distribution shall be pre-negotiated or transparent, verifiable, and "payer pre-approved". If a claimant distributes the cost of its administration activities to several programs (such as Crop Insurance, GRIP - RPC and Waterfowl) including AIDA, the basis for this distribution shall be transparent, verifiable, and "payer pre-approved". If deemed prudent and/or cost effective, and if previously agreed to by the claimant and the payer, such distributions can be made in accordance with documented formulae and/or percentages.

Both the details and the total of all amounts so distributed shall be reported in "category-specific" appendices to the monthly (or other agreed-to reporting time frame) claims, but only the "AIDA eligible" amount shall be carried forward to the periodic claim. Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 4: Cost Sharing of AIDA-Related Administrative Cnsts

Page 41 I. Personnel Costs This category shall include all wage payments to staff specifically employed to deliver AIDA-related program benefits to applicants, as well as related fringe benefit costs incurred during the claim period. These payments shall only pertain to the administration of WFIP/AIDA and may include wages, benefits and remuneration (such as honorariums) paid to Board members. 2. Transportation & Communication Costs This category shall include out-of-pocket amounts paid out towards transportation and communication costs incurred during the claim period.

These payments shall only pertain to the administration of WFIP/AIDA and represent payments for: Canada - British Columbia AMA Operational Document Appendix 4: Cost Sharing of AIDA-Related Administrative Costs

Page 42 1. staff and/or contractor travel; 2. staff and/or contractor relocations; 3. vehicles rented for staff and/or contractor use; 4. mileage allowances paid to staff and/or contractors; 5. postage; 6. freight, express, and cartage; 7. telecommunication services (including local exchange, long distance, and cellular); and 8. payments for other unspecified transportation and communications costs (for which written pre-approval by the payer is required). 3. Advertising and Promotion Costs This category shall include out-of-pocket amounts paid for advertising and promotion costs incurred during the claim period.

These payments, whose objective must be to create public awareness and disseminate program knowledge about WFIP and/or AIDA, shall only pertain to the administration of WFIP/AIDA and represent payments for: 1. the development and preparation of audio-visual and print advertising materials; 2. the recording, filming, and/or printing of advertising copy; 3. public relations services; 4. promotional materials; and 5. payments for other unspecified advertising and promotion costs (which have been pre-approved by the payer). 4.

Purchased Services This category shall include out-of-pocket amounts paid out for purchased services (contract or otherwise) incurred during the claim period.

These payments shall only pertain to the administration of WFIP/AIDA and represent payments for: 1. legal expenses necessary for its ongoing administration; 2. the development of ad hoc AIDA-related client service and accounting systems (the benefits of which are not transferrable to other claimant programs); 3. the maintenance of previously developed client services/accounting systems, to the extent their benefits apply to AIDA; 4. accounting, audit and program evaluation fees; 5. fees paid to operate WFIP/AIDA enquiry call centres; 6. fees paid to process WFIP applications; Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 4: Cost Sharing of AIDA-Related Administrative Costs

Page 43 7. fees paid to agricultural WFIP/AIDA specialists; 8. fees paid to engage informatics specialists; and 9. fees paid to perform other unspecified (but payer pie-approved) administration activities. 5. Rentals of Accommodation and Equipment This category shall include out-of-pocket amounts paid out due to leases for office accommodation and equipment whose use is required by AIDA-related administrative personnel and/or contractors during the claim period.

These payments must represent payments for: 1. office accommodation; 2. office furnishings and equipment; 3. telecommunications equipment; 4. informatics equipment; 5. vehicles required for time frames longer than a single field trip; and 6. payments for other unspecified (but payer pre-approved) rental costs. 6. Repairs and Maintenance This category shall include out-of-pocket amounts paid out for repair and maintenance services incurred during the claim period.

These payments shall only pertain to the administration of WFIP/AIDA and represent payments for repairs to, or maintenance on: 1. owned/leased computer and office equipment; 2. owned/leased telecommunications equipment; 3. owned/leased office furnishings; 4. owned/leased office space; 5. owned/leased vehicles if an allowance for same is not provided for via in-house charge-out rates; and 6. payments for other unspecified (but payer pre-approved) repair and maintenance costs. 7. Utilities This category shall include out-of-pocket amounts paid out for utility services incurred during the claim period.

These payments shall only pertain to the administration of WFIP/AIDA and represent payments for: Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 4: Cost Sharing of AIDA-Related Administrative Costs

Page 44 Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 4: Cost Sharing of AIDA-Related Administrative Costs

Page 45 1. heat; 2. power; 3. water; and 4. payments for other unspecified (but payer-approved) utility costs. 8. Materials and Supplies This category shall include out-of-pocket amounts paid out for material and supplies purchased during the claim period.

These payments shall only pertain to the administration of WFIP/AIDA and represent payments for: 1. office supplies; 2. purchased computer software costing less than $1,500 per license to a maximum of 10 licenses per claimant (payer authorization is required for purchases in excess of these limits); 3. publications; 4. consumable supplies"; 5. non-consumable supplies" costing less than $1,500 per item; and 6. payments for other unspecified (but payer pre-approved) materials and supplies. 9.

Taxes This category shall include out-of-pocket amounts paid out for taxes remitted to federal and provincial governments during the claim period. These payments, which must pertain to the administration of WFIP/AIDA, are only eligible for reimbursement to the extent that they are covered by reciprocal agreements on taxation.

Any tax payments not covered by such agreements shall not be reimbursable". 17 e.g., printer toner cartridges. 18 e.g., fax machines, paper shredders. cellular phones. 19 The reason for this is that while such payments represent an incurred cost to the department that delivers the AIDA program, they also represent revenue to its Department of Finance. Consequently, Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 4: Cost Sharing of AIDA-Related Administrative Costs

Page 46 10. Interest Expense, Penalties, and Bad Debt Write-offs they do not represent an out-of-pocket cost to the party. Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 4: Cost Sharing of AIDA-Related Administrative Costs

Page 47 This category shall include out-of-pocket amounts paid out for interest charges, penalties, and write-offs of uncollectible accounts receivable during the claim period. Interest charges for late payments to suppliers and for imputed interest income losses due to payer payments which are overdue (by less than 91 days) shall not be eligible for reimbursement under the AIDA program'. The same applies to any penalties charged by suppliers and others.

With respect to uncollectible accounts receivable, if they pertain to unsuccessful attempts to recover overpaid (but otherwise eligible) administrative costs, they shall not be eligible for reimbursement since each party to the Agreement is responsible for its own administrative processes. If the uncollectible accounts receivable pertain to overpayments to producers, the write-off of same shall not be eligible as an item of administrative expense; however, it may be eligible as a direct producer payment21. 11.

Capital Purchases Whose Installed Cost Is Under $100,000 Eligible out-of-pocket capital purchases during the claim period (for which depreciation/amortization costs may be claimed) include computer and office 20 The rationale for this position is that the onus is on a claimant to be responsible for its own administrative processes. 21 In order for an account receivable for an overpayment to a producer to be eligible as a direct producer payment, the claimant must have documented systems in place (which have been reviewed and accepted by a payer) to prevent, detect and collect overpayments arising from payments initially processed as "AIDA eligible", but subsequently found not to be eligible.

These systems would include application verification prior to payment, post payment monitoring and audit, and overpayment recovery action. Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 4: Cost Sharing of AIDA-Related Administrative Costs

Page 48 equipment, telecommunications equipment, office accommodation, office furnishings, leasehold improvements, and vehicles whose ownerships costs are not included as part of an "in-house" charge-out rate. Such purchases shall not require pre-approval by a payer. Depreciation/amortization on capital purchases by a claimant prior to the start up of the AIDA program in the Province shall not be eligible for reimbursement 22. Depreciation/amortization charges for eligible capital purchases (reduced by any residual value estimates) shall be calculated on a straight line basis over their useful life.

The asset classes, and the rates applicable to them, are as follows: 1. Computers and Office Equipment 5 years 2. Telecommunications Equipment 5 years 3. Office Accommodation 25 years 4. Office Furnishings 10 years 5. Leasehold Improvements 10 years 6. Vehicles 5 years For reasons of "program management simplicity", capital gains and/or losses on any capital asset disposals made prior to the expiration of the assets' estimated useful life, and/or the termination of the AIDA initiative (whichever comes first), shall not be eligible for reimbursement. 12.

Capital Purchases Whose Installed Cost Is $100,000 or Greater 22 This is because such costs are not incremental; they represent the utilization of excess claimant capacity or reflect a claimant decision to defer the start up or completion of some other initiative(

s) and transfer those resources to AIDA. In so doing, a claimant is not out-of-pocket these amounts; it has merely deferred working on lower priority needs. Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 4: Cost Sharing of AIDA-Related Administrative Costs

Page 49 Except for the requirement that cost sharing eligibility for all claimant capital asset purchases with an installed cost of $100,000 or greater must have the payer's prior written approval, there are no other differences between the treatment of capital asset purchases whose installed cost is $100,000 or greater and capital asset purchases whose installed cost is less than $100,000. 13. Mark-ups, Overhead, Cost Estimates, Budget Allocations, and Imputed Costs Charges for mark-ups, overhead, cost estimates, budget allocations and imputed costs shall not be eligible for rcimbursement 23. 62.

Total Administration Costs: This amount is the sum of all the previously referred to administrative cost category items (5a through 5m inclusive), reported in a cost sharing submission. 63. Recoveries and Vote Refunds: Overpayment recoveries and vote refunds (expenditure cancellations) recorded in the claimant's " public accounts" records as being applicable to WFIP/AIDA administrative processes, and any investment income earned on monies advanced to the Province towards its direct WFIP/AIDA payments to applicants for 1998, shall be recorded here.

Any administration fees recovered from WFIP applicants by a provincial claimant shall not be included in this amount. 64. Adjustments: This amount is the sum of all previously reported costs reported under administrative cost categories 5a through 5m inclusive, as well as any costs which are applicable to: 1. other cost sharing initiatives and/or submissions; 2. processing payments to ineligible WFIP/AIDA applicants; or 3. provincial program initiatives 2 However, these amounts should be reported in order to facilitate reconciliations between recorded claimant "public accounts" expenditures and submitted amounts.

Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 4: Cost Sharing of AIDA-Related Administrative Costs

Page 50 65. Total Recoveries and Adjustments: This amount is the sum of Recoveries and Vote Refunds (item 7) and Adjustments (item 8). 66. Net Amount Claimed: This amount is the sum of Total Administration Costs (item 6) and Total Recoveries and Adjustments (item 9). 67. Amount Payable: The amount submitted for payment by a payer shall be: 1. 60% of the Net Amount Claimed (item 10), if the claimant is a provincial government; or 2. 40% of the Net Amount Claimed (item 10), if the claimant is the Federal government. 68. Certification: 1. The certification

section shah indicate that: 1. Amounts included as cost shareable AIDA-related administrative costs are in compliance with the Agreement and this Operational Document; 2. Any other amounts (not clearly identified as cost shareable in the aforementioned agreements) included in the claim for cost sharing are identified separately in the claim and the claimant records supporting it; and 3. The claimant has accounting records and a system of internal controls which are adequate to provide reasonable assurance that the claim for cost sharing is in compliance with the aforementioned agreements and to substantiate the claim if necessary. 2. The certification

section shall include the signature and title of the senior administrative officer responsible for the cost sharing claim. Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 4. Cost Sharing of AIDA-Related Administrative Costs

Page 51 69. Public Accounts Transactions Details: The following information shall be included in an electronic file: 1. Payment Voucher document reference numbers 2. Payment Voucher dates 3. Cheque reference numbers 4. Cheque issue date 5. Journal Voucher reference numbers 6. Journal Voucher dates 7. Transaction amounts (indicate if positive or negative) 8. Payee names 9. Journal Voucher descriptions 10. Public Accounts expenditure/revenue distribution codes 11. Public Accounts expenditure/revenue distribution coding manuals Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 4: Cost Sharing of AIDA-Related Administrative Costs

Page 52 APPENDIX 5 COSISHARINGDEAIDA:RELATED PROGRAM BENEFITS A. Cost Sharing Guidelines The following guidelines shall be adhered to with respect to cost sharing of AIDA-related benefit payments: 70. The reporting cycle for AIDA-related benefit payments shall be on a fiscal (March 31') basis rather than on a calendar (December 31') basis. The implications of this guideline are set out in item #1 of Implications of Cost Sharing Guidelines in this Appendix. 71.

A party responsible for issuing AIDA-related benefit payments in the province shall submit periodic reports and reimbursement submissions to the other AIDA funding party in the province, invc icing them for their share of the AIDA-related benefit payments it has issued. The implications of this guideline are set out in item #2 of Implications of Cost Sharing Guidelines in this Appendix. 72.

Payer contributions towards a claimant's direct AIDA-rclated benefit payments may be withheld or denied on amounts in dispute until the issues related to their eligibility under the Agreement or this Operational Document are resolved. Any such cost sharing disputes shall be referred to the same issue resolution process established to address cost sharing issues related to AIDA administrative costs. B. Implications of Cost Sharing Guidelines It is agreed that the application of the preceding guidelines to cost sharing of AIDA-related benefit payments shall have the following implications: 73.

In relation to the reporting cycle ("guideline #1), and in order to avoid any time management conflicts that may arise by having the annual attest audit conducted concurrently with ongoing producer application processing, the following time frames and deadlines shall be adhered to: Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 5: Cost Sharing of AIDA-Related Program Benefits

Page 53 Reporting of Direct Producer Payments by Fiscal Period Fiscal Period 1 (December 1, 1998 to March 31, 2000) includes payments associated with: a. 1998 claim year processing; and b. 1999 interim payment processing, if applicable. Fiscal Period 2 (April 1, 2000 to March 31, 2001) includes payments associated with: a. 1998 claim year processing; and b. 1999 claim year processing. Fiscal Period 3 (April 1, 2001 to March 31, 2002) includes payments associated with: a. Any remaining 1998 claim year processing; and b. 1999 claim year processing.

Deadlines for Invoicing, Audit and Final Settlement of Direct Producer Payments For Fiscal Period 1 (December 1, 1998 to March 31, 2000): a. Final Submission/Invoice: July 31, 2000 b. Audit Report: October 31, 2000 c. Final Settlement: December 31, 2000 For Fiscal Period 2 (April 1, 2000 to March 31, 2001): a. b. c. Final Submission/Invoice: Audit Report: Final Settlement: July 31, October 31, December 31, 2001 2001 2001 For Fiscal Period 3 (April 1, 2001 to March 31, 2002): a. b. c.

Final Submission/Invoice: Audit Report: Final Settlement: July 31, October 31, December 31, 2002 2002 2002 When warranted by WFIP/AIDA delivery operating plans, and provided both parties to the AIDA program in the province agree, the aforementioned reporting/invoicing periods and deadlines may be amended as required. 74. In relation to reporting and invoicing requirements for AIDA-related benefit payments (guideline 42): 1. The party responsible for delivering the AIDA program in the province shall submit: 1.

Interim quarterly reports (from April to March) invoicing the other AIDA funding party for their share of its AIDA-related payments to eligible applicants; and Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 5: Cost Sharing of AIDA-Related Program Benefits

Page 54 2. A final annual submission ("for the fiscal year ended") invoicing the other AIDA funding party for their share of its AIDA-related payments to eligible applicants. When warranted by WFIP/AIDA delivery operating plans, the foregoing reporting/invoicing requirements may be amended as required by an exchange of correspondence wherein both parties agree to the proposed change. 2.

If the funding party not delivering the AIDA program in a province issues any AIDA-related benefit payments, it may, if it so chooses, submit reports and invoices to the delivering party (for its share of AIDA-related benefit payments the non-delivering party has issued) on a less frequent basis than is required of the delivering party. The non-delivering party shall make its intentions with respect to frequency of reporting and invoicing for such program benefit payments known to the delivering party at the beginning cf each fiscal year. 3.

Unless waived by mutual written agreement of the parties involved, payment of invoiced amounts for AIDA-related benefit payments by a payer is due ninety (90) days after receipt of the invoice and all supporting documentation in accordance with the Agreement and this Operational Document. C. Required Elements of AIDA-Related Program Benefit Cost Sharing Submissions Claims for cost sharing of AIDA-related benefits shall include: 75. A paper copy of a

summary of current payments claimed (with year to date totals); 76. A certification

section indicating that: I. Amounts included as cost-shareable AIDA-related payments are in compliance with the Agreement and this Operational Document; 2. Any other amounts (not clearly identified as cost-shareable in the aforementioned documents) included in the claim for cost sharing are identified separately in the claim and the claimant records supporting it; and 3.

The claimant has accounting records and a system of internal controls which are adequate to provide reasonable assurance that the claim for cost sharing is in compliance with the aforementioned agreements and to substantiate the claim if necessary. Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 5: Cost Sharing of AIDA-Related Program Benefits

Page 55 The certification

section shall include the signature and title of the senior administrative officer responsible for the cost sharing claim. 77. An electronic file containing applicant detail and reconciling to the

summary above. At a minimum, the electronic file shall contain the following data fields for each applicant: 1. Applicant name 2. Applicant address 3. Applicant city of residence 4. Applicant SIN 5. Applicant type indicator (ie. individual, corporation, etc.) 6. Gross farming income (or total commodity sales) 7. Current year margin (negative amount if applicable) 8. Reference margin 9. NISA linkage 10. Set-off amount 11. Set-off program 12. Other adjustments/administration fees (name and amount) 13. Net payment amount (cheque amount) 14. Cheque issue date 15. Cheque reference Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 5: Cost Sharing of AIDA-Related Program Benefits

Page 56 APPENDIX 6 RECIPROCAL DATA SHARING Authority to Disclose Information 78. Pursuant to subsections 8.8 and 8.26 of the Agreement, AIDA and the WFIP Administration agree to share, on a reciprocal basis, the information described below, providing the disclosure of this information does not contravene any laws of Canada or British Columbia respecting the release of personal information. Information to be Disclosed 79. Information with respect to British Columbia WFIP/AIDA applicants in a claim year shall be exchanged between AIDA and the WFIP Administration as set out in Attachment 1.

The intended use of the information to be exchanged shall determine the level of detail to be provided as follows: 1. Where the information is to be used for processing or verification of WFIP/AIDA applications, AIDA audit and evaluation, or verification of invoices for AIDA-related cost sharing, the information shall be provided at the producer level and shall include appropriate identifying information, including the Social Insurance Number (SIN).

If this information is linked to applicants' WFIP/AIDA Participant Identification Numbers (PIN), the SIN data field shall subsequently be deleted from the data file; 2. Where the information is to be used for estimating WFIP/AIDA program costs or program development, the information shall be provided in a

summary format. Uses of Information 80. Information obtained by AIDA from the WFIP Administration, or vice versa, shall only be used for the purpose of: 1. processing and verifying applications under the WFIP/AIDA program; 2. estimating WFIP/AIDA costs; 3. the AIDA program audit and evaluation; 4. verification of invoices submitted for AIDA administrative costs and claim payments; or 5. program development. Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 6: Reciprocal Data Sharing

Page 57 81. If the disclosed information is presented in

summary form for report purposes, the following caveat must preface the information: "Payment levels in any given year do not reflect disproportionate or predominant use of the WFIP/AIDA program by any given type of farm or commodity group. Year to year differences in the absolute levels of payments merely reflect yearly variations in circumstances affecting farm income as among different farms or commodities." Format of Information 82. The information identified in Attachment 1 shall be provided to the other party in a mutually-agreed-to electronic format and mariner. 83.

The information provided shall include a record layout, control totals, a legend of coding structures and any other information required to interpret the data files. 84. The payment processing information shall be reconciled to the financial data in the accounting systems supporting the Public Account financial statements. This financial data shall also be reconciled with the amounts reported in cost sharing submissions and with amounts reported in the Public Accounts and all cost sharing submissions prepared therefrom. Confidentiality and Use 85.

Access to information identified in Attachment 1 shall be limited to those employees who require access for the purposes listed in Paragraph 3. Should either Canada or British Columbia wish to use the information disclosed pursuant to this Operational Document for other purposes, a written request must be forwarded to the designated official of the party which supplied the information. 86. Canada and British Columbia shall fully maintain, respect, and protect the confidentiality of the information received pursuant to this Operational Document. 87.

AIDA and the WFIP Administration shall he responsible for the actions of its employees, agents, and contractors with respect to the disclosure, use, retention and disposal of information in their custody or under their control, whether or not the person is or was acting within the scope of his or her employment, agency, or contract. If any claims are made against the provider of such information (either AIDA or the WFIP Administration), the recipient of that information (either the WFIP Administration or AIDA) shall indemnify the provider for such claims.

Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 6: Reciprocal Data Sharing

Page 58 Information Management 88. AIDA and the WFIP Administration shall take all reasonable measures to safeguard information disclosed under this Operational Document against accidental or unauthorized access, disclosure, use, modification, deletion or destruction. 89. The provider of the infbrmation shall retain the supporting records, information, databases and documentation upon which the disclosed information is based for a minimum of six years after final payments under the WFIP/AIDA program have been made. 90.

If an unauthorized disclosure or use does occur, the party responsible for the unauthorized disclosure or use shall immediately notify and provide full details of the incident to the other party. The party responsible for the unauthorized disclosure or use shall immediately take all reasonable steps to prevent a recurrence. Cost 91.

The provision of information listed in Attachment 1 is included in the definition of "program delivery activities" provided in the appendix entitled 'Cost Sharing of AIDA-related Administrative Costs', and the cost of exchanging this information shall be shared accordingly by Canada and British Columbia. 92.

Information requested that is not listed in Attachment 1 may be provided to the requesting party under the following conditions: 1. the cost of providing this additional information shall be borne by the requesting party; 2. the cost estimate for providing the requested information shall include the number of employee hours required to develop and implement the information request, as well as the amount of time required to run the program; 3. the cost estimate shall include only the actual salary costs and employer's share of fringe benefits and shall not include any mark-ups, contribution to overhead or administrative surcharges; 4. the cost estimate shall be provided for the approval of the requesting party bawl. work to prepare the data for disclosure is initiated; and 5. the information shall be provided only to the extent that it does not contravene any laws of Canada or British Columbia respecting the release of personal information.

Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 6: Reciprocal Data Sharing

Page 59 Accuracy 93. The party providing information shall make all reasonable efforts to ensure the completeness and accuracy of the information being provided. However, it is understood and agreed that the data's accuracy cannot be guaranteed and that neither party can be held responsible for any damage resulting from the transmission or use of any information that is inaccurate or incomplete. Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 6: Reciprocal Data Sharing

Page 60 Attachment 1 Data Fields for Sharing Between Federal & Provincial Administrators 94. Name 95. Address 96. City and province 97. Mailing address 98. Province of residence 99. SIN 100. NISA PIN 101. Claim year 102. Fiscal period start 103. Fiscal period end 104. Number of years farmed 105. Method of accounting 106. Area farmed (owned/rented/cultivated) 107. Type (individual, corporation, trust, co-op, commune) 108. Farm type (sole proprietorship, partnership) 109. Commodity sale income (by each commodity) 110. Program payment income (by each program) 111. Resales, rebates, GST/HST for eligible expenses 112.

Resales, rebates, GST/HST for non-eligible expenses 113. Agricultural contract work income 114. Machine rental income 115. Patronage dividend income 116. Interest income 117. Gravel sale income 118. Trucking income 119. Trucking income (farm-related) 120. Resales of commodities purchased 121. Lease income (gas, oil well, surface) 122. Other income 123. Purchases of commodities (by each commodity) 124. Repayments of program benefits (by each program) 125. Purchases of prepared feed and protein supplements 126.

Freight deductions on grain tickets Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Attachment 1: Data Fields for Sharing Between Federal & Provincial Administrators

Page 61 127. Containers and twine 128. Fertilizers and lime 129. Pesticides 130. Insurance premiums (crop) 131. Veterinary fees, medicine, A.I. fees 132. Minerals and salts 133. Machinery (repairs, licences, insurance) 134. Machinery (gasoline, diesel fuel, oil) 135. Advertising and marketing costs 136. Building and fence repairs 137. Agricultural contract work expenses 138. Non-allowable contract work expenses 139. Electricity 140. Freight and trucking 141. Heating fuel 142. Other insurance premiums 143. Memberships/subscription fees 144. Office expenses 145. Legal and accounting fees 146.

Salaries (other than to spouse or dependents) 147. Salaries paid to dependents 148. Salaries paid to spouse 149. Motor vehicle expenses 150. Small tools 151. Soil testing 152. Storage/drying 153. Licences/permits 154. Telephone 155. Prepared feed (where invoices are not itemized) 156. Custom feeding (where invoices are not itemized) 157. Machinery lease 158. Land clearing and draining 159. Interest (real estate, mortgage, other) 160. Property taxes 161. Rent (land, buildings, pastures) 162. Quota rentals 163. Gravel 164. Purchases of commodities resold 165. Motor vehicle interest and leasing costs 166.

Allowance on eligible capital property Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Attachment 1: Data Fields for Sharing Between Federal & Provincial Administrators

Page 62 167. Capital cost allowance 168. Mandatory inventory adjustments (prior year) 169. Optional inventory adjustments (prior year) 170. Mandatory inventory adjustments (current year) 171. Optional inventory adjustments (current year) 172. Increase/decrease in crop or livestock inventories 173. Increase/decrease in purchased inputs 174. Increase/decrease in receivables/deferred income 175. Increase/decrease in payables 176. Value of structural adjustment 177. Identification of beginning farmers 178. Income disaster assistance reference margin 179. Income disaster assistance current year margin 180.

Income disaster assistance applicant Share 181. Maximum income disaster assistance claim 182. Income disaster assistance net payment amount (cheque amount) 183. Income disaster assistant ^ ;let payment amount (by type, entity, individual, partnership and by sector, e.g., grains and oilseeds, horticulture, livestock) 184. Recovery amounts 185. Other adjustment or set-off amounts 186. Administrative fee (if applicable) 187. Payee names 188. Cheque issue date 189. Cheque reference numbers 190. Transaction amounts (indicate whether positive or negative) 191. Payment voucher dates 192.

Payment voucher document reference numbers 193. Journal voucher dates 194. Journal voucher descriptions 195. Journal voucher reference numbers 196. Public accounts transaction reference numbers 197. Public account expenditure/revenue distribution codes (including Saturn and PWGSC coding) Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Attachment 1: Data Fields for Sharing Between Federal & Provincial Administrators

Page 63 APPENDIX 7 RECONCILIATION OF AIDA CONTRIBUTIONS FOR A CLAIM YEAR British Columbia shall treat amounts which it incurs for Canada's share of WFIP/AIDA program costs in the province for the 1998 claim year as an account receivable from Canada. WFIP/AIDA program costs in the province shall include payments made to AIDA-eligible WFIP applicants for the claim year and the administrative costs of delivering the WFIP/AIDA program in the province for the claim year.

Pursuant to subsection 7.4 of the Agreement and subsection 2.1 of the Provincial Annex, this account receivable shall be reduced by amounts which Canada advances for both Canada's and British Columbia's shares of AIDA costs in the province for the 1998 claim year. If the amounts advanced by Canada for the 1998 claim year exceed the balance of British Columbia's account receivable from Canada, the balance of British Columbia's account receivable shall be reduced to zero and British Columbia shall recognize an account payable to Canada for the difference.

British Columbia shall add to its account receivable from Canada or subtract from its account payable to Canada, as the case may be, amounts which it contributes in accordance with subsection 7.4.1 of the Agreement for Canada's share of AIDA costs in the province for the 1999 claim year.

For each claim year, after application processing in the province has been completed and all WFIP/AIDA benefits for the claim year have been paid out, the balance in British Columbia's account receivable from Canada or its account payable to Canada shall be reconciled with Canada's and British Columbia's respective shares of WFIP/AIDA costs in the province for the claim year.

After the end of the 1999 claim year, any amount remaining in British Columbia's account receivable shall be repaid to British Columbia by Canada in accordance with subsection 7.4.3 of the Agreement and any amount owed by British Columbia to Canada in respect of the AIDA program shall be repaid to Canada by British Columbia in accordance with subsection 8.2 of the Agreement. Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 7: Reconciliation of AIDA Contributions for a Claim Year

Page 64 APPENDIX 8A REVIEW OF WFIP-PROCESSED WFIP APPLICATIONS Pursuant to subsection 5.2 of the Provincial Annex, this appendix shall establish the basis upon which British Columbia shall handle any requests from applicants for reviews of their applications insofar as the requests for review arise from application processing performed by WF11324. Moreover, the signing of this Operational Document between Canada and British Columbia shall serve as the required consultation under subsection 5.2 of the Provincial Annex.

Eligibility for Review by the WFIP Review Committee Any WFIr applicant may request a review of their application by the WFIP Review Committee, provided the request for review is as a result of one of the following reasons: 198. They were deemed to be ineligible for a payment; or 199.

They dispute the level of the WFIP payment26 received. 20 Due to the fact that the AIDA program is being delivered through the WFIP program in British Columbia, the WFIP Administration is responsible for the administration and processing associated with `most' aspects of both programs in the province, including the issuing of benefit payments for both WFIP and AIDA. 25 When a British Columbia applicant applies to the WFIP program, they are also, in effect, applying to AIDA.

The WFIP application could therefore also be characterized as a `WFIP/AIDA' application. 26 The WFIP Administration issues all program benefit payments in relation to the WFIP and Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 8A: Review of WFIP-Processed WFIP Applications

Page 65 An applicant cannot base their request for review on a WFIP or AIDA policy they do not agree with. A notification advising the applicant of their right to request a review of their WFIP application by a Review Committee shall accompany the applicant's WFIP payment explanation or letter informing them that their WFIP application has been declined. AIDA programs in the province and most of these program benefit payments would he identified as WFIP payments.

However, due to the cost sharing of the AIDA program in the province, these payments could also be characterized as `WFIP/AIDA' payments, because they are cost-shared under AIDA. Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 8A: Review of WFIP-Processed WFIP Applications

Page 66 Applying for a Review In order to be considered, an applicant's request for a review of their application must be received in writing by the WFIP Administration within 30 calendar days of the issue date of the applicant's notice of ineligibility or notice of explanation of the amount of their net WFIP payment, as the case may be.

The preceding deadline notwithstanding, the deadline for 1998 claim year applicants to submit their initial request for a review of their application in writing to the WFIP Administration shall be May 1, 2000 or 30 calendar days from the issue date of their notice of ineligibility or notice of payment explanation, whichever is later. Review Deposit In order for an applicant's request for a review of their WFIP application to be acted upon, a $50 dollar deposit must accompany the applicant's written request to the Administration for a review.

It upon inspection, it is determined that the applicant's request for a review arises as a result of AIDA processing, the applicant's $50 review deposit shall be refunded by the WFIP Administration. If the request for review results from WFIP processing and the WFIP Review Committee decides that the applicant is eligible for a payment under the WFIP program, or increases the level of the applicant's payment under the WFIP program, the applicant's $50 review deposit shall also be refunded by the WFIP Administration. Otherwise, the deposit is forfeited to the Administration.

Administrative Procedures Upon receiving an applicant's request for a review, the WFIP Administration shall determine whether the applicant's request arises as a result of WFIP- or AIDA processing of their application. If the request for review arises as a result of AIDA processing of the application, the responsibility for responding to the review request shall be transferred to the AIDA Administration; otherwise, the responsibility to respond shall remain with the WFIP Administration.

If the responsibility for responding to the request for review remains with the WFIP Administration, the WFIP Administration shall provide the applicant with a letter, acknowledging receipt of their request, and shall assign an identifying number to the review. Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 8A: Review of WFIP-Processed WFIP Applications

Page 67 The WFIP Review Committee Composition of the Review Committee The WFIP Review Committee shall consist of three persons. British Columbia shall appoint two representatives, one of whom shall be a producer from British Columbia and one of whom shall be a representative from the WFIP Administration. Canada shall appoint one representative to the Committee. The representative from the WFIP Administration shall act as the Chairperson of the Committee.

Appointment of Members The producer representative appointed by British Columbia and the representative appointed by Canada shall be appointed for a term ending no later than December 31, 2001, although they may be reappointed, if necessary. Remuneration of Committee Members British Columbia's producer representative and Canada's representative to the Committee shall be reimbursed for the actual expenses they incur for their participation related to activities of the Review Committee by the party which appointed them to the Committee, or as otherwise agreed to by the parties to this Operational Document.

In addition, these Committee members shall be entitled to a per diem determined by the party which appointed them. All such remuneration shall be cost-shared by Canada and British Columbia on a 60:40 basis, respectively. Code of Conduct of Committee Members Committee members must provide fair and impartial decision making.

With the exception of the Committee representative from the WFIP Administration, Committee members shall not discuss the details of a producer's case directly with the producer, the producer's representative or any other third party outside of the Committee meeting held to review the producer's case. The Committee representative from the WFIP Administration may, as part of fulfilling the Administration's responsibilities in this review process, discuss the details of a producer's case with the producer or the producer's representative.

Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 8A: Review of WFIP-Processed WFIP Applications

Page 68 Review Committee Meetings Frequency and Mode of Review Committee Meetings The Review Committee shall meet on an "as needed" basis to review applications. The Chairperson shall convene meetings. A member of the Review Committee may participate in the meeting by any means of effective communication acceptable to the Committee. Support Services Provided by the Administration The WFIP Administration shall ensure that the Review Committee has sufficient WFIP (and AIDA) program and procedural knowledge to make informed and effective decisions.

The WFIP Administration shall prepare minutes and provide other secretariat services to the Review Committee as required. The WFIP Administration shall record the Review Committee's decision in a case in a Record of Decision, which shall include the nature of the review, the Review Committee members involved in the decision, and the decision itself.

The Review Committee's Mandate The mandate of the Review Committee is to determine whether the WFIP program guidelines were correctly applied in the processing of an application the Committee is reviewing, and to prescribe appropriate corrective measures if the Committee decides that they were not. Therefore, if the Committee determines that the WFIP program guidelines were correctly applied in the processing of an application it is reviewing, it shall uphold the decision of the WFIP Administration in the case and dismiss the request.

Alternatively, if the Committee feels that the WFIP guidelines were not correctly applied in the processing of the application, it shall either modify or overturn the Administration's decision, as appropriate, within the parameters of the WFIP program, as outlined in the WFIP program guidelines. If the Review Committee does modify or overturn the decision of the Administration in a particular case, its decision and the corrective measures it prescribes in the case shall be consistent with the provisions of the WFIP program and WFIP program guidelines.

Any decision of the Committee which, in the opinion of the WFIP Administration, is inconsistent with the provisions of the WFIP program cr its program guidelines, shall be considered beyond the mandate of the Review Committee and shall not be acted upon by the Administration. Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 8k Review of WFIP-Processed WFIP Applications

Page 69 In all cases, the Review Committee shall render decisions on cases with similar factual circumstances in a consistent manner. The Committee's Decision -Making Process To ensure an impartial hearing, meetings of the Committee shall be held in-camera. Each review must be undertaken by all three members of the Review Committee and shall be decided by majority decision. Follow Up to the Review The WFIP Administration shall ensure that copies of the Record of Decision are provided to the applicant and to the AIDA Administration and that a copy is filed with the WFIP Administration.

Further Recourse In the event that new information is provided by an applicant subsequent to the Review Committee making its decision in the applicant's case, the Review Committee shall review the new information to determine its relevance. If, in the view of the Review Committee, the new information is relevant to it's review of the applicant's case, the Committee shall reconsider its decision in the applicant's case, taking the new information supplied by the applicant into account.

If an applicant is dissatisfied with the Review Committee's decision as it relates to the level of payment for the application, the applicant may appeal the Review Committee's level of payment decision to an independent arbitrator, who shall be appointed by the British Columbia Ministry of Agriculture and Food. Conversely, if the Review Committee re-affirms the Administration's decision that the applicant was ineligible to receive a payment under the WFIP program, the applicant cannot appeal the Review Committee's program eligibility decision.

Appealing the Review Committee's Level of Payment Decision to an Arbitrator The requirements and process that shall be followed by an applicant wishing to appeal the Review Committee's decision with respect to level of payment in their case to an arbitrator are set out in the WFIP program guidelines. Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 8A: Review of WFIP-Processed WFIP Applications

Page 70 APPENDIX 8B REVIEW OF AIDA-PROCESSED WFIP APPLICATIONS Pursuant to subsection 5.2 of the Provincial Annex, this appendix shall establish the basis upon which Canada shall handle any requests from British Columbia applicants for reviews of their applications insofar as the requests for review arise from application processing performed by Eligibility for Review Any WFIP28 applicant whose application is affected by processing performed by the AIDA Administration in relation to program differences between the AIDA program and the WFIP program may request a review of their application, provided the request for review is as a result of one of the following reasons: 27 Although the WFIP Administration is responsible for the administration and processing associated with 'most' aspects of the WFIP and AIDA programs in the province, the AIDA Administration is responsible for additional processing in relation to certain program differences between the AIDA and WFIP programs, as identified in the appendix to this Operational Document entitled 'Responsibility for Delivei y of AIDA'. 28 As AIDA is being delivered through WFIP in British Columbia, when an applicant applies to the WFIP program, they are also, in effect, applying to AIDA.

The WFIP application could therefore be characterized as a `WFIP/AIDA' application. Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 8B: Review of AIDA-Processed WFIP Applications

Page 71 200. They were deemed to be ineligible for a payment; or 201. They dispute the level of the AIDA-related payment received. An applicant cannot base their request for review on an AIDA policy they do not agree with. A notification advising the applicant of their right to request a review of their WFIP program application by a Review Committee shall accompany the applicant's WFIP/AIDA payment explanation or letter informing them that their WFIP application has been declined.

Applying for a Review The WFIP Administration shall be the point of contact for applicants wishing to request a review of their application, regardless of whether the request for review results from WFIP- or AIDA processing of their application. In order to be considered, an applicant's request for a review of their application must be received in writing by the WFIP Administration within 30 calendar days of the issue date of the applicant's notice of ineligibility or notice of explanation of the net amount of their WFIP/AIDA payment, as the case may be.

The preceding deadline notwithstanding, the deadline for 1998 claim year applicants to submit their initial request for a review of their application in writing to the WFIP Administration shall 29 The WFIP Administration issues all program benefit payments in the province in relation to the WFIP and AIDA programs (including those related to processing performed by AIDA).

Although most of these program benefits would be identified as WFIP payments, due to the cost sharing of the AIDA program in the province these payments could also be characterized as 'NA/HP/AIDA' payments because they are in fact cost-shared under AIDA. Canada - British Columbia AIDA Operational Document Appendix 8B: Review of AIDA-Pro

Document details

Collection	British Columbia — Orders in Council
Citation	O.C. 919/2000
Type	order_in_council
Volume / chapter	arc oic 0919 2000
Language	en
Format	pdf
Source	PROVINCIAL
Identifier	b150aedb83ff389fa8345baf186f538d5a8ab03e

Source file is stored in the law ingest library (pdf).