Part 1: General

Authority

  • These rules are made by Order-in-Council under section 16 of the Cabinet Ministers’ and Opposition Leaders’ Expenses Review and Accountability Act, 2002 (the Act), and come into effect January 1, 2016.

Purpose and Application

  • The purpose of these rules is to set out the requirements for the public reporting (posting) of information on allowable expenses.
  • These rules apply to:
    • Cabinet Ministers, Parliamentary Assistants and persons employed in their respective offices (referred to as Cabinet Ministers and other persons).
    • Opposition leaders and persons employed in their respective offices (referred to as Opposition leaders and other persons).
    • For the purpose of these rules, when the rules are intended to apply to all persons mentioned above, the phrase "designated persons" is used.
  • Allowable expenses are set out in the Allowable Expense Rules issued under the Act.

Governing Principle

  • Publically posted expense information is accurate, transparent, and accessible to the public.

Part 2: definitions

  • For the purpose of these rules, the following definitions apply.

“Cabinet minister” means a member of the Executive Council, including ministers, associate ministers and ministers without portfolio. “Opposition leader” means the leader of a recognized party, within the meaning of subsection 62 (5) of the Legislative Assembly Act, other than the Premier. “Designated persons” means Cabinet ministers, parliamentary assistants and persons employed in their respective offices; and Opposition leaders and persons employed in their respective offices. “Designated senior persons” means the Executive Assistants or Chiefs of Staff designated by Cabinet ministers and Opposition leaders in their respective offices. These individuals have specific responsibilities set out in these rules. “Public servant” means:

  • Every person employed under s. 32 of the Public Service of Ontario Act, 2006.
  • The Secretary of the Cabinet.
  • Every deputy minister.
  • Every employee of a public body.
  • Every person appointed by the Lieutenant Governor in Council, the Lieutenant Governor or a minister to a public body.

"Hospitality" is the provision of food, beverages (including alcohol, in limited and appropriate circumstances), accommodation, transportation and similar amenities, at the public’s expense, to an external person. “External persons” mean persons who are not:

  • Designated persons
  • Public servants
  • Appointees or employees of public entities prescribed under the Public Sector Expenses Review Act 2009 (PSERA)

“Open data” means data that is accessible to the public at no cost, over the internet, in a machine-readable format. Open data file formats include CSV, JSON, XML and can be downloaded by the public.

Part 3: Rules

Designated Websites

  • The Minister responsible for the administration of the Act must:
    • Designate a website for the purpose of posting expense information for Cabinet ministers and other persons.
    • Ensure that expense information for Cabinet ministers and other persons is posted on the designated website.
  • The Speaker of the House must:
    • Designate a website for the purpose of posting expense information for Opposition leaders and other persons.
    • Ensure that expense information for Opposition leaders and other persons is posted on the designated website.

Timelines

  • Expense information must be posted on the designated websites within 90 days of receiving notice from the Integrity Commissioner that reviewed expenses are allowable.
  • Expense information must remain accessible to the public on the designated websites for two years or the time period set out in the applicable records retention schedule, whichever is greater.
  • For more information on records retention, designated senior persons in Ministers’ or Parliamentary Assistants’ offices should consult the Chief Administrative Officer of the ministry, and designated senior persons in Opposition leaders’ offices should consult that person’s counterpart in the Legislative Offices.

Expense Information

General

  • Posted expense information must be complete, accurate and clear.
  • Posted expense information should be available in an accessible, open data format.

Posted Information

  • Allowable expense information must be posted for each claim. This means that the expense information could include more than one type of expense (e.g., a meal expense, travel expense, accommodation expense). The following information on allowable expenses must be publicly posted:
    • The name and position title of the person who incurred the expense.
    • The date on which the expense was incurred; if expenses were related to overnight travel, also indicate an end date to reflect the duration.
    • The type of expense (e.g., travel, accommodation, meal, or hospitality).
    • The total amount for each type of expense claimed by and paid to the person (e.g., the total of all meals in a claim).
    • The purpose of the expense, so as to provide the public with a clear and concise, high-level description of the purpose and the nature of the expense; individuals, businesses and stakeholder groups should not be named in purpose statements.
    • The travel destination or other geographic location to identify where the expense was incurred (e.g., North Bay, Ontario; Northern Ontario).
  • In addition to the information above:
    • The total amount of the claim (i.e., the total of all types of expenses).
    • If the expense included payment for another designated person, attribution to that person (see information in the Allowable Expense Rules).
    • If the expense included payment for individuals who are not external persons, the names of the individuals that benefitted from the expense.
    • If hospitality, the number of external persons that benefitted from the expense.

Sensitive or Confidential Information

  • The posting of expense information as contemplated under these rules is consistent with one of the purposes of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FIPPA) – that information should be available to the public.
  • However, FIPPA also recognizes that necessary exemptions from the right of access to information should be limited and specific.
  • The particulars of an allowable expense that is required to be posted under sections 14 and 15 above may be limited or altered where their full disclosure could result in:
    • An unjustified invasion of personal privacy.
    • A significant risk to the health, safety or security of a person, place or thing.
    • Any other harm that an exemption in FIPPA would address.

For example, the purpose of the expense or the individuals taking part in the activity may be reported in more general terms than normally required if that is necessary to avoid one of the harms indicated above.

Part 4: Roles and responsibilities

  • The Minister responsible for the administration of the Act is responsible for:
    • Designating a website where expense information for Cabinet ministers and other persons will be posted.
    • Ensuring all Cabinet ministers and other persons are informed of these rules.
    • Establishing any processes or procedures needed to comply with these rules.
    • Ensuring that expense information is publicly posted in accordance with these rules.
  • The Speaker of the Legislative Assembly is responsible for:
    • Designating a website where expense information of Opposition leaders and other persons will be posted.
    • Ensuring all Opposition leaders and other persons are informed of these rules.
    • Establishing any processes or procedures needed to comply with these rules.
    • Ensuring posted expense information is in accordance with these rules.
  • Cabinet ministers may delegate authority for the following responsibilities to a designated senior person (Executive Assistant or Chief of Staff):
    • Reviewing and approving for posting, expense information of designated persons in the office.
    • Ensuring designated persons in the office are informed of and comply with these rules.
    • Establishing any internal office processes or procedures to comply with these rules.
  • Opposition leaders may delegate authority for the following responsibilities to a designated senior person in their office:
    • Reviewing and approving for posting, expense information of designated persons in the office.
    • Ensuring designated persons in the office are informed of and comply with these rules.
    • Establishing any internal office processes or procedures to comply with these rules.
  • Cabinet ministers and Opposition leaders are responsible for:
    • Reviewing and approving for posting, expense information of the designated senior person, where responsibility has been delegated.
    • Ensuring overall adhered to these rules.
  • Designated Senior Persons, where designated by a Cabinet minister or Opposition leader, are responsible for:
    • Reviewing and approving for posting, expense information of designated persons in the office.
    • Ensuring designated persons in the office are informed of and comply with these rules.
    • Establishing any internal office processes or procedures to comply with these rules.