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Provincial Government Information: Government Spending and Oversight

A Guide to sources of information for Canadian provincial government information

Introduction

Policy change and implementation generally require spending commitments. The process may be broken down into the Business of Ways and Means where the government sets out its economic policy (through the presentation of a budget) and obtains legislative approval to raise the necessary revenues and the Business of Supply where the government submits its projected annual expenditures for approval and the Legislature authorizes both the amounts and the objects or destination of all public expenditures. The following budget and expenditure documents and documents families are useful in researching government policy.

  1. Speeches from the Throne, Budget Speeches, Economic Statements and Updates
  2. The Budget and Related Documentation
  3. Budget Implementation Acts
  4. Government Expenditure Plans and Estimates
  5. Oversight

Note: This is one area where there may be minor procedural or terminological differences in the different provinces and where the quality and availability of information may vary from province to province.

General Resources

  • Throne Speeches (1960+). Via Laval University's Poltext portal. Coverage varies by province.
  • Budget Speeches (1960+). Via Laval University's Poltext portal. Coverage varies widely by province. Note: Most begin in the late 1970s.
  • Auditor General Reports. Français - Via Laval University's Poltext portal. Coverage varies widely by province. Note: Most begin in the late 1990s.

Alberta

British Columbia

  • Throne Speeches, Budget Speeches, etc.
    • Parliamentary Business (1992+). Throne and Budget speeches by session (37th Parliament, 2nd Session, 2002+). Selective coverage for earlier sessions
  • Budgets (includes Budget Speeches, Budget Plans, Supporting Documentation)
  • Public Accounts

Manitoba

New Brunswick

Newfoundland and Labrador

Nova Scotia

Ontario

Quebec

Saskatchewan

Northwest Territories

Nunavut

Yukon