OTTAWA—Some of the other findings contained within federal auditor general Michael Ferguson’s spring 2014 report:

First Nations policing: The First Nations Policing Program is not performing as it’s meant to, and program funds infrequently enhance police services as intended, according to the Auditor General’s Office.

The audit of the program, established in 1991, revealed it is not transparent to First Nations communities and at times does not seek the input of those communities on how best it can serve their needs.

“Decisions related to the program are not transparent to First Nations and could be considered arbitrary,” the report notes. “For example, since 2006, 16 First Nations communities that had passed official Band Council Resolutions to join the program have been formally notified that they were not able to join or were still waiting for a reply to their applications.”

Some of the agreements, meant to bolster existing provincial law enforcement in First Nations communities, do not ensure comparable levels of policing services to nearby communities. Other times, funding is used to replace core policing services normally provided by the province, contrary to the spirit of the program.

Out of nine agreements reviewed by the Auditor General’s office, seven did not document any meaningful input from the First Nations communities they were meant to serve. An additional 30 agreements provided less than one month’s notice to the communities to complete negotiations.

In addition, Public Safety Canada is not collecting information on First Nations policing facilities to ensure they’re up to code, or to the applicable provincial standards for policing facilities.

More on the Auditor General’s report:

Auditor general’s report finds relocation services still plagued with difficulties

Auditor general warns of ‘significant risk’ posed by public sector pensions

Auditor general’s report finds lack of adequate prison space endangers inmates, staff

Statistics Canada: The Auditor General’s Office found that Statistics Canada needs to better understand and address Canadians’ need for quality data. According to the report, StatsCan produces quality data, but needs to better tailor that data to their users’ needs.

The office examined four key data products released by StatsCan: the consumer price index, the monthly labour force survey, the survey of employment, payrolls and hours, and the 2011 National Household Survey.

The Auditor General found that while the agency frequently consults with government on the usefulness of that data, it rarely addresses the concerns of the private sector, municipalities, and non-government organizations. For instance, job vacancies reported in Nova Scotia could be in Cape Breton, Yarmouth, Halifax, or other disparate communities across the province.

“Given the wide range of users who rely on this data, and the lack of an alternative source of comparable statistical information, it is essential that Statistics Canada operate efficiently and effectively to meet the needs of a broad client base,” the report notes.

Outsourcing building management: One company, SNC-Lavalin Operations and Maintenance Inc., was awarded eight 10-year, $5.8 billion contracts to manage buildings owned by the federal government in 2005. The Auditor General’s office found the department is not sufficiently monitoring the contract to ensure the company is living up to its contractual requirements.

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The Auditor General is recommending Public Works tighten up its oversight to ensure a consistent and rigorous approach to contracting out building management. The contract with SNC-Lavalin expires on March 31, 2015, and Public Works expects the total value of the next 10-year contracts to double in value to as much as $11.6 billion.

“Weaknesses in the implementation of controls reduced the department’s effectiveness in monitoring the service provider’s compliance with contractual requirements — work that supports the department (and other government departments) in ensuring all applicable obligations would be met,” the report notes.

“(Public Works should) clearly define and document roles and responsibilities of all players, including itself and other government departments, in monitoring the service provider’s performance and in ensuring that selected obligations are met.”