Introduction

Scope

This section introduces the Ministry Policy Manual, including its authority, purpose and role, and structure. Also included are procedures on developing, writing, approving, publishing, and maintaining the Ministry Policy Manual.

Overview

Welcome to the Ministry Policy Manual. The goal of this manual is to set out all Ministry of Forests policy. Policies enable the Ministry to accomplish its objectives in the most effective manner. Policies let staff make sound decisions while relieving the Executive, Branch Directors, and Regional and District Managers of involvement in routine decision making. Policies ensure that Ministry programs and operations are administered consistently, and that clients and members of the public are treated fairly and uniformly.

Authority

Effective October 31, 1993, the old Ministry Policy Manual, volumes I, II, and III, will be null and void, and will be replaced by these two new volumes.

The Ministry Policy Manual will be the only official version of Ministry policy. Therefore, Branch Directors are responsible for ensuring that all policy issues are addressed within the manual. Policy is not to be promulgated by memoranda.

Ministry policy is subordinate to and must conform with Government policy and that of central agencies, such as the Treasury Board.

Ministry policy must be reviewed and approved by Branch Directors and the Deputy Minister before being included in this manual. The "Developing Policy" section of this Introduction gives detailed information on the policy development and review process.

The Ministry Policy Manual is to be used as an aid to Ministry policy only and is not to be used for the purpose of legal interpretation of any acts or regulations covered herein.

Purpose and Role of Policy Manual

The purpose of the Ministry Policy Manual is to establish official Ministry policy through concise, non-technical statements and to communicate that policy to Ministry staff, licensees, interest groups, and other interested members of the general public.

Other Ministry manuals and documents communicate a variety of essential information to staff. To avoid confusion, the term Ministry policy is reserved for the policies contained in the Ministry Policy Manual. Other information or directives distributed to staff should be termed program procedures, guidelines, standards, or other applicable terms.

Similarly, policy issued by announcement, press release, letter, memo, bulletin, or other means is not considered to be official Ministry policy until it is published in the policy manual.

Structure of Policy Manual

The Ministry Policy Manual is divided into two volumes: Revenue and Corporate Services and Resource Management. The Revenue and Corporate Services volume contains policies covering the administration of Ministry programs, such as financial management, human resources, and information systems. The Resource Management volume contains policies covering the operations of the Ministry, such as silviculture, fire protection, and timber harvest management.

Each volume is divided into a number of functional categories (chapters), such as Program Audit, Recreation Management, and Fire and Aviation Management. The chapters contain policies that relate to that functional area. Policies in one chapter may be the responsibility of several different branches.

Each policy is a stand-alone module and has its own:

• title
• section number
• revision date
• page numbering

When a policy is revised, the entire policy will be re-published with the most recent changes clearly marked. An Amendment Log will track each revision or addition to the manual. Periodically, the table of contents and index will also be revised and re-published.

New in this Manual

Policies are now grouped by program function rather than by branch name. This will make it easier to update the manual as branch responsibilities change.

Repetitive and motherhood information included in old policies has been eliminated in most cases, including information under the old headings of Definitions, Procedures, and Responsibilities. Most branches have program manuals containing procedures and responsibilities, so the Ministry Policy Manual will no longer include this data.

Current Status of Manual

This edition of the new Ministry Policy Manual is evolving as many policies are still in the process of being drafted, edited, and approved. New and updated policies will be published by the Website Coordinator as they become available.

If you need policy information which is not yet a part of this manual, please contact the appropriate branch or program section for guidance.

How to Develop Policy

Policy Criteria

The following criteria should be used to determine what subject areas require policies, and the contents of the policies:

Is significant: The policy must have a significant impact on Ministry operations or administration, or be of significant interest to Ministry staff for the foreseeable future. Policy relating to situations that are unlikely to reoccur, or whose significance will likely diminish over time, should not be included.

Is of broad interest: The policy should apply to, or be of interest to, two or more functional areas within the Ministry. Information that is of interest to staff within one functional area only should be included in program manuals.

Sets out rules only: The policy must establish general or specific rules or guidelines for Ministry staff to follow, not procedures or responsibilities.

Is useful: The policy should be useful and not self-evident to the average reader (i.e., avoid motherhood statements).

Policy Format and Contents

To ensure that Ministry policies are communicated in a consistent manner, all policy statements will use the following three main headings:

• Scope
• Policy
• References

Scope: Describes the contents of the policy in one or two sentences. The intent is to clarify for the reader what the policy covers. If the scope of application of the policy is restricted, the scope will be briefly described. If the title includes a technical term, the meaning of the term will be briefly defined.

Policy: Sets out Ministry policy. The first paragraph will provide a summary statement of the policy. Following paragraphs will provide additional relevant detail. Second-level headings that describe the content of sections of the policy are encouraged. A third level of heading may also be used if necessary. Sub-headings under Policy should be short and descriptive.

References: Lists sources of information alphabetically, including acts and regulations (with section numbers, if appropriate), Ministry program manuals, and other related documents.

To ensure that policies remain current and do not need to be revised frequently, the following types of information should be avoided:

• personal names (position titles are acceptable)
• addresses or telephone numbers
• specific costs or fees (if necessary, these should published on a separate fee schedule)
• specific reporting relationships
• topics covered by collective agreements

Policy contents should be organized top down starting with an overall general statement and working down to specific details covering:

• situations in which the policy applies
• purpose or background
• details of how the policy is applied
• definitions of key terms
• general responsibility for implementing the policy

To ensure that policies provide a concise summary that is useful to all Ministry staff without being burdened with information that is more appropriate for Ministry program manuals, the following should be avoided:

• procedures for implementing the policy
• definitions of commonly understood terms
• detailed responsibilities for implementing the policy
• descriptions of forms and approval processes
• appendices

Procedure documentation will not be included in the policy manual. Branches are responsible for ensuring current procedures are included in branch procedure manuals.

Development and Revision Process

Ministry policies, whether new or revised, will be developed using the same process, outlined below. The Website Coordinator is responsible for the coordination, publication, and maintenance of Ministry policies.

The Branch Director responsible for the function covered by the policy will develop or revise a policy. However, any staff member may initiate a new policy or generate a revision by contacting the responsible Branch Director.

The Branch Director, or subordinate technical specialist, will prepare a draft statement of the policy in the standard format, for approval-in-principle by the Deputy Minister or Assistant Deputy Minister to whom the Branch Director reports.

Once approved-in-principle, the responsible Branch Director will forward the draft to the Website Coordinator, which is responsible for:

• editing, in consultation with the originators, for clarity, conciseness, and completeness
• ensuring conformity to format specifications
• word processing and printing on policy letterhead (DM approval copy)
• determining the appropriate placement within the manual

Once returned to the Branch Director, the draft policy will be circulated to all interested parties, including officials in other ministries, central agencies, special interest groups and organizations, and other branches with an interest in the policy. If there are legal issues which need to be considered, the draft will be forwarded to Legal Services for review. Reviewers will be given a maximum of one month to return the draft with comments/approval.

The responsible Branch Director makes appropriate changes based on the review comments, sends the policy to the Website Coordinator for final editing, and forwards a final copy for review by the Assistant Deputy Minister and Executive. Policies must be signed by the Deputy Minister to take effect.

The Deputy Minister returns the signed policy to the appropriate director who in turn forwards it to Website Coordinator for publication.

The director responsible will take whatever steps are required to ensure that the appropriate people, both inside and outside the Ministry, are aware of the policy. This may include issuing bulletins or press releases, holding press conferences, and publishing public notices. These should be coordinated through Public Affairs Branch. The responsible director will also ensure that adequate training sessions for managers and supervisors are conducted to communicate the background, rationale, and application of the policy. Please direct your questions on the content of a policy to the responsible branch.

Writing Style

Ministry policy must be written clearly and concisely, and be understandable to all users.

Technical language and acronyms should be used sparingly and only to the extent necessary to explain the policy. Acronyms should be spelled out the first time they are used. Definitions of technical terms and acronyms should be included where appropriate.

Most policies need some flexibility in their application, so they should not be rigidly worded. It is the function of Ministry procedures manuals and program manuals to interpret policies to fit the variety of circumstances in which they will be applied.

Policy Publication and Maintenance

The Website Coordinator will publish the Ministry Policy Manual via the Web.

The branch indicated on the policy in the Responsible Branch box indicates who is responsible for ensuring that the policy remains current and complete. Questions relating to a specific policy should be referred to the responsible branch.

At a minimum, Branch Directors should review annually all policies for which they are responsible.

Evaluation

This manual is for your use. We welcome your comments and suggestions on how to improve its use and readability. Please direct your comments to the Website Coordinator, Attention: Ian J. Martin. [ijmartin@carletonpacific.com]

References

• No applicable references.

Policy Development and Approval Process