Manitoba Finance

Manitoba Finance (

The Minister of Finance (Ministre des Finances; originally Provincial Treasurer) is the cabinet minister responsible for the department, as well as for managing the province's fiscal resources, overseeing taxation policies, and allocating funds to other governmental departments. Every year, the minister submits a budget to the Legislature outlining anticipated expenditures and revenues for the next 12 months. The minister is also required to submit a completed financial report for the annual cycle just completed.

The Finance portfolio is the oldest cabinet position in the province of Manitoba, even predating the office of

The current Finance Minister of Manitoba is Adrien Sala of the New Democratic Party.

Manitoba Finance includes the following special operating agencies, which present their own respective annual reports:^[1]: 10

• Entrepreneurship Manitoba (aka the Companies Office) — the registrar for information about corporations and
  business names in Manitoba. The registry is publicly available to search. It is also responsible for the appointments and renewals of Commissioner for Oaths and Notary Publics.^[2]
• Manitoba Financial Service Agency
  • Financial Institutions Regulation Branch (FIRB)
  • Manitoba Securities Commission
• Public Guardian and Trustee Agency (under the Consumer Protection Division) — "manages and protects the affairs of Manitobans who are unable to do so themselves and have no one else willing or able to act," including
  mentally incompetent and vulnerable adults, children, and deceased estates.^[3]
• Vital Statistics Agency (under the Consumer Protection Division)

Other branches and divisions of Manitoba Finance include:[4]

• Communication and Engagement Division (CED) — leads government communications in Manitoba, supporting the work of all government departments and several
  Queen’s Printer of Manitoba, also publishes the Manitoba Gazette and other statutory publications; provides leadership and coordination of Manitoba’s style and visual identity; and ensures the effective administration and oversight of Crown copyright.^[1]
  ^: 13
  • Information and Privacy Policy Secretariat — responsible for central administration and coordination of The Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FIPPA).
• Finance Research Division — primarily responsible for intergovernmental fiscal relations, economic and fiscal policy analysis, and the formulation of tax policy.^[4]
  • Manitoba Bureau of Statistics^[5]
• Manitoba Tax Assistance Office — provides information and assistance regarding Manitoba's income tax, tax credit programs, and program applications.
• Pension Commission — the Office of the Superintendent - Pension Commission is responsible for safeguarding employees’ rights to benefits promised under employment
  pension plans as provided under pension benefits legislation.^[1]
  ^: 17
• Taxation Division — administers taxation legislation through information, compliance, audit, and enforcement programs, including:
  emissions tax on coal and petroleum coke.^[4]
• Treasury Board Secretariat — coordinates the annual budget and estimates, prepares the public accounts for the Government of Manitoba and provides financial and analytical support as well as strategic management advice to the Minister of Finance and the Treasury Board
• Treasury Division — manages and administers the cash resources, borrowing programs, and all investment and debt management activities of the provincial government.

The Funeral Board of Manitoba (FBM) is a

Through the 1967 Embalmers and Funeral Directors Act the Board was established as the Board of Administration to oversee Manitoba's funeral industry. The Act was amended and renamed in 2009 to The Funeral Directors and Embalmers Act, which changed the Board's name to the Funeral Board of Manitoba.[7]

The Manitoba Vital Statistics Agency (VSA) is a

While the Agency began operations on 1 April 1994, the provincial vital event registry dates to 1882. As such, with all records being held in perpetuity for all Manitoba events, the database contains vital records information for the Province of Manitoba from 1882 to present.^[8] Nearly 4 million records are held in the database as of 2020^[update].^[9]

The VSA reports to the Legislature through the Minister of Finance, and is responsible for administering and enforcing Manitoba's Vital Statistics Act, Marriage Act, Change of Name Act, as well as processing disinterments under The Public Health Act.^[8]

It is a member of the

The Manitoba Bureau of Statistics (MBS), a branch of the Finance Department's Finance Research Division, is the Manitoba government’s central statistics agency, tasked with compiling, managing, analyzing, coordinating, and disseminating of economic, demographic, and social statistics for the province.^[5]

Operating under the provincial Statistics Act,^[10] the Bureau addresses data and statistical requirements by collaborating with government departments and agencies; and, under a federal-provincial agreement, MBS is the designated contact and official liaison between the Government of Manitoba and the federal government's Statistics Canada.^[5]

The Manitoba Financial Service Agency (MFSA;

It is headed by a chief administrative officer, who is ex officio the Chair and chief executive officer of the MSC. As of at least 2020, the chief is David Cheop.^[11]

The Agency administers the following provincial legislation:^[11]: 55

• The Securities Act, C.C.S.M. c. S 5 0
• The Commodity Futures Act, C.C.S.M. c. C152
• The Real Estate Brokers Act, C.C.S.M. c. R20
• The Mortgage Brokers Act, C.C.S.M. c. M210
• The Insurance Act, C.C.S.M. c. I40
• The Credit Unions and Caisse Populaires Act, C.C.S.M. c. C301
• The Cooperatives Act, C.C.S.M. c. C223
• The Corporations Act, C.C.S.M. c. C225, Part XXIV

The Financial Institutions Regulation Branch (FIRB;

The FIRB was created in April 2000 through the amalgamation of two branches under the Department of Consumers and Corporate Affairs: the Insurance Branch and the Trust, Cooperatives and Credit Union Regulation Branch. Since then, government restructuring has led to the FIRB being part of various departments; as of October 2012, FIRB was merged into the Manitoba Financial Services Agency (MFSA).[13]

The Manitoba Securities Commission (MSC; French: Commission des valeurs mobilières du Manitoba) is the securities regulatory authority of Manitoba. As a division of the Manitoba Financial Services Agency, it is an independent agency of the provincial government and its Chair reports to the legislature through the Minister of Finance.^[14]

Following The Securities Act, MSC was structured in its present form in 1968, divided into two branches:^[14]

1. the administrative or functional arm, consisting of
   full-time employees
   who conduct day-to-day operations. This arm includes 2 operating divisions of its own:
   • the Securities division, which is organized into several operational sections—investigation, legal, registration & compliance, corporate finance & continuous disclosure, finance & administration, and education/information.
   • Real Estate division
2. Commission members, the
   policy-making body consisting of Order-in-Council
   appointees (maximum of 7) who meet regularly.

The Chair presides at the Commission members' meetings and is also the chief executive officer of the administrative arm.^[14]

The Manitoba Public Utilities Board is an independent quasi-judicial administrative tribunal that regulates public utilities and designated monopolies. It has oversight and supervisory powers over the rates charged for electrical utility, auto insurance, gas and propane utilities, and all water and sewer utilities outside of Winnipeg.^[4][15]

The Board is led by a chair and a vice-chair, appointed by the

The Board has regulated services under legislation since 1913, with the current Public Utilities Board Act being passed in 1959.[15] In addition to the Public Utilities Board Act, regulatory administration is provided through:^[15][17]

• utility
  rate setting)
• Crown Corporations Governance and Accountability Act
• Efficiency Manitoba Act
• Gas Allocation Act
• Gas Pipe Line Act (safety of natural gas and propane distribution)
• Greater Winnipeg Gas Distribution Act (natural gas distribution franchise)
• Manitoba Hydro (electric utility rate setting)
• auto insurance
  rate setting)
• Manitoba Water Services Board Act (appeals)
• Municipal Act (water and sewer utility rate regulation, excluding Winnipeg)
• Stittco Utilities Man Ltd. (propane distribution)
• The City of Winnipeg Charter

The Treasury Board of Manitoba is a Cabinet

The Treasury Board Secretariat of Manitoba provides financial and analytical support as well as strategic management advice to the Minister of Finance and Treasury Board.^[4] The Secretariat is headed by a Deputy Minister who acts as Secretary to Treasury Board, currently Ann Ulusoy.^[1] It has been an independent secretariat since 1987/88.^[4]

Treasury Board Secretariat consists of the:^[4]

• Office of the Secretary to Treasury Board,
• Office of the Provincial Comptroller,
• Fiscal Management and Capital Planning Division,
• Analytical Division,
• Strategic Initiatives Division, and the
• Scorecards Division.

The Finance portfolio is the oldest cabinet position in the province, predating the office of Premier by four years; and the minister was styled as the Provincial Treasurer until 1969. The first Provincial Secretary in Manitoba was

Following the 2019 provincial general election, Manitoba Finance underwent significant reorganization. While Central Services branched off as an independent department, the Finance department gained its Labour and Regulatory Services Division, the Consumer Protection Division, and Communications Services Manitoba, as well as the Vital Statistics Agency, Entrepreneurship Manitoba, and the Public Guardian and Trustee of Manitoba.^[1]: ii

• Minister of Finance (Canada)