Audit of the Destruction of Hard Copy Records Pertaining to the Transitional Provisions in the Ending the Long-gun Registry Act

Final Report: April 2014

This report has been reviewed in consideration of the Access to Information and Privacy Acts. The published information is UNCLASSIFIED.

Table of Contents

Acronyms and Abbreviations

CFIS
Canadian Firearms Information System
CFO
Chief Firearms Officer
CFP
Canadian Firearms Program
RCMP
Royal Canadian Mounted Police
SPS
Specialized Policing Services

Executive Summary

The Ending the Long-gun Registry Act, which came into force on April 5, 2012 removes the requirement for non-restricted firearms to be registered. The Act's Transitional Provisions include the requirement that all records related to the registration of non-restricted firearms under the control of the Commissioner of Firearms and the Chief Firearms Officers be destroyed.

This audit report is the second of two reports on the results of the steps the Canadian Firearms Program has undertaken to address the Ending the Long-gun Registry Act and enact the Transitional Provisions. Whereas the first audit report focused on the destruction of electronic records related to the registration of non-restricted firearms, this second report focused on the destruction of hard copy records (paper files, CDs, tapes) related to the registration of non-restricted firearms under the control of the Commissioner of Firearms and the Chief Firearms Officers.

The results of this audit indicate that overall, a structured and rigorous approach was developed and implemented to ensure that hard copy records identified as being related to the registration of non-restricted firearms (except Quebec Footnote 1 and public agencies Footnote 2) were redacted or destroyed as required by the Transitional Provisions in the Ending the Long-gun Registry Act.

Management's Response to the Audit

Management agrees with the results of the audit. An Implementation Plan was developed to support the changes to the Firearms Act and associated Regulations introduced by Bill C-19. The Implementation Plan included the destruction of all data associated to non-restricted firearm registration records (the official registration records) held within the Canadian Firearms Information System (CFIS) with the exception of firearms registered to businesses or individuals residing in the province of Quebec or firearms recorded to a Public Agency. This was successfully completed on October 31st, 2012.

While the official registration records were destroyed in October 2012, it was anticipated that hard copies of some information would be found outside of CFIS. As a result, a national review plan was designed and implemented. It primarily consisted of manually reviewing physical files and destroying or redacting all information related to non-restricted firearms. We are pleased that the independent audit concluded that our plan was successfully implemented.

The CFP has also implemented an ongoing due diligence practice to ensure that no information associated to the non-restricted firearms is collected in the future.

I would like to thank the staff at the Canadian Firearms Program for their hard work and dedication which directly contributed to the success of this complex task.

Peter Henschel, Deputy Commissioner
Specialized Policing Services
Royal Canadian Mounted Police

1. Background

The RCMP's Canadian Firearms Program (CFP) is the service line within the RCMP's Specialized Policing Services (SPS) responsible for the administration of the Firearms Act and its associated regulations that govern possession, licensing, transportation, use, registration and storage of firearms in Canada as well as providing operational support to law enforcement agencies in all firearm-related inquiries and investigations.

On October 25, 2011, An Act to Amend the Criminal Code and the Firearms Act (Bill C-19) with the intent to remove the requirement for individuals and businesses to register non-restricted firearms Footnote 3 was introduced in the House of Commons. Bill C-19 (short title - Ending the Long-gun Registry Act) received Royal Assent on April 5, 2012, removing the requirement for non-restricted firearms to be registered. The Province of Quebec filed an injunction to appeal the Ending the Long-gun Registry Act and on April 5, 2012, the Quebec Superior Court issued a court order that requires residents and businesses in Quebec to continue to register non-restricted firearms. Since that time, the Government of Canada and the Province of Quebec have been engaged in court proceedings with respect to the Government of Canada providing non-restricted firearms registration records related to individuals and businesses in Quebec to the Province of Quebec. As at March 2014, the case is before the Supreme Court of Canada and it is expected to be heard in the fall of 2014. In the interim, the CFP has been advised not to apply the Ending the Long-gun Registry Act changes to individuals and businesses residing in Quebec.

Ending the Long-gun Registry Act includes the requirement that all records related to the registration of non-restricted firearms under the control of the Commissioner of Firearms Footnote 4 and the Chief Firearms Officers (CFOs) be destroyed. Specifically, the Act's Transitional Provisions require that:

"29.(1) The Commissioner of Firearms shall ensure the destruction as soon as feasible of all records in the Canadian Firearms Registry related to the registration of firearms that are neither prohibited firearms nor restricted firearms and all copies of those records under the Commissioner's control.

(2) Each chief firearms officer shall ensure the destruction as soon as feasible of all records under their control related to the registration of firearms that are neither prohibited firearms nor restricted firearms and all copies of those records under their control."

The organization of the CFP includes a CFO appointed for each province and territory. CFOs are responsible for decision-making and administrative work related to licences, authorizations to transport, authorizations to carry, and confirming the purpose of the transfer of restricted and prohibited firearms by individuals and businesses. The connection between licensing and registration may result in the CFO retaining a hard copy of a record related to the registration of a non-restricted firearm, hence the requirement that the Transitional Provisions also apply to CFOs. The CFOs in all but five provinces are federally appointed and report to the CFP's Director - Firearms Regulatory Services. In the remaining provinces of Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and Nova Scotia, the CFOs are provincially appointed and are accountable to the federal Minister of Public Safety through contribution agreements.

On April 5, 2012, the CFP stopped issuing registration certificates for non-restricted firearms except for individuals and businesses residing in Quebec. On May 20, 2012, the CFP disabled its online systems to prevent individuals and businesses from registering non-restricted firearms unless they reside in the province of Quebec. These actions were part of the CFP's steps to address the Ending the Long-gun Registry Act and to enact the Transitional Provisions. The CFP's steps detail the work involved in destroying all records, both electronic and hard copy, from the RCMP/CFP information stores, except those records related to public agencies Footnote 5 and individuals and businesses residing in Quebec, which will be retained.

The destruction of all electronic records identified as being related to the registration of non-restricted firearms in the Canadian Firearms Information System [CFIS] (with the exception of Quebec and public agencies) took place in October 2012, and was the subject of an audit carried out by RCMP Internal Audit. The resulting audit report was approved by the Commissioner of the RCMP in January 2013. Footnote 6

After the electronic records were destroyed in CFIS, the CFP initiated steps to destroy any hard copy records related to the registration of non-restricted firearms (with the exception of Quebec and public agencies) under the control of the Commissioner of Firearms and the CFOs. The CFO Ontario did not participate in this process due to a pending court case. The results of the CFP's steps are the subject of this audit report.

The CFP's steps to destroy hard copy records related to the registration of non-restricted firearms (with the exception of Quebec and public agencies) involved identifying the types of hard copy files (paper, CDs, tapes) that were part of the CFP's and CFOs' environment and determining the likelihood of these files containing records related to the registration of non-restricted firearms. These files covered such areas as licences, firearms safety courses, firearms storage, firearms tracing and disposition, and support to investigations. Files were to be manually reviewed and records related to the registration of non-restricted firearms (except for Quebec and public agencies) were to be redacted or destroyed. This also involved ensuring that information required to remain compliant with the Firearms Act was retained. Redaction, which involved 'blacking out' information so that it cannot be read or copied, was used where a document contained both information related to the registration of non-restricted firearms and other information that needed to be retained. Destruction was used when a document contained information related to the registration of non-restricted firearms and no other information needed to be retained.

The CFP provided instructions and guidance to the participating CFO offices with respect to the process to review files for records related to the registration of non-restricted firearms, and assistance for the manual review of files where required.

2. Objective, Scope and Methodology

2.1 Objective

The objective of the audit was to assess whether the hard copy records identified as being related to the registration of firearms that are neither prohibited firearms nor restricted firearms were destroyed as required by the Transitional Provisions in the Ending the Long-gun Registry Act.

2.2 Scope

The scope included all hard copy records identified as being related to the registration of non-restricted firearms (except Quebec and public agencies) under the control of the Commissioner of Firearms and the participating CFOs.

We did not test hard copy records that have been retained by the CFP to remain compliant with the Firearms Act as this was outside the scope of the Ending the Long-gun Registry Act.

2.3 Methodology

Planning for the audit was completed in July 2013 and included documentation review, process walkthroughs and interviews with CFP staff. Sources used to develop audit criteria include the Treasury Board Operational Security Standard on Physical Security, the RCMP Security Equipment Guide and the Audit Criteria related to the Management Accountability Framework developed by the Office of the Comptroller General. Audit objectives and criteria are available in Appendix A.

The audit team used statistical sampling to determine the number of hard copy files to review at each site visited. Simple random sampling was used to select the hard copy files to review.

The examination portion of the audit was completed in February 2014, and included the following techniques:

  • conducted four on-site visits;
  • observed the redaction and destruction process;
  • conducted interviews to ensure the requirement and the process for the redaction/destruction was understood by the participating CFO offices;
  • reviewed hard copy files for evidence of redaction and/or destruction;
  • obtained confirmations of the destruction of hard copy records related to the registration of non-restricted firearms from the senior management at each site visited.

Upon completion of each site visit, the audit team held exit meetings to debrief management of the relevant findings.

2.4 Statement of Conformance

The audit engagement conforms with the Internal Auditing Standards for the Government of Canada, as supported by the results of the quality assurance and improvement program.

3. Audit Finding

3.1 Destruction of Hard Copy Records

A structured and rigorous approach was developed and implemented to ensure that hard copy records identified as being related to the registration of non-restricted firearms (except Quebec and public agencies) were redacted or destroyed as required by the Transitional Provisions of the Ending the Long-gun Registry Act.

It was expected that all hard copy records and information related to the registration of non-restricted firearms (except Quebec and public agencies) would be redacted to be illegible or destroyed as required. It was also expected that there would be evidence on each file that it had been reviewed for the purposes of complying with the Transitional Provisions of the Ending the Long-gun Registry Act.

The CFP identified the types of hard copy files (paper, CDs, tapes) that were part of the CFP's and CFOs' environment and determined the likelihood of these files containing records related to the registration of non-restricted firearms. Files with a medium to high likelihood of containing records related to the registration of non-restricted firearms covered such areas as licences, firearms tracing, and support to investigations. Files with a low likelihood of containing records related to the registration of non-restricted firearms covered such areas as firearms safety courses, authorizations to carry, and authorizations to transport.

The CFP provided instructions to the participating CFO offices with respect to the process to review files for records related to the registration of non-restricted firearms. The instructions identified the file types to be reviewed, with a primary focus on those file types with a medium to high likelihood of containing records related to the registration of non-restricted firearms. The instructions also included the recommended methods to redact and/or destroy the records. Records were redacted with black permanent markers combined with black china markers. Records were destroyed by shredding them using equipment and methods that met RCMP security requirements.

Communications from the CFP to the CFO offices were clear with respect to the requirements for redaction and destruction, and mechanisms to report on results achieved. There was strong collaboration between the CFP and the CFO offices in carrying out the review of files and the CFP offered the CFOs assistance with the manual file review process. Five of the participating CFOs availed of the CFP's assistance for the manual file review. CFO staff were also trained on how to perform the file review process.

The CFP required that a log of all the hard copy files reviewed be maintained at each participating CFO office and reported back to the CFP. The file review log identified the types of files reviewed, the date of the review and the number of pages redacted and/or destroyed. Files were date stamped as having been reviewed as part of the Ending the Long-gun Registry Act requirements. The CFP was updated regularly by the CFOs on the progress of the file review process. The CFP also provided ongoing support and assistance to the CFOs as issues arose.

The CFP and CFO office staff clearly understood the roles and responsibilities for this process and the requirement to redact and/or destroy records related to the registration of non-restricted firearms. The CFP's steps were followed consistently in the CFO offices. Accordingly, there was systematic stamping of files and completion of the file review logs.

Based on the results of our audit, we are satisfied that nearly all information related to the registration of non-restricted firearms contained in the files sampled was appropriately redacted or destroyed as planned. As expected, few instances were observed whereby some information was incorrectly redacted such that it was still legible which has since been corrected. Similarly, there were few instances in specific files where information related to the registration of non-restricted firearms had not been redacted or destroyed which has also since been corrected. It is reasonable to have found errors given the volume of records the CFP and CFO offices had to review, and the time frame in which the review was carried out.

The CFP and CFOs have put a strategy in place to continually monitor and review every file to ensure that information related to the registration of non-restricted firearms is being appropriately redacted or destroyed.

Although there is no longer a requirement to register non-restricted firearms, individuals and businesses continue to provide hard copy information to the CFP regarding their non-restricted firearms. The CFP has a gate-keeping role to ensure this information is not retained. This will be an ongoing process.

4. Conclusion

We are satisfied that a rigorous and structured approach was developed and implemented to ensure that hard copy records identified as being related to the registration of non-restricted firearms (except Quebec and public agencies) were redacted or destroyed as required by the Transitional Provisions of the Ending the Long-gun Registry Act.

Given the sheer volume of hard copy records that the CFP and the CFO offices had to manually review, considerable efforts have been made, and continue to be made, to review files. A strategy is in place to address ongoing review requirements and to ensure that new correspondence and records do not include information related to the registration of non-restricted firearms. Given the legislative requirement with which the Commissioner of Firearms and the CFOs have to comply, and the CFP's strategy to ensure that records to do not include information related to the registration of non-restricted firearms, there would be limited value in Internal Audit putting forward a recommendation in this regard.

Appendix A – Audit Objective and Criteria

Objective: To assess whether the hard copy records identified as being related to the registration of firearms that are neither prohibited firearms nor restricted firearms were destroyed as required by the Transitional Provisions in the Ending the Long-gun Registry Act.

Criterion 1: A plan was established for the destruction of hard copy records identified as being related to the registration of non-restricted firearms (except Quebec and public agencies) held by the Canadian Firearms Program.

Criterion 2: Hard copy records identified as being related to the registration of non-restricted firearms (except Quebec and public agencies) were appropriately destroyed.

Date modified: