CORCAN, established as a Special Operating Agency of the Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) in 1992, provides employment and employability programs to offenders by operating shops in 36 institutional sites and 3 community sites. CORCAN’s Charter document provides a funding formula for the calculation of the Correctional and Training fee. Since the establishment of CORCAN as a Special Operating Agency, the Correctional and Training fee level has been adjusted according to specific program adjustments, CSC priorities and financial measures, Central Agency decisions and has decreased since the commencement of CORCAN. These adjustments have affected CORCAN’s financial position. In order to continue to deliver on its mandate and the mission and objectives of the CSC, a new funding formula is required to ensure CORCAN is able to cover its program delivery mandate (including vocational training and new business development).
The Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) requires an established and agreed upon funding formula to support CORCAN program delivery. The formula for the Correctional and Training fee provided by CSC needs to allow for funding at a level that will enable CORCAN to fulfill its program mandate of providing employment skills and vocational training to offenders in support of the mission of CSC. CORCAN requires funding to supplement the revenues generated through the sale of the goods and services produced by offenders in order to be competitive in the marketplace as the governance, management, and other overhead costs of operating in a government environment, and specifically in a correctional setting, cannot be passed on to the customers.
