Statistique en bref – Numéro 26, février 2007 (version anglaise)

Isq / Serge Bernier

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• Publié par: Kivim
• Nombre de lectures: 18
• Langue: English

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on 26 / february 07
1
statistiques en bref
Observatoire de la culture et des communications du Québec
THE CULTURAL EXPENDITURES
OF MUNICIPALITIES
IAUTHOR: SERGE BERNIER
Objective of the study
he Observatoire de la culture et des communications du Québec (OCCQ) is proud to present its new system designed to
2measure the operating expenditures of cities with respect to culture and reveal the fi rst results of a pilot project conducted Tin collaboration with 11 municipalities across Québec: Gatineau, Laval, Lévis, Longueuil, Montréal, Québec, Rimouski,
Rouyn-Noranda, Saguenay, Sherbrooke and Trois-Rivières. The OCCQ would like to thank the persons in charge of culture in
3these 11 municipalities for the time and effort expended in bringing this project to completion.
The OCCQ’s advisory committee on municipalities and local governments earmarked the detailed measuring of municipal cultural
expenditures as a priority. It is true that Québec municipalities are required to fi le an annual fi nancial report with the ministère des
Affaires municipales et des Régions (MAMR) which contains accounting information on cultural expenditures. The objective of the
OCCQ is to obtain further details on the nature of these expenditures while adding certain cultural expenditures not mentioned in
the MAMR report, such as general expenses. Thus the OCCQ has launched a project whose fi rst objective is to devise a measuring
method and test it with a few municipalities.
1. With the collaboration of Michel de la Durantaye and Marie-Ève Beaumier, from the Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières, of Josée Monty, OCCQ technician, and of the members
of the OCCQ’s advisory committee on municipalities and local governments.
2. Does not include the expenditures contained in the 3-year capital plan.
3. We would also like to mention the support of Jacques Alméras and Jean Perron who signifi cantly contributed to the start-up of the project and the development of the methodology.2
2
Highlights
4 The 11 municipalities which took part in the pilot project represent 54% of the Québec population . Their cultural
expenditures reached 353.2 million dollars in 2003 and 371.2 million in 2004.
The cultural expenditures represented 7.2% of their operating budget in 2003 and 2004.
Approximately 80% of their cultural endeavours are fi nanced from municipal contributions, for example, the property
tax and the balance (20%) are shared somewhat equally between the grants received from the provincial and federal
governments and the sale of goods and services (tariffi ng).
Libraries constitute by far the most important cultural fi eld in terms of expenditures.
Total expenditures per inhabitant amounted to $89.42 in 2003 and $93.35 in 2004.
The libraries of these 11 municipalities purchased books, periodicals and recordings valued at 18.1 million dollars in
2003 and 18.9 million in 2004, which corresponded to 13.6% of their budget in 2003 and 13.5% in 2004.
More than 50 million dollars has been paid out annually in the form of grants, artists’ fees and professional fees.
We respected the Québec Culture and Communications Method, concepts and
5Activity Classifi cation System which is used by the OCCQ
defi nitions to produce all its statistical work. However, we had to
group certain cultural fi elds based on the ability of the
Basically, the method consists in tracing the expenditures 11 participants to trace the information. The method is
per category for each cultural fi eld. It is not accounting based on a practical approach which everyone can apply
in the strict sense but a measuring tool that is as reliable and on the practices of the majority of municipal cultural
as possible which can be applied to municipal cultural management professionals.
expendi tures in Québec. Where possible, the method
reuses the MAMR data in order to glean more details
from them. Overall, the results obtained by the OCCQ are
perfectly consistent with the fi nancial data published by
the MAMR regarding the 11 involved municipalities.
st4. The population data were taken from the MAMR orders as at January 1 , 2003 and 2004.
5. Institut de la statistique du Québec, Système de classifi cation des activités de la culture et des communications du Québec, 2003, 141 p.
statistiques en bref / février 073
This document only takes into account the recorded preserving, restoring and exhibiting archives and
expenditures, regardless of their nature. Thus, the ser- other historical artefacts.
vices rendered that were not recorded and any other
The fi eld entitled “non-distributed expenses” com-
non-recorded expenditure have not been estimated or
prises the expenditures of all the above-mentioned
accounted for.
fi elds, except libraries, that the municipality was
unable to detail.
The project consists in allocating the operating expendi-
tures by category. As a result, investment expenses have Irrespective of the fi eld, the expenditures are divided by
not been collated in this project. category:
The project retained the following cultural fi elds or groups Salaries and fringe benefi ts. This category cor-
of cultural fi elds: responds to the total salaries paid (to regular, con-
tractual or other staff), including the fringe benefi ts.
Libraries. The greater part of the data for this fi eld Also includes the municipal employees on loan to
has been taken from the annual management report a corporation if the municipality continues to pay
fi led by the independent public libraries with the the salaries and fringe benefi ts of said persons over
Québec Minister of Culture and Communications. the course of the loan.
Arts and letters. This is a group of fi elds which Grants awarded. This category corresponds to the
includes visual arts, fi ne crafts, and media arts, total grants paid with no consideration on the part
the performing arts, literature and multimedia. of the receiving person or group. When a grant is
paid globally to an event featuring a cultural com-
Cultural festivals and events. Genuine cultural-
ponent, it only includes the amount corresponding
based festivals and events are distinguished from
to the proportion of the cultural component with
other festivals and events which only feature a
respect to the overall event (cultural budget/event
cultural component.
budget). Includes grants to NPOs, for example a
Cultural and scientifi c recreation – which includes tourist promotion organization working for cultural
amateur activities – in the following fi elds: astron- purposes (ex: the promotion of a cultural event).
omy, visual arts, singing before an audience, choir
Artists’ fees and professional fees. This category
singing, storytelling, dancing, writing, genealogy,
corresponds to the amount paid in artists’ fees
fi ne crafts, instrumental music, photography, the-
and professional fees for the production of a good
atre, and video.
or service. Included are the amounts appearing in
Heritage, public art and design. This fi eld com- the municipal accounting records for the contracts
prises the expenditures related to the operation granted to NPOs acting for and in the name of the
of heritage interpretation centres, museum insti- city during cultural events (concert hall manage-
tutions, historical societies and other public or ment). Only the amounts appearing in the municipal
private institutions. Also included in this fi eld are accounting records are included while the total
expenditures related to the acquisition and mainten- value of the NPO’s activities (ticket revenues, etc.)
ance of original art works designed expressly to be is excluded.
integrated into the architecture of a given building
Purchase of goods and services. Corresponds to
or public place (parvis, hall, park, square, etc.).
the expenditures related to the purchase of goods
Preservation of historical archives. On the one hand, and services, excluding building maintenance.
this fi eld comprises the expenditures related to the
Other expenses. This category comprises venue
preservation of legal historical archives of the mu-
fees, tax credits and the share paid to supramu-
nicipality and other non-exploited heritage assets
nicipal agencies. The venue fees correspond to
(i.e. preserved but not generally accessible to the
the indirect grant that an organization receives,
public) of which the municipality has custody. On
either by not paying the lease for the occupation
the other hand, in also includes the costs related
of a workspace belonging to the municipality, or
to the grants paid to private centres engaged in
4
by occupying said workspace for free. The tax General expenses. This category comprises the
exemption (credit) corresponds to the taxes not amount of general expenses chargeable to culture;
collected by the municipality from the organiza- this amount is the proportion of the weight of cul-
tions that have taken advantage of the provisions tural expenditures with respect to the total operating
of the Act respecting Municipal Taxation. The mu- expenditures of the municipality.
nicipalities contribute to the expenses of supramu-
We wish to publish herein the results of the 11 participat