Canadian Heritage, and more specifically Sport Canada, will be auditing funding recipients to ensure that Hockey Canada complied with the terms of its existing contribution agreements with the department for the April 1, 2018 to March 31, 2023 period. It will apply to future commitments as well. Samson, the firm hired to conduct the audit, is currently examining the documentation in order to plan the audit.
Samson will be visiting Hockey Canada, on‑site, between June 27 and July 7, 2022, for its auditors to conduct a financial review of expenditures reported to Sport Canada. They will accordingly be able to verify the eligibility of these expenditures, and Hockey Canada's governance structure. They will also check Hockey Canada's internal controls and implementation policies in the administration of the department's funding.
The auditors may also examine current policies and processes for dealing with requirements pertaining to harassment and assault, dispute resolution, anti-doping measures and any other requirements in the policies, as set out in the contribution agreements.
Following the on‑site visit, and between now and the end of July 2022, the auditors will wrap up their review and prepare the preliminary findings for validation purposes. A draft of the report is expected by the end of August 2022. This report will be sent to Hockey Canada for validation and to obtain responses to the recommendations made by the firm.