Transport committee  Sure. Generally we have an agreement in place before any payments can be made or any reimbursements are made. We always have to have that condition in place. A municipality will go ahead and proceed with the project, construction will occur and take place, and they will submit the appropriate documentation to our organization, Infrastructure Canada.

Transport committee  Yes, that's the approach.

Transport committee  Yes.

Transport committee  Yes. We work with and have agreements with the proponents who provide the projects. They tell us what their planned expenditures are. We use that information to then put it into our estimates process so that we can determine the appropriate level of funding needed for the department for the following year.

Transport committee  Sure. Under the gas tax fund, we work with provinces and municipalities to ensure that there are—not in all cases—potentially signs or other markers that identify there is a contribution from all partners in the project.

Transport committee  It depends on the program, but generally it can be a cost-shared part of the program. It's an eligible cost.

Transport committee  The allocation formulas are all included in the agreements that we negotiate and sign with each of the provinces and territories. It's an agreed-upon formula.

Transport committee  Yes, from the federal government to the provinces it's population based, with exceptions for the smallest: the three territories and P.E.I., which get a fixed amount of 0.75% of the total amount. But how they transfer to municipalities varies a lot, actually by jurisdiction. Some provinces do have a minimum floor that each municipality will get; some provinces do not.

Transport committee  Under the gas tax fund there is a specific allocation amount that is taken out of the program off the top and provided to Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada to manage for on-reserve groups, for first nations on reserve. That is managed outside of our department and not only through the gas tax fund.