GCSurplus is a Canadian government department responsible for handling moveable Crown assets that a federal department or agency has declared as

surplus Surplus may refer to: * Economic surplus, one of various supplementary values * Excess supply, a situation in which the quantity of a good or service supplied is more than the quantity demanded, and the price is above the equilibrium level determ ...

under the Surplus Crown Assets Act (R.S., c. S-20, s. 1). Surplus assets are typically auctioned off to the public through the GCSurplus website.

Public Services and Procurement Canada Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC; french: Services publics et Approvisionnement Canada)''Public Services and Procurement Canada'' is the applied title under the Federal Identity Program; the legal title is Department of Public Works ...

(PSPC) operates nine GCSurplus sales centres, formerly known as Crown Asset Distribution Centres (CADCs). These centres are located across the country and manage the disposal of moveable

federal government A federation (also known as a federal state) is a political entity characterized by a union of partially self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a central federal government (federalism). In a federation, the self-governin ...

surplus material. Acting as the Government of Canada's agent, PSPC provides client departments with a disposal service through direct sales or through the management of contracts with service providers.

History

In 1944, the

Government of Canada The government of Canada (french: gouvernement du Canada) is the body responsible for the federal administration of Canada. A constitutional monarchy, the Crown is the corporation sole, assuming distinct roles: the executive, as the ''Crown ...

created the War Assets Corporation, which was subsequently renamed the Crown Assets Disposal Corporation after the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. In 1984, the activities and staff of the corporation were integrated into the Department of Supply and Services. The organization became known as the Crown Assets Distribution Service Line and has continued its functions within PSPC. The organization became known as GCSurplus in 2009, coinciding the launch of an online bidding system.

Mandate and activities

Its mandate is to manage the surplus moveable assets disposal program for the government, providing quality service to clients while obtaining the best value for the Crown. The legislative base for its operations is the Surplus Crown Assets Act along with the Treasury Board Policy on the Disposal of Surplus Moveable Crown Assets. With a few exceptions, the legislation and policy require PSPC to manage the disposal of surplus assets on behalf of federal organizations. The Act was amended in 1993 to provide departments with additional options for the disposal of surplus moveable assets, subject to terms and conditions to be prescribed by the

Treasury Board of Canada The Treasury Board of Canada (french: Conseil du Trésor du Canada) is the Cabinet committee of the Privy Council of Canada which oversees the spending and operation of the Government of Canada and is the principal employer of the core public se ...

. Since its founding, GCSurplus have been involved in the direct sale of surplus materials ranging from ships and cars to furniture and clothing, as well as seized goods on behalf of

departments and agencies. Surplus assets are sold directly by GCSurplus or through contracted service providers. Many assets are sold through public sales that attract thousands of buyers, and, in some cases, sales are conducted at GCSurplus sales centres. Many transactions also take place through the GCSurplus website, where each item is listed and described, often accompanied by a photo. The RFP/RFI process to let the contract was released to public view in June 2013, while

Rona Ambrose Ronalee Ambrose Veitch ( , née Chapchuk; born March 15, 1969) is a Canadian former politician who was interim leader of the Conservative Party and the leader of the Opposition between 2015 and 2017. She was the Conservative Party member of ...

was Minister of PSPC. The site received over 50,000 visitors per month. GCSurplus also act as agents for foreign governments in the sale of their surplus assets located in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

and have working arrangements with certain European governments for disposal of Canadian military surplus located in their countries.

Sale process

Departments or federal bodies notify GCSurplus of their surplus assets by filling out a Report of Surplus form and sending it to the nearest sales centre. GCSurplus then handles all aspects of asset disposal from start to finish. The process can include: organizing sales of assets; arranging for viewing of assets; conducting sales; evaluating bids; receiving money; handling all sales-related inquiries; and returning net proceeds to clients. Once the item is sold, the client receives the net proceeds from the sale and a transaction report.

Donations

Sometimes, government ministers can authorize "Gratuitous transfers" (donation) of valuable assets. This category consists of assets which have marketable value, but which are being donated to recipients which a custodian minister designates in order to meet specific or general program purposes of government. Some donations are pre-approved as part of an ongoing government program (e.g. the Computers for Schools Program). In all other cases, the donation must be approved by the minister through whom the department reports to Parliament. Gratuitous transfers should normally be carried out by an officer of the custodian department. Contractors should not normally be used.

References

External links