Meeting 25 · February 25, 2026 · 16:12–18:20 (2h 8m)
45-11 witness · 257 interventions · 17,850 words
The House of Commons Standing Committee on Public Accounts met to resume its study of the Auditor General of Canada’s 2025 fall reports on Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) contract centres. Appearing were the Honourable François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Finance and National Revenue, and Melanie Serjak, Assistant Commissioner, Assessment, Benefit, and Service Branch, CRA. Later in the meeting, the committee heard from Adam Chambers, a Member of Parliament, as a witness on his private member’s bill.
Minister Champagne testified that the CRA’s 100-day service improvement plan, implemented from September to December 2025, doubled call centre capacity to 2,750 representatives, raised the unique caller response rate from 35% to over 70%, and processed an additional 115,000 T1 adjustment requests. He emphasized the accelerated rollout of digital services, including a redesigned phone menu, a document verification service using AI, a self-service credential recovery feature, and a priority callback system, to reduce reliance on phone lines and free agents for complex cases. He acknowledged ongoing challenges, including the complexity of the tax code and legacy systems, and stated that the agency is committed to continuous improvement, noting that the 100-day plan delivered tangible results but that more work remains.
Melanie Serjak provided details on the CRA’s performance metrics, noting that 45% of agent performance ratings are based on productivity and 45% on quality, which includes accuracy, proper authentication, and correct procedures. She confirmed that the agency is working to improve its performance program in response to the Auditor General’s recommendations, but noted that changes require planning and union consultation. She also addressed concerns about the Benefits Delivery Modernization programme, stating that the CRA is in constant contact with Employment and Social Development Canada regarding T4 slip generation issues for seniors and is planning how to manage any affected cases.
Adam Chambers, speaking as a witness on his private member’s bill, argued that large corporate tax debts are being written off without transparency, citing that in 2023-24, 10 corporations had $1.1 billion written off. He proposed a public registry to disclose the names of corporations and trusts that have debts over a threshold—suggested at $1 million—written off, forgiven, or waived, arguing that sunlight would improve accountability and help parliamentarians identify legislative gaps. He stated that the bill would not apply to individuals and that he is open to discussing the threshold and other amendments, noting that he has had collaborative discussions with the minister’s office. He disagreed with the notion that corporate privacy should prevent disclosure, asserting that corporations do not deserve the same privacy as individuals in this context.
During the meeting, a motion was tabled by Sébastien Lemire requesting that the committee report to the House to establish a public and independent inquiry into cost overruns on IT contracts, including Phoenix, ArriveCAN, and Benefits Delivery Modernization. The motion was noted for debate at the next meeting.
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Melanie Serjak
Assistant Commissioner, Assessment, Benefit, and Service Branch, Canada Revenue Agency
Opening remarks
Yes, certainly. Thank you. In order to be accurate about the accuracy issue, I should say that 45% of our agents' performance ratings concern productivity, and 45% concern quality. The quality of answers encompasses a number of aspects, including—