6.3 Quarterly estimation methods and data sources

6.32 Current quarter estimates of federal taxes, subsidies and Goods and Services Tax (GST) are calculated from the same information used for the last year of the four year revision cycle. The only difference being an increasing difficulty in obtaining information for extra-budgetary entities for current quarters and hence an increasing reliance on prior-period information.

6.33 Provincial and territorial tax revenue estimates are developed from a variety of source information varying widely across jurisdictions. L'Institut de la Statistique du Québec provides estimates based on Government of Quebec internal information. Other provinces provide monthly and quarterly information from their government accounting systems while estimates of some series for some jurisdictions have to be calculated using budget estimates distributed across quarters, using related indicators.

6.34 Current-quarter estimates of taxes less subsidies for the local sub-sector are derived using estimates of annual values and a variety of quarterly distribution methodologies.

6.35 The bulk of local sub-sector taxes, consisting mainly of real property taxes, are levied on an annual or semi-annual basis. Since the stream of services produced by real property is, for national accounts' purposes, continuous throughout the year, these annual taxes are divided evenly over the component quarters of the year.

6.36 A small sub-set of local taxes is levied on current, observable activity and these are estimated quarterly using related indicators. An example is the Deed Transfer Tax series, estimated on the volume of real estate transactions.

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