The Investment Dealers Association of Canada posted a smaller surplus for the fiscal year ended March 2003.

The IDA’s latest report reveals that membership dues rose from $28.6 million in 2002 to $30.3 million in 2003. However, that was cut though a $2 million special reduction. Still, underwriting levies, registration fees, and the IDA’s other sources of income all increased, pushing revenues up to almost $37 million for the year.

At the same time, the IDA’s spending on regulation increased from $20.7 million in 2002 to $22.3 million in 2003. The expenses for its trade association activities rose from $4 million to $4.35 million, and spending on the finance and administration division, public affairs and the secretary’s office, all rose too — pushing total spending to more than $35.6 million. Overall, the IDA’s surplus slipped from more than $1.8 million in 2002 to $1.47 million in 2003.

The IDA’s discretionary fund saw a large increase in revenues, rising from $744,189 in 2002 to more than $2 million in 2003, driven primarily by an increase in investigation fines from $358,546 in 2002 to more than $1.4 million in 2003. Also, late filing fines, continuing education and membership fee revenue all increased, too.

Spending on disciplinary hearings increased sharply, from $159,693 in 2002 to $335,545 in 2003. But the bulk of the increased revenues, $1.37 million worth, went to the development of the National Registration Database.

The IDA also spent more than $200,000 on the straight-through-processing initiative.