2. POVERTY ISSUES ADVISORY COMMITTEE – HYDRO ISSUES

COMITÉ CONSULTATIF SUR LES QUESTIONS LIÉES À LA PAUVRETÉ – QUESTIONS TOUCHANT L’ÉLECTRICITÉ

COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATIONS AS AMENDED

That Council request Ottawa Hyrdro to work with the Poverty Issues Advisory Committee, Dossier Hydro, Employment and Financial Assistance and the Envirocentre to develop a protocol to deal with low income family's hydro bills and that they consider the utility of a partnership with Share the Warmth.

RECOMMANDATIONS MODIFIÉES DU COMITÉ

Que le Conseil municipal demande à Hydro Ottawa de collaborer avec le Comité consultatif sur la pauvreté, Dossier Hydro, la Direction des services d’emploi et d’aide financière et l’Envirocentre à l’élaboration d’un protocole destiné à résoudre le problème des factures d’électricité des familles à faible revenu et d’examiner l’utilité d’un partenariat avec la fondation Share the Warmth (Partageons l’espoir).

Documentation

1. Chair, Poverty Issues Advisory Committee report dated 17 May 2004

(ACS2004-CCV-POI-0004).

2. Extract of Draft Minutes, 15 July 2004.

Report to/Rapport au:

Health, Recreation and Social Services Committee/

Comité de la santé, des loisirs et des services sociaux

and Council/et au Conseil

17 May 2004 / le 17 mai 2004

Submitted by/Soumis par: Chair, Poverty Issues Advisory Committee/

Présidente, Comité consultatif sur les questions liées à la pauvreté

Contact/Personne-ressource: Brenda Emond

Advisory Committee Coordinator, Corporate Services Department

Coordonnatrice de comités consultatifs, Services généraux

580-2424, ext/poste 21801, Brenda.Emond@ottawa.ca

Ref N°: ACS2004-CCV-POI-0004

SUBJECT: POVERTY ISSUES ADVISORY COMMITTEE – HYDRO ISSUES

OBJET: COMITÉ CONSULTATIF SUR LES QUESTIONS LIÉES À LA PAUVRETÉ – QUESTIONS TOUCHANT L’ÉLECTRICITÉ

REPORT RECOMMENDATIONS

1. That the Health, Recreation and Social Services Committee request the Deputy City Manager, Community and Protective Services facilitate a meeting between Enbridge Gas, the Hydro Committee of the Coalition of Health and Community Resource Centres and the Poverty Issues Advisory Committee’s Hydro Rate Working Group.

2. That the Health, Recreation and Social Services Committee recommend to Council that Hydro Ottawa be directed to partner with Share the Warmth.

RECOMMANDATIONS DU RAPPORT

1. Que le Comité de la santé, des loisirs et des services sociaux demande au Directeur municipal adjoint, Services communautaires et de protection, de faciliter une réunion entre Enbridge Gas, le Comité de l’électricité de la Coalition pour la santé et les centres de ressources communautaires et le Groupe de travail des tarifs d’électricité du Comité consultatif sur les questions liées à la pauvreté.

2. Que le Comité de la santé, des loisirs et des services sociaux recommande au Conseil municipal d’enjoindre Hydro Ottawa d’établir un partenariat avec Share the Warmth.

BACKGROUND

The Poverty Issues Advisory Committee (PIAC) became involved with Hydro as a result of learning that low-income families who were unable to pay their utility bill, were being cut off during the late fall and winter season. A sub-committee was formed to meet with Dossier Hydro, a francophone group that liaison with families in need of support. The two groups met and prepared a presentation to the Environmental Services Committee on 27 May 2003 and to Hydro Ottawa on 27 August 2003. The purpose of their presentations was to advise of the difficulties people were having because of their inability to pay their hydro bill and to ensure that hydro is not cut at times when the weather is extremely cold. They also wanted Hydro Ottawa to give people the opportunity to work out a payment plan.

DISCUSSION

On 11 May 2004, the PIAC received a verbal update from Dossier Hydro on their initiatives to date. The committee learned of the difficulty the organization was having getting in touch with representatives from Enbridge Gas and Share the Warmth, a homeless prevention program that works for low income families, seniors and the disabled. The PIAC recognized the need to clearly identify to Hydro Ottawa the ramifications of cutting services when people cannot pay. It was also questioned how far the $2M provincial contribution would go to assist low-income families with energy utilities.

The Health, Recreation and Social Services Committee received a verbal presentation from Share the Warmth on 15 April 2004. A letter was provided following that date, explaining the situation between Share the Warmth and Hydro Ottawa.

Following the discussion, the committee approved the aforementioned Motions.

CONSULTATION

There was no broad public consultation on this motion. However, the following comments have been provided by the Community and Protective Services Department:

Recommendation 1:

The Department is aware of the difficulties that utility support organizations such as PIAC and the Hydro Committee of the Coalition of Health and Community Resources Centres have had contacting Enbridge Gas.

Employment and Financial Assistance (EFA) staff serving Ontario Works (OW) clients, as well as other community resource centres and housing cooperatives, had difficulty representing and problem solving issues for low-income residents in times of crisis and emergency with Enbridge because of process and confidentiality issues.

The EFA Branch has worked with Enbridge to gain an understanding of the utility’s communication process and timelines for social services agencies of Ontario. Currently, Enbridge is able to respond to emails containing all required information within 24 to 48 hours, depending on volume of inquiries. These discussions, which have been ongoing for approximately a year, have attempted to streamline the process so the City, and other community resource centres, can communicate with Enbridge (via a central email account) regarding Ontario Disabilities Support Program (ODSP) and Ontario Works (OW) clients and low income residents, at risk of having their natural gas disconnected. These clients may potentially be eligible to receive some funds from the EFA Branch to assist with the cost of arrears. The EFA Accommodation Arrears Policy guides staff decisions relating to the issuance of arrears benefits to ODSP, OW and low-income residents via the City’s Essential Health and Social Supports Program. Further research is being undertaken relating to confidentiality issues associated with the Privacy Act given that administrative forms (e.g., consent to release and verify information) or verbal consent required by Enbridge can cause delays in the delivery of arrears funding.

The Deputy City Manager, Community and Protective Services would be pleased to facilitate ongoing discussions between the City, community agencies with an interest in utility issues, and Enbridge Gas.

Recommendation 2:

The original letter from Share the Warmth to Councillor Cullen, which served as a background to the PIAC discussion, as well as the Hydro Ottawa response to that letter dated July 6, are attached for information.

Both Hydro Ottawa and Share the Warmth have been forwarded copies of this report and have been invited to attend the July 15 HRSS meeting.

FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS

There are no financial implications associated with this report.

SUPPORTING DOCUMENTATION

Attachment 1 - Share the Warmth letter dated 28 April 2004

Attachment 2 - Hydro Ottawa letter dated 6 July 2004

DISPOSITION

The Coordinator, Health, Recreation and Social Services Committee will inform the PIAC of the disposition of this item.

ATTACHMENT 1

ATTACHMENT 2

POVERTY ISSUES ADVISORY COMMITTEE – HYDRO ISSUES / COMITÉ CONSULTATIF SUR LES QUESTIONS LIÉES À LA PAUVRETÉ – QUESTIONS TOUCHANT L’ÉLECTRICITÉ

ACS2004-CCV-POI-0004

Linda Lalonde, Chair, Poverty Issues Advisory Committee stated that Recommendation 2 is somewhat complicated and she asked that the City not request Hydro Ottawa to partner with Share the Warmth. She indicated that $85,000 in administration fees that Hydro had invested over a two-year period came directly from the pockets of Hydro Ottawa’s customers, including those who could not afford to pay their hydro bills and she believed this program could be developed into a more cost-effective way locally. She suggested instead that Ottawa Hydro be instructed to work with Employment and Financial Assistance, Dossier Hydro, the Envirocentre and the PIAC, with a view to developing an Ottawa-based program to help low-income families reduce their hydro consumption and avoid disconnection. This way, while they work on the long-term solutions, they also continue to resolve the immediate problems that people are faced with.

Edward de Gale, Executive Director, Share the Warmth took a different position on a number of the topics addressed in the letter from Hydro Ottawa dated 6 July 2004. He clarified that while they report a $50,000 contribution to Share the Warmth (STW) between 2000 and 2001, in fact their records show that just under $19,000 in membership dues was actually contributed to the program. The same contribution was repeated the following year.

He went on to state that STW’s program is successful because it reduces the utility company’s number of bad debt customers, as well as the number and duration of customer calls due to non-payment. The program is set up so that provincially, all utilities print at the same time in order to save money and that advertising is geared towards the months of December and January to raise money from the public prior to Christmas. Hydro Ottawa chose to partner with STW only in November 2000, one month before the program was to be launched province-wide. Their late arrival and their choice to print larger-sized and bilingual inserts resulted in increased costs.

Mr. de Gale further pointed out that some of the numbers that are being presented from Hydro Ottawa are cumulative costs that STW know nothing about and that the actual money derived from the insert through Hydro Ottawa was smaller than the actual dollars STW delivered into the community. As a result of this mis-information, it skewed the perception of what happened. He added that when Hydro Ottawa was unwilling to confirm a partnership in 2002, it forced STW to offer to purchase and supply them with inserts at their own expense. However, Hydro Ottawa elected not to allow the inserts to be included in the regular billing because their distribution license prohibited them from doing so. Mr. de Gale concluded by stating that despite the consultation referred to in the letter and despite constant efforts on the part of STW, Hydro Ottawa had not met with them.

Councillor Cullen acknowledged that if the City were to direct a partnership arrangement, the community would receive in exchange, a provincial campaign and be able to use their expertise in marketing the program. Mr. de Gale indicated that each year they provide more dollars, despite the refusal of the utility to partner or to lend their corporate weight to STW’s ability to leverage additional dollars. In response to questions posed by Councillor Cullen, Danielle Massé, Director of Employment and Financial Assistance noted that staff has been able to work with Hydro Ottawa recently and have arrived at some support from them regarding a no re-connection fee for clients. She believed that the proposal brought forward by Ms. Lalonde would assist them in working more effectively with Hydro Ottawa.

Moved by A. Cullen

That Recommendation 2 be amended to read as follows:

That the Health, Recreation and Social Services Committee recommend to Council that Hydro Ottawa be requested to work with the Poverty Issues Advisory Committee, Dossier Hydro, Employment and Financial Assistance and the Envirocentre to develop a protocol to deal with low income family’s hydro bills and that they consider the utility of a partnership with Share the Warmth.

CARRIED

1. That the Health, Recreation and Social Services Committee request the Deputy City Manager, Community and Protective Services facilitate a meeting between Enbridge Gas, the Hydro Committee of the Coalition of Health and Community Resource Centres and the Poverty Issues Advisory Committee’s Hydro Rate Working Group.

2. That the Health, Recreation and Social Services Committee recommend to Council that Hydro Ottawa be requested to work with the Poverty Issues Advisory Committee, Dossier Hydro, Employment and Financial Assistance and the Envirocentre to develop a protocol to deal with low income family’s hydro bills and that they consider the utility of a partnership with Share the Warmth.

CARRIED as amended