OTTAWA POLICE SERVICES BOARD REPORT 1

COMMISSION DE SERVICES POLICIERS D’OTTAWA - RAPPORT 1

 

 

 

TO THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF OTTAWA

AU CONSEIL DE LA VILLE D’OTTAWA

 

10-11 JANUARY 2007

LE 10-11 JANVIER 2007

 

 

The POLICE SERVICES BOARD met on 18 december 2006 and submits the item contained in this Report for the information and/or approval of Council at its meeting of 10-11 JANUARY 2007.

 

La COMMISSION DE SERVICES POLICIERS s’est réuni le 18 DECEMBRÉ 2006 et soumet l’article du présent rapport au Conseil pour information et/ou approbation lors de sa réunion du             10-11 JANVIER 2007.

 

 

Present / Présences :

 

Acting Chair / président suppléant : H. Jensen

Members / Membres :                              D. Doran

                                                                D. Guilmet-Harris

                                                                M. McRae

                                                                B. Monette

                                                                L. O’Brien

 

 

 


INDEX

 

 

NO./NO

 

 

ITEM

 

PAGE

 

ARTICLE

 

 

Police Services Board

 

 

 

Commission de Services Policiers

 

1.

OPS LONG RANGE FINANCIAL PLAN AND 2007 BUDGET DIRECTIONS

ACS2007-CCS-PSB-0001

 

01

PLAN FINANCIER À LONG TERME DU SERVICE DE POLICE D’OTTAWA ET 2007 DIRECTIVES BUDGÉTAIRES

ACS2007-CCS-PSB-0001

 

 

 

 

 


 

1.       OPS LONG RANGE FINANCIAL PLAN AND 2007 BUDGET DIRECTIONS

 

        PLAN FINANCIER À LONG TERME DU SERVICE DE POLICE D’OTTAWA ET 2007 DIRECTIVES BUDGÉTAIRES

 

 

 

 

BOARD RECOMMENDATION

 

That Council approve the following steps to action the OPS Long Range Financial Plan:

a.                  Approve the forecast Ottawa Police Service four-year operating expenditure requirements and ten-year capital needs as detailed in Attachments 1 and 2.

 

b.                  Approve a user fee policy that maintains the proportion of tax rate support and revenue from the benefiting user for all fees not otherwise governed by by-law or previously approved Board objective.

 

c.                   Approve the 2007 transfer of Ottawa Police Services debt servicing budget of $5.258 million from the City of Ottawa to the OPS budget.

 

 

RECOMMANDATION DE LA COMMISSION

 

Que le Conseil, en vue de la mise en œuvre du Plan financier à long terme du Service de police d'Ottawa (SPO) :

a.                  approuve les prévisions des dépenses de fonctionnement sur quatre ans et des besoins en immobilisations sur dix ans du SPO, telles qu'elles sont décrites en détail dans les annexes 1 et 2;

b.                  approuve une politique de frais d'utilisation qui maintiendrait le rapport actuel entre le financement tiré des rentrées fiscales et les recettes provenant des utilisateurs bénéficiaires pour tous les frais non visés par un règlement municipal ou par une politique précédemment approuvée par la Commission;

c.                  approuve le transfert, du budget de la Ville d'Ottawa au budget du SPO, d'un montant de 5,258 millions de dollars au titre du service de la dette du SPO pour 2007.

 

 

 

DOCUMENTATION

 

1.      Director of Finance & Materiel Management’s report dated 15 December 2006 is attached.

 

2.      Presentation attached at Annex A.

 

3.      Extract of Draft Minute, 18 December 2006 is attached.

 

 


 

REPORT

RAPPORT

 

 

DATE:

 

15 December 2006

TO:

 

Executive Director, Ottawa Police Services Board

FROM:

 

Director of Finance and Materiel Management, Ottawa Police Service

SUBJECT:

OPS LONG RANGE FINANCIAL PLAN AND 2007 BUDGET DIRECTIONS

 

 


RECOMMENDATIONS

1.      That the Ottawa Police Services Board take the following steps to action the OPS Long Range Financial Plan:

a.       Approve the forecast Ottawa Police Service four-year operating expenditure requirements and ten-year capital needs as detailed in Attachments 1 and 2.

 

b.      Approve a user fee policy that maintains the proportion of tax rate support and revenue from the benefiting user for all fees not otherwise governed by by-law or previously approved Board objective.

 

c.       Approve the 2007 transfer of Ottawa Police Services debt servicing budget of $5.258 million from the City of Ottawa to the OPS budget.

 

d.      Forward the OPS Long Range Financial Plan to City Council for approval at the 11 January 2007 Council meeting.

 

2.      That the Ottawa Police Services Board approve a 2007 Budget Direction which will result in either:

a.       A $10.45 million increase in taxation in accordance with the Long Range Financial Plan, subject to adjustments identified prior to tabling of the budget; or

b.      No increase in taxation.

 

BACKGROUND

 

The Ottawa Police Service Long Range Financial Plan sets the framework and policies for future annual budget processes, and confirms management and the Board’s commitment to financial planning and financial sustainability for the Ottawa Police.  It provides a framework for setting the expenditure priorities of the Board, and a long term funding strategy for those identified needs.

 

In October 2002, City Council approved the newly amalgamated City of Ottawa’s first Long Range Financial Plan (LRFP).  That report provided policy recommendations to address the City’s current and future capital expenditure requirements.  In 2004, that plan was refreshed for the City as a whole, and the Ottawa Police Services Board approved a police specific LRFP that was submitted for inclusion with the City’s plan.  The 2004 Police LRFP included an endorsement of the City’s debt financing policy and a plan to grow the OPS pay-as-you-go capital contributions program to fully fund lifecycle capital costs.

 

In July 2006, City Council approved an Integrated Planning Framework.  This framework sets the schedule for integration of the City’s master planning processes.  The Long Range Financial Plan is to be refreshed at the beginning of each new term of City Council.  This report constitutes the OPS submission for approval by the Board, and consolidation into the City report. 

 

Previous versions of the LRFP focussed entirely on the long term capital needs of the police service, and the City as a whole.  This update will also provide a multi-year operating expenditure needs forecast, and the associated funding requirements.  The inclusion of multi year operating budget requirements is in response to a recommendation from the City’s Auditor General’s 2005 Audit of the OPS Budget Development Process, and is consistent with the City’s Integrated Planning Framework.

 

With the inclusion of operating budget requirements, the LRFP is a comprehensive analysis of the high level forecast expenditure needs and associated funding strategies that will impact the guidelines for each annual budget process in the current term of the Police Services Board and City Council.  The LRFP will also link to all future OPS Business Plans and other strategic planning documents.  

 

On 25 July 2006, the OPS Board approved the 2007 Long Range Financial Plan and Budget Process report.  Since that time, scheduling of the review and approval of the OPS Long Range Financial Plan has been significantly delayed and revised to follow changes implemented by the City as a whole.  Part 1 of the City’s Long Range Financial Plan III was presented to City Council on 11 October 2006.  City Staff have now tabled part 2 of that report, and public consultation is currently in progress.

 

City Council has also tabled the 2007 Budget Directions report. Within that report was a recommendation that the Ottawa Police Service table a Draft 2007 Operating Budget consistent with the citywide direction of no increase in taxation.   This report will also provide the potential impacts of that direction to the Ottawa Police Service.

 

City Council is scheduled to approve all elements of the LRFP, as well as the 2007 Budget Directions on 11 January 2007. 

 

The Board now has two tasks to complete in order to meet the accelerated budget schedule timelines:

 

a.       Review and approve the LRFP for the Police Service at the December board meeting, so that these results can be included as part of Council’s deliberations on 11 January 2007;

b.      Give budget direction to staff at the December board meeting on the development of the 2007 budget estimates, giving due consideration to Council’s direction, the Board’s responsibilities under the Police Service’s Act and the requirements outlined in the LRFP.

 

The accelerated budget schedule means that this process will need to occur in a compressed timeframe.

 

DISCUSSION

Ottawa Police Services Finances in Context

For every Canadian municipality that provides police service, the cost of providing that service constitutes one of the biggest financial commitments in the annual budget and resulting tax rate.  For 2006, Ottawa Police services represent 16% of the total city property tax bill, excluding education, or $404 for an average residence with an assessed value of $276,000.   On a cost per service basis, only the cost of transit service is greater than the cost of policing in the City of Ottawa.

 

As with all municipal costs, the Ottawa Police Service gross budget has increased in recent years.  Increases have been primarily attributable to the Strategic Staffing Initiative (SSI) and contractual personnel costs.   Gross annual budget increases since City amalgamation in 2001 are presented in Table 1.

 

Table 1:  Ottawa Police Service Gross Operating Budget 2001 to 2006

 

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

 

$000

$000

$000

$000

$000

$000

OPS Operating Budget - Total Gross Expenditures *

128,761

137,130

144,279

158,427

174,670

189,167

% Annual Increase

 

6.5%

5.2%

9.8%

10.3%

8.3%

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

* Gross excluding Non Departmental expenditures resident with the City of Ottawa

 

As presented in Table 2, while gross spending has increased over this period, the increases have for the most part been proportional with the total City budget.  The proportional police share of total City budget has increased slightly since 2003, from 7.8% to 9.0%.

 

Table 2:  OPS Gross Budget in Proportion to Total City Budget

Gross Operating Budget

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

 

$000

$000

$000

$000

$000

$000

City Operating Budget

1,681,519

1,726,046

1,838,862

1,898,290

1,988,385

2,113,224

OPS Operating Budget *

128,761

137,130

144,279

158,427

174,670

189,167

OPS as % of Total City

7.7%

7.9%

7.8%

8.3%

8.8%

9.0%

*  Gross excluding Non Departmental expenditures resident with the City of Ottawa

 

Even with the proportionately greater increases in recent years, the OPS compares favourably to other municipalities in Ontario.  For example, in Toronto, 10.0%[1] of gross municipal spending supports police services. 

 

On a per capita basis, police costs in Ottawa fall in the middle of the pack for twelve Canadian municipalities most recently analyzed and published by Statistics Canada in November 2006. 

Table 3:  Police Costs Per Capita

 

2005

StatsCan

Cost per

 

Service

Costs

Population

Capita

Rank

Toronto

 $ 794,388,904

 2,607,637

        $305

1

Vancouver

 $ 176,042,279

    584,701

        $301

2

Edmonton

 $ 192,725,300

    718,788

        $268

3

Montreal

 $ 472,709,169

 1,873,813

        $252

4

Calgary

 $ 229,809,276

    970,797

        $237

5

Ottawa

 $ 172,279,620

    832,550

        $207

6

Hamilton

 $ 107,168,305

    519,878

        $206

7

Peel

 $ 236,254,160

 1,148,445

        $206

8

Durham

 $ 115,861,058

    575,201

        $201

9

York

 $ 161,551,777

    922,487

        $175

10

Halton

 $   77,083,068

    443,402

        $174

11

Gatineau

 $   39,262,434

    245,629

        $160

12

 

Source:  Police Resources in Canada, 2006.  (Statistics Canada, 85-225)  Based on 2005 data.

 

Other common measures quantified and published annually by Statistics Canada are Population per Police Officer, and Police Officers per 100,000 Population.  The most recent statistics available at the time of this report are from 2005, as prepared in 2006.   In these reports, Ottawa falls closer to the low end of the ranking.

 


Table 4:  Population Per Police Officer

 

2005

 

Population

 

 

StatsCan

2005

Per Officer

 

Service

Population

Officers

Ratio

Rank

Montreal

       1,873,813

       4,346

        431

1

Vancouver

          584,701

       1,303

        449

2

Toronto

       2,607,637

       5,371

        486

3

Edmonton

          718,788

       1,356

        530

4

Calgary

          970,797

       1,599

        607

5

Hamilton

          519,878

          762

        682

6

Peel

       1,148,445

       1,667

        689

7

Gatineau

          245,629

          346

        710

8

Ottawa

          832,550

       1,138

        732

9

Durham

          575,201

          776

        741

10

York

          922,487

       1,174

        786

11

Halton

          443,402

          533

        832

12

 

Source:  Police Resources in Canada, 2006.  (Statistics Canada, 85-225)  Based on 2005 population and 2005 police officers.

Table 5: Police Officers Per 100,000 Population

Service

Ratio

Rank

Montreal

232

1

Vancouver

223

2

Toronto

206

3

Edmonton

189

4

Calgary

165

5

Hamilton

147

6

Peel

145

7

Gatineau

141

8

Ottawa

137

9

Durham

135

10

York

127

11

Halton

120

12

 

Source:  Police Resources in Canada, 2006.  (Statistics Canada, 85-225)  Based on 2005 population and 2005 police officers.

 

Under the Strategic Staffing Initiative (SSI), the sworn officer complement of the OPS has increased by 165 officers between 2002 and 2006.  A further 30 officer positions were added in 2006 when the Strategic Growth Initiative (SGI) was introduced to ensure that OPS keeps pace with growth in the City. 

CAPITAL NEEDS FORECAST

Attachment 1 to this report provides the 2007 to 2016 ten-year capital requirements forecast for the Ottawa Police Service by individual project and by category of need.  The ten-year gross needs range from $13.7 million to $28.9 million annually, and totals over $192.5 million for the ten-year forecast, summarized as follows:

 

Table 6: OPS 10 Year Capital Needs Summary ($Millions)

 

 

Funding

Category

Gross Need

Tax

Revenue

DC

Debt

 

 

 

 

 

 

Renewal of Assets

133.7

130.2

3.5

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Growth

27.6

 

 

13.9

13.7

 

 

 

 

 

 

Strategic Initiatives

31.2

27.4

 

 

3.8

 

 

 

 

 

 

TOTAL

192.5

157.6

3.5

13.9

17.5

 

The capital needs analysis provided in this report represents an unconstrained capital program.  The requirements and the associated funding strategy are not limited to the currently available funding envelope, but rather are presented to demonstrate the financial impact of the needs.  Final decisions regarding affordability are subject to Board deliberation within each annual budget process. 

 

The broad categorization of the capital program remains consistent with that used in previous LRFP and annual budget submissions, and the approach used by the City of Ottawa.  The majority of the forecast is required for ongoing maintenance and Renewal of Existing Police Assets, including fleet replacement, facility maintenance, and information technology renewal.  This comprises $133.7 million of the $192.5 million requirement, or 70%.  This proportion is consistent with that forecast in the 2004 LRFP, and highlights the financial significance of maintaining current infrastructure, prior to consideration of additional capital.

 

As per policy approved by the Ottawa Police Services Board and City Council in 2004, Renewal of Asset projects are not eligible for development charge or debt funding.  Therefore, this category requires a significant draw on the annual tax supported capital contributions, which in turn are reflected in the operating budget and the resulting police tax rate.  Specific project revenue expectations included in the forecast arise from the disposal of fleet assets only.

 

The Growth category is defined as only those projects that are eligible for development charge (DC) funding from the DC by-law last updated in 2004.  In this current capital forecast, the growth requirements are attributable to the immediate need for new facility acquisition and/or construction resulting from City growth and corresponding growth of the Police Service’s staff complement.  New facilities costs total $27.6 million over the ten-year planning horizon, and are in addition to $7.5 million approved in the 2006 capital budget.  In conjunction with City of Ottawa Finance staff, the 2004 DC by-law annual revenue cash flow is subject to review, and may not be sufficient to address the full growth needs currently identified.  Shortfalls can be addressed in the next update of the development charge by-law in 2009.  From a conservative perspective, the police growth needs in this forecast prior to 2009 are funded through debt.  Should DC funding and/or DC funded debt be deemed available and sufficient, it will be applied in the corresponding annual budget process.   Police management will continue to work with City of Ottawa management to confirm the sufficiency of DC funding.

 

The third category of forecast capital expenditures is the Strategic Initiatives.   This category houses all requirements that do not qualify as renewal or growth.  Major examples include annual Information Technology Strategic Initiatives to remain at the forefront of policing information technology, and annual facility upgrade initiatives.  Total capital strategic initiatives over the forecast period total $31.2 million.  Funding for this category is primarily tax-supported capital contributions, with the exception of certain initiatives that qualify for debt funding.

Capital Funding Strategy

The principles of the OPS Capital Funding Strategy were approved in the 2004 Long Range Financial Plan.  At that time, the principles were summarized as follows:

 

Category

Primary Funding Sources

Renewal of Assets

Pay-As-You-Go

 

Project Specific Revenue

Growth

Development Charges

 

Debt

Strategic Initiatives

Pay-As-You-Go

 

Debt

 

It is recommended that these principles be renewed and, therefore, the application of the needs and associated ten-year funding plan is graphically depicted as follows:

 

To summarize, the capital needs of the Ottawa Police Service are primarily derived from the renewal and improvement of existing infrastructure.  The funding options available for those needs are limited, and the police tax base will be required to fund 82% of the need over the ten-year planning horizon. 

CAPITAL FORMATION COSTS

Within the OPS capital funding strategy, the annual direct tax support, or “pay-as-you go” contributions and debenture debt servicing, have an impact on the annual police tax rate.  Pay-as-you-go funding is a contribution straight from the operating budget (the tax rate) to the capital program.  Debt funding creates annual debt servicing charges for a period of 10 to 20 years after the debt is issued.  This also impacts the annual operating budget and tax levy in subsequent years after the debt is issued.  For purposes of this report, that is assumed to occur two years following project approval.    

Capital Contributions (Pay-As-You-Go)

As was forecast in the 2004 LRFP and the 2006 Approved Budget, the capital contributions of the Ottawa Police must be increased in the short term for significant upcoming projects.  Highlights of those projects include:

 

 

The police tax base must fund these projects.  There is no eligibility for development charge or debenture debt funding.   The current OPS capital contribution in 2006 is $8.4 million, and will need to increase to $16.5 million by 2009 in order to fully fund all forecast needs that must draw from tax funding.  The plan for these requirements began with the 2006 Approved Budget as the tax supported capital contributions were increased $3.2 million to ramp up funding for these purposes.  These increases must continue to be phased as much as possible over the next three years to mitigate the immediate tax impact in each year as much as possible.

 

Within the current $8.4 million budget for contributions to capital is $2.8 million specifically segregated for renewal of the police fleet.  At the request of the Board, a review of the police fleet is ongoing, and the City’s Auditor General is performing an audit of the program.  For this LRFP, the fleet renewal component is assumed to increase by only an inflationary amount each year for the term of the forecast.  That is subject to adjustment once the fleet review is completed.

Debenture Debt

Only a limited number of capital projects of the OPS are eligible for debt funding.  In this LRFP, those projects are exclusively new facilities or building improvements.   Over the 10-year horizon, the OPS are forecast to issue $17.5 million in new debt, with $13.1 required from 2007 to 2009. 

 

Currently, the OPS have $18.4 million of issued and outstanding debt, and $28.4 million of unfunded debt.  A debt-servicing budget base of $5.258 million currently resides with the City of Ottawa, and is comprehended in the calculation of the annual police tax rate.  With the creation of the separate police tax rate in 2005, that base was intended to transfer to the police budget.  Subject to approval, Recommendation 3 of this report will finalize that transfer. 

 

The $5.258 million is sufficient for the annual debt servicing payments for the currently outstanding debt.  All things being equal, as new debt is issued, the debt servicing operating budget needs to increase.  However in 2006, $9.8 million of outstanding police debt was retired (paid in full).  With that retirement, the 2007 actual debt servicing need is reduced by $2.3 million from 2006.  Subsequently, as new debt is issued, the debt servicing line needs replenishment and will return to 2006 levels in 2009.  (See Table 7)

 

In combination, the annual capital contribution and debt-servicing budget comprise the Ottawa Police Capital Formation Costs.  The required level, and the mix, of capital formation costs constitute a decision point for the Ottawa Police Services Board.  That is, to what extent will capital projects be funded from the current levy (pay-as-you-go), or debt financed for payment over a term of several years.  To tie this back to the OPS approved capital funding strategy from 2004, Renewal of Assets projects will attract the scarce pay-as-you-go dollars.  Certain strategic initiatives, and the portion of growth projects not eligible for development charge funding, are typically eligible for debenture debt funding.  As is the case in 2007, debt retirement can allow for a shift of debt-servicing budget to the capital contributions line, and thereby mitigate the immediate tax rate impact.

 

With the transfer of debt servicing budget completed, the existing 2006 OPS Capital Formation Costs total $13.7 million, and are forecast to shift and increase over the next four year as illustrated in Table 7:

 

Table 7:  OPS Capital Formation Costs ($Millions)

 

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

 

 

 

 

 

 

Debt Servicing

5.3

3.0

3.0

4.5

5.3

General Capital Contribution

5.6

8.8

11.0

13.2

14.5

Fleet Capital Contribution

2.8

3.0

3.1

3.3

3.4

Total

13.7

14.8

17.1

21.0

23.2

Annual Increase

 

1.1

2.3

3.9

2.2

 

OPERATING EXPENDITURE FORECAST

Attachment 2 provides the forecast 2007 to 2010 incremental operating budget pressures for the Ottawa Police Service.  Annual pressures range from $10.5 million to $13.5 million, and are categorized into four major categories.  Capital formation costs are explained in detail in the previous section.  The remaining three categories are explained in further detail below.


Table 8:  OPS Incremental Operating Pressures Summary ($000)

 

 

 

Category

2007

2008

2009

2010

 

Maintain Existing Service

 

 

 

 

 

Compensation

7,900

8,800

9,000

9,500

 

Growth

2,400

3,400

3,400

3,500

 

New Initiatives

500

500

500

500

 

Capital Formation Costs

1,050

2,350

3,850

2,250

 

Incremental Budget Requirement

13,550

15,000

16,800

15,800

 

Less Assessment Growth (2%)

(3,100)

(3,200)

(3,300)

(3,400)

 

Incremental Net Budget Increase

10,450

11,800

13,500

12,400

 

Police Tax Rate Increase

6.7%

7.1%

7.6%

6.5%

 

Impact on City Tax Rate

1.1%

 

 

 

 

FTE

1,818

1,863

1,908

1,953

 

 

Policing is a labour intensive public service.  In 2006, approximately 85% of the $189 million Ottawa Police Service gross operating budget is dedicated to personnel costs.  It supports salaries and associated benefits for 1,251 sworn officers, 522 civilian support staff as well as overtime and court time costs.  The remaining 15% balance of the operating budget supports the materials, fleet, facility, and information technology needs of the personnel, and provides the capital formation budget for the services major capital needs.   As such, the greatest operating budget pressures faced in any given year are collectively bargained pay increases and complement increases under the Strategic Growth Initiative to ensure the OPS keeps pace with City growth.  Inflationary increases on purchased services and materials such as automotive fuel and heating fuels also impact the budget.  

Maintain Existing Services

This category illustrates the required incremental operating budget increases to maintain 2006 levels of service only.  This includes estimates for collectively bargained salary increases for the current complement, inflationary increases on fuel, utilities and purchased services. These necessary expenditure increases are mitigated by the Board-approved annual efficiency target, and subject to approval, a new user fee policy.

 

Recommendation 1b implements in principle that OPS user fees will increase each year in proportion to the cost of providing the service, unless governed by an existing by-law or Board approved revenue objective.  The intent of this policy is to maintain the ratio between tax rate support and user fee support from the benefiting user.   Once this general principle is approved, staff will review each user fee and its associated cost and submit a corresponding fee increase with the tabling of the draft budget.  Exception will be made for Alarm Fees, which are governed by by-law and have a specific objective of reducing false alarms.   That objective will override this general policy principle. 

Growth

The Strategic Staffing Initiative (SSI) has guided the increases in OPS staffing that occurred between 2002 and 2006.  The Strategic Growth Initiative (SGI 2013) was introduced in the 2006 budget to ensure that OPS plans for, and takes the steps necessary, to keep pace with City growth.  Thirty sworn officer positions were added to the Police Service under the 2006 phase of SGI.  Staff and management are in process of completing the SGI 2013 project charter. 

 

For purposes of this LRFP, staff increases and associated costs are assumed to follow the complement growth forecast in the 2004 Development Charge Study, or 30 officers per year.  The LRFP also assumes 15 civilian staff per year to support the growth of the force.

 

Anticipation of Senior Level government funding in this forecast is limited to the continuation of the Province of Ontario Safer Communities One Thousand Officers Partnership (SCOOP) program.  

 

New Initiatives

 

Similar to the capital forecast, new initiatives not directly tied to growth are an annual expectation in the police budget.  For purposes of this LRFP, staff have assumed $500,000 per year for this purpose.  Details and exact requirements will come forward with each budget process.

 

Assessment growth is assumed at 2%.  This is consistent with the assumption used in the City’s Long Range Financial Plan, and is also subject to update with each annual budget submission.

2007 BUDGET DIRECTIONS

Requirement for 2007:  $10.5 Million Increase in Taxation

 

As per Section 39(1) of the Police Services Act, the Board shall submit operating and capital estimates to the municipal council that will show, separately, the amounts that will be required,

 

(a)    to maintain the police force and provide it with equipment and facilities; and

(b)   to pay the expenses of the board’s operation other than the remuneration of board members.

 

In total, the net budget increase required to maintain service levels and meet growth needs in 2007 is  $10.45 million, as set out in the Long Range Financial Plan.  This amount equates to a 6.7% increase over the 2006 police tax rate, or 1.1% on the citywide municipal tax bill.  Following the further analysis completed by staff for this LRFP, this estimate is approximately $4.35 million less than the 2007 forecast that published with the 2006 Draft Budget last fall.

 

Impact of No Taxation Increase in 2007

 

City Council has put forward a direction to the Ottawa Police Service to identify reductions in expenditures or increased revenue to offset the projected $10.45 million net budget increase for 2007 and, therefore, achieve a 0% increase in taxation. 

 

While staff have not had sufficient time to develop a comprehensive 0% increase scenario and to fully quantify the potential impacts of such a plan, the highlights of a scenario leading to $10.5 million of reductions are set out below.

 

 

 

 

Revised 2007 Budget Timetable

At a Special Meeting on 7 December, City Council approved revisions to the 2007 Budget Timetable.  The following table provides the revised City Council timetable, and the revised Ottawa Police Services Board schedule to accommodate the adjustments. The timeframe has been shortened, and Board approval of the 2007 Budget will occur at a special meeting on 19 February, with full Council approval scheduled for the week of 26 February.

 

Event

 Budget Date

City Council:  Tabling of Citywide LRFP and 2007 Budget Directions

December 14

OPS Board:  OPS LRFP & 2007 Budget Directions

December 18

City Council: Public Delegations on 2007 Budget Directions to Committee of the Whole

January 10

City Council: Deliberation and approval of 2007 Budget Directions

January 11

OPS Board Special Meeting:  Table OPS budget estimates with Board

February 7

City Council:  Tabling of Citywide 2007 Draft Budget

February 7

Public Consultations Meetings

February 12 – 16

City Council: Public delegations to Committee of the Whole

February 19 – 23

OPS Board Special Meeting:  Public Delegations and Approval of 2007 OPS Budget

February 19

City Council: Deliberations and approval of the 2007 Budget

February 26 - 28, 2007

 

CONSULTATION

 

No public consultation has occurred in the preparation of this report. The revised 2007 Budget Timetable provides for specific timeframes and scheduled public meetings for purposes of public consultation on the Police Service’s and Citywide municipal budget.

 

FINANCIAL STATEMENT

 

There are no direct or immediate financial implications from the approval of this report.  Capital and Operating needs forecasts are subject to annual budget approval.  Impacts of policy recommendations, if any, will be reported in future Quarterly Financial Status Reports.

 

CONCLUSION

 

The Long Range Financial Plan provides a high level comprehensive forecast of the unconstrained capital and operating funding requirements of the Ottawa Police Service.  In concurrence with the Citywide Integrated Planning Framework, the LRFP will be updated every four years, for the new terms of the Board and City Council.  While the LRFP sets the long-term context, each year’s budget process provides the Board’s final approval for the annual requirements.

 

The funding options available to the Ottawa Police, both operating and capital, are limited.  Funding for over 82% of the capital program and over 95% of the operating program comes directly from the police tax rate.  The Police Service is facing significant short-term capital requirements and incremental operating budget increases to maintain existing service levels and accommodate City growth.   A funding strategy to increase capital formation costs was recommended in the 2004 LRFP, and began in the approved 2006 Budget.  This strategy needs to continue through 2009, at minimum. 

 

Staff is recommending a $10.5 million increase in taxation for 2007, because adopting a 0% strategy for the 2007 Police Tax rate has significant ramifications for the Police Service.  Programs will be cut.  Seventy sworn and civilian positions would be eliminated.  The number of access points and overall accessibility to police services will mean reduced service levels and longer response times on inquiries.  This step would immediately begin to undo a number of recent strides the Ottawa Police Service has made in addressing community concerns and emerging public safety issues.  The provincial civilian oversight body would invoke its mandate to ensure that adequacy standards are maintained throughout such a process.  The Association, representing any laid-off members, would assume a vigilant stance to ensure the rights of employees are safeguarded.  The impacts on the community have not yet been identified, given the limited window for consultation on the Directions Report. 

 

Geoff Simpson

Director of Finance and Materiel Management

 

Debra Frazer

Director General

 

Vince Bevan

Chief of Police

 

Attachs. (2) 

2007 – 2016 Ottawa Police Service Capital Needs Forecast

2007 – 2010 Ottawa Police Service Operating Budget Pressures Forecast


1)     


ATTACHMENT 2

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ottawa Police Service

 

2006 to 2010 Incremental Operating Budget Pressures Forecast

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

$000's

 

Category

2006 Approved

2007

2008

2009

2010

 

 

Maintain Existing Service

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Compensation

7,600

7,900

8,800

9,000

9,500

 

 

Fleet - Fuel and Maintenance

500

250

250

250

250

 

 

Facilities and Leases

300

300

300

400

400

 

 

Strategic Staffing Initiative - Comp

2,150

1,700

0

0

0

 

 

Provincial Funding - SSI

(2,700)

(850)

0

0

0

 

 

Strategic Staffing Initiative - Non Comp.

300

900

0

0

0

 

 

User Fee Policy

0

(100)

(100)

(100)

(100)

 

 

Efficiencies

(1,000)

(500)

(500)

(500)

(500)

 

 

Subtotal Maintain Existing

7,150

9,600

8,750

9,050

9,550

 

 

Growth

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

New Divisional Facility Operating Costs

0

0

300

300

400

 

 

Staffing for Growth (SGI 2013) - Comp.

450

1,600

2,300

2,300

2,300

 

 

Staffing for Growth - Non Comp.

400

800

800

800

800

 

 

Subtotal Growth

850

2,400

3,400

3,400

3,500

 

 

New Initiatives

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CIS Project funds

250

250

250

0

0

 

 

Other programs

450

250

250

500

500

 

 

Subtotal New Initiatives

700

500

500

500

500

 

 

Capital Formation Costs

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Debt Servicing

0

(2,300)

0

1,500

800

 

 

Fleet Capital Contributions

250

150

150

150

150

 

 

General Capital Contributions

2,550

3,200

2,200

2,200

1,300

 

 

Subtotal Capital Formation

2,800

1,050

2,350

3,850

2,250

 

 

Incremental Budget Requirement

$11,500

$13,550

$15,000

$16,800

$15,800

 

 

Less Assessment Growth

($2,900)

($3,100)

($3,200)

($3,300)

($3,400)

 

 

Incremental Net Budget Increase

$8,600

$10,450

$11,800

$13,500

$12,400

 

 

Projected Police Tax Rate Increase

6.0%

6.7%

7.1%

7.6%

6.5%

 

 

FTE

1,773

1,818

1,863

1,908

1,953

 

 

 

ANNEX A

Slide 1

 

 

Slide 2

Slide 3

 

 

Slide 4

Slide 5

 

 

Slide 6

Slide 7

 

 

Slide 8

Slide 9

 

 

Slide 10

Slide 11

 

 

Slide 12

Slide 13

 

 

Slide 14

Slide 15

 

 

Slide 16

Slide 17

 

 

Slide 18

Slide 19

 

 

Slide 20

Slide 21

 


4.      OPS LONG RANGE FINANCIAL PLAN AND 2007 BUDGET DIRECTIONS

Chief’s report dated 15 December 2006 issued separately

 

 

Chief Bevan stated this matter is of great importance to the Police Service and staff have worked diligently on the preparation of this report.  The information being presented this evening will not come as a surprise to previous Board members, but will show that the forecast is less than that published in the 2006 Budget and will include explanations for the differences.  He then introduced Ms. D. Frazer, Director General, and Mr. G. Simpson, Director of Finance and Materiel Management, who presented the Long Range Financial Plan and 2007 Budget Directions.  (A copy of the presentation is on file with the Board’s Executive Director.)

 

Chief Bevan noted that in 2007, $9.6 million in new spending is required just to cover the costs of compensation, fuel and electricity.  Assessment growth and perhaps additional funding from the Provincial or Federal Governments will help offset these costs. 

 

The following points of clarification were made during the discussion that ensued after the presentation: 

 

      Member Monette wished to see a budget as close to zero as possible, and with as much detail as possible.

 

Member McRae stated she would not support cutting the current staff complement, but she also does not support a budget increase and believes there are other options.  She strongly asked that staff look at alternatives that do not impact service delivery, and try to keep the numbers down by deferring capital programs and increasing debt.  She recognized that this Board has its fiduciary duty, but ultimately City Council will be looking very closely at the OPS budget, as will members of the public.

 

Acting Chair Jensen said he appreciated the constructive comments heard this evening, and agreed with the comments made earlier by members Doran and Guilmet-Harris about the Board having a duty to ensure public safety and security in Ottawa. 

 

Member Guilmet-Harris proposed that staff come back with alternative options that are somewhere in the middle of no tax increase and a $10.45 million increase in taxation.

 

Prior to voting on the 2007 Budget Direction, the Board considered the following Recommendation regarding the Long Range Financial Plan contained in the staff report: 

 

1.    That the Ottawa Police Services Board take the following steps to action the OPS Long Range Financial Plan:

a)        Approve the forecast Ottawa Police Service four-year operating expenditure requirements and ten-year capital needs as detailed in Attachments 1 and

 

b)        Approve a user fee policy that maintains the proportion of tax rate support and revenue from the benefiting user for all fees not otherwise governed by by-law or previously approved Board objective.

 

c)         Approve the 2007 transfer of Ottawa Police Services debt servicing budget of $5.258 million from the City of Ottawa to the OPS budget.

 

d)        Forward the OPS Long Range Financial Plan to City Council for approval at the 11 January 2007 Council meeting.

 

                                                                                                     CARRIED

 

After further discussion, a vote was called on the recommendation that appears as Recommendation 2(a) in the staff report.

 

Moved by D. Guilmet-Harris

 

That the Ottawa Police Services Board approve a 2007 Budget Direction which will result in a $10.45 million increase in taxation in accordance with the Long Range Financial Plan, subject to adjustments identified prior to tabling of the budget.

 

                                                                                                      LOST

 

YEAS:       D. Doran, D. Guilmet-Harris, H. Jensen

NAYS:       M. McRae, B. Monette, L. O’Brien

 

Member McRae then proposed the following motion, as an amendment to Recommendation 2(b) in the report:

 

That the Ottawa Police Services Board approve a 2007 Budget Direction that directs staff to use their best efforts to achieve no increase in taxation.

 

                                                                                                      CARRIED as amended

 

 



[1] City of Toronto Website