|
1. 2008
OPERATING AND CAPITAL BUDGET
BUDGETS D’IMMOBILISATIONS ET DE FONCTIONNEMENT 2008
|
BOARD RECOMMENDATIONS
That Council approve:
1.
the
Ottawa Police Service 2008 Draft Operating and Capital Budget as tabled, with a
city tax rate increase in the amount of 1.44% regardless of the amount of 2008
assessment growth;
2.
the
2007 refinancing of Project 904135 Records Business Transformation, from Debt
to Reserve Funding.
RECOMMANDATION DE LA
COMMISSION
Que le Conseil approuve :
1. les
budgets de fonctionnement et d’immobilisations 2008 du Service de police tels
que déposés, avec une hausse des taxes municipales de 1,44 % quelle que soit
l’expansion de l’assiette de l’impôt foncier de 2008.
2. le
refinancement du projet 904135 de 2007, dossiers de transformation des
activités, en le transférant du financement de la dette au fonds de réserve.
DOCUMENTATION
1. Ottawa Police Service Budget
Book dated 14 November 2007 previously distributed.
2. Extract of Minutes, 14 November and Draft Minutes, 26
November 2007 are attached.
1. 2008
DRAFT OPERATING AND CAPITAL BUDGET
Director
General’s report dated 14 November 2007
Presentation
by the Director General and the Director of Finance and Materiel Management
Chief V. White explained that
the 2008 Budget contains consistent increases that focus on two perspectives:
the police and the community. This is a
community budget as it provides service to our communities. It is driven primarily by significant
capital requirements into the future, such as facilities, radio and IT
replacement, and the continued costs associated with staffing increases that have
resulted directly from collective bargaining and arbitrations.
The Chief thanked the Board
for their support throughout the long budget process. He then introduced Director General D. Frazer and Mr. G. Simpson,
Director, Finance and Materiel Management, to make the presentation.
D/G Frazer guided Board
members through the presentation. (A
copy of the presentation is on file with the Board’s Executive Director.) She thanked the Executive Team, managers and
supervisors who came forward with their suggestions, and everyone involved in
the process for their assistance.
Board
members congratulated staff for presenting budget issues in a clear and
transparent manner. A discussion
resulted from the presentation and the following points of clarification were
made:
·
The OPS’ annual portion of provincial funding is $4.5
million. This amount is appropriate for
covering costs related to new hires; however, a budget pressure is created when
salaries increase. Incremental or
step-up costs in the amount of $800,000 are related to this pressure for 2008
and identified within the budget each year.
·
Currently no dollar amounts related to federal funding
have been identified in the 2008 Budget.
The Chief will continue to pursue this matter as he has not yet received
a formal response from Public Safety Canada.
·
Labour costs collected from paid duties are paid
directly to the officers. An overhead
premium for administering the contract, and if necessary vehicle usage, is
charged to help offset some of the OPS’ costs.
Staff will attempt to determine the approximate costs recoverable by the
OPS as a result of paid duty.
·
It was suggested that an executive summary be provided
when presenting the Budget and that it include the increase in volume of
priority calls and how the additional pressures on resources are managed.
·
Any specific questions Board members have regarding
the Budget should be directed to Director General Frazer or the Director of
Finance, G. Simpson.
·
It should be highlighted that after the 2008 budget
increase, budgets over the next three years will recommend reduced police tax
rates.
·
Referring to the presentation, it was noted that the
cost per household ($36) of the proposed tax increase should be identified in
the slide entitled “Term of Board Draft Forecast” so that all relevant information
is easily accessible for residents.
·
The suggestion that crime in Ottawa is going down and
as a result the budget should not increase is refuted by the rising costs
associated with policing. Police
agencies across Canada have seen a reduction in some crimes, however, there is
an increase in other types of crimes that are often times more difficult and
time consuming to investigate.
·
Reduced fleet maintenance costs are associated
primarily with the capital replacement plan that is in place; significant
requirements are dealt with on a unit-by-unit basis. Also, there has been a significant reduction in service vehicle
accidents over the past two years.
·
The Police Service exists to serve the public. It is important when delivering budget
information to the community that it is presented in a manner that directly
correlates the budget figures to the services being offered.
The
Board then considered the following motions:
That
the Ottawa Police Services Board receive and table the Ottawa Police 2008 Draft
Operating and Capital Budget for consideration and approval at its meeting on
26 November.
CARRIED
Moved by B. Monette
That the Ottawa Police
Services Board consider for approval at its meeting on 26 November 2007 the
refinancing of the 2007 Project 904135 Records Business Transformation, from
Debt to Reserve Funding.
CARRIED
1. PUBLIC DELEGATIONS
ON THE 2008 BUDGET
There were no public delegations.
2. APPROVAL OF 2008 BUDGET
2008 Draft Operating & Capital Budget
book previously distributed
Presentation
Ms. D. Frazer, Director
General, explained that the presentation would consist of a short summary
regarding the last steps in the budget approval process and an outline of the
supplementary information that resulted from questions raised by Board members
at the 14 November 2007 meeting. Staff
have been attending the Councillor’s information sessions and budget
consultations to explain what drives the OPS budget, hear from members of the
public and answer their questions.
Board
members commended staff for their diligence and hard work that has resulted in
this budget. Having had the opportunity
to review the Budget book and hear the presentation, Board members raised
numerous questions. Issues raised and
clarified during the discussion were as follows:
·
The
almost $600,000 deficit caused by the Stanley Cup Playoffs is identified in the
2007 year end deficit of $2.4 million. The Municipal
Act states that all deficits must be funded by one of two ways, either
through reserve funds or being the first thing taxed in the subsequent
year. In the latter case, Council would
have to advise the OPS to include it in the 2008 Budget and it has not done so.
·
The Court Overtime area (page 45) has achieved close
to $600,000 in efficiencies over the last two years. These savings were the result of two initiatives: an arbitration decision allowed for a
favourable change to the formula used for calculating court overtime costs; and
the Strategic Staffing Initiative (SSI) allowed the Service to assign more case
managers and streamline the case management function. This budget item is reviewed on a monthly basis and it has been
successfully reduced each time. Staff
indicated it is not unrealistic to expect further savings in the range of
$10,000 to $20,000 to be achieved.
·
The Special Overtime area (page 45) is commonly
referred to as “Paid Duty”. This is a
service offered to members of the public and municipal partners should they
require certain police services such as traffic control, escort and security. All costs are recovered from the individual
requesting the service. All budgeted
expenses within Special Overtime are completely recovered (see revenue line Off
Duty Policing on page 47).
·
The Overtime budget is in the range of $2.8 million,
as it has been for a number of years.
It has been adjusted to account for the changes in salary agreements and
growth. Overtime is an item on the
Executive Dashboard and is reviewed monthly for different approaches to manage
the budget base. There was great success
in bringing the budget in line with spending until June, when the Stanley Cup
Playoffs created a $600,000 deficit in overtime. Overtime continued to increase in July, August and September due
primarily to homicides. These
investigations require prolonged activity and have been absorbing overtime
costs above budget levels.
·
Staff have been attempting to build a $1 million
Criminal Investigations Section (CIS) project fund which is currently helping
to offset some of the overtime pressure.
This strategy has been used over the past two years to separate the
projects that have been undertaken and the overtime that is required for
investigations. The Business Plan
provides for a $250,000 contribution to the CIS Investigative Fund that will
bring the balance to $750,000 in 2008.
The final $250,000 in 2009 will bring the level to $1 million.
·
Page II of the Budget book shows the 2007 OPS approved
spending increase was 3.1% while the increases of other comparable Ontario
police services ranged from 4.6% to 9.7%.
The OPS’ net operating budget increase for 2008 is 9.3%, which includes
a $5 million increase in the capital base.
If the $5 million capital expense was removed from the budget, the 2008
increase would then be between 6.5% and 7%, comparable to those of other police
services. Some police services do not
include capital expenditures in their budget numbers, therefore there is a
misconception that all things are equal when they are not.
·
The Chief confirmed that staff are always looking for
efficiencies. This year’s budget
contains additional funding requirements due to a difficult budget in
2007. It is believed that the current
deployment review will identify efficiencies, whether it translates into
immediate economies has yet to be determined.
·
On 14 November 2007 the City Treasurer advised Council
that the assumption of 2% assessment growth in 2008 might be at risk. The final assessment roll has not yet been
determined, but City staff estimate it could be 1.7% to 1.8%, which could
impact the OPS budget. In order to deal
with this, there are two options for the Board to consider: a greater 2008 tax increase (up to 1.49%) or
a reduction in the 2008 budget request.
Member El-Chantiry indicated he would move a motion to deal with the
potential smaller than anticipated assessment growth.
·
The Benefits for Retirees area has been reconciled,
all benefits for retirees have been brought up to date, and outstanding and
owing amounts have been confirmed. The
significant increase ensures there is a proper base to fund retiree benefits
going forward. There has been a
significant increase in retirees in the past three to four years, so the number
also reflects growth in the retiree base.
·
Growth in the City was lower than originally projected
but it is not reflected in the OPS budget.
Member El-Chantiry suggested that a presentation should be provided at
community meetings in future to explain to the public about the increase in
calls for service and the changes in policing required to handle them.
·
The Software/Hardware Maintenance area includes funds
for ongoing maintenance agreements, an additional increase for the e-ticketing
software and additional user licences.
Increases for software licences and agreements are in the range of 7% to
8%, which is higher than inflation level increases.
·
The Property Lease area provides for three different
storage requirements: the move of functions and sections to meet growth demands
within the Service, which will affect approximately 60 to 90 people; 2,000 to
3,000 sq.ft. for key supplies and equipment identified by the pandemic group;
and covered storage for some specialty vehicles. The goal is
to meet these demands while buying time until the west and south division
facilities are complete.
·
The
Personal/Safety Supplies/Clothing area contains an increase related to
uniforms. The primary increase in the
Quartermaster budget is for a move to a different fabric in the uniforms worn
by police officers. Currently uniforms
are made of a poly-cotton fabric, which tends to fade and wear very
quickly. The new fabric is a poly-wool
blend that is lighter and more durable, therefore maintaining its professional
look longer. With a fabric that lasts
longer and keeps it colour better, the replacement cycle will occur less
frequently. The one time cost to fit
the entire Service is offset by a one-time contribution from the reserve
fund. Councillor Monette expressed
concern about this expenditure and indicated he would dissent on this
particular item.
·
Chief
White indicated his support for the move to the more durable fabric. He noted the new uniforms are also in
response to a request to have a red stripe placed on constable uniforms made by
the Uniform Committee to make them more obvious to members of the public. It is very difficult to distinguish
emergency services by their look, and to tell police from non-police security
agencies, as they wear an almost identical uniform.
Mr. Simpson outlined two
options available to the Board regarding the 2008 Assessment Growth rate. There is a net operating request before the
Board of approximately $204.4 million for 2008. Should the Board choose to approve this amount, whatever happens
with assessment growth will affect the net tax requirement. Another option would be to approve a motion
stating if there is a decrease in assessment growth the Board would adjust the
$204.4 million as necessary to ensure the City-wide tax increase is no greater
than 1.44% and staff would come back to the Board with options to achieve the
required reductions.
Member El-Chantiry felt more
comfortable approving the 1.44% tax increase, and should the assessment growth
rate fall short it would be up to staff to find the necessary
efficiencies. He indicated he would
propose this motion.
Vice Chair McRae indicated her
support for the motion and felt that the Board and Service have been very
careful and deliberate in providing a responsible budget. As a member of the Police Services Board,
she would not feel comfortable voting to maintain the $204.4 million budget
when the possibility of an increase exists.
She was not prepared to support a tax rate increase of more than
1.44%.
That the Ottawa Police
Services Board approve the Ottawa Police Service 2008 Draft Operating and
Capital Budget as tabled, with a city tax rate increase in the amount of
1.44% regardless of the amount of 2008 assessment growth.
CARRIED
as amended
(B. Monette dissented on cost element
505478 - Personal/Safety Supplies/Clothing)
YEAS: D.
Doran, E. El-Chantiry, D. Guilmet-Harris, H. Jensen, J. MacEwen, M. McRae, B.
Monette
NAYS: none.
The Board then voted on the
following remaining recommendations:
That the Ottawa Police
Services Board approve the 2007 refinancing of Project 904135 Records Business
Transformation, from Debt to Reserve Funding.
CARRIED
That the Ottawa Police
Services Board forward the 2008 Budget to City Council for approval.
CARRIED
Vice Chair McRae believed the Board
showed leadership in not asking Council to cover the additional $500,000 that
could result from the lower than expected 2008 assessment growth. She also felt it was important that this was
an unanimous Board decision and asked that these messages be conveyed to City
Council.
