Memoranda issued by Finance and Corporate Services

Date: December 13, 2024

To: Mayor and Members of Council
From: Cyril Rogers, General Manager and Chief Financial Officer, Finance and Corporate Services Department

The purpose of this memorandum is to inform City Council that the Vacant Unit Tax (VUT) declaration portal opened yesterday for residents who want to declare early prior to the formal declaration period. The formal declaration period will open on January 2, 2025. Email notices, using previous year declaration contact information and paper notices are scheduled to be distributed to property owners in the new year and will be accompanied by a robust communication campaign throughout the declaration period. The declaration deadline is March 20, 2025, while late declarations being accepted until April 30, 2025, with a $250 late fee.

There are several ways for residents to submit their declaration:

• My ServiceOttawa
• Online at www.ottawa.ca/vut
• By phone at 613-580-2444, option 3
• By Canada Video Relay Service at 613-580-2400
• Client Service Centres

At the special joint meeting of the Finance and Corporate Services Committee and the Planning and Housing Committee on November 6, 2024, enhancements commencing in the 2025 VUT cycle were approved for the program, including:

1. The exclusion of certain rural farm properties from the program
2. Four new exemptions:
   • Rural ineligible property
   • Hazardous property outside of the owner's control
   • Medical care property
   • A one-time retrofit renovation per property and owner, where the unit is occupied within one year.
3. The implementation of a graduated tax rate increase of one per cent per year for repeat vacancies, up to a maximum of five per cent of the residential assessed value. The base rate will remain at one per cent for first-year vacancies.
4. A 15-month late appeal window beyond the current 3-month appeal deadline allowing for late appeals at an administrative fee of $500 per assessed property.

If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me or Joseph Muhuni.

Sincerely,

Cyril Rogers
General Manager & Chief Financial Officer, Finance and Corporate Services Department

CC    Senior Leadership Team
         Andrea Lanthier-Seymour, Chief Communications Officer  
         Joseph Muhuni, Deputy City Treasurer Revenue, Finance and Corporate Services

Date: October 18, 2024

To: Mayor and Members of Council
From: Joseph Muhuni, Deputy City Treasurer, Revenue

Members of Council,

Revenue Services is conducting a tax sale for properties with significant unpaid taxes. Under Part XI of the Municipal Act, the City is required to advertise the sale of the properties for four consecutive weeks in local publication(s) (English and French) and once in the Ontario Gazette. We are advertising five (5) properties. Two of the five properties are vacant land (residential), two are parking spaces in condominium complexes and one is a vacant single family home. I have attached a listing of the properties for your reference. Ottawa.ca will also be updated with the list of properties on Friday, October 18, 2024.

The tax sale advertisement schedule will be as follows. 

• Saturday, October 19, 2024: The Ottawa Citizen and Le Droit
• Saturday, October 26, 2024: The Ottawa Citizen, Le Droit and the Ontario Gazette
• Saturday, November 2, 2024: The Ottawa Citizen and Le Droit
• Saturday, November 9, 2024: The Ottawa Citizen and Le Droit

The tender opening will be held at 101 Centrepointe Drive, The Ben Franklin Place Chamber, on Friday, November 22, 2024, at 3:00 pm.  

Listing a property for tax sale is done only as a last resort. Prior to arriving at this stage, numerous tax bills, statements and notices have been sent to the property owner. Revenue staff have made many attempts to arrange a satisfactory repayment schedule with the property owners. Each property owner has had plenty of opportunity to keep the City from taking this serious action. To be eligible for the tax sale, the property owner must owe taxes from 2022 and prior. I assure you that Revenue staff have made every possible effort to avoid this regrettable step.

Should taxpayers contact you about the tax sale, you can refer them to the Sale of properties with unpaid taxes page on Ottawa.ca or have them call us at 613 580 2740 for more information. 

I have already contacted the Councillors with properties on this list in their wards to discuss the process in more detail. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Sincerely,

Joseph Muhuni,
Deputy City Treasurer, Revenue Services

Date: August 06, 2024

To: Mayor and Members of Council
From: Cyril Rogers, Interim General Manager and Chief Financial Officer, Finance and Corporate Services Department

The purpose of this memo is to outline the public engagement process for the City’s 2025 draft budget.

Public Consultations

To prepare for public consultations on the City’s 2025 draft budget, members of Council are requested to provide the following details on their planned consultation activities to Maria Belli (Budget@ottawa.ca) by October 1.

• Name(s) of Councillor(s) participating in the public consultation
• Date, time and location
• Identify if the session will be in-person, virtual or hybrid
  o For any virtual or hybrid meetings please provide any links to join or to sign-up (once available)
• If a representative from Finance and Corporate Services Department is requested to attend the session (please note if a bilingual presenter is required)
• If representative(s) from other City departments are requested to attend (please note required department(s))
• The information regarding the consultation meeting will be published to Engage Ottawa and Ottawa.ca when all the details are received.

ITS Support for Public Consultations

Information Technology Services (ITS) is available to assist with technical support for virtual, in-person and hybrid consultations. Councillors are strongly encouraged to contact ITS to leverage their technical support and assistance by completing the Collab Event Intake Form.

Staff Attendance at Public Consultations

Due to limited staff resources, public consultations hosted by multiple ward Councillors will be prioritized over single ward sessions when requesting a representative from Finance and Corporate Services to attend. Members of Council are highly encouraged to group their public consultations together in order to cover multiple City wards or regions (e.g. east, central, south, west, rural). We will do our best to accommodate requests for representation.

Councillors are also encouraged to invite representatives from other City departments to attend public consultations. Requests can be emailed to Budget@ottawa.ca.

Online Engagement

Beginning today until September 13, Ottawa residents are invited to complete a short poll on Engage Ottawa where they can identify their priorities for the 2025 draft budget.

The schedule for all Councillor-led public consultations will be posted on Ottawa.ca and Engage Ottawa and promoted via the City’s social media and other corporate communications channels.

After the draft budget is tabled, residents can submit questions through Engage Ottawa and City staff will post responses. This opportunity will be available between Wednesday, November 13 and Monday, December 9, 2024.

Council Sharepoint Site

A Budget Consultation Toolkit is available to support Councillors with their consultations. The toolkit will be updated throughout the 2025 budget drafting process and Councillors are encouraged to explore the site on a regular basis. Councillors will find important resources, such as public engagement materials to support their public consultations, and resources to host in person/hybrid/virtual consultations.

Budget to Support Public Consultations

As in past years, $250 per ward is allocated in the Council administration budget to support public consultation. Please submit all invoices to Chantal Leduc (chantal.leduc@ottawa.ca) in the normal fashion, but clearly indicate that the expenses are related to the budget consultation.

Members of Council are reminded that additional funds are available on a first-come, first-served basis to provide accessible formats and communication supports when corresponding with their constituency, including consultations. For details on how to access these funds, please contact Council Support Services (councilsupportservices@ottawa.ca).

Next Steps

In September, meetings will be scheduled with members of Council, the Mayor, City Manager and Chief Financial Officer to discuss budget considerations and ward priorities. The proposed 2025 Budget Directions, Timeline and Consultation Process Report will be tabled in September. The City’s 2025 draft budget will be tabled at Council on Wednesday, November 13, 2024, and considered for adoption by Council on Wednesday, December 11, 2024.

If you have any questions on the 2025 draft budget, please reach out to our budget team at budget@ottawa.ca.

Date: July 26, 2024

To: Mayor and Members of Council
From: Cyril Rogers, Interim General Manager and Chief Financial Officer, Finance and Corporate Services Department

Isabelle Jasmin, Deputy City Treasurer, Corporate Finance

Background

Council approved an affordable Transit Long Range Financial Plan (LRFP) in February 2019 as a companion report to the Stage 2 Light Rail Procurement, which included revised operating and capital cost projections over 30 years to 2048. Since that time, staff have continued to update the transit affordability model reflecting the impacts of the pandemic, inflation and experience from operating rail for the last several years.
In September 2023, a technical briefing was provided to Councillors to present the latest updated projections for the Transit LRFP, which by then had become unaffordable due to a variety of factors, but primarily due to the reduction in ridership caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, an increase in the cost of operating rail, and an increase in construction costs worldwide. The briefing described the key pressures and changes from 2019 to the revised 2023 estimates, making the transit funding model unaffordable and identifying a funding gap of $6.6 billion over 30-years, which is now $8.6 billion. The technical briefing identified several levers that Council could adjust to support the financial sustainability of transit services, such as:

• Transit levy;
• Capital contributions;
• Transit fares;
• Operating Costs;
• Stage 3 light rail;
• Development charges; and,
• Transportation Master Plan updates for other future light rail, bus rapid transit and transit priority projects.

In November 2023, Council approved motion (ACS2023-OCC-CCS-0153) recommending that an “internal working group be made up of City staff from the relevant departments, working with the

Mayor, as well as the Chairs of the Transit Commission, Transportation Committee and Planning and Housing Committee.” The group was given the task of exploring all mitigation levers and options discussed in the technical briefing and some additional ones, including but not limited to:

• Feasibility of bulk pass purchases;
• Sustainability and equity lens review of passes;
• Exploration of Urban Transit Area;
• Other sources of revenue, such as, municipal vehicle registration fees, ride-hailing fees, private parking levies, land value capture, sale of development rights at transit stations, road tolls, cordon (area) charges, and mobility charges;
• Feasibility of development rights / air rights on City-owned land near transit stations (Transitway and O-Train);
• Updated ridership projection model;
• Service alignment review; and,
• Advocate for additional funding from senior levels of government and funding similar to Metrolinx / GO Transit in the Toronto area.

The internal working group was established and includes the following members:

The working group first met in January and has continued to meet every two to four weeks since that time. In the first meeting, staff provided a backgrounder on the key issues impacting transit affordability and confirmed the list of levers to be analyzed in the immediate term in preparation for the 2025 budget and some longer term items requiring more analysis but needed to be resolved as part of the updated Transportation Master Plan, Transit Long Range Financial Plan and next Development Charge Study planned to be completed in in the fall of 2024 and again Q3/Q4 2025.

This memo is an update to Council on the progress of that work, in particular the levers that were explored by the Working Group to date, and the analysis completed on the shorter-term solutions, primarily as input to the 2025 budget, which include the following:

• Transit fares
• Sustainability and Equity Lens Review of Discounted Passes
• Transit Levy
• Operating Costs
• Urban Transit Area (UTA)
• Private Parking Levy

Much of the work completed to date has been focused on diving deeper into each lever to get a better understanding of the financial framework, analyze trends, and assess the impacts of various scenarios/options, supplemented by comparisons to other municipalities. This analysis has provided some critical insights for the working group, and input to the 2025 Budget Directions report recommendations, particularly for transit fares, discounted passes and transit levy target. Staff continue to explore and assess operating costs and opportunities for greater efficiencies, to be included in the draft budget that will be tabled in November.

A review of the Urban Transit Area and a Private Parking Levy as an additional revenue option is ongoing, the results of which would be provided in future updates.

Next Steps

The working group will continue to meet on a regular basis to explore other levers and the financial implications of each as input to the 2025 budget and to address future, expected budget pressures. These levers could be implemented within a year or two to solve the more immediate financial pressures as staff continue to advance work on the longer-term solutions. The group will also continue to identify areas for Council to advocate to senior levels of government for additional funding or powers to implement new sources of revenue to ensure the financial sustainability of Ottawa’s transit services.

We will continue to report on the progress of the working group to Council with an update memo later this year.

Sincerely,

Cyril Rogers
Interim General Manager & Chief Financial Officer, Finance and Corporate Services Department

Date: June 28, 2024

To: Mayor and Members of Council
From: Cyril Rogers, Interim General Manager and Chief Financial Officer, Finance and Corporate Services Department

Members of Council,

The purpose of this memo is to advise Council that the financial information on municipally-funded grants and contributions for 2023 were published today on Ottawa.ca, in accordance with the Grants and Contributions Policy.

The Grants and Contributions Program

The City is committed to community-based initiatives that improve the well-being and quality of life of Ottawa residents and ensure the conservation of our environment, culture and heritage.

Grants and contributions provide real value for money to the City. They help the City and Council achieve many social, economic, environmental and cultural objectives by leveraging the community-based activities of individuals and not-for-profit organizations. The City's Strategic Plan and Term of Council Priorities are being advanced significantly by supporting the activities of not-for-profit organizations and individuals who are embedded in the communities they serve.

In 2023, $75,306,391.38 was provided through 52 programs to 258 organizations and 2,316 private households and individuals.

Publishing on Ottawa.ca

The reports on 100 per cent municipally-funded grants and contributions for 2023 were published today on Ottawa.ca under the following funding portfolios:

• Economic Development
• Development, Planning and Building
• Community and Social Support
• Cultural
• Environmental
• Recreation
• Rural
• Other

Each portfolio has a separate webpage that provides the specific report for 2023, as well as a list of the grant programs in the 2023 report.

The Grants and Contributions Policy provides that financial information for annual grants and contributions wholly funded by the City must be published on Ottawa.ca at the end of June, based on the prior year’s disbursements.

Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or require further clarification.

Thank you,

Cyril Rogers
Interim General Manager and Chief Financial Officer, Finance and Corporate Services Department

Date: June 21, 2024

To: Mayor and Members of Council
From: Cyril Rogers, Interim General Manager and Chief Financial Officer, Finance and Corporate Services Department

Members of Council,

This memo is in response to questions received regarding the City’s current debt levels.

Debt Summary

• The City of Ottawa has one of the lowest debt servicing to property tax ratios when comparing Canada’s largest municipalities;
• The debt servicing ratio is significantly below the 25 per cent limit set for municipalities by the province, as outlined in Table 1.
• The City’s total tangible capital asset value (based upon cost, without factoring in depreciation) has increased to $29.4 billion in 2023 from $16.7 billion in 2013;
• The City’s outstanding net long-term debt in 2023 was $3.305 billion compared to $1.650 billion in 2013 mainly due to LRT and growth in rate infrastructure (water/wastewater, pumping stations, etc.);
• The City’s debt servicing ratios have reduced compared to 2013, which indicates that our revenues increased proportionally, reducing and keeping debt servicing ratios relatively constant; and
• The City’s overall credit rating is maintained at Aaa with Moody’s Investor Services and AA+ with Standard & Poor’s rating agency. These are high ratings and are in line with other major municipalities.

At the end of 2023, the City is well below each of the allowable debt servicing limits, as demonstrated in Table 1 below:

For comparison purposes, the Total Debt Service Cost as a percentage of Property Tax Levy ratio of four major Canadian municipalities are shown Table 2 below. Total Debt Service Cost is used in this comparison because data for tax-supported debt service cost is not publicly available for other municipalities.

Background - Long Term Debt

As stipulated in the Municipal Act, long term debt can only be used to finance capital assets. The term of the long term debt must be equal to or less than the life of the asset. The province limits the total amount of municipal long term debt servicing to 25 per cent of its own-source revenues.

The City’s total net long-term debt as of December 31, 2023 was $3.305 billion, an increase from $3.211 billion the previous year. In the same year, the City added $1.70 billion in new tangible capital assets to its inventory, increasing the total net book value of the City’s tangible capital assets to $22.25 billion. The outstanding net long term debt of $3.305 billion represents 14.85 per cent of the value of the City’s tangible capital assets. From a taxpayer’s perspective, that is equivalent to a $74,250 mortgage on a $500,000 home.

Long term debt levels are continuously monitored to ensure the ongoing financial stability and sustainability of the City, in accordance with the City’s fiscal framework principles. Council established conservative debt servicing targets where principal and interest for tax supported debt are not to exceed 7.5 per cent of the City’s own source revenue, and principal and interest for water and sewer rate supported debt are limited to no more than 15 per cent of rate revenues, for a combined target of 8.5 per cent of total own source revenues. The total debt interest and principal payments for tax and rate supported long-term debt in 2023 was $164 million, which represents 4.7 per cent of the City’s total own-source revenues, well below the 8.5 per cent target established by Council.

We continue to provide updates to Committee and Council through the annual budget process and our annual financial reporting, which includes the Annual Report and the report on Investments, Endowment, and Other Treasury Activities.

If you have any questions, please reach out to Cyril Rogers or Isabelle Jasmin.

Sincerely,

Cyril Rogers

Interim General Manager and Chief Financial Officer, Finance and Corporate Services Department and 

Isabelle Jasmin

Deputy City Treasurer, Corporate Finance, Finance and Corporate Services Department
 

Date: May 24, 2024

To: Mayor and Members of Council
From: Cyril Rogers, Interim General Manager and Chief Financial Officer, Finance and Corporate Services Department

Members of Council,

The purpose of this memo is to respond to the Council motion which directed the City Manager to work with Human Resources to review processes and collective agreement language in order to identify where requirements for medical notes or forms could be eliminated or simplified.

In anticipation of the conclusion of the bargaining process with the Civic Institute of Professional Personnel (CIPP), the union representing most City professional staff, this memo was delayed to allow for the collective bargaining process and interest arbitration award to be issued. With the new CIPP collective agreement now in effect, it should be highlighted that the terms requiring CIPP employees to provide a medical certificate due to illness or injury have changed, which supports the intent of this motion and is explained further below.

Requirements for Medical Notes and Forms

The requirement for medical notes and forms is dictated by Collective Agreements. The information contained in the notes can be essential when attempting to accommodate an employee and to facilitate an early and safe return. Diverting from what is outlined in the Collective Agreements may lead to labour relation issues and may have an impact on extended duration of absences, early and safe return to work strategies, labour production, employee morale and engagement, as well as the financial impacts related to the cost of absences and lost productivity.

As an employer, the City is committed to working to reduce the long-term costs associated with absenteeism through disability management practices that focus on Stay at Work and Early and Safe Return to Work programs. The City has adopted a comprehensive Wellness Strategy that is focused on improving wellness through prevention, health promotion, and improving workplace conditions that will contribute to reducing the incidence and impact of sick leave. Employee absences impact the capacity for the City to deliver its services that residents rely on, and the City will continue to explore all options to reduce absenteeism and promote early and safe return to work.

Current Processes and Practices for City Employees to Report Absences

There are a few options for employees to report an absence related to an injury or illness, each subject to various requirements and criteria:

1. Sick Leave Certificates

The City sick leave certification process is based on the requirements outlined in the various Collective Agreements for unionized staff and the Terms and Conditions of employment for non-union staff. Medical notes and forms are used to support managing attendance, disability management, and the early and safe return to work of employees. Most of the Collective Agreements and Terms and Conditions require an employee to provide a medical certificate when they have been off work for five or more consecutive working days due to illness or injury. In addition, most Collective Agreements dictate that a medical certificate is required when an employee reaches a total cumulative amount of sick days used in any calendar year.

The recently awarded new collective agreement for City CIPP staff now requires CIPP employees to provide a medical certificate after being off work for more than five consecutive working days due to illness or injury – an increase of one day.

It is also important to note that a medical certificate may be completed by a qualified “medical professional.” This includes and is not limited to a general practitioner, nurse practitioner, medical specialist, psychiatrist, registered clinical psychologist, physiotherapist, dentist, oral surgeon, midwife, or chiropractor. The medical certificate is to provide a prognosis for a return to work, as well as medical limitations and restrictions.

2. Self-Declaration Form

The Self-Declaration Form may be used instead of a medical note from a physician. It allows employees to self-certify a non-occupational illness or injury for up to four consecutive working days of absence (3.5 working days of absence for Transit). The Self-Declaration Form was created in response to the H1N1 influenza outbreak to reduce the unnecessary burden on the health care system and improve the City’s working relationships with physicians.

Current use of the Self-Declaration Form varies across the City due to the nature of the work being performed within certain operations. Where self-certification is an option, managers retain the right to ask for a Sick Leave Certificate signed by a medical professional.

3. Medical Assessment or Functional Ability Form (Disability Management Program)

When an employee is off work because of a non-occupational illness or injury for 10 consecutive days or more, the City’s disability management program is initiated to support and guide management around the employee’s early and safe return to work. Employees may be asked to have a health care professional complete a Medical Assessment or Functional Ability Form to aid in assessing fitness for work, to identify accommodation needs or modified duties.

Disability Management Strategies and Interventions

Sick Leave Certificates, Functional Assessment forms and Medical Assessment forms are essential to mitigate the number and duration of employee absences. The information provided through these forms is intended to assist in managing attendance, facilitating early and safe return to work, and is essential in enabling the City to meet its obligations under Duty to Accommodate. The employer bears the onus of demonstrating that they are knowledgeable about the abilities of the employee with the disability and the disability itself, and the possible accommodations that could be made for the employee in the workplace.

Disability Management strategies and interventions are essential to:

1. 1. Reducing the number and magnitude of injuries and illnesses
   2. Minimizing the impact of disabilities on work performed
   3. Decreasing lost time associated with injuries and illnesses and resulting disabilities

Opportunities to Reduce the Impact and Duration of Employee Absences

The City will continue to review the existing disability management program and attendance management strategies on an annual basis to identify opportunities and best practices to reduce impact and duration of absences. In addition, the City regularly monitors changes to federal and provincial employment standards legislation, including but not limited to how these relate to sick leave certification requirements. Any legal developments are reviewed, and the City takes appropriate action to ensure compliance.

The comprehensive Employee Wellness Strategy will continue to be implemented through departmental action plans to reduce absences and management will receive further education and encouragement to use the self-certification of sick leave, in particular where an employee has already returned to full duties and does not require accommodation after returning to work.

Managers are regularly reminded to review the City sick leave certification process with the intent of alleviating the burden on local physicians who are being asked to provide medical notes. Annual reminders will be included in Management Bulletins going forward, with the next one expected to be issued in Q3 2024.

Should you have questions, please do not hesitate to contact me directly.

Sincerely,

Cyril Rogers

Interim General Manager and Chief Financial Officer Finance and Corporate Services Department

Date: March 14, 2024

To: Mayor and Members of Council
From: Joseph Muhuni, Deputy Treasurer, Revenue Services, Finance and Corporate Services Department

Members of Council,

The purpose of this memo is to provide further information to Council on the City of Ottawa’s collection process for outstanding balances owed to the City and recent credit bureau reporting by a private debt collection agency.

City’s Collection Process
The City’s collection process has been in place for over twenty years and is summarized below:
• The City issues an invoice, bill, or ticket with a due date to pay the outstanding balance. A courtesy reminder is sent prior to the due date.
• If the due date is not met, the debt is referred to Revenue Services.
• Revenue Services sends a courtesy notice by mail within five (5) business days of receiving the debt, which provides an extended deadline and outlines enhanced collection methods available to the City, including referral to private debt collection agencies and credit reporting.
• If the City is unable to collect the debt after numerous courtesy contact attempts in the first six (6) months, the debt is referred to a private debt collection agency.

Private Debt Collection Agencies
Every five years, the City undergoes a competitive process to contract new private debt collection agencies. Outstanding balances are transferred to new agencies and courtesy notifications and collection activities continue. Therefore, longstanding debt owed to the City have had multiple agencies make several attempts to recover outstanding balances.

Credit Bureau Report
The most recent competitive process to contract private debt collection agencies was completed in January. One of the successful bids was Financial Debt Recovery (FDR). The company recently reported 103,000 unpaid Provincial Offences Act fines and 3,000 unpaid water bills to the credit bureau. Credit bureau reporting is a legal method and is widely used as a tool by financial institutions, lenders, and creditors to collect unpaid amounts. This can be an effective method when agencies are unable to contact the individual responsible for the debt. It is the responsibility of the public to update their address and contact information with the Provincial Offences Courts if they have outstanding offenses and the City. Of note, a conviction for a set fine under the Provincial Offences Act has no statute of limitations.

FDR has confirmed to the City that paid debts are removed from credit records.

Those who have received a collection notice or have had an item placed on their credit report by the third-party collection agency for outstanding arrears with the City can call Financial Debt Recovery at 1-877-300-9585 to request more information or make payment arrangements.

The City encourages residents to deal with invoices, tickets, and bills promptly to avoid collections activity. Where outstanding balances remain, it is the responsibility of the individual to update the Provincial Offences Courts and the City of their contact information.

Please do not hesitate to contact me.

Thank you,
Joseph Muhuni 

Date: February 28, 2024

To: Mayor and Members of Council
From: Isabelle Jasmin, Deputy City Treasurer, Corporate Finance

Members of Council,

The purpose of this memo is to inform Mayor and Members of Council of the new Sustainable Debenture Framework.
The City’s new Sustainable Debenture Framework supports the City’s ongoing commitment to advancing a more sustainable, resilient, and livable future as well as promoting environmentally sustainable development.

The City became the first Canadian municipality to issue a Green Bond in November 2017, and has since issued four Green Bonds totalling $1.027 billion. Building on the Green Debenture Framework, the City has developed an updated Sustainable Debenture Framework under which it may issue green, social, and sustainability debentures. The new framework is a key element in support of the City’s 2023-2026 City Strategic Plan, which aims to make the City more prosperous, sustainable, inclusive and resilient.

Under the updated Framework, proceeds from issuance will be used to finance or refinance eligible green and/or social projects that require a capital investment. The Framework includes updated eligibility criteria for its green use of proceeds categories along with new social use of proceeds categories including:

• Affordable basic infrastructure
• Capital assets to provide access to essential services
• Social and affordable housing assets
• Capital assets contributing to socioeconomic advancement and empowerment.

RBC Capital Markets and BMO Capital Markets served as Co-Sustainability Structuring Agents. Sustainalytics, a leading independent ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) and corporate governance research, ratings, and analytics firm, was engaged to provide a Second-Party Opinion (SPO) on the Framework. Sustainalytics is of the opinion that the Framework is credible and impactful and aligns with the International Capital Market Association (ICMA) Sustainability Bond Guidelines 2021, Green Bond Principles 2021, and Social Bond Principles 2023.

Please contact me at extension 21312 or via email if you have any questions.

Regards,

Isabelle Jasmin
Deputy City Treasurer, Corporate Finance

Date: February 15, 2024

To: Mayor and Members of Council
From: Joseph Muhuni, Deputy City Treasurer, Revenue Services

Members of Council,

The purpose of this memo is to inform Mayor and Members of Council of the public consultation activities planned for the Water Rate Structure Review.

In December 2023, Council approved the Water Rate Structure Review Framework report (ACS2023-FCS-REV-0006). In the report staff committed to robustly engage with the public as part of the review. The objective of the review is to examine how the City recovers the cost to deliver water, wastewater and stormwater services. This review will be conducted using the following six guiding principles:

• Fairness and equity
• Affordability
• Transparency
• Financial sustainability
• Support economic development
• Promote conservation

Engagement Opportunities
Several broad community-facing engagement activities are planned to gather resident and stakeholder views regarding water, wastewater and stormwater billing and cost recovery approaches in line with the review framework.

Several engagement opportunities are planned over the next year, including:

• A survey which is available as of today for residents to provide feedback and will close in Q2 of 2024
• Public education campaign (Q2/Q3 2024)
• Rural and agricultural stakeholder engagement (Q2/Q3 2024)
• Sector stakeholder engagement – community associations, multi-residential, condo, industrial, commercial, and institutional (Q2-Q4 2024)
• Councillor engagement (Q3/Q4 2024)

Engagement opportunities will be promoted through social media, and an insert in water and tax bills. To engage with those who have limited access to the internet, alternative methods will also be available, such as written submissions and hard-copy surveys. Further information on engagement opportunities will be posted on the Water Rate Structure Review Engage Ottawa page as details become available.

Please consider sharing the survey and the Water Rate Structure Review Engage Ottawa page through your communication channels. I would welcome the opportunity to work with your office to promote these opportunities to your ward constituents.

After the review period has concluded, staff will consolidate the feedback from the consultations, review industry best practices, design a rate structure that aligns with the six principles and report back to Council in 2025 with the recommended changes to the water rate structure.

Please contact me at extension 21251 or via email if you have any questions or to discuss opportunities to promote these engagement options.

Regards,

Joseph Muhuni
Deputy City Treasurer, Revenue

Date: February 2 2024

To: Mayor and Members of Council
From: Isabelle Jasmin, Deputy City Treasurer, Corporate Finance, Finance and Corporate Services

Members of Council,

The purpose of this memorandum is to provide Council with the results of the Ottawa Investment Board (the” OIB”) selection process and Board member appointments. We will also provide information for Council on the next steps and migration to the Prudent Investor Standard for the investment of the City’s funds not immediately required.
On June 14, 2023, Council approved the Terms of Reference and Governance for the OIB (ACS2023-FSD-FIN-0005). On December 07, 2022, City Council approved the 2022-2026 Council Governance Review (ACS2022-OCC-GEN-0030). Given the subject matter expertise required to serve on the Ottawa Investment Board, delegation of authority was given to the following Selection Panel to assess applicants and appoint the public members of the OIB:

1. Deputy City Treasurer
2. Manager, Treasury
3. Senior Investment Officer
4. Treasury Risk Management and Systems Analyst
5. Senior Legal Counsel

We are pleased to announce that the following individuals have been appointed to the OIB:
1. Debra Alves
2. Ken Kember
3. Habib Saikali
4. Adam Harvey

Each OIB member brings a wealth of knowledge and experience in investment management and collectively they represent a range of skills and professional expertise to effectively manage and provide oversight for the City’s investments for funds not immediately required. Summary biographies for each appointed member are provided in appendix A.

In accordance with Ontario Regulation 438/97 Part II 17(5), and, as adopted in the Governance review; Cyril Rogers, Interim General Manager and Chief Financial Officer is appointed as the 5th member of the OIB and Chair of the Board.
In October 2023, the Selection Panel initiated a recruitment process for the four public positions on the OIB, with the period of application closing on October 27th, 2023. The selection process was completed in December and the four top candidates were selected and appointed in early January 2024.

A recruitment poster for these positions was posted on the City of Ottawa web page. The selection Panel then reviewed 15 applications received, and conducted four interviews to assess the applicants’ qualifications for the position, including the following:

• Executive level experience in a major public or private organization, municipal experience is an asset.
• Experience with pension funds, endowments, foundations, or corporate treasuries & investments.
• Professional skills relating to investment and/or debt management as well as an understanding of risk and financial administration within the framework of the prudent investor standard.
• Demonstrates understanding of an OCIO model of investment.
• Post-graduate degree in any one of the fields of: finance, business, economics, risk management, accounting, public administration, or related fields that may include certification such as CPA designation, CFA designation, Chartered Investment Manager designation or equivalent would be an asset.
• Possession of sound judgement and knowledge of good governance; and
• Understanding of the principles of public accountability and integrity.
Additionally, the Selection Panel considered any information disclosed by the applicants on how their lived experience and perspectives strengthened their application with respect to advancing equity, diversity and inclusion as Members of the Committee.

Over the next several months, staff will be preparing the board members for their new role and the next steps to establish an Investment Strategy for the City of Ottawa.

1. OIB Member orientation and training on administrative matters.
2. Draft the Statement of Investment Policies and Procedure (SIP&P) for OIB review and recommendation to Council Approval.
3. Procurement process for an Outsourced Chief Investment Officer (OCIO).
4. OCIO Investment Plan developed which adheres to the Council approved SIP&P.

Sincerely,

Isabelle Jasmin
City Treasurer, Corporate Finance, Finance and Corporate Services
 

Appendix A

Debra Alves
Debra Alves holds a Chartered Financial Analyst designation from the CFA Institute and an ICD.D designation from the Institute of Corporate Directors. She has 35 years of experience in pension investment and treasury management. From the years 2007 to 2018, she was the Managing Director & CEO of the CBC Pension Plan, a federally regulated, contributory defined benefit pension plan. Prior to holding the CEO position, she was the Strategic Investments Portfolio Manager responsible for Fund-wide asset mix determinations, direct portfolio management of an alternatives (private equity, infrastructure, and hedge funds) portfolio, and the oversight of externally managed public equity and fixed income portfolios.

Since retiring from the CBC Pension Plan in October 2018, she has been able to expand her activity on various boards and committees. She currently sits on the board of the Ottawa Climate Action Fund, the Carleton University Investment Committee and the Pension Investment Committees of the Ottawa International Airport, the Canadian Medical Association and the Canadian Forces Welfare and Morale Services.

Ken Kember
Ken Kember holds a Chartered Professional Accountant designation (CA/CMA). He has 36 years of accounting and corporate finance experience including 28 years at Export Development Canada (EDC). For 13 years, he held the position of Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. As a key member of the executive leadership team, he helped develop and execute the strategic plan for the organization. He was a trusted voice around the executive and boardroom table, earning the confidence of five EDC presidents, four audit committee chairs, and three board chairs during his tenure as CFO.

As CFO, he had ultimate responsibility for EDC’s treasury investment and liquidity portfolios and served as co-chair of EDC’s pension committee, which had oversight responsibility for EDC’s pension plan investments giving him a strong understanding of investment governance, including statements of investment policy and procedures, and engaging and monitoring investment managers, custodians, and advisors. In addition, he was a voting member of EDC’s equity investment committee, and chaired FinDev Canada’s investment committee during his tenure as acting President of FinDev Canada.

Habib Saikali
Habib Saikali holds a Chartered Financial Analyst designation from the CFA Institute and a Chartered Professional Accountant designation (CMA). He has over 34 years of capital markets experience in the Mutual Fund, Brokerage, Investment Management Industries as well as Corporate Treasury. He has worked for financial institutions such as Scotia Capital Markets and TD Waterhouse and spent 10 years at Export Development Canada (EDC) as a Senior Portfolio Manager on the treasury desk with responsibilities for debt origination and management of the liquidity portfolio. He is currently the Chief Investment Officer of IP Investment Counsel Inc. and is responsible for over $590 million client funds. His responsibilities also include some compliance and financial responsibilities.  He has also been involved in the community having volunteered for his home hockey association as well as the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Eastern Ontario and Candlelighters of Ottawa in the past.

Adam E. Harvey
Adam E. Harvey, CPA, CA, ICD.D, is an independent corporate director helping stakeholder-driven organizations make better decisions and improve organizational performance, based on over 25 years of experience in Finance and Corporate Governance – as an independent corporate director, as an audit partner and business advisor, and as a Chief Financial Officer.

Adam serves in independent Board, Committee and/or advisory roles for the Canadian Medical Association, The Salvation Army in Canada and Bermuda, the Ontario Motor Vehicle Industry Council (OMVIC), The Ottawa Mission and the Ottawa Community Foundation, among others.

Previously, Adam served as Vice-President, Finance (CFO) of the Ottawa Community Foundation; as an audit partner, trusted business advisor and licensed public accountant with PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (“PwC”; formerly, Coopers & Lybrand); and, as an auditor with the federal Office of the Auditor General.

A graduate of the Institute of Corporate Directors’ Directors Education Program (ICD.D), Adam is a Chartered Professional Accountant, Chartered Accountant (CPA, CA), and holds a Bachelor of Commerce (Honors) degree in Accounting and Finance from Carleton University. He has taught the related ICD module, “On Being an Effective Director – Hot Topics for Audit Committees” and has contributed to the wider business community in Canada as an author, lecturer and panellist.

Date: January 25, 2024

To: Mayor and Members of Council
From: Joseph Muhuni, Deputy City Treasurer, Revenue Services

Members of Council,

The City is improving residents' access to information through the new Online Property Tax and Assessment Look-Up Tool that launched today. Residents can search for a property by municipal address or roll number to view the property's assessment value and property tax value for the current and previous year. This is public information and no private information such as the owner’s name, mailing address, school board support, or any occupant or tenant information will be accessible.

Every year the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (MPAC) provides a hard copy of the Assessment Roll Books, which are stored at the City Hall Client Service Centre. In order to obtain a property's assessment value, residents had to appear in person to manually review the books. With the introduction of this new tool, users can now self-serve and access this information online, from anywhere, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

The property address, roll number, assessment, and tax classification and property taxes on a property are public information. The application displays the taxes that are levied in May each year. The tool does not provide account balances, supplemental taxes or any other information such as the Vacant Unit Tax and Assessment related decisions. The assessment and property tax information will be updated annually in June. This tool is now available at Ottawa.ca/taxes
Users may continue to visit the City Hall Client Service Centre to view the Roll Books in person if preferred for assessment information.

If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me directly.

Sincerely,

Joseph Muhuni,
Deputy City Treasurer, Revenue Services

Date: December 22, 2023

To: Mayor and Members of Council
From: Cyril Rogers, Interim General Manager and Chief Financial Officer, Finance and Corporate Services

Members of Council,

The purpose of this memo is to provide an update as described in detail in a memorandum dated September 19, 2023. The province reserved funds to make a One-Time Municipal PILT Mitigation Payment to eligible municipalities in recognition of revenue implications for the 2021, 2022 and 2023 municipal fiscal years. The one-time payment from the Province of Ontario will cover the City’s shortfall for the last three years.

The City has received confirmation that the Province of Ontario has confirmed a one-time payment of approximately $35 million to the City of Ottawa because of a reduction in the Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILTs) from properties owned by the Federal Government, the NCC and Canada Post (Federal Properties).

This is a temporary mitigation, and the impacts on the City’s revenue will continue without a long-term solution. As such, the City’s current Federal Court applications for 2021 and 2022 shortfalls will proceed, and Revenue Services will continue to seek a decision from the Federal Court to affirm the legislatively prescribed rate for the PILTs for 2023 and future years. If the City is successful in the Federal application, the One-Time Municipal PILT Mitigation Payment is to be reimbursed to the Province of Ontario.

This one-time funding will be part of the finalization of the 2023 operations and be reported as part of the Disposition of the 2023 Tax and Rate Supporting Operating Surplus/Deficit.

The City will continue to keep the Mayor and Members of Council apprised.

Should you have questions, please do not hesitate to contact me directly.

Sincerely,

Cyril Rogers
Interim General Manager and Chief Financial Officer
Finance and Corporate Services Department

Date: December 13, 2023

To: Mayor and Members of Council
From: Cyril Rogers, Interim General Manager and Chief Financial Officer, Finance and Corporate Services

Members of Council,

The purpose of this memorandum is to provide City Council an update on enhancements to the Vacant Unit Tax (VUT) declaration process following City Council direction on August 23, 2023 (motion 2023-19-09) to:

a) Improve and further simplify the declaration process:
b) Increase access by allowing declaration to be completed at Client Service Centres
c) Open the declaration portal earlier in December with notices to declare going out in January
d) Leverage data obtained in the first year to improve customer service and reduce the volume of late declarations

Staff have been analyzing the VUT data, and have made several enhancements to the online declaration form, such as:
• adjusting the order of questions to reduce declaration errors
• the elimination of drop down menus
• using more user-friendly questions
• improving My ServiceOttawa integration.

More improvements will be introduced in January, including:
• the ability to submit a declaration in-person at a client service center
• an updated guide and fact sheet which will be distributed to residents
• more in-person declaration opportunities
• a new video promoting the purpose and benefits of the VUT.

This year the VUT declaration portal will open early for residents who want to declare before the formal declaration period. The portal will open on December 14 with notices being distributed in January, along with a complementary robust communication campaign to formally launch the 3-month declaration period. The deadline to declare is March 21, 2024.

If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me directly.

Sincerely,

Cyril Rogers
Interim General Manager and Chief Financial Officer
Finance and Corporate Services Department