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HomeMy WebLinkAboutFIN 14-19cd, DICKERING REVISED Report to Council Report Number: FIN 14-19 Date: June 24, 2019 From: Stan Karwowski Director, Finance & Treasurer Subject: Provincial Audit and Accountability Fund Recommendation: 1. That Report FIN 14-19 of the Director, Finance & Treasurer be received; 2. That staff be directed to submit an Audit and Accountability Fund: Expression of Interest for grant funding to the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing Central Region by June 30, 2019 deadline; 3. That Council grant the Chief Administrative Officer and the Director, Finance & Treasurer the authority to single source a third party consulting engagement in accordance with the City's Purchasing Policy Item 10.03 and not to exceed $100,000 should the City of Pickering's request for funding be approved by the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing; and 4. That the appropriate City of Pickering officials be authorized to take the necessary actions as indicated in this report. Executive Summary: On May 21, 2019, the Premier announced the creation of the Audit and Accountability Fund with funding of $7.35 million for large urban municipalities and district school boards interested in conducting service delivery and administrative expenditure review with the goal of finding efficiencies while protecting front line services. Projects that are eligible can take the following forms: • A line -by-line review of the municipality's entire budget. • A review of service delivery and modernization opportunities. • A review of administrative processes to reduce costs. As part of the annual budget process, the City conducts a line -by-line review of the operating budget and detailed scrutiny of the capital budget to find savings. Staff are recommending that the review focus on assessing the implementation of free WIFI in all public property and study implementation of new technology to better serve Pickering residents. FIN 14-19 June 24, 2019 Subject: Provincial Audit and Accountability Fund Page 2 Financial Implications: The Audit and Accountability Fund covers 100 per cent of the eligible costs, that includes the costs associated with a third -party consultant. The estimated eligible costs for this project is estimated to be up to $100,000. This cost reflects the total cost of the third -party consultant including non-recoverable HST. In the event the City receives confirmation written or otherwise of the Grant funding being awarded, Recommendation 3 provides staff the authority to proceed with the award of the sole source contract and hence expediting the commencement of the work required. Discussion: In a May 21st news release Premier Ford announced that "the Ontario government is offering to help large urban municipalities protect core public services for future generations by finding savings of four cents on every dollar spent. He announced that the government is providing $7.35 million for large urban municipalities interested in conducting municipal service delivery expenditure reviews to identify potential savings, while maintaining vital front-line services, through the "Audit and Accountability Fund." Through the Audit and Accountability Fund, the Ontario government is offering large municipalities funding to undertake a third -party expenditure review of their service delivery and administrative expenditures with the goal of funding efficiencies and to modernize service delivery while protecting front-line jobs. On May 29th, Pickering was notified that the Expression of Interest (EOI) forms were being accepted for funding until June 28th. EOI submissions will be reviewed on a case- by-case basis. Funding amounts may depend on the available appropriation. This funding covers 100 per cent of the cost of a consultant/third party. Internal municipal costs are considered ineligible. The grant was released May 29th and the application process consists of two steps: June 14, 2019 — notify Ministry of intention to apply followed by a submission of an Expression of Interest (EOI) to the Province by Friday, June 28, 2019. The City notified the Province before June 14th that the City would be putting forward an EOI. By completing this step, staff kept the "Door Open" for the grant funding process, however, the City is not legally bound to complete Step Two. If Recommendation 2 is approved, staff will complete the EOI for submission on or before June 28, 2019. If Council does not approve Recommendation 2 — no application will be submitted. EOI forms will be reviewed and approved by the Province as they are received. Our understanding is that notification of the approval, or denial, of our EOI will be in July. It is our understanding that the eligible cost to date to commence expenditures will coincide with the receipt of verbal or written approval for the grant and that a formal Transfer Payment Agreement will follow for execution later this summer. As part of the funding agreement requirement, Pickering is required to "Publicly post the study results", no later than November 30, 2019. The third -party report needs to be approved by City Council at the November 22, 2019 Council meeting. FIN 14-19 June 24, 2019 Subject: Provincial Audit and Accountability Fund Page 3 The consultant's final report will need to outline the analysis, findings and include any identified specific and actionable recommendations for cost savings and improved efficiencies. The focus is on savings of about 4 per cent of every $1, however, if the study does not yield the desired savings we have been advised that this would not jeopardize our funding. Conversely, if savings and efficiencies are found there is an expectation that they be implemented. If staff's EOI is successful and if the City receives notification by the end of July, the project would basically have three months to complete all project tasks including: • Award of contract to a consultant • Consultant performing the review, completing and delivering the final report to the City • Administration presenting final report to City Council on November 22nd, the last City Council meeting in November • Approved report posted publicly by November 30, 2019 Recommendation Three (Single Source) is required to facilitate completing all tasks within the timelines outlined in the Audit and Accountability grant funding guidelines. Given the very tight timelines provided by the Province under this grant funding program, staff have identified the following services (Preliminary Priority Sequence) to be reviewed: 1. Review implementation of free WIFI in all City owned public property and also review the provision of free WIFI by other municipalities (excluding single tier municipalities.) Single tier municipalities are being excluded from the study to facilitate a more "apples to apples" comparison as it relates to population size and economic capacity. 2. Review and study the implementation of new technology to better serve Pickering residents. The anticipated outcome from this review would be to provide a roadmap or high level plan. As stated above with the tight timeframe and taking into consideration of available staffing resources, the above priority sequence may change. As Members of Council are aware, Finance Department staff is heavily involved in the implementation of a new financial system with a Go -Live date of January 2, 2020 and therefore, Finance staff's availability for this project is constrained. FIN 14-19 June 24, 2019 Subject: Provincial Audit and Accountability Fund Page 4 Attachments: 1. Audit and Accountability Fund: Expression of Interest Prepared By: Approved / Endorsed By: Stan Karwowski Director, Finance & Treasurer Stan Karwowski Director, Finance & Treasurer Recommended for the consideration of Pickering r Council Tony Prevedel, P.Eng. Chief Administrative Officer Ontario ATTACHMENT# 1 TO REPORT# Fd _ F19 Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing Audit and Accountability Fund: Expression of Interest To apply to the Audit and Accountability Fund: 1.) Complete all required fields of this Expression of Interest. 2.) Ensure that the completed Expression of Interest has been attested to by the appropriate municipal staff. 3.) Include an outline of your project timeline and costs (procurement documents, a project charter, a project work plan, or any other document as appropriate). 4.) Email this Expression of Interest and any additional supporting materials to municipal.programs@ontario.ca by June 30, 2019. Attestation I have reviewed this expression of interest and the supporting material and can verify that it is accurate to the best of my knowledge and understanding. Signature Date (DD/MM/YYYY) Legal Name of Municipality Name of Signatory Position Title Applicant Information Mailing Address Name of Primary Contact Position Title Email Address Telephone Number o I acknowledge that it is a program requirement that the proposed third -party review project result in a publicly posted report by November 30, 2019. What is the anticipated cost of your proposed third -party review project? Note: only the cost of a third -party service provider should be included. Attach a document to support the timeline and costs of your project. Have you included a resolution of council demonstrating support for the proposed third -party review project? Note: this is not a program eligibility requirement. O Yes (If yes, please attach a copy to this Expression of Interest form) O No CONFIDENTIAL ONCE SUBMITTED. Not to be copied or distributed without written consent of the owner. Page 1 of 2 Review Project Description 1.) Provide a brief description of your proposed third -party review project. 2.) Provide a summary of the objectives of your proposed third -party review project. 3.) Provide a summary of expected outcomes of your proposed third -party review project. CONFIDENTIAL ONCE SUBMITTED. Not to be copied or distributed without written consent of the owner. Page 2 of 2