The Election Finance Review Task Force was disbanded in 2004 and is no longer active. The following information is provided for archival purposes.

Contact: City Clerk's Office 10th floor, West Tower Toronto City Hall 100 Queen Street West Toronto, ON  M5H 2N2 clerk@toronto.ca

Municipal Election Financing Discussion paper (PDF 31 Kb)

On March 2, 2004, the Task Force issued its discussion paper (PDF 31 Kb) for public input.

Terms of reference
As the Task Force did not begin meeting until late April, 2003, the dates referred to in the Terms of Reference will need to be adjusted accordingly.

Duration
The Task Force is intended to be established by January 2003 and will present a final report to Toronto City Council by October 2003. The Task Force will meet as needed with meetings to be scheduled at the call of the Chair.

Mandate
The mandate of the Task Force is to examine all aspects of municipal election campaign financing and make recommendations to City Council on legislative amendments and process improvements that will enhance the public accountability of candidate financial disclosure. It is not within the mandate of the Task Force to review the administrative procedures for the conduct of an election that are delegated to the City Clerk under the Municipal Elections Act, 1996.

Membership
The Task Force will be composed of no more than sixteen (16) members, drawn from City Councillors and representatives of stakeholder groups. This will include up to five (5) members of City Council with the balance drawn from the following stakeholder groups:

1. audit - external auditors with experience in auditing the financial statements of municipal candidates (2 members);
2. academic - college/university professors with expertise in political science, local government administration or urban studies (2 members);
3. government - representatives of the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing and Elections Ontario (2 members);
4. legal - a representative of the legal community (1 member);
5. members of ratepayers' groups/community groups with an interest in municipal election campaigns (2 members); and
6. residents of the City of Toronto with an interest in municipal election campaigns (2 members).

In the event any of the organizations mentioned in (a), (b), (c) or (d) decline to participate, additional members will be drawn from (e) and/or (f).

Membership selection
The five (5) Council members will be appointed by Council on the recommendation of the Striking Committee. The City Clerk will circulate information on the establishment of the Task Force to all Members of Council requesting they indicate their interest in being appointed to the Task Force and report to the Striking Committee.

The Institute of Chartered Accountants will be contacted by the City Clerk to request it nominate two members with experience in auditing municipal financial statements to sit on the Task Force.

On the basis of programs/areas of study offered, York University and Ryerson University will be contacted by the City Clerk to request they each nominate one professor with expertise in political science, local government or public administration or urban studies to sit on the Task Force. In the event one of these universities declines to participate, the University of Toronto will be contacted as an alternate.

The Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing and the Chief Election Officer of Ontario will be contacted by the City Clerk to request they each nominate one member with experience in election campaign finance to sit on the Task Force.

Election Services staff will work with the City's Nominations and Appointments Administrator and Communications staff to communicate to ratepayers'/community groups and the general public the opportunity to sit on the Task Force. Outreach initiatives will include a newspaper advertisement, the City's Web site and letters to those citizens and ratepayers'/community groups who have previously indicated an interest to City staff to sit on an advisory committee/focus group.

The selection process will be based upon clearly understood and equitable criteria and members will be selected on the basis of the following:

1. experience working on a task force or similar setting;
2. demonstrated knowledge and understanding of municipal election campaign financing issues;
3. history of public service, such as volunteer work;
4. proven ability to consult and communicate with members of the public;
5. availability and willingness to attend meetings;
6. excellent oral and written communication skills;
7. proven analytical and decision making skills; and
8. ability to work in a team setting, including an interest and capacity to work through consensus.

If necessary, due to the volume of applications received from ratepayers'/community groups and the public, City staff will interview applicants who meet the above cited qualifications and prepare a short list for Council's consideration through Administration Committee.

Chair
The Task Force members will select a Chair from amongst its members at its first meeting, and the Chair shall not be a Member of Council.

Staffing and resources
The City Clerk will provide secretarial support to the Task Force. Other staff, drawn from the Chief Administrative Officer's Office and Election Services, will resource the Task Force as necessary to conduct research, develop and implement communications and outreach strategies, facilitate a community consultation process and assist in the writing of the final report.

The Task Force will require $5,000 to do its work. These funds will be found within the City Clerk's operating budget. This will cover:

1. meeting costs (e.g. mailings);
2. stakeholder consultation and other communication costs, including newspaper advertisements; and
3. preparation of documents, including the final report.

Consultation process
All meetings of the Task Force will be open to the public and the media and the City's web site will be used to communicate the meeting schedule.

Written submissions by residents, community groups and other interested individuals will be encouraged. Public service announcements and the City's web site will be used to keep the public informed of the Task Force's progress.

The Task Force will conduct one public meeting to obtain input from members of the public on election campaign reform. The City Clerk will advertise this public meeting in community newspapers. This notice will advise the public that if they are unable to attend the meeting, they can file a written submission.

Reporting
The Task Force will prepare a report for Council's consideration by October 2003. The report will include any recommendations for legislative amendments to the Municipal Elections Act, 1996 that, in the Task Force's opinion, are necessary to improve the accountability of municipal candidates' election financing.