April 30, 1998
To:Budget Committee
From:City Clerk
Subject:Transitional Investments - City Clerk's Department
Recommendation:
The Corporate Services Committee on April 27, 1998, recommended to the Budget Committee the adoption of the
joint report (April 16, 1998) from the Commissioner of Corporate Services and the City Clerk; noting the action
taken by the Budget Committee on April 20, 1998, respecting further reports from the Chief Administrative Officer,
on a project-by-project basis, to the appropriate Standing Committee outlining the source of funding and
identifying the related savings and budget reductions respecting all transition projects.
Background:
The Corporate Services Committee on April 27, 1998, had before it a joint report (April 16, 1998) from the Commissioner
of Corporate Services and City Clerk seeking funding approval for City Clerk's Department transitional investments
required from 1998 to 2000 in order to achieve proposed 1998 and future year Operating Budget reductions; and
recommending that:
(1)the City Clerk's proposals for transitional investments, as outlined in this report, be approved and implemented in 1998;
(2)total funds in the amount of $2,729,000.00.00, phased over three years, be approved for the Clerk's Department
requested transitional investments, with funds in the amount of $1,585,000.00 to be provided in 1998, in accordance with
the Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer's report (April 17, 1998) respecting Transition Projects - Financing Strategy; and
(3)the appropriate City Officials be authorized and directed to take the necessary action to give effect thereto.
City Clerk
P. A. Morris/in
April 16, 1998
To:Corporate Services Committee and Budget Committee
From:Margaret Rodrigues, Commissioner, Corporate Services
Novina Wong, City Clerk
Subject:Transitional Investments - City Clerk=s Department
Purpose:
To seek funding approval for City Clerk=s Department transitional investments required from 1998 to 2000 in order to
achieve proposed 1998 and future year operating budget reductions.
Funding Sources, Financial Implications and Impact Statement:
The City Clerk's Department recommended 1998 Operating Budget includes reductions of $3,226,300, conditional upon
the approval of the transitional investments outlined in this report. Operational efficiencies and resultant budget savings
result in a payback of less than one year in most cases, thereby justifying each investment. The Clerk's budget has absorbed
much of the related operational expenses and, where possible, the investments are phased over three years to ease the
financial impact in 1998.
Recommendations:
It is recommended that:
- the City Clerk=s proposals for transitional investments, as outlined in this report, be approved and implemented
in 1998;
- that total funds in the amount of $2,729,000, phased over three years, be approved for the Clerk=s Department
requested transitional investments, with funds in the amount of $1,585,000 to be provided in 1998, in accordance
with the Chief Financial Officer & Treasurer=s report (April 17, 1998) respecting Transition Projects - Financing
Strategy; and
- that the appropriate City Officials be authorized and directed to take the necessary action to give effect thereto.
Background:
The Budget Committee, at its meeting on April 3, 1998, had before it a report (April 3, 1998) from the Chief Financial
Officer and Treasurer, respecting a consolidated listing of the 1998 Transition Project Requests. The Budget Committee
deferred consideration of this matter to its meeting on April 20, 1998, and requested Finance staff to further review the
transitional project proposals with department staff and report back on the 1998 funding requirements.
Discussion:
In respect of the City Clerk=s funding request for transitional investments, the following should be noted:
- all projects are a direct consequence of amalgamation of the seven former municipalities, and would not otherwise have
been undertaken;
- the City Clerks original requests totalled $3.8 million in 1998 and have been reduced to $2.8 million, phased over 3
years, with a 1998 impact of only $1.6 million. Many of the original requests have been absorbed by the Department, or
where possible, removed entirely;
- as the remaining requests would not have been made by any one of the individual former municipalities, no funding
provision was previously projected and the current budget cannot further absorb these transition costs;
- each investment clearly reflects either a front line service delivery benefit or results in efficiencies to compensate for
staff reductions already included in the proposed 1998 budget. Implementation must occur this year in order to achieve
the projected 1998 salary savings.
- the transitional investments outlined in this report have be reviewed and are supported by Finance Department staff.
Appendix A summarizes the City Clerk's transition investments required and associated benefits from 1998 to the year
2000.
Council Member Support Services & Clerk's Administration
The requested transitional investments will improve this area's I.T. service, productivity and response to Council
Member's and staff. totalling $103,000, phased over three years, produce $179,000 in 1998 budget savings resulting from
staff reductions already included in the Council Member Support Services & Clerk's Administration budget. The payback
on investment would be realized in 1998 with an annualized budget savings of $238,000 in each subsequent year. The
investment will improve this area's I.T. service, productivity and response to Council Member's and staff.
Details of the requested transitional investments are as follows:
Remote Management Software - Required to remotely manage user work stations, reduce I.T. support time and improve
user productivity. The investment is therefore essential in order to achieve the proposed 1998 operating budget savings
through staff reductions in this area. The current demand for technical services in remote locations is greater than
anticipated (ie. Council Member office's in multiple locations) and this investment would help compensate for the
lack of available resources to address such deficiencies.
Information Technology Staff Training - Staff currently support all system standards of the former municipalities, (ie. 2
office suites, 4 database programs, 3 operating systems, etc). The requested I.T. training is required to deliver quality IT
service (Corporate standard) in a timely fashion to Councillors, their staff and Clerk's staff. Lack of investment would
result in productivity loss, impacting on the level of staff resources required to deliver IT services and assistance, and
consequently eliminate the 1998 operating budget savings proposed through staff reductions in this area. Funding for this
training is not available within corporate training budgets.
Secretariat
Transitional investments totalling $673,000, phased over three years, produce $344,000 in 1998 budget savings already
included as staff reductions in the Secretariat budget. As a result of functional efficiencies and related budget savings, the
payback on investment would be realized in 1999, with an annualized savings of $458,000 in each subsequent year. The
investments provide secretariat staff with the necessary tools to improve front line service delivery (ie Council/Committee
support and assistance to the general public).
Details of the requested transitional investments are as follows:
Legislative Document Publishing Macros - To improve the speed and accuracy of creating legislative documents in the
new office suite (MS Word), new macros must be created and distributed to staff. Failure to make this investment would
negatively affect productivity and require additional budget provisions to address software conversion issues. This
investment is required to achieve a portion of the 1998 operating budget savings proposed through staff reductions in this
area.
2 Legislative Servers for Consolidation of Legislative Documents - A dedicated Clerk's super-server is required for the
Secretariat to work as a cohesive unit. The volume of work, and the integration of processes for the production of
documents requires that all staff use the same hardware and software capable of handling the volumes produced. In
addition, the acquisition of network server upgrade licences to accommodate the Novel 4.11 operating system for the new
City is necessary to maintain software licencing requirements in accordance with copyright laws. These investments are
required to achieve a portion of the 1998 operating budget savings proposed through staff reductions in this area.
Enhancements to Support Public Internet Access - The Internet is considered a powerful business tool and has proven itself
as an efficient technology that possesses the ability to disseminate information to both the general public and its corporate
client. The Internet will act as another public information access point that relieves secretariat staff from responding
personally to inquiries. As a result, the investment contributes to a portion of the 1998 operating budget savings proposed
through staff reductions in the Secretariat.
Critical Hardware Upgrades (Pentium computers = 60, Notebook computers = 8, Network printers = 10) - The
information/database demands requires more powerful computers and peripherals to effectively respond. Secretariat
services are highly time sensitive and staff require upgraded and standardized equipment to meet the many deadlines.
Failure to make this investment would negatively affect productivity and the ability to achieve a portion of the 1998
operating budget savings proposed through staff reductions in this area.
Issues Tracking Software - The system will serve as an information management tool for the new Council, staff and
public. The program is designed to record requests for reports and proposed actions by staff or ABC's; record notations and
comments; finally, the system will retrieve this data under a number of criteria and be accessible to all parties interested in
these reports. This investment is required to achieve a portion of the 1998 operating budget savings proposed through staff
reductions in this area.
Municipal Code - Investment in the consolidation of City By-laws organizes the By-laws in a topical format and facilitates
access for public and staff research purposes through hard copy and electronic version, providing quick and easy access to
required information. Failure to make this investment would require additional staff resources to respond to Code inquiries
relating to individual former municipalities or the new amalgamated City. As a result, a portion of the 1998 operating
budget savings proposed through staff reductions in this area would not be achieved.
Elections and Legislative Services
The Election and Legislative Services function of the City Clerk's Department projected almost $8,000,000 revenue in its
1998 budget, with expenditures of approximately $7,000,000. The recommended salary budget in this area was based on
the anticipated approval of requested transitional investments. The investment would produce functional efficiencies and
eliminate exposure to increased budget requirements (i.e. more staff would be required to fulfill legislative responsibilities,
customer service would suffer and some legislative requirements would not be met).
A total of $212,000 in transitional investments are required in 1998 to produce $374,000 in 1998 budget savings already
included as staff reductions in the Elections and Legislative Services budget (this does not consider additional staff
resources that would be required if the investment is not approved). The pay back on investment would be realized in 1998
with an annualized $431,000 savings in each subsequent year.
Details of the requested transitional investments are as follows:
Vital Statistics Support Program (database) - The legislative requirement for a uniform registration system is best
addressed through the requested investment, as the manual consolidation of information across the City would be a highly
labour intensive and time consuming exercise. Lack of investment would result in the need for additional staff, thereby
eliminating the 1998 operating budget savings proposed through staff reductions in this area. The request provides for
hardware and material requirements, with internal development of the database and programming expertise provided by
corporate I.T. resources.
Gaming Services Support Program (database) - This investment is required for legislative compliance with Gaming
Services legislation through a consolidated, integrated system. Without the system there is no comprehensive, consolidated
database to more effectively ensure compliance. The manual tracking and consolidation of this information across the City
would be a highly labour intensive and time consuming exercise. The request provides for hardware and material
requirements, with internal development of the database and programming expertise provided by corporate I.T. resources.
Lack of investment would result in the need for additional staff, thereby eliminating the 1998 operating budget savings
proposed through staff reductions in this area. It should also be noted that the Gaming Services program is a significant
revenue generator for the City.
Assessment Customer Service Program (touch-screen system) - The system investment provides full Assessment Roll
information at each of the six civic service centres. The cost for a full set of assessment rolls at each of the six civic service
centres, coupled with the additional staff requirement to service the public counter is prohibitive. The request provides for
hardware and material requirements, with internal development of the database and programming expertise provided by
corporate I.T. resources. This investment is required to achieve a portion of the 1998 operating budget savings proposed
through staff reductions in this area.
Design, Reproduction and Distribution Services
A total of $192,000 in transitional investments are required in 1998. This produces current year budget savings of
$521,300, resulting from staff reductions already included in the Design, Reproduction & Distribution Services budget. As
a result of the functional efficiencies, the pay back on investment would be easily realized in 1998, with an annualized
budget savings of $695,000 in each subsequent year.
Details of the requested transitional investments are as follows:
Training for Design/pre-press Applications and Hardware - Required to improve efficiencies through the development of
expertise in design and pre-press applications and hardware. This investment produces efficiencies required to achieve a
portion of the 1998 operating budget savings proposed through staff reductions in this area
File Server to Consolidate Two Outdated Servers - Due to amalgamation, it is anticipated that the increased storage
requirement for electronic images and documents will far surpass existing resources. The electronic design files are an
increasingly valuable product that the reproduction unit stores for future use. Re-creation of documents to hard copy
back-up would negatively impact the records storage budget (staff and storage costs).
Archiving Unit for Increasing Capacity Requirements - The file storage and archiving system within the design and
reproduction unit requires a secure file management environment ensuring corporate data integrity. If a disaster occurred in
1998 the potential recovery costs for the new City Archives, estimated at $822,855 (data recovery), would be paid for by 13
times the value of this 1998 investment in a new archiving unit system.
Hardware/software & Operating System Standardization - Staff require compatible workstations and software applications
in order to achieve productivity gains. This investment is therefore required to achieve a portion of the 1998 operating
budget savings proposed through staff reductions in this area.
Customized Courier Rate Shopping Software & Hardware - Courier rate shopping realized a 43% reduction in courier
costs at the former Metro. Similar reductions could be realized if implemented throughout the new City. If utilized across
the new City, payback is projected within the first year of use.
Dismantling, Relocation & Reinstallation of Press Equipment - This investment in consolidating the print shop operation
is essential to producing efficiencies required to achieve a portion of the 1998 operating budget savings proposed through
staff reductions in this area.
Relocate Mail Processing Equipment to Central Operation - This investment in consolidating the mail processing
operation is essential to producing efficiencies required to achieve a portion of the 1998 operating budget savings proposed
through staff reductions in this area.
Information & Communications:
The following transitional investments are primarily related to the new and expanded requirements for public access to
information, through the Access Toronto call centre. Public information staff must be equipped to deliver professional,
consistent and efficient front line service to the residents and visitors of the new City of Toronto. A total of $375,000 in
transitional investments are required in 1998. This will produce current year savings of $257,000, resulting from staff
reductions already included in the Information & Communications Services budget. The pay back on investment would be
realized in 1999 with an annualized savings $343,000 in each subsequent year.
Details of the requested transitional investments are as follows:
18 Pentium computers - Access Toronto - There is currently a shortage of Pentium computers available to the public
information staff who need to be able to answer to the public and staff . Existing computers are incompatible and do not
have the capacity required to host the software and volume of information, nor the speed to meet satisfactory response
times.
City Council's objective is to provide one window access to uniform information across the city, with staff able to provide
answers to a majority of enquiries at first point of contact. Without this investment, customers across the city may receive
different, inaccurate or incomplete information, depending on which public information officer they access.
These computers will enable staff at the centralized call centres and the various civic service centres to perform public
information duties more consistently and efficiently - from having access to the City home page (which is not the case
currently across the city), to accessing e-mail, directories and program & service descriptions.
Purchase of Contact Management Database - This investment is essential to providing Aone-window access@ to
customers at all locations and at the Access Toronto call centre. The database will provide consistent information across the
city, updated immediately and on-line, to reduce dependence on quickly out-dated hard copy of information. Service to the
public's "first contact" with the City will suffer if this investment is deferred for integration into a corporate I.T. approach.
Purchase of Automated Call Distribution System - This system was to be implemented on January 1, 1998, with
transitional funds recommended as a source of funding for the project. It is required so that the call centre is accessible and
able to transfer calls to each of the former municipalities, (telephone systems currently are not compatible).
The current system was initially leased for six months, pending its consideration as a transitional investment or the
incorporation of this new cost into the City Clerk's 1998 Operating Budget. Purchase or lease of this system does not
reduce annual expenditures from any former municipality.
The cost to purchase the system is estimated at $115,000.00. The lease is $64,000 per year ($128,000.00 over two years)
and therefore offers a payback in year two.
Blue Pages Listing - With a December 1997 deadline for submission of the new City of Toronto information, the 1998
Blue Pages have already gone to publication. As an interim measure, general numbers were provided by departments in the
former municipalities (specific numbers were avoided because structure, staffing and telephone listings were not yet
finalized). Telephone listing formats, guidelines and funding varied in each of the former municipalities.
The Clerk=s Information Services provided consolidated 1998 information, however, future listings will adhere to a
uniform corporate strategy and format, with the annual source of funding to be identified in the 1999 operating budget
process.
City Services Guide - It is recommended that production and distribution of an updated city services guide be deferred
until 1999, when organizational structures, staffing and program services become finalized. It is further recommended that
this type of publication be produced every three years, following municipal elections.
Records & Archives Services:
Transitional investments totalling $769,000, phased over two years, produce $575,000 in 1998 budget savings already
included as staff reductions in the Records & Archives budget. The pay back on investment would be realized in 1999 with
an annualized savings $767,000 in each subsequent year This request is essential to producing efficiencies required to
achieve all of the 1998 operating budget savings proposed through reductions in staff and storage costs in this area.
Renovate Duncan Mills Records Centre & Archives Consolidation - The seven former municipalities store records in 12
locations. Existing facilities cannot accommodate the records storage needs of the new City. Larger facilities with
automated technology and more sophisticated materials storage and handling systems offer economies of scale for storage,
retrievals, circulation management and disposal. Renovations to the 160 Duncan Mills site would result in a City managed
asset to accommodate the City's inactive storage requirements, with a short pay back period. See Appendix B for a detailed
business case supporting the investment.
Conclusions:
It is imperative that the requested funding for transitional investments be approved early in 1998. Each investment returns
a very short pay back and in most cases has a favourable impact on front line service delivery. The identified efficiencies
compensate for staff reductions already included in the proposed 1998 budget, and consequently, implementation must
occur this year in order to achieve the projected 1998 salary savings
The Department has reduced the funding required in 1998 from the original requests of $3.8 million in 1998 to $2.8
million, phased over 3 years, resulting in a 1998 impact of only $1.6 million. Many of the original requests have been
absorbed by the Department, or where possible, removed entirely.
The Commissioner of Corporate Services, the City Clerk and the Chief Financial Officer & Treasurer concur in the
foregoing recommendations.
Contact Name:
Barbara McEwan
Interim Lead, Council Services and Administration
392-4373
Margaret Rodrigues
Commissioner,
Corporate Services
Novina Wong
City Clerk
