December 22, 1999

CITY CLERK:

I am enclosing for your information and any attention deemed necessary, Clause No. 3 contained in Report No. 9 of The Administration Committee, headed AWard Boundaries@, which was adopted, as amended, by the Council of the City of Toronto at its meeting held on December 14, 15 and 16, 1999.

May I draw your attention to the amendment by Council found at the beginning of the Clause.

for City Clerk

J. A. Abrams/gc

Encl.

Clause sent to: Acting Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, Province of Ontario

Chief Electorial Officer, Elections Canada

Members of Council

Chair, Administration Committee

Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer

City Clerk

City Solicitor

All Interested Parties

c. Peter Fay, Senior Policy and Planning Analyst

John Hollins, Director of Elections

Administrators, Community Councils

Administrators, Standing Committees

Joanne Hamill, Manager, Community Councils and Committees

Fern Deramaix

Clause embodied in Report No. 9 of the Administration Committee, as adopted by the Council of the City of Toronto at its meeting held on December 14, 15 and 16, 1999.

3

Ward Boundaries

(City Council on December 14, 15 and 16, 1999, amended this Clause, by:

(1) deleting Recommendation No. (3)(ii) of the Administration Committee and adding to the recommendations of the Administration Committee the following new Recommendation No. (4):

"(4) the City Clerk be requested to consult with the English and French Toronto Public School Boards and the English and French Toronto Separate School Boards to determine whether there have been any changes proposed with respect to their ward boundaries."; and

(2) adding thereto the following:

"It is further recommended that:

(a) the Province of Ontario be requested to keep its promise made by Minister Clement to have public consultation on the issue of the reduction of 13 Members of Toronto City Council, and this request be forwarded to Queen's Park by facsimile on December 15, 1999;

(b) the federal government be requested to consult with municipal governments on the matter of re-drawing the riding boundaries, if this should become necessary, following the release of decennial census information, so that riding boundaries will not only reflect political party interests but, increasingly, reflect the boundaries of old established communities;

(c) the Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer forward to the Province of Ontario the bill for all additional costs incurred as a result of provincial action in this regard, a copy thereof to also be forwarded to all Members of Council;

(d) the City Solicitor be requested to submit reports to the Administration Committee on:

(i) the role and rights of the City of Toronto in any federal riding redistribution process that will occur in 2001 or 2002;

(ii) the legality of certain elements of Bill 25, i.e., that the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, through a Cabinet Decision, can overrule the provision(s) of provincial legislation, such report to be prepared in consultation with the appropriate City staff; and

(iii) the implications of Section 8 of the Municipal Elections Act, as amended by Bill 25;

(e) the City Clerk be requested to submit a report to the Administration Committee on the provincial strategies to be used to ensure that tenants will be accurately included in the voters list; and

(f) the report dated December 14, 1999, from the City Clerk, be adopted, subject to adding to Recommendation No. (4) the words 'and their opinions on Bill 25', so that the recommendations embodied in such report shall now read as follows:

'It is recommended that:

(1) City Council endorse the process outlined in this report as the basis for determining a preferred set of 44 single-member ward boundaries for the municipal election to be held in 2000;

(2) City Council endorse the following principles, previously used by City Council in developing the 57 wards, in order to guide the development and consideration of options for dividing the 22 Federal/Provincial ridings into 44 single member wards:

(a) representation by population;

(b) representation of communities;

(c) recognition of distinct geographic and infrastructure elements (e.g., watercourses, railways, highways, arterial roads); and

(d) future population growth;

and that principle (a) be used as the overriding principle for determining ward options to achieve equitable population distribution between wards in a riding and that variances from the average ward population of up to plus or minus 25 percent be permitted where desirable only to accommodate the other principles;

(3) City Council make a decision on its preferred set of 44 single member wards at a Special City Council meeting to be scheduled for January 19 and 21, 2000, to enable Clerk's staff the time to undertake the necessary work to translate the ward boundaries into voting subdivisions to meet statutory deadlines for developing the voters' list;

(4) City Council authorize the City Clerk to hold public open houses on January 4 and 5, 2000, as outlined in this report, to receive public input on the options to divide the 22 ridings and their opinions on Bill 25;

(5) the City Clerk be authorized to prepare draft preliminary ward options based on the principles outlined in this report for release by December 17, 1999, and that these draft options be used as the basis for consultation and for seeking public input;

(6) the Members of Council be requested to submit directly to the City Clerk any specific comments on the ward boundary options by January 6, 2000, for consideration by staff in conjunction with the Council-adopted principles;

(7) if City Council approves the Administration Committee recommendation that all matters pertaining to the issue of ward boundaries be considered by the Administration Committee, as embodied in Clause No. 3 of Report No. 9 of The Administration Committee, then the City Clerk be requested to report to the Administration Committee, at its January 11, 2000 meeting, on the ward options based on comments received from the public and the Members of Council and any other matters deemed necessary, and that the Administration Committee hear public deputations at that meeting and make overall recommendations for consideration by City Council;

(8) all Members of Council be invited to attend the January 11, 2000 Administration Committee meeting and to hear deputations on this matter;

(9) the following two overriding decision-making principles, based on the notion of representative population, be used to assist Council in resolving any disagreement between ward boundary options:

(a) the two ward populations (1996 Census estimate) within each riding should be as close to the 1996 Census ward average population (54,200 based on 44 wards) as possible; and

(b) the 1996 Census population estimates for the ward divisions within each riding should be as close to parity as possible;

(10) City Council request the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing to prescribe the necessary regulation defining the 44 single ward members as recommended by City Council as soon as possible and, in any event, no later than February 15, 2000;

(11) City Council request the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing to provide the City with the necessary authority to name the 44 wards once established in regulation;

(12) subject to City Council adopting the process outlined in this report, additional funding, in the amount of $50,000.00, be considered with the Clerk's 2000 Operating Budget; and

(13) the appropriate City Officials be authorized and directed to take the necessary action to give effect thereto.' ")

The Administration Committee recommends that:

(1) all matters pertaining to the issue of Ward boundaries be considered by the Administration Committee;

(2) the Chair of the Administration Committee and two of its Members be requested to convene meetings and invite any Member of Council who has an interest in a particular riding to attend and provide input; and

(3) the City Clerk be requested to report to the next meeting of the Administration Committee:

(i) on a process for consulting the public on how to divide the Federal/Provincial ridings for the purpose of Municipal Ward representation; and

(ii) on how the system is going to work in terms of the election of both the Public and Catholic School Board Trustees.

The Administration Committee reports, for the information of Council, having requested the City Clerk to:

(a) provide directly to Council for its meeting scheduled to be held on December 14, 1999, the various scenarios being contemplated as to the break-up of the individual wards; and any other criteria that she feels would be relevant to the discussion in this regard; and

(b) to provide all Members of Council with a copy of the legislation respecting the Fewer Municipal Policitians Act, 1999, as soon as it is available.

Background:

The Administration Committee at its Special Meeting on December 8, 1999, gave consideration to the issue of Ward Boundaries and decided to provide instructions to staff and forward recommendations in regard thereto to Council.

________

The following Members of Council appeared before the Administration Committee in connection with the foregoing matter:

- Councillor Milton Berger, North York Centre South;

- Councillor George Mammoliti, North York - Humber;

- Councillor Frances Nunziata; York - Humber; and

- Councillor David Shiner, Seneca Heights.

(City Council on December 14, 15 and 16, 1999, had before it, during consideration of the foregoing Clause, the following report (December 14, 1999) from the City Clerk:

Purpose:

This report recommends a process to divide the 22 Federal/Provincial ridings into 44 municipal wards based on Bill 25, the Fewer Municipal Politicians Act, 1999.

Financial Implications and Impact Statement:

Funds in the amount of $50,000 are required to conduct the ward boundary public consultation process and prepare necessary mapping products in 2000. These funds have not been budgeted in the Clerk's 2000 budget submission and would need to be added to the City Clerk's budget.

The Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer has reviewed the report and financial impact statement.

Recommendations:

It is recommended that:

(1) City Council endorse the process outlined in this report as the basis for determining a preferred set of 44 single member ward boundaries for the municipal election to be held in 2000;

(2) City Council endorse the following principles, previously used by City Council in developing the 57 wards, in order to guide the development and consideration of options for dividing the 22 Federal/Provincial ridings into 44 single member wards:

(a) representation by population;

(b) representation of communities;

(c) recognition of distinct geographic and infrastructure elements (e.g., watercourses, railways, highways, arterial roads); and,

(d) future population growth;

and that principle (a) be used as the overriding principle for determining ward options to achieve equitable population distribution between wards in a riding and that variances from the average ward population of up to plus or minus 25 percent be permitted where desirable only to accommodate the other principles;

(3) City Council make a decision on its preferred set of 44 single member wards at a Special City Council meeting to be scheduled for January 19 and 21, 2000, to enable Clerk's staff the time to undertake the necessary work to translate the ward boundaries into voting subdivisions to meet statutory deadlines for developing the voters' list;

(4) City Council authorize the City Clerk to hold public open houses on January 4 and 5, 2000, as outlined in this report, to receive public input on the options to divide the 22 ridings;

(5) the City Clerk be authorized to prepare draft preliminary ward options based on the principles outlined in this report for release by December 17, 1999, and that these draft options be used as the basis for consultation and for seeking public input;

(6) the Members of Council be requested to submit directly to the City Clerk any specific comments on the ward boundary options by January 6, 2000, for consideration by staff in conjunction with the Council-adopted principles;

(7) if City Council approves the Administration Committee recommendation that all matters pertaining to the issue of ward boundaries be considered by the Administration Committee, as embodied in Clause No. 3 of Report No. 9 of the Administration Committee, then the City Clerk be requested to report to the Administration Committee, at its January 11, 2000 meeting on the ward options based on comments received from the public and the Members of Council and any other matters deemed necessary, and that the Administration Committee hear public deputations at that meeting and make overall recommendations for consideration by City Council;

(8) all Members of Council be invited to attend the January 11, 2000 Administration Committee meeting and to hear deputations on this matter;

(9) the following two overriding decision-making principles, based on the notion of representative population, be used to assist Council in resolving any disagreement between ward boundary options:

(a) the two ward populations (1996 Census estimate) within each riding should be as close to the 1996 Census ward average population (54,200 based on 44 wards) as possible; and,

(b) the 1996 Census population estimates for the ward divisions within each riding should be as close to parity as possible;

(10) City Council request the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing to prescribe the necessary regulation defining the 44 single ward members as recommended by City Council as soon as possible and, in any event, no later than February 15, 2000;

(11) City Council request the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing to provide the City with the necessary authority to name the 44 wards once established in regulation;

(12) subject to City Council adopting the process outlined in this report, additional funding in the amount of $50,000 be considered with the Clerk's 2000 operating budget; and

(13) the appropriate City Officials be authorized and directed to take the necessary action to give effect thereto.

Background:

In December 1998, City Council adopted a new ward structure based on 57 single member wards for the 2000 election. Council subsequently enacted By-laws Nos. 228-1999 and 275-1999 to create the new wards. These by-laws were appealed to the Ontario Municipal Board (OMB), and were upheld by the Board, with some amendments, in an order released on November 29, 1999. The Board ruled that the ward boundary review principles used by the City were sound and that the allowable population variance factor of plus or minus 25 percent was appropriate.

On December 6, 1999, the Provincial Government introduced Bill 25, the Fewer Municipal Politicians Act, 1999. The Bill amends the City of Toronto Act, 1997 by dissolving the existing ward system and establishing up to 44 single-member wards for the 2000 election. The exact number of Members and their area of representation are to be defined through provincial regulation.

On December 8, 1999, the Administration Committee recommended to City Council that:

(1) all matters pertaining to the issue of Ward boundaries be considered by the Administration Committee;

(2) the Chair of the Administration Committee and two of its Members be requested to convene meetings and invite any Member of Council who has an interest in a particular riding to attend and provide input; and

(3) the City Clerk be requested to report to the next meeting of the Administration Committee:

(a) on a process for consulting the public on how to divide the Federal/Provincial ridings for the purpose of Municipal Ward representation; and

(b) on how the system is going to work in terms of the election of both the Public and Catholic School Board Trustees.

The Administration Committee also requested the City Clerk to:

(a) provide directly to Council for its meeting scheduled to be held on December 14, 1999, the various scenarios being contemplated as to the break-up of the individual wards; and any other criteria that she feels would be relevant to the discussion in this regard; and

(b) to provide all Members of Council with a copy of the legislation respecting the Fewer Municipal Politicians Act, 1999, as soon as it is available.

This report discusses the implications of Bill 25 from the perspective of conducting the 2000 municipal election and outlines a process to facilitate a City Council decision as soon as possible to divide the 22 provincial ridings into 44 single member wards for the election in 2000 and submit such decision to the Province for enactment through the provincial regulation.

The Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) has distributed to Members a briefing note along with a copy of the proposed legislation pertaining to the City of Toronto. The CAO is also reporting directly to City Council on other governance and administration issues arising from Bill 25.

Comments:

This report:

(a) outlines the legislative framework set out in Bill 25 as it relates to the 2000 municipal election;

(b) identifies the pressures on the City Clerk's staff, resulting from Bill 25, to prepare and conduct the 2000 election; and,

(c) proposes a process for City Council to decide on how to divide the 22 ridings into 44 single member ward system, in keeping with the intent of Bill 25.

Legislative Framework:

Bill 25, The Fewer Municipal Politicians Act, 1999, received first reading on December 6, 1999. As it relates to ward boundaries and the municipal election in 2000, Schedule "F" to Bill 25 amends the City of Toronto Act, 1997, to reduce the size of City Council to 44 Members or such other number as may be prescribed by regulation. The Bill provides that the City will be divided into 44 wards or such other number as prescribed by regulation and that one Member of Council shall be elected for each ward. Bill 25 removes the power of City Council to change the composition of Council and gives this power to the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, to determine by regulation.

In respect of the regular municipal election in 2000, Bill 25 prescribes that the election shall be conducted as if the 44 ward structure proposed by the Bill was in place. However, it also provides that if provincial regulation dividing the City into 44 new wards is not in place, the election shall be conducted in accordance with the existing legislation. Consequently, until Bill 25 becomes law and regulations are filed, the 57 wards approved by the OMB remain in place for purposes of the election in 2000.

Bill 25 authorizes the Minster of Municipal Affairs and Housing to, by regulation, provide for transitional matters that affect an election under the Municipal Elections Act, 1996, and specifically provides that these regulations can change the first date for filing nominations in an election. Again, until the Bill is proclaimed and regulations are enacted, the existing provisions of the Municipal Elections Act, 1996, apply. Consequently, unless regulations are introduced, the City Clerk can accept nominations for the 57 wards approved by the OMB commencing on January 4, 2000.

Finally, in respect of the upcoming municipal election and the City's ability to place questions on the ballot, Bill 25 amends Section 8 of the Municipal Elections Act, 1996 to require all such questions placed to comply with such rules as the Minister may prescribe. In the past, the Province has used similar powers to set out the form that questions must take and to prescribe the responses available, for example, a yes/no response.

Pressures on the 2000 Municipal Election:

Bill 25 places significant pressure on the City Clerk's ability to prepare and manage the 2000 election. It is probable that the City will be entering an election year without a final ward structure in place, the foundation for which the election is based. The longer into the year 2000 the City proceeds without a final set of ward boundaries in place, the greater the potential for significant problems in developing an accurate voters' list and conducting the election. The specific election-related pressures include:

(a) having to abandon a significant amount of staff work already completed in preparation for the 2000 election, and start such work all over again once the ward boundaries are finalized;

(b) reduced time frames will eliminate consultation with Members of Council on subdivision boundaries and voting places, and the production of a test voters' list prior to the actual delivery of the preliminary list of electors on July 31, 2000;

(c) meeting statutory requirements for receiving candidate nomination papers in the absence of a final ward structure.

Clerk's staff have been working over the last nine months preparing for the 2000 election and operating under the presumption of 57 single member wards, as adopted by City Council and ordered by the OMB with amendments. Now that the Province has introduced a new Council structure for the City through Bill 25, the details of which will be spelled out through regulation, a significant amount of the work undertaken by staff must start over and cannot begin until the ward boundaries are resolved.

The compressed time frame will force staff to abandon the practice of consultation with Members on voting subdivisions and voting places as well as the production of a test voters' list to allow corrections prior to the actual delivery of the final data to the Ontario Property Assessment Corporation (OPAC).

Elections staff cannot begin the work to prepare for the 2000 election until the ward boundaries are finalized. A final determination of the ward system is required as early as possible to allow staff to determine the electoral subdivisions within each ward. Staff require a minimum of three months to draw and test voting subdivision boundaries, based on the final ward structure. Staff have already started some of this work given the introduction of Bill 25. The City is also using a new GIS system to prepare voting subdivision information for the 2000 election and requires time to ensure system compatibility with OPAC systems. Staff must produce a listing of properties for each voting subdivision and ward for transmittal to OPAC. The Assessment Act (Section 15) specifies that the Minister will give direction on times and in what manner the list will be prepared. Historically, the Minister has identified April 1 as the last date a municipality must provide the data identifying voting subdivisions and wards to OPAC. OPAC has advised that, notwithstanding Bill 25, it still requires the voting subdivision and ward data from the City by April 1, 2000.

OPAC receives the data from the City and undertakes its own supplementary enumeration of properties in early April. OPAC also mails out enumeration information to tenants, based on the property information supplied by the City, to obtain accurate tenant information (i.e., school support) to prepare the voters' list. Given the City's significant tenant population and the need for a proper enumeration, any delays by the City in delivering the property and voting subdivision information to OPAC after April 1, 2000, may place the enumeration of the City's tenant population and preparation of an accurate voters' list at risk.

OPAC then prepares the Preliminary List of Electors for delivery to municipalities on or before July 31 (Municipal Elections Act, 1996, Subsection 19(1)). City staff then check the voters' list for any obvious errors, make corrections, and reproduce the list for distribution on September 1 (Municipal Elections Act, 1996, Subsection 23(2)). Traditionally, there is a 15-20 percent change in the voters' list between July 31 and Voting Day. Any delays which would preclude OPAC from delivering the voters' list by July 31, 2000 would reduce and/or eliminate the City's ability to perform an adequate review and test and accurate update of the voters' list for the election.

Working within these timelines means that a final determination on the ward boundaries should be decided by the end of 1999, consistent with the prevailing Municipal Act provision that municipalities have their ward boundary structure in place before January 1 in an election year (but suspended through Bill 25). Bill 25 does not include any provision for amending the statutory deadlines for preparing the voter's list. Delaying the final determination on the 44 ward boundaries into the year 2000 places significant pressure on the Clerk's staff to undertake the necessary work to prepare for the year 2000 election. Any delays from the traditional timelines outlined above will reduce the accuracy of the voters' list and has the potential to undermine the election (i.e., line-ups at polls on election day, public confusion around voting locations).

Without a final determination of the ward boundaries, it is difficult for potential candidates to file nomination papers for a particular ward. Bill 25 specifies that regulation will also be used to provide the first date for filing nominations instead of the date (i.e., January 1) provided for under the Municipal Elections Act, 1996. If the necessary regulation(s) is not issued by the Province and in force before January 1, 2000, candidates will not know which ward they wish to file nomination papers. This would require nominations to be made based on the 57 ward system and provincial regulation will be required to "bridge" the nominations to the new wards when determined. This situation also applies to school board trustee candidates.

There is a need for certainty on the ward boundaries as soon as possible and having the province enact the necessary regulation to allow the election to be properly planned and managed. Staff are of the opinion that any delay in finalizing the ward boundaries past January 2000, given all other current election deadlines, could place the 2000 election at significant risk.

Proposed Process for Determining 44 Single Member Wards:

Bill 25 suspends the legislative requirements of the Municipal Act, which specify that City Council hold at least one public meeting prior to passing a by-law changing ward boundaries. The effect of Bill 25 is that, should City Council make a decision on how to create 44 single member wards based on the 22 provincial ridings, Council's decision would be communicated to the Province for consideration by the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing for enactment through provincial regulation.

It should be noted that the process undertaken by the City to create the 57 single member wards took a full 20 months. This process included several months of work preparing ward boundary options, a proper public consultation process, community council and standing committee input and an appeal process. Now the City has very little time to make a similar decision in order to meet election timelines.

Given the time pressures, a compressed three-phase process is recommended for Council to determine how to divide the 22 ridings:

(1) Development of options for dividing the 22 provincial ridings.

(2) Consultation to receive feedback on the options for dividing the 22 ridings.

(3) A decision-making process to facilitate a City Council decision.

A discussion of each phase follows.

Phase 1: Development of Options for Dividing the 22 Provincial Ridings:

Phase 1 work would involve developing options for dividing the 22 ridings into 44 single member wards. Some basic assumptions are necessary to guide the development of the ward options:

(a) the 22 provincial ridings will be the basis for creating the single member wards;

(b) the 22 provincial riding boundaries cannot be changed and each riding will be divided into two wards; and

(c) ward options be developed and considered based on a common set of principles.

A set of accepted principles exist that are traditionally considered when defining or refining political boundaries. These principles include:

(a) representation by population;

(b) representation of communities;

(c) recognition of distinct geographic and infrastructure elements (e.g., watercourses, railways, highways, arterial roads); and

(d) recognition of future population growth.

These principles were adopted by Council during its recent exercise to create 57 single member wards, and were accepted by the OMB in accordance with proper ward boundary practices. It is recommended that these principles be employed again in determining options for dividing the 22 ridings.

Representation by population implies that, to the extent possible, each ward within a municipality will have a similar population. The principle is intended to ensure that residents have equal access to their elected representative and that the workload of these representatives is relatively balanced.

Relative population parity within a ward is the desired goal when examining options for dividing the wards. However, it is common for municipalities to permit variations from average ward populations since it is practically impossible to achieve the same population for each ward. The Federal/Provincial ridings were established while permitting a variance of plus or minus 25%. The 28 current wards and 57 proposed wards were also predicated on an allowable population variance of plus or minus 25%. Again, this variance was upheld as an acceptable deviation by the OMB in its ruling on the 57 City wards. Applying this principle to the 44 wards translates into an average ward population of approximately 54,200, with an allowable variance range of 40,700 (minus 25%) to 67,800 (plus 25%).

Given the need to finalize the 44 ward boundaries as soon as possible in the interest of effectively managing the 2000 election, representation by population should be considered as the overriding principle governing the exercise of determining ward boundaries. Where possible, an equitable distribution of population between each ward in a riding should be adopted and that deviations from the average ward population of up to plus or minus 25 percent be permitted where desirable only to satisfy other principles.

Ward Boundary Options:

Clerk's staff are developing a set of ward boundary options to create 44 single member wards from the 22 provincial ridings based on the above-noted principles. These options are preliminary drafts only in response to Bill 25 and recent press releases from the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing and are subject to the approval of the principles outlined in this report by Council.

Subject to Council adopting the principles set out above, the City Clerk will finalize a set of draft preliminary options and distribute them to Members of Council by December 17, 1999. There are a number of logistical matters such as map production, population estimation, and printing which impact the availability of the options package.

These options will form the basis for consultations with the public and Members of Council as part of phase 2.

Phase 2: Consultation to Receive Feedback on the Options for Dividing the 22 Ridings:

The Administration Committee requested the City Clerk to report on a process for consulting the public on how to divide the 22 ridings into 44 wards. Given the need to finalize the ward structure soon to effectively conduct the election, opportunities for public consultation are limited. Clerk's staff will make available to interested persons a copy of the ward boundary options. Staff will also post the ward options to the City's web site for public review and comment. Clerk's Staff will also meet with each member of Council to discuss ward boundary options.

Options for engaging more formal public input into the process include:

(a) Community Council public meetings, or

(b) staff-convened public information sessions.

Given that the 22 ridings are not contiguous with the six current Community Council jurisdictions (except for the Scarborough and Etobicoke Community Councils), it is not appropriate for the Community Councils to host the public consultation exercise since it will be considering lands outside its current jurisdiction. Also, it is possible that conflicting recommendations would result from each Community Council thereby introducing further complexity in the decision-making process.

Instead, a series of public open houses are recommended to receive public input. The information sessions would make available the staff options for dividing the 22 ridings and staff would be in attendance to discuss the options and receive public input. Public comments would be formalized through comment sheets that would be collected at each session. Sessions would be held at each civic centre and City Hall. The following schedule is recommended:

January 4 Etobicoke Civic Centre

York Civic Centre

North York Civic Centre

January 5 East York Civic Centre

Scarborough Civic Centre

Toronto City Hall

Each session would be held from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. A brief staff presentation would be made at each session, otherwise the format would be an informal review and discussion of the options and possible alternatives.

Comment forms would be made available for the public to provide their comments. All feedback forms received would be considered, summarized and reported to Council through the decision-making process (phase 3). If public feedback suggests other potential ward options for dividing the ridings that are consistent with the Council-established principles, such options will be presented to Council.

A notice advertising the information sessions would be placed in one major daily newspaper and in various community newspapers, consistent with the notification procedure during the previous ward boundary exercise. Notice would also be sent to all resident and ratepayer groups on file with the Clerk's office, all BIAs and other interested parties involved or notified through the previous ward boundary review process. It is estimated that the cost for the consultation process and preparing the necessary mapping to support the decision-making process would be $50,000. No funds have been set aside in the Clerk's Division budget. Therefore it is recommended that Council authorize that these funds be added to the City Clerk's budget.

Phase 3: A Decision-Making Process to Facilitate a City Council Decision

The Policy and Finance Committee is the appropriate standing committee to have carriage for this matter given its responsibilities for corporate governance matters as specified in the Council Procedural By-law. The Administration Committee at its meeting held on December 8, 1999, recommended that all matters pertaining to the issue of ward boundaries be co-ordinated by the Administration Committee. If City Council approves this recommendation, it is proposed that the Administration Committee consider this matter at its first meeting in January 2000.

The Administration Committee also adopted a motion requesting the Committee Chair and two of its Members to convene meetings and invite any Member of Council who has an interest in a particular riding to attend and provide input. This political process would be outside the Clerk's process outlined in this report as it is not appropriate for the Clerk to be engaged in a non-public political process. The conclusions of this group, if convened, could be reported independently to the Administration Committee for its consideration with the Clerk's staff report. However, it is recommended that all Members be requested to submit directly to the City Clerk their individual comments on the ward boundaries for consideration by staff in keeping with the Council-adopted principles. To ensure that the Members comments can be considered by staff prior to reporting to the January 11, 2000 Administration Committee meeting, it is recommended that all Members comments be received by January 6, 2000.

Clerk's staff would report to the January 11, 2000 Administration Committee meeting on the feedback received from the public open houses, Members of Council, and any other options deemed appropriate considering the Council-endorsed principles. Deputations would be permitted at the Administration Committee meeting. The Administration Committee would consider the various ward options and public input and make overall recommendations to City Council. All Members of Council would be invited to the Administration Committee meeting to hear deputations. It should be noted that given this extremely compressed schedule, it is expected that the staff report to the Administration Committee would not be distributed to Members or available to the public until January 10, 2000 (the day before the meeting).

It is recommended that City Council convene a special meeting on January 19 and 21 (if necessary), 2000 to consider the Administration Committee recommendations and make its decision on a preferred set of 44 wards. January 20 is unavailable since the next regular meeting of the Policy and Finance Committee is scheduled for that date. Facilitating a City Council decision on the ward boundaries as soon as possible, will assist staff undertake the necessary work to prepare the voting subdivisions and provide such information to OPAC within established deadlines.

At the special Council meeting, if two or more options are considered equally appealing, then Council should consider applying an objective decision-making framework to help determine its decision on ward boundary changes. The following two over-riding decision-making principles, based on the notion of representative population, are recommended to be used by Council to help resolve disagreements between ward boundary options:

(a) the two ward populations (1996 Census estimate) within each riding should be as close to the 1996 Census ward average population (54,200) as possible; and

(b) the 1996 Census population estimates for the ward divisions within each riding should be as close to parity as possible.

Enacting a 44 Ward Structure for the City:

Bill 25 specifies that the new wards will be enacted through provincial regulation. The Bill suspends Council's authority to enact a by-law to change the ward structure or Council composition. Therefore, any City Council decision should be communicated to the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing for consideration and enactment through regulation.

Ward Names:

Bill 25 suspends certain aspects of the Municipal Act providing the City with the authority to change or establish the ward names. Unless the provincial regulation creating the 44 wards also names each ward, the existing provincial riding names remain in effect for the wards, and may possibly be described as "A" or "B" (i.e., St. Paul's A and St. Paul's B). It is recommended that City Council request the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing to provide the City with the authority to name the 44 wards once established in regulation. Subject to such authority being provided, staff will report to the Administration Committee on a process for naming the new wards.

During the public consultation process described in this report, the public would be asked for their opinions on naming the respective wards through the comment/feedback forms.

Implications for School Board Trustee Elections:

The Administration Committee requested the City Clerk to report to the next committee meeting on how the new ward system is going to affect Trustee elections. The determination of School Trustees for the 1997 election was governed under a transitional provincial regulation (Regulation 250/97). Provincial staff have advised that a new regulation will be issued in the new year that will deal with the determination and distributions for school board members for the 2000 election.

The process followed for the 1997 election is summarized as follows. The Clerk of the affected municipality is responsible for applying a mathematical formula, specified in the provincial regulation, to calculate the number of board trustees, based on factors including school support population and board jurisdiction. The Clerk then must distribute the trustee electoral districts, applying rules set out in the regulation, and based on the ward boundaries established by the municipality. The Clerk reports these findings to the Board and Ministry for implementation.

Conclusions:

Bill 25 dissolves the existing ward structure and allows the Minister to define the City's size and electoral wards through regulation. The introduction of this legislation places a tremendous amount of pressures on the Clerk's ability to prepare and manage the 2000 election. A final determination on the ward structure is required as soon as possible to facilitate the required election planning work. This report recommends a process to allow City Council to decide on a preferred 44 ward system at a special meeting to be scheduled for January 19 and 21, 2000.

The CAO's Office and Legal Services Division have been consulted in the preparation of this report.

Contact:

Peter Fay, Senior Policy and Planning Analyst, City Clerk's Division

tel. 392-8668; e-mail: pfay@toronto.ca

John Hollins, Director, Elections, City Clerk's Division

tel. 392-8019; e-mail: jhollins@toronto.ca)

(City Council also had before it, during consideration of the foregoing Clause, the following communication (December 15, 1999) from Councillor Olivia Chow, Downtown:

Boundaries are changing because the Province wants to take even more money from the City of Toronto.

Since the birth of the Megacity in 1997, there have been 10 provincial announcements affecting the City of Toronto.

The results:

$252 million directly downloaded from the Province to the City of Toronto.

Plus:

$235 million in one time transition costs.

Total:

$487 million taken from the residents of the City of Toronto.)

(City Council also had before it, during consideration of the foregoing Clause, the following communication (December 15, 1999) from Councillor Rob Davis, York Eglinton:

As we are about to adjust city wards within the boundaries of the federal and provincial ridings I thought we should consider the fact that the federal government will dictate any future changes of those ridings in the year 2001.

I have attached a copy of the Electoral Boundaries Readjustment Act for you to consider in our deliberations.)

(A copy of the Electoral Boundaries Readjustment Act, referred to above, is on file in the office of the City Clerk.)

(City Council also had before it, during consideration of the foregoing Clause, the following communications:

(a) (December 10, 1999) from Mr. John Sewell and Ms. Kathleen Wynne, on behalf of concerned citizens, respecting the Fewer Municipal Politicians Act and submitting recommendations in this regard;

(b) (December 2, 1999) from Mr. Michael Opara, Chair, Bedford Park Residents Association, expressing opposition to the proposed changes to the existing ward boundaries in the City of Toronto and submitting recommendations in this regard; and

(c) (December 1, 1999) from Mr. Richard Jessop, Chair, Confederation of Resident and Ratepayer Associations (CORRA) addressed to the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, expressing opposition to the proposed changes to the existing ward boundaries in the City of Toronto.)