October 15, 1999

To: Community Services Committee

From: Commissioner of Community and Neighbourhood Services

Subject: Payment of 1999 Former City of Toronto Daycare Grants

Purpose:

This report recommends the levels of payment for eligible non-profit child care centres in the former City of Toronto from the former City of Toronto Daycare Grant.

Funding Sources, Financial Implications and Impact Statement:

The payments recommended in this report can be financed from funds approved for this purpose in the 1999 Children's Services Division budget.

Recommendations:

It is recommended that:

(1) The 67 non-profit child care programs from the former City of Toronto which continue to qualify under the original criteria of the former City of Toronto Daycare Grant program immediately receive their grants in the amounts specified in Appendix I of this report, the total payments from the grant fund not to exceed $428.0; and

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

Council Reference/Background/History:

The former City of Toronto introduced its Daycare Grant program in 1983 to provide stability to the non-profit child care sector, to address the low salaries of child care staff and to address child care affordability issues faced by families. Under the original criteria established by the former City of

Toronto Council, grants were provided to non-profit centres whose maximum average non-supervisory salary was $32,500. This benchmark was established through comparison with the salaries paid to staff in the child care programs directly operated by the former Municipality of Metropolitan Toronto. This grant program was not duplicated in other former area municipalities. Even after amalgamation, this grant program was not extended to include child care centres outside of the former City of Toronto.

In 1998 Council directed staff to approve grants to all former recipients at their 1997 level despite the fact that some would no longer have been eligible to receive this level of funding support according to the grant criteria. One time continued payment at the 1997 grant level was made in recognition of the limited notice period that was provided to operators that their grant eligibility had changed.

As part of the 1999 budget approval process, Council reduced the former City of Toronto Daycare Grant fund by $221.0 in 1999 and by a further $221.0 in 2000.

Comments and/or Discussion and/or Justification:

For 1999 a total of 95 applications for the former City of Toronto Daycare Grant were received from non-profit programs in the former City of Toronto and reviewed for eligibility under the original grant criteria. As shown in Appendix I of this report, 45 of these centres remain eligible for the same level of grant as they received in 1998, 22 centres have been assessed as eligible for a reduced level of grant and 28 centres have been found to be no longer eligible according to the original grant criteria. In general, the changes in eligibility may be explained by the positive impact the retroactive pay equity adjustments approved by the province and cost shared by the City have had. In many cases these adjustments moved the average salary above the grant ceiling.

The Department recognizes the need to review the future of the former City of Toronto Daycare Grant program within the context of the overall financial support given to child care programs both through wage subsidy and fee subsidy payments and to ensure equitable use of the total public funds available. Because changes in the allocations of wage subsidy funds are not permissible under the Provincial guidelines governing the management of downloaded programs during this first full year of municipal responsibility, rationalization of funding is not possible until year 2000. The planned development of the City's new child care service plan will address the issue of streamlining and harmonizing the funding available to child care programs and will ensure full community consultation as part of the process.

Conclusions:

The Department recommends that Daycare grants be paid immediately to 67 eligible non profit child care centres in the former City of Toronto in the amounts specified in Appendix I of this report and that the total amount of grant money approved not exceed $428.0.

Contact Name:

Brenda Patterson (phone 392-3319, fax 392-4576)

General Manager, Children's Services Division

Commissioner of Community and Neighbourhood Services