By-Law and Regulatory Services
Well, well, well! Surprise, surprise, surprise!
This department is strictly about making money. It has no other mandate. The By-Law department has grown more than any other department at the City of Ottawa. Revenue has grown rapidly every year since amalgamation, and the number of employees in this department has too.
The revenue is a tax grab against unsuspecting citizens and has nothing to do with maintaining good order in the City of Ottawa, nor protecting anyone.
If you wanted to downsize a City of Ottawa department, this is where you start.
Look at these numbers:
Annual revenue has grown from $3,506,000 in 2001 to a 2011 budget figure of $23,825,000.
That’s 579 percent!
Ottawa is a city comprised of mostly intelligent and educated citizens with an average annual income above the majority of other Canadians.
Are the citizens of Ottawa so abusive in respecting by-laws issued by Ottawa City Council that would account for this growth in revenue? I don’t think so. What it is, is an aggressive application of by-laws in order to grow the number of employees in this department by continually contributing excess revenue to the general coffers of the City of Ottawa. It is the gravy train for senior management and Council and this department can pretty well do what ever it wants.
Excess revenue (that is money that many unfortunate citizens have to pay) will total some $18 million dollars just for the period 2009-2001.
The Budget for 2011 reflects total revenue at $23, 825,000 and expenses at $18,204,000. Excess revenue is $5,621,000.
So let’s look at some of the expenses.
Employee costs make up 74 percent of the total expense of the department.
Annual employment expense has grown from $3,370,000 in 2001 to $13,427,000 as reflected in the 2011 Budget. That’s a 298 percent increase during the 2001-2011 period. Think about it. Does it make any sense?
Fleet costs (automobiles) will cost this department $1,069,000 in 2011. That’s a lot of money! How many of the vehicles are owned by the city and how many of them are leased? What a waste of money.
The only other expense of any consequence is that of “material and supplies”. This category has grown from approximately $800,000 in 2001 to an annual expense of $2,815,000 in 2011. Wow! I wonder what they buy annually for $2,815,000? Tickets! They need to print a lot of tickets to issue every day. And maybe a few computers and desks to add up the daily bounty.
It should come as no surprise that the number of department employees has grown since amalgamation. In 2001, 69 FTE was sufficient to effectively enforce the By-Laws of this city.
In 2011, it will take 180 FTE to do the same job. That’s a 161 percent increase in employees.
Now what kind of money do these people make? Well, for the year 2011, the average employee expense will be $74, 594.00. That’s a big cost just to hand out tickets. In 2001, the annual cost per employee was $48,840.That’s a 53 percent increase over the period. Nice if you can get it.
The By-Law and Regulatory Service Department must be downsized. There is just no need for the number of employees in this department. Expenses for material supplies and fleet services are simply too high. The Auditor General should be auditing this department with an aspect to making recommendations to make it more efficient.
Bill O’Malley
