The Municipal Performance Measurement Program (MPMP), an initiative of the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing (MMAH), was first introduced for the 2000 Reporting Year. This program requires municipalities to collect specific data on the following nine core municipal services areas: local government, fire, police, garbage, water, sewage, transportation, land-use planning, and social services.
Over the years, the number of measures to be reported has increased to sixty-four key efficiency and effectiveness measures (in 2009) from seven measures (reported for the year 2000). New measures added in 2009 include efficiency and effectiveness measures for bridges and culverts and effectiveness measures for fire services.
The Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing designates the MPMP reporting requirements under the authority of Section 299 of the Ontario Municipal Act, 2001. The Minister has designated that “a municipality shall publish the information required by section 1 (Performance Measurement Information) not later than nine months after the last day of the fiscal year to which the information relates.” The City of Brampton publishes its Performance Measurement information by September 30th of each year.
For the first time, the 2009 Municipal Performance Measurement Program includes the impact of the implementation of Tangible Capital Asset reporting required by the Public Sector Accounting Board (PSAB) 3150 and, as a result, year-to-year comparison of some measures is not feasible. This reporting challenge is being experienced by many Ontario municipalities.
Current Situation:
All Ontario municipalities are required to collect data for up to sixty-four key measures, as applicable to each municipality, for the 2009 Reporting Year. Thirty-seven of these measures apply to the City of Brampton in the following areas:
The City of Brampton is one of the fastest growing cities in Canada, facing challenges that come with rapid growth as it provides municipal services and infrastructure to meet residents’ and taxpayers’ needs. Despite some of these challenges, the 2009 results from the Municipal Performance Measurement Program highlight Brampton’s successes, while also identifying those areas where the City continues to strengthen its efforts.
The implementation of PSAB Section 3150 and the related MPMP reporting changes resulted in changes to the cost base on which many efficiency measures are calculated. Some of the major changes reflected in the calculation include:
The costs for paved roads, winter control maintenance and storm water management now include program support costs as well as departmental overhead/ administration costs. Program support refers to services delivered corporately and attributable to particular service areas.
Operating project expenses previously reported in the Capital Fund, which in prior years were not part of the MPMP calculation, are now included in the calculation starting 2009. Paved roads, transit, parks and recreation facilities were impacted most significantly by this change.
Books and equipment costs for the Brampton Public Library that were reported in prior years as operating expenses are now classified as Tangible Capital Assets. This change is reflected in the Library’s efficiency measures.
2009 Highlights
The opening of new facilities, including the gymnasium at the Flower City Community Campus Senior Centre, contributed to the increase in the recreation indoor and outdoor facility space measure.
Population growth outpaced increases in operating costs resulting in a lower per person cost for recreation programs.
The increase in the recreation facilities cost per person measure is attributable to the first full year of operation of the Cassie Campbell and renovated Century Gardens Community Centers.
Transit operating costs were higher in 2009 as the result of the 5% increase in service hours.
The increase in the rural storm water management measure is attributable to the increased number of new installations (in Gore area) and retrofitting of existing installations in open ditch locations in order to maintain adequate drainage.
The Brampton Public Library system also recorded 10.9 million total uses in 2009 versus 9.1 million uses in 2008, an increase of 20%. Electronic library uses experienced a 40% increase as a result of implementation of free wireless internet and various other media formats.
These cost increases reflect Brampton’s commitment to invest in targeted levels of quality services to meet the continuing service demands of a growing community. City staff is also committed to continuously looking for opportunities to improve the efficiency and cost effectiveness of the delivery of its services and infrastructure.
For further information, please contact the City of Brampton, Treasury Services at 905-874-2235.