The AG’s Take On Traffic Camera Revenue

This is the auditor general’s take on the lack of funding that went to the Road Safety Reserve Fund.

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The Road Safety Action Plan (2020-2024), approved by Council in December 2019 (ACS2019-TSD-TRF-0009), included a recommendation related to red light camera revenue and what would be allocated to the Road Safety Reserve Fund for dedicated use towards road safety initiatives. The Council recommendation stated “that all revenue from automated enforcement, including automated speed enforcement, automated license plate recognition devices and school bus cameras, as well as any future new forms of automated enforcement, in addition to revenues from new red-light cameras installed beyond 2020, be allocated to the Road Safety Action Plan Program for implementation of countermeasures identified in the 2020- 2024 Road Safety Action Plan report”.

Since that Council direction, no revenues from net new red light cameras has been allocated to the Road Safety Reserve Fund. The audit found revenue generated from the Red Light Camera program is exclusively allocated to the City’s operating budget along with an annual transfer to the Ottawa Police Service.

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The direction from Ottawa City Council is crystal clear. The money from the traffic safety cameras is supposed to go to the Road Safety Reserve Fund and that didn’t happen. It is embarrassing listening to councillors make excuses for this staff mistake.

Council has authority in this matter. Staff is to carry out the wishes of council. They are public servants. Unless authority is delegated to staff, city public servants are required to follow the direction of council. If staff thinks the direction is impractical, the proper process is to go back to council and see if council, upon explanation, believes it needs to change its directions. Staff cannot take on the authority of council without delegation. No delegation took place in this situation.

The excuse that staff was just following past practices doesn’t wash. One of the conditions of employment for city staff is that they should be able to read. And the direction of council is clear. Another condition is that staff must careful.

Councillors should not be making excuses for mistakes of staff. Instead, council should get to the bottom of the issue, find out the mistake and ensure that mistake is corrected. Staffers are paid handsome salaries for getting things right.

In this situation, staff flew in the face of council and, as council represents the citizens of this community, flew in the face of the people of Ottawa. That is not public service.

No wonder the perception of city hall in this community is so bad. City staff makes a bad mistake (and this is a bad mistake) and the response of council is not to correct the mistakes but make excuses for it. That’s not why council was empowered by the people (and taxpayers) of this community to represent them and to handle their money correctly.

That’s another reason people don’t trust this city hall. This mistake reflects a staff that doesn’t take council seriously. And council doesn’t take its duties seriously.

Thus the provincial government needs to appoint a board to get to the problem of fiscal irresponsibility at Ottawa City Hall and bad governance.

Good governance is not about nice. It’s not about spin. It’s about getting it right.

Ken Gray

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