1. REQUEST TO APPEAL FOR PROVINCIAL FUNDING TO ADDRESS SUBSIDIZED HOUSING AND HOMELESSNESS ISSUES IN OTTAWA)

DEMANDE EN VUE DE FAIRE UN APPEL DE FONDS PROVINCIAUX AFIN DE FAIRE FACE AUX LOGEMENTS SUBVENTIONNÉS ET AUX QUESTIONS DU SANS-ABRISME À OTTAWA

COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION

That Council use its resources, including its membership on AMO, to immediately call upon the Provincial Government, especially the Minister of Health and Long Term Care, the Minister of Community and Social Services and the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, to rectify subsidized housing and homelessness issues with sufficient and flexible funding.

Recommandation du Comité

Que le Conseil de faire appel à ses ressources, notamment son adhésion à l’AMO, pour demander immédiatement au gouvernement provincial, en particulier au ministère de la Santé et des Soins de longue durée, au ministère des Services sociaux et communautaires et au ministère des Affaires municipales et du Logement, de résoudre les questions liées aux logements subventionnés et au sans-abrisme grâce à un financement suffisant et souple.

DOCUMENTATION

1. Chair, Poverty Issues Advisory Committee report dated 14 March 2007 (ACS2007-CCV-POI-0003).

Report to/Rapport au:

Community and Protective Services Committee

Comité des services communautaires et de protection

and Council / et au Conseil

14 March 2007 / le 14 mars 2007

Submitted by/Soumis par: Chair, Poverty Issues Advisory Committee

Présidente, Comité consultatif sur les questions liées à la pauvreté

Contact Person/Personne-ressource: Julie Tremblay,

Advisory Committee Coordinator/Coordonnatrice de comités consultatifs

City Clerk’s Branch/Direction du greffe

(613) 580-2424 x28719, Julie.Tremblay@ottawa.ca

City Wide

Ref N°: ACS2007-CCV-POI-0003

SUBJECT:	REQUEST TO APPEAL FOR PROVINCIAL FUNDING TO ADDRESS SUBSIDIZED HOUSING AND HOMELESSNESS ISSUES IN OTTAWA
OBJET:	DEMANDE EN VUE DE FAIRE UN APPEL DE FONDS PROVINCIAUX AFIN DE FAIRE FACE AUX LOGEMENTS SUBVENTIONNÉS ET AUX QUESTIONS DU SANS-ABRISME À OTTAWA

REPORT RECOMMENDATION

That the Poverty Issues Advisory Committee recommend that the Community and Protective Services Committee recommend that Council use its resources, including its membership on AMO, to immediately call upon the Provincial Government, especially the Minister of Health and Long Term Care, the Minister of Community and Social Services and the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, to rectify subsidized housing and homelessness issues with sufficient and flexible funding.

RECOMMANDATION DU RAPPORT

Que le Comité consultatif sur la pauvreté recommande au Comité des services communautaires et de protection de recommander au Conseil de faire appel à ses ressources, notamment son adhésion à l’AMO, pour demander immédiatement au gouvernement provincial, en particulier au ministère de la Santé et des Soins de longue durée, au ministère des Services sociaux et communautaires et au ministère des Affaires municipales et du Logement, de résoudre les questions liées aux logements subventionnés et au sans-abrisme grâce à un financement suffisant et souple.

BACKGROUND

The mandate of the Poverty Issues Advisory Committee is to provide advice to Ottawa City Council, through the Community and Protective Services Committee, and its Departments, on issues that impact and address poverty in the City.

On 13 March 2007, the Poverty Issues Advisory Committee considered and approved the following Motion which calls on the City to appeal for provincial funding to address subsidized housing and homelessness issues in Ottawa.

WHEREAS homelessness and insufficient subsidized housing have been long standing and a very stressful issue for those struggling in poverty;

WHEREAS City-based revenues are insufficient to adequately fund subsidized housing and effectively address homelessness;

WHEREAS provincial funding is not adequate or sufficiently flexible to address the significant need for housing supports for those struggling with mental health and addiction issues;

WHEREAS the Provincial Caucus is considering an anti-poverty strategy as part of its 2007 Budget to be released in late March or early April;

BE IT RESOLVED THAT the Poverty Issues Advisory Committee recommend that the Community and Protective Services Committee recommend that Council use its resources, including its membership on AMO, to immediately call upon the Provincial Government, especially the Minister of Health and Long Term Care, the Minister of Community and Social Services and the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, to rectify subsidized housing and homelessness issues with sufficient and flexible funding.

DISCUSSION

Poverty is everywhere; it exists on our streets and in our communities. The stigma of poverty is huge and has far-reaching consequences not just for the individual, but also for the City as a whole. Mental Health issues, anxiety, depression, the ability to learn, the ability to live independently, increased unemployment, decreased productivity, increased need for social programs and low cost housing are just a partial list of these consequences. The Poverty Issues Advisory Committee’s focus remains on affordable housing and homelessness issues, among others.

There have been recent gains in the number of affordable housing units available and a slight reduction in the number of households waiting for subsidized housing. There are over 10,000 households on the waiting list for social housing, with a waiting time of five to eight years. More people are accessing shelters than ever before. The City of Ottawa has been addressing these concerns for many years by enhancing and refocusing priorities and by working with community stakeholders to tackle issues of homelessness caused by insufficient funding from the Province. The City worked with the community to develop the first Community Action Plan in 1999 to prevent and end homelessness and recommendations were identified that covered a range of continuum from enhanced street outreach and prevention of homelessness, to ensuring appropriate options for affordable housing, supporting people while they are homeless, and providing opportunities for people to move out of homelessness. The Community Action Plan 2006-2008 builds on this work. It is imperative that the work to prevent homelessness be continued and that a full range of affordable housing options and appropriate supports be enhanced.

CONSULTATION

The above Motion was circulated to the Health and Social Services Advisory Committee (27 March 2007) and to the Seniors Advisory Committee (21 March 2007) for reference and no comments were received.

Staff in Community and Protective Services were consulted and provide the following comments:

Community and Protective Services

Since March 2004, City Council has written twelve letters to provincial and federal ministers advocating on issues of homelessness and housing.

Lobbying efforts around these issues are also taken up by professional associations which the City of Ottawa belongs to. These lobbying efforts are outlined below.

The City is a member the Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO). On March 30, 2007 AMO’s board of directors endorsed a statement of principles for housing in Ontario. (Document 1 attached). The purpose is to present a clear message to the Province in the on-going review of downloaded social services, due to be completed by Spring 2008 (for more information, go to the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing website at (http://www.mah.gov.on/userfiles/HTML/hts). While this review is mainly focused on the fiscal issues, who pays for what, AMO wanted to be sure that the discussions were based on some core principles about why housing matters, and what other considerations need to be addressed beyond who pays for social housing subsidies. A related benefit is that AMO now has a set of principles they will use when discussing the role of municipalities in housing and related issues.

The City of Ottawa also belongs to the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM). FCM represents the interests of municipalities on policy and program matters that fall within federal jurisdiction. The FCM advocates for a National Housing Strategy and cooperation and funding from the federal government. Lobbying efforts are ongoing.

As Service Manager for social housing, the City of Ottawa is a member of the Social Housing Services Corporation (SHSC). Councillor Deans is a member of SHSC’s board. SHSC is a provincially mandated non-profit corporation formed to provide centralized services to the social housing sector, including programs in energy and water management, investment of capital reserves, insurance, natural gas purchasing and research. The Social Housing Services Corporation (www.shscorp.ca) recently prepared a paper on some of the issues for social housing in Ontario. The paper is particularly focused on defining the issues for the upcoming Provincial-Municipal Fiscal and Service Delivery Review. This paper has been presented to the AMO Task Force on Housing and Homelessness, and via that group will inform the positioning taken by the AMO Board and the AMO Working Group for the Local Services Review, which Councillor Hume is involved with. A copy of the report can be found at the following link: http://www.shscorp.ca/(cpd4r145oizna445gaukjte1)/content/Docs/Sustain_partnership_Full_Report.pdf.

The Service Manager is also a member of the Ontario Municipal Social Services Association (OMSSA), a non-profit organization whose members are involved in planning, managing, funding and delivering social and community services at the municipal level throughout Ontario. OMSSA’s Campaign 47’s theme is “Investing in People Makes Sense” and is focused in three distinct areas: Early Learning and Child Care, Affordable Housing and Homelessness Prevention, and Economic Security. The goal of Campaign 47 is to promote investment in these three to all levels of government and community and business leaders.

FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS

Community and Protective Services staff supports the recommendation, with the caveat that "sufficient funding" refers to both capital funding for development and acquisition of housing and operating funding for supports to housing. This funding must be sufficient to ensure appropriate levels of affordability for tenants and revenues for operators without the need for municipal contributions.  The City does generally provide relief from development charges and fees, including grants to offset the mandatory costs of building permits, which typically average about $1,250 per $100,000 of development cost for new development.

DISPOSITION

The City Clerk, in consultation with Community and Protective Services staff will prepare letters to the appropriate Ministers.

SUPPORTING DOCUMENTATION

Document 1 – AMO Principles for Housing in Ontario

AMO : Principes en matière de logement pour l’Ontario

Document 1

AMO Principles for Housing in Ontario

Housing stability and affordability is a primary factor in determining the economic, social and physical health and well-being of Ontario's families and Ontario's communities.  Housing is more than just shelter, it is the interrelated system of services, supports, funding and policies that enable Ontario's citizens to live in their community.[1]

Through the intervention of the private, non-profit and government sectors the people of Ontario enjoy the benefit of a large stock of residential ownership and rental housing. Many would claim that the province and country has some of the best housing conditions in the world. Despite the excellent track record of housing the people of Ontario, roughly 15% of housing needs of the residents are not being adequately met. While action by all housing stakeholders is essential, there is a key role to be played by all orders of government to address the needs of vulnerable families and individuals who cannot successfully compete in Ontario’s housing market place.

Housing in Ontario must be based on the following principles:

1. Funding an income redistribution program like housing through property tax is unsustainable and at odds with basic principles of good public policy and good fiscal policy.

2. So long as municipalities are the principle funders of housing services in Ontario, they should be the principle policy makers.

3. Focused on long-term, sustainable solutions that provide the most cost-effective solutions to problems across the full spectrum of housing and social policy, not just specific programs.

4. That the Federal, Provincial and Municipal governments in Ontario must have a clear plan for collaboration and action on housing issues under a comprehensive National Housing Strategy.

5. Active participation of all orders of government, focused on the quality of life that housing needs to provide, and that active participation is based on defined roles, responsibilities and accountability, and a sustainable funding framework which does not include the property tax base.

6. Comprehensive and coordinated policies and programs that include improved income supports, improved housing choice and improved access to social and health services to enable people to live independently in their communities.

These principles support a comprehensive long-term housing strategy that includes policies and programs across the spectrum of public policy:

• A comprehensive housing framework promoting policy integration must incorporate all three orders of government. This framework must facilitate engagement with private sector stakeholders. Given the taxation, legislative and jurisdictional roles of federal and provincial governments, many housing issues that communities face must be addressed by these orders of government. Municipal governments and the communities they represent must be at the table because of the key role we also play in policy development and implementation, and to ensure that locally-specific housing issues are addressed in the most effective manner.

• Adequate income supports are part of the solution to making housing affordable for the working poor and those needing social assistance, including improved minimum wage legislation, addressing the under funding of Ontario Works and Ontarians with Disabilities Support Programs, and other income supplement programs.

• Sustainable and sustained funding from the provincial and federal orders of government, with less prescriptive provincial legislation that, while ensuring accountability, allows municipal governments, communities and agencies to make decisions locally, in order to provide the best services for their needs. 

• The Ontario Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing, the Ministry of Health and Long Term Care, and the Ministry of Community and Social Services must work together to ensure that policies and programs are mutually supportive and do not prevent local innovation and flexibility to provide both affordable housing and the supports that are often necessary for the people being housed.

• The whole housing spectrum must be considered in all policy and program design:

• What are the costs of not funding affordable housing? The role and costs of using housing alternatives such as jail, long-term care, hospitals, emergency shelters as substitutes for affordable, supported housing must be taken into account in any policy or program decisions, to ensure the most cost-effective solutions are being developed and sustained.

• Policies that ensure new communities are affordable to all, and that existing communities can remain affordable in the long-run [e.g. planning policies like inclusionary zoning, and other recent improvements to Municipal Act to enable better local control over housing stock]

• The need for both short term and long-term tools to address housing need. For example, relatively short term housing allowance subsidies to tenants to help them remain in their homes while they deal with temporary (6 to 24 month) financial difficulties, versus permanent non-profit affordable housing that ensures that significant public investments in housing are retained and kept available for future populations

• The need for service supports to enable people to remain in the communities they call home, including dedicated supportive housing as well as better health and social service supports to assist people to stay in their homes.

With these principles, the right actions will happen:

• Constitutionally, social housing is the responsibility of the provincial and federal governments. Inroads to solving the current problem can begin with the uploading of the cost of funding social housing from municipalities, because it is not appropriate to fund income redistribution programs from the property tax base. The province must provide solutions while municipalities continue to play an important facilitative and regulatory role.

• Uploading is only half of the solution. Housing is an important capital investment; the province must act to address the current and future needs of the existing social housing stock by providing sufficient funding to do so. This will also revitalize and protect existing communities.

• Administration of social housing should remain with municipal governments because local governments are closer to the people being served, have constructive working relationships with other sectors locally and have proven to be innovative and effective in the delivery of human services.

• Legislation will be revised to give local government the necessary authority to deliver programs while remaining accountable for outcomes.

• Public resources will be focused on the best, and most cost-effective solutions, such as supportive housing in the community to help address the demand for long-term care beds.

• Better income support policies and programs will be enacted because the downstream costs to our corrections, police, health care and social services systems of not being able to afford to live in our communities will be recognized.

§ Commitment from all orders of government to develop and implement a comprehensive national housing strategy. This will create and sustain healthy communities, social integration, economic competitiveness and provide the opportunity for all Ontarians to fulfill their dreams, expectations and live a full life.

AMO : Principes en matière de logement pour l’Ontario

La stabilité et l’abordabilité du logement représentent l’un des grands facteurs déterminants du bien-être et de la santé économique, sociale et physique des familles et des collectivités de l’Ontario. Le logement est plus qu’un toit, c’est un échafaudage de services, de soutiens, de mesures de financement et de politiques qui permettent aux citoyens de l’Ontario de mener leur vie dans leur milieu.[2]

Grâce à l’intervention des secteurs privé, public et sans but lucratif, la population de l’Ontario peut compter sur un important parc de logements offerts sur le marché de la vente ou de la location – et de nombreuses personnes estimeraient que les conditions de logement en Ontario et au pays figurent parmi les meilleures au monde. Cependant, en dépit de l’excellent dossier à ce chapitre, on ne réussit toujours pas à répondre convenablement à environ 15 p. 100 des besoins en logement des citoyens. Tous les intervenants dans le domaine de l’habitation ont un rôle essentiel à jouer, mais celui des pouvoirs publics à tous les échelons est crucial pour que les personnes et les familles vulnérables puissent trouver le toit qu’il leur faut dans le marché de l’habitation de l’Ontario.

Le logement en Ontario doit reposer sur les principes suivants :

1. Le financement d’un programme de redistribution du revenu, comme celui du logement, au moyen des impôts fonciers n’est pas viable et est contraire aux principes d’une saine administration publique et d’une fiscalité équitable.

2. L’élaboration des politiques de logement devrait revenir avant tout aux municipalités tant que ces dernières seront les principaux bailleurs de fonds des services de logement en Ontario.

3. Il convient de mettre l’accent sur des solutions viables à long terme pour résoudre les divers problèmes associés au logement et à la politique sociale, plutôt que de miser uniquement sur des programmes ponctuels.

4. Le gouvernement fédéral, la Province et les administrations municipales de l’Ontario doivent disposer d’un plan précis pour se concerter et agir afin de résoudre les problèmes du logement en se fondant sur une stratégie nationale de l’habitation.

5. Les pouvoirs publics à tous les échelons doivent s’intéresser à la qualité de vie qu’un logement convenable apporte; leur intervention à cet égard doit reposer sur des rôles et des responsabilités clairement définis, de même que sur l’obligation de rendre des comptes, et se faire à l’intérieur d’un cadre de financement viable non fondé sur le régime d’imposition foncière.

6. Il faut des plans d’action et des programmes complets et coordonnés qui prévoient de meilleurs soutiens du revenu, la diversification des choix en matière de logement et l’amélioration de l’accès aux services sociaux et de santé pour permettre aux gens de vivre de façon autonome dans leur collectivité.

Ces principes sont à la base d’une stratégie globale et à long terme qui permettra d’instaurer des politiques et des programmes publics de logement à tous les échelons :

• Il faut que les trois paliers de gouvernement participent à un plan d’action global en matière de logement et favorisent l’harmonisation de leurs mesures. Ce plan d’action doit également faciliter la participation du secteur privé. La fiscalité, les lois et les sphères de compétences relevant des gouvernements fédéral et provincial, il incombe manifestement à ces instances de régler bon nombre des problèmes que connaissent les collectivités dans le domaine du logement. Par ailleurs, les administrations municipales et les populations qu’elles servent doivent être représentées à la table à cause de leur rôle essentiel dans l’élaboration et la mise en œuvre des politiques et des mesures qu’elles peuvent adopter pour régler de façon optimale les problèmes de logement strictement locaux.

• Il faut des soutiens du revenu suffisants pour que les travailleurs à faible revenu et les personnes qui ont besoin d’aide sociale puissent se payer un logement convenable, notamment par l’augmentation du salaire minimum et l’élimination du problème de sous-financement d’Ontario au travail, des programmes ontariens de soutien aux personnes handicapées et d’autres programmes de supplément du revenu.

• Il faut un financement durable et soutenu de la part des gouvernements fédéral et provincial ainsi que des lois provinciales moins prescriptives qui, sans compromettre l’obligation de rendre des comptes, permettront aux municipalités, aux collectivités et aux organismes de prendre des décisions à l’échelon local pour offrir les services les mieux adaptés à leurs besoins.

• Il faut que le ministère des Affaires municipales et du Logement, le ministère de la Santé et des Soins de longue durée et le ministère des Services sociaux et communautaires travaillent ensemble pour que leurs politiques et leurs programmes respectifs se complètent et ne découragent pas l’innovation et l’adaptation qui, au niveau local, permettront d’offrir des logements abordables et les soutiens voulus aux personnes qui en ont souvent besoin.

• Il faut tenir compte de tous les aspects du logement dans l’élaboration des politiques et des programmes :

• Quels sont les coûts associés au non-financement de logements abordables? Les politiques et les programmes doivent tenir compte de l’incidence et des coûts qu’entraîne le recours à d’autres formes d’hébergement telles que l’incarcération, les centres de soins de longue durée et les refuges pour remplacer le logement abordable et subventionné, afin de trouver et d’appliquer les solutions les plus rentables.

• Il faut des politiques pour faire en sorte que les nouveaux lotissements soient abordables pour tous et que les quartiers établis demeurent abordables à long terme (p. ex., des politiques d’aménagement telles que le zonage inclusif et d’autres améliorations apportées récemment à la Loi sur les municipalités pour faciliter la gestion locale du parc de logements).

• Il faut des mécanismes à court et à long terme pour répondre aux besoins en matière de logement. Par exemple, des subventions à assez court terme peuvent être offertes aux locataires qui traversent une période difficile (de 6 à 24 mois) pour les aider à conserver leur logement, par opposition aux logements permanents et abordables sans but lucratif qui protègent les importants investissements publics dans ce domaine au profit des populations futures.

• Il faut renforcer les services pour que les gens puissent rester dans les quartiers où ils se sont établis, en offrant notamment des logements adaptés avec services de soutien ainsi que de meilleures formes d’assistance en matière de soins de santé et de services sociaux pour aider les gens à conserver leur logement.

À partir de ces principes, il sera possible de prendre les mesures qui s’imposent :

• Selon la Loi constitutionnelle, le logement social relève des gouvernements fédéral et provinciaux. Pour résoudre le problème actuel, il faut commencer par délester les municipalités du financement du logement social, qui doit être pris en charge par les pouvoirs en amont parce qu’il est illogique de financer les programmes de redistribution du revenu au moyen des impôts fonciers. Il incombe à la Province d’apporter les solutions nécessaires, pendant que les municipalités continueront à s’occuper des importantes tâches de facilitation et de réglementation.

• Le délestage vers les pouvoirs en amont ne représente que la moitié de la solution. Le logement suppose d’importants investissements; il faut que la Province réponde aux besoins actuels et futurs du présent parc de logements sociaux en y consacrant des sommes suffisantes, ce qui contribuera à revitaliser et à protéger les collectivités existantes.

• L’administration du logement social devrait continuer à relever des municipalités parce que les pouvoirs locaux sont plus proches des populations servies, entretiennent des rapports de travail constructifs avec les autres secteurs de la région et savent offrir des services aux citoyens de façon novatrice et efficace.

• Les lois seront modifiées pour conférer au gouvernement local les pouvoirs qu’il lui faut pour offrir les programmes et rendre compte des résultats.

• Les ressources publiques seront surtout affectées aux solutions les plus efficaces et les plus rentables telles que le logement dans la collectivité avec services de soutien, de manière à alléger la demande en lits de soins de longue durée.

• Des politiques et des programmes améliorés de soutien du revenu seront adoptés une fois que l’on aura pris conscience des coûts en aval que doivent assumer les systèmes correctionnels, les services de police et de santé et les services sociaux lorsque les gens n’ont pas les moyens de se loger dans la collectivité.

§ Les divers ordres de gouvernement doivent s’engager à élaborer et à mettre en oeuvre une stratégie nationale de l’habitation. Il en résultera des collectivités dynamiques et viables, une meilleure intégration dans la société, un accroissement de la compétitivité et des conditions permettant à tous les Ontariens de réaliser leurs rêves et leurs espoirs et de s’épanouir pleinement.

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[1] On December 16^th, 2006, the Federal Finance Committee put forth a recommendation that, in part, read: "The Committee believes that appropriate housing is also an important contributor to the productivity of a nation´s residents and to the competitiveness of a country, since residents and employees must be well-rested if they are to be productive in society, and children and students must be appropriately housed if they are to concentrate in school as well as to grow and thrive….Moreover, we feel that housing must be affordable."

[2] Le 16 décembre 2006, le Comité fédéral des finances a déposé la recommandation suivante : « Le Comité pense qu’un logement convenable est également un facteur important qui contribue à la productivité de la population et à la compétitivité du pays, car les citoyens et les employés doivent être bien reposés pour être productifs dans la société, et les enfants et les étudiants doivent être convenablement logés pour pouvoir se concentrer sur leurs études, se développer et s’épanouir. Le Comité pense aussi que le logement doit être abordable. »