|
|
REPORT RAPPORT |
|
|
REPORT RAPPORT |
|
DATE:
|
22 February 2011 |
|
TO/DEST:
|
Executive Director, Ottawa Police Services Board |
|
FROM/EXP:
|
Chief of Police, Ottawa Police Service |
|
SUBJECT/OBJET: |
2009 ONTARIO MUNICIPAL BENCHMARKING INITIATIVE (OMBI) POLICE SERVICES
|
The Ontario Municipal Benchmarking Initiative (OMBI) is a collaborative performance reporting effort among 15 municipalities across the Province. The annual performance benchmarking report presents nearly 100 comparative measures covering 27 public services for the period 2007 - 2009, and describes some factors influencing the delivery of these services. An Ottawa Police representative participates on the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police (OACP) Expert Panel, which reviews submitted data for consistency and relevancy to the OMBI process.
The official release of the 2009 OMBI Performance Benchmark Report was substantially delayed from past years and only occurred on 28 January 2011. The Report was presented to the City Finance and Economic Development Committee on 01 February and is to be received by Council on 08 March. The police-related performance measures are presented herein.
DISCUSSION
As a result of public feedback, the annual OMBI report now contains a range of measures (community impact, service level, efficiency and customer satisfaction) for each service area. For police performance, the five historical measures, as well as two new measures for 2009, identified for public release are:
§ Number of Police Staff (Officers and Civilians) per 100,000 population is used to gauge police service levels based on authorized staffing. At 209 police staff/100,000 residents, Ottawa Police is marginally below the median rate of 214, placing Ottawa in the middle of the comparator group (range is 177 to 288);
§ Total Crime Rate – is the reported number of Criminal Code of Canada incidents (non-traffic) per 100,000 population. Ottawa’s 2009 crime rate was 4,359 compared to the Ontario median of 4,660. (Note: OMBI-reported crime rate will likely differ from that published by Statistics Canada due to different population figures used – municipal estimates versus census figures);
§ Crime Severity Index (new 2009) – is now incorporated within the OMBI measurement system. The CSI is a relatively new measurement system that recognizes the impact/severity of differing types of crime, in conjunction with counts of criminal occurrences and crime rates. Ottawa’s CSI for 2009 is 68, eight index points below the provincial median.
§ Violent Crime Rate – is generally the crime category of the most interest to residents and visitors and can provide an indication of community safety (although the perception and/or feeling of safety may differ from the statistical counts/rate). Reporting 648 violent criminal code incidents/100,000 population (up from 541 in 2008), Ottawa is still substantially below the 2009 provincial median rate of 937;
§ Violent Crime Severity Index (new) – the Violent Severity Index includes all violent offences (homicide, attempted murder, assault, sexual assault, robbery, criminal harassment, uttering threats, forcible confinement/kidnapping), with Robbery having the largest influence on the Index. Ottawa’s VCSI is 80, and represents the provincial median.
§ Clearance Rate for Violent Crime – criminal incidents are considered cleared when a charge is laid or recommended, or when cleared by other means. A variety of factors impact the police’s ability to solve crimes against the person, including the public’s assistance in providing information. Clearance rates are reported in the year an incident is cleared, regardless of when a crime might have occurred. With a 66 percent clearance rate for violent crimes in 2009, Ottawa Police falls below the provincial median of 76 percent.
§ Number of Criminal Code offences per Officer – provides an indication of workload, but does not fully capture the breadth of police activities such as traffic and drug enforcement, crime prevention activities, or assistance to victims. On average, Ottawa officers handled 29 CCC incidents each in 2008, in-line with the Provincial median of 31. This measure is also reported quarterly to the Police Services Board.
The OMBI Police Expert Panel notes a number of influencing factors including, but not limited to, the number of non-residents (including visitors, college/university students), the presence of specialized facilities such as airports or casinos, locally-determined call response protocols, along with changes in local demographic, social and economic conditions. In Ottawa’s case, its role as the nation`s capital, its size and urban, suburban, and rural geography, along with the proximity to the City of Gatineau across the Ottawa River, makes it somewhat unique in Canada.
The OMBI data sharing protocol requires that any reference to, or publication of, non-publicly reported results be restricted to an individual municipality’s respective data only with comparisons to the provincial average/medians. The following table summarizes how Ottawa Police compares to the median of the 13 largest OMBI-reporting municipal police services in the Province. Because placement below or above the median can be positive or negative, the various measures have been grouped as either ‘favourable’ or ‘not favourable’, depending on the generally perceived desirability of placement on the respective measure.
Ottawa Police Compared to 2009 Provincial Median:
Publicly and Non-Publicly Reported Performance Measures
While there is room for improvement in some categories, the Ottawa Police generally compares favourably overall to the 13 other OMBI-reporting police services in Ontario.
The Board will continue to receive quarterly performance information updates as part of the performance measurement framework contained in the 2010-2012 Plan for a Safer Community.
Similar to the Ontario Municipal Benchmarking Initiative reports previously presented to the Board since 2005, the 2009 report offers the Board and the public, selected indicators and data with which to gauge Ottawa Police performance against a provincial median. The Cities of Calgary and Winnipeg will contribute data within the OMBI framework for the next annual report
Ottawa Police staff recently provided Big 12 PSB Executive Directors a presentation on police performance measurement. In addition, Ottawa Police representatives will continue to serve on the OACP/OMBI Police Expert Panel, the national Police Information and Statistics (POLIS) Committee, and other venues that contribute to the ongoing discussion, improvement, and transparency of police performance measures.
(Original signed by
Vern White
Chief of Police
This document contains information that reports on activities related to the Ottawa Police Business Plan.
