Thread by @GraphicMatt

Upcoming motions on the city budget from Mayor Tory have been advance circulated. Motions make tweaks to the budget, including 300 more housing opportunities, funding for free menstrual/incontinence products in shelters, and immediate implementation of plan to nix library fines.

Council, like Batman, has returned.

Before councillors can speak on the budget, Councillor Frances Nunziata reminds us that, because the mayor opted to do the vote on the tax rate first, councillors can’t increase any program budgets without providing an offsetting amount. The size of the budget is locked in.

Mayor John Tory formally introduces his advanced-circulation motions. He also says the federal government has just announced $750 million for transit funding across Canada, and notes that’ll help with the $1.4 billion the city needs.

Tory responds to people (like, um, me) who have criticized this year’s budget as not ambitious. He says his ambition was to keep the city stable during turbulent times of COVID. He says after COVID, he thinks city hall can return to work of growing the city.

Councillor Mike Layton moves a series of motions, including one urging Queen’s Park to sign a deal with the federal government re: child care. Also moves for funding for some lighting at the Christie Pits skate park.

Councillor Layton cites the Donovan Woods song “Next Year” in reference to the budget — a song about always pushing things off to next year. “We can’t just keep putting off difficult decisions because they’re difficult,” Layton says.

Lyrics:

Another day down, another week gone
You're always just talkin' about tomorrow
You can't beg, steal, borrow
Or make time
So you make plans and hope for the best
Life moves on so damn fast
Another twelve months flies on by, you're still here
But it's never quite next year

It does seem apt.

Councillor Josh Matlow moves to increase the library budget by $206K to support the Seniors’ Digital Literacy Program.

Councillor Jennifer McKelvie moves to look at adding more staff to support the implementation of the new 25 photo radar cameras council has approved.

Councillor Brad Bradford moves to direct some Section 42 money toward new pathway lighting in Stan Wadlow Park and other park improvements.

Councillor Gord Perks moves to decrease the police budget by $1 million and use the savings to fund the creation of an office of the Toronto Housing Commissioner.

Councillor Gord Perks also moves to increase the budget for rent supplements by $10 million, with funds taken from the police budget.

Perks also would like to increase the capital budget for Vision Zero projects by $50 million, and increase the TTC’s capital budget by $45 million to buy and fix vehicles.

Budget Chief Gary Crawford is concerned about Perks’ motion re: Vision Zero and the TTC, wondering if Perks talked to the CFO about adding an extra $100 million in debt. Perks says he asked the CFO and was told the City had room beneath the debt limit.

Crawford asks Nunziata to review Perks’ motions to see if they should be ruled out of order. Nunziata says she plans to do that. Perks says if she rules them out of order, he’d like an opportunity to work with staff to change the motions to make ‘em in order.

TTC Chair Jaye Robinson says Perks’ TTC motion is out of order because it uses debt. She says Perks needs a revenue offset. We are deep in the procedural weeds. Nunziata says she’s going to give Perks a chance to talk to the CFO about the motions. They’ll come back to them later.

Councillor Jennifer McKelvie asks Perks what services he would cut in future budgets to fund these motions. Perks points out that future budgets have not in fact been written yet so future budgets could just increase property taxes or build in more revenue types.

Council’s debt limit is in fact a percentage of total property tax revenue — 15%. It’s not a fixed amount. So increases to property taxes also effectively increase the amount of debt the city can issue below the limit. (Issuing too much could impact credit ratings, though.)

Mayor John Tory also questioning Perks’ motions. Mayor asks Perks if he thinks just adding $100 million in debt through a floor motion at council is the right way to do things. Perks says the budget is $13 billion. Relatively speaking, he says, he’s adding a small amount to it.

Budget Chief Gary Crawford again asks Nunizata to rule Perks’ motions re: adding capital debt out of order. He says the motions will in fact take Toronto over its debt limit. Nunziata isn’t ready to rule yet.

(This is a lot of rancour over a couple of motions that will probably lose on a margin of something like 7-19.)

Nunziata has a question for Perks about his police budget reduction motions: “What you’re doing is taking 77 officers off the street … you’re saying that’s okay?” Perks says providing rent supplements to 1,000 people is worth only providing the cops with 99% of their budget ask.

Moving on, Councillor Mark Grimes has a motion to prioritize hiring of by-law enforcement staff.

Councillor Shelley Carroll moves for a briefing for each councillor about the condition of roads in their ward.

Carroll makes an interest point: interest rates are about to go up. “We will look back in a couple of years and say, you know, we let ten or fifteen years go by with the cheapest money Canada will see for a long, long time. And we didn’t really go for it.”

Councillor Anthony Perruzza has a motion to extend the deadline for applying to the tax deferral and cancellation programs for low-income people.

Councillor Stephen Holyday moves to expand the number of Open Data sets related to the budget. Hey, it’s a Holyday motion I can whole-heartedly endorse!

Holyday does say, however, that he opposes the removal of library fines. “It’s about principles,” he says, adding that paying overdue fines is a “reminder of your civic duty.”

Councillor Paula Fletcher moves for a report on revenues related to permit parking, broken down by area.

Councillor John Filion moves for a report on how the city can better recruit and retain planning staff.

Councillors Colle and Nunziata make their case for supporting funding for the police. “We want more police officers,” says Nunziata, saying residents in TCHC buildings are always saying they want more cops.

“Can you imagine if we didn’t have police officers at this [convoy] protest? It’d be like Ottawa!” says Nunziata.

Councillor Kristyn Wong-Tam moves to direct funds to downtown east BIAs and The 519 as part of the COVID recovery effort.

Wong-Tam also has a motion to request the province change legislation to end the practice of paying suspended cops who have been charged with crimes.

More big news: Wong-Tam also wants to look at phasing out police horses.

I am *very* excited we’re going to vote on police horses as part of this budget debate.

Councillor James Pasternak is pushing back against Wong-Tam’s motion to direct more funds to downtown east BIAs, saying that other neighbourhoods could also use more money. Wong-Tam says downtown east, location of a whole lot of city shelters and services, has unique needs.

On Wong-Tam’s police horse motion, Councillor Stephen Holyday asks if Wong-Tam has ever “seen the mounted unit in action.” At the G20, Wong-Tam says.

Holyday asks how the police would disperse crowds without their horses. He wonders if they’d need something like an ATV, which “could be worse.”

Wong-Tam says generally the places police horses seem to be used is walking the curb lane around the city. Points out other cities have disbanded their mounted units.

Mayor Tory asks Wong-Tam if it’s really wise to get rid of the mounted unit, citing a report that showed horses were useful for finding missing persons in wetlands and such, and a Chief Ramer’s statement that horses were helpful in dealing with convoy protests.

A lot of pushback against Wong-Tam’s BIA motion, with councillors wondering why the downtown east BIAs should get extra funding but not BIAs in other wards.

Deputy Mayor Minnan-Wong, coming to us live from a blurry void, says his colleagues have not talked enough about the property tax rate. He’s worried that residents will have “significant concerns” about total adopted residential rate of 4.4%.

Minnan-Wong says city hall needs to transition from “war-time speed” during the pandemic to “peace-time spending.” He says soon it will be time to go back to basics. But, he adds, he’d like to see more police officers.

Councillor Jaye Robinson moves to have Council to endorse the TTC’s request for federal and provincial money that could help the TTC become zero emission by 2040.

Councillor Gord Perks presents a revised motion that funds $50 million in Vision Zero improvements and $45 million for TTC vehicles, adding offsets by deferring some local road rehab work and some money for Smart Track stations.

After a speech from the budget chief thanking a bunch of people and lauding the budget, Nunziata declares a ten minute recess so clerks can get the motions ready for votes. We’re in the endgame now.

Time to vote. Mayor John Tory’s motion to expedite the delivery of 300 additional housing opportunities over the next 6-12 weeks CARRIES 26-0.

Mayor Tory’s motion to provide funding to immediately remove library fines for overdue items CARRIES 24-2.

Tory’s remaining motions, directing funding to The 519, for menstrual and incontinence products in shelters, and more, CARRIES 26-0.

Councillor Layton’s motion to provide funding for lighting at the Christie Pits skateboard park CARRIES 25-1.

Councillor Matlow’s motion to provide funding for the Seniors’ Digital Literacy Program in TCHC locations CARRIES 22-4.

Councillor Brad Bradford’s motion to direct funding for park improvement at Stan Wadlow Park and other parks CARRIES 26-0.

Councillor Gord Perks’ motion to reduce the police budget by $1 million and put that money toward an Office of the Housing Commissioner FAILS 7-19.

Whoops, Colle voted the wrong way on that one. And now Bradford says he wants a re-vote on the Seniors’ Digital Literacy Program funding vote because he voted incorrectly. We’re going to get a couple of do-overs.

On a re-vote, Councillor Perks’ motion to take $1 million from the police budget and put it toward creating an office of the Housing Commissioner FAILS 6-20.

On re-vote, Councillor Matlow’s motion (as amended) to fund the Seniors’ Digital Literacy Program CARRIES 24-2.

Councillor Perks’ motion to reduce the police budget by $10 million and put the money toward rent supplements FAILS 6-20.

Councillor Gord Perks’ motion to direct an extra $95 million toward Vision Zero and TTC vehicles FAILS 6-20.

Councillor Perruzza’s motion to extend the deadline for applying to the city’s tax deferral and cancellation programs CARRIES 25-1.

Wong-Tam’s motion to direct extra funds to downtown east BIAs to help with COVID recovery FAILS 2-24.

Councillor Layton’s motion to urge the province to make a deal with the feds on child care CARRIES 26-0.

Councillor Layton’s motion to review user fees associated with the RentSafeTO program to make sure they can support expanding the program CARRIES 25-1.

Layton’s motion to direct staff to proceed ASAP with implementing the next phase of the TTC fair pass for low-income riders CARRIES 24-2.

Councillor Layton’s motion for a report in Q2 on how the work goes to expedite 300 more housing opportunities for people in shelters CARRIES 25-1.

Councillor McKelvie’s motion to look at adding more staff resources to support more photo radar cameras CARRIES 25-1.

Councillor Grimes’ motion calling for staff to prioritize the hiring of more bylaw officers to fill vacancies CARRIES 26-0.

Councillor Carroll’s motion to give each councillor a briefing on the condition of roads in their wards CARRIES 26-0.

Councillor Holyday’s motion to provide more Open Data datasets during the budget process CARRIES 26-0.

Councillor Fletcher’s motion for a report on barriers to participation in the relief programs for property tax, water bills and garbage bills CARRIES 26-0.

Councillor Fletcher’s motion calling for a report on permit parking revenue, broken down by area, CARRIES 26-0.

Councillor Filion’s motion for a report on a strategy to better recruit and retain planning staff CARRIES 26-0.

Councillor Wong-Tam’s motion to have the Office of Emergency Management work with downtown BIAs CARRIES 22-4.

Councillor Wong-Tam’s motion to report on grants for food security for community orgs serving downtown CARRIES 22-4.

Councillor Wong-Tam’s motion to eliminate late payment penalties for 50 properties that didn’t pay their tax bill FAILS 8-18

Wong-Tam’s motion to ask the province to change legislation so cops charged with criminal charges don’t keep getting paid while suspended CARRIES 22-4.

Wong-Tam’s motion to look at phasing out the Toronto Police’s mounted unit FAILS 5-21. The horses win.

Wong-Tam’s motion to look at 214-230 Sherbourne as an affordable housing site CARRIES 24-2.

Councillor Robinson’s motion to seek federal & provincial funds to help the TTC achieve zero emissions CARRIES 26-0.

That’s all for motions. The City of Toronto’s 2022 operating and capital budgets as they relate to divisions and programs that could interest the Rogers Corporation CARRIES 25-0.

The remainder of Toronto’s 2022 operating and capital budgets — the non-Rogers parts — CARRY 24-2.

And that’s it and that’s all for Toronto Council’s 2022 budget debate. We laughed, we loved, we thought about the utility of police horses. A good time was had by all.

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