Business Plan: Municipal Elections

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Clinton Perkins
8 years ago
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1 Business Plan: Municipal Elections How does this service contribute to the results identified in the City of London Strategic Plan? A Vibrant and Diverse Community By conducting the municipal election in accordance with the Municipal Elections Act, 1996 and thereby ensuring electors can participate in a process that is transparent, accountable and efficient, the City Clerk s Office supports and contributes to each of Council s strategic objectives. Name the main activities done to provide this service: Name The Activities Done To Provide This Service How Much Did We Do? (optional) 1. Municipal Election - Preparation 289,000 eligible voters (2014)* Estimated at time of preparation Is The City Mandated To Provide This Service? Yes Can The Level Of Service Be Changed? No What is the current state of this service? Current Objectives / Milestones Following the 2010 Municipal Election, Civic Administration re-evaluated the tabulation method and determined that a move to in poll tabulation would increase efficiencies in the tallying and presentation of results. The 2014 Municipal Election will, for the first time, be deploying 145 in poll tabulation machines across the City Voting Day and the Advance Vote. When an elector marked their ballot, they immediately fed their own ballot through the tabulation equipment and into the ballot box and received confirmation that their ballot had been counted. When the polls closed the results were able to be promptly uploaded and provided to the public. Accessible Voting Machines will also be deployed across the City at every Advance Vote in twelve locations over six days making this election more accessible to the public. 1

transparent, accountable and efficient, the City Clerk s Office supports and contributes to each of Council s strategic objectives.

2 New election management software has been implemented and will allow us to improve the integrity of the Voters List generated by the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (MPAC) and better position the City of London for moving towards alternative voting methods in future elections. What Is Driving This Service? The City of London (and all Ontario municipalities) is required to conduct an election every four years under the Municipal Elections Act, 1996 and the Municipal Act, Challenges and Pressure Points The option to provide alternative voting methods (i.e. Internet voting) remains a challenge given the relatively unproven integrity of that alternative. Voter engagement is also an ongoing challenge that is not unique to London. Recent Achievements The successful implementation of in poll tabulation, expanded accessibility, and the new election management software will be the most significant achievement following the election October 27, What has been done to manage the budget? The service area has been actively managing its budget by implementing management lead initiatives aimed at creating efficiencies, avoiding costs and generating revenue. These include the following: Efficiencies / Costs Avoided Previous 3 Years The City of London has taken a significant step in updating its election management software by obtaining the services of Datafix Municipal Voter View Services. This internet-based application provides municipal election officials with an electronic view of their electoral information, the ability to make corrections to the Voters List, the ability to access various voter counts needed for electoral planning, and the capability to provide an electronic copy of all changes to the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (MPAC) after the Election. This software upgrade is also a key step toward the implementation of an electronic or internet-based ballot system, once the integrity of those systems are ensured. 2

The City of London (and all Ontario municipalities) is required to conduct an election every four years under the Municipal Elections Act, 1996 and the Municipal Act, 2001.

3 The new software will also allow Londoners to check the Voters List to ensure they are registered to vote, as well as to determine their voting location. Based on a query from a voter, a Yes or No confirmation will be provided. If the answer is No, instructions and the proper form with instructions will be immediately provided to the voter to have their name added to the Voters List. This will allow residents access to important voting information any time/anywhere. The software will also allow City Clerk s staff to effectively manage the over 1,000 election workers hired for the Election through streamlining the application, hiring, training, placement, and payment processes for election workers. In addition, the new system allows for a new type of Voter Notification Card where there is one mail package per household that contains up to nine Voter Notification Cards to the electors. This will provide for cost savings in postage fees. Revenue Generation / User Fee Increases Previous 3 Years The nature of the service and provincial legislation do not permit revenue generation or user fee increase. The nomination fees we receive from candidates are governed by the Municipal Election Act, 1996 and are returned should a candidate receive 2% of their eligible vote, are acclaimed, or are elected to office. The fees charged for providing supplies and resources to candidates that are in addition to legislative requirements, but are needed to campaign, are all included in the fees and charges by-law. What is the future direction of this service? What future initiatives can be contained within the maintain existing service level budget? 2015 Budget In 2015, the focus of the election business unit is receiving candidate financial statements, coordinating Compliance Audit requests, and organizing and purging the records and files from the previous election. This can be maintained within the existing service level budget, unless there are an unprecedented number of Compliance Audits that are undertaken. 3

If the answer is No, instructions and the proper form with instructions will be immediately provided to the voter to have their name added to the Voters List.

4 Forecast In 2016, a Request for Proposal will be developed and executed for tabulators and accessible voting machines, in addition to an Internet voting provider. The Request for Proposal will include a provision for a proof of concept for Internet voting to allow administration to test and implement an Internet voting scenario before a scheduled election. In 2017, the proof of concept is to be tested and a decision made on whether it is feasible to proceed with Internet voting. The criteria for the decision will be experiences in other Ontario municipalities this election, system security, auditability, and usability, as well as cost to determine if the benefits will outweigh the risks of deploying Internet voting. These initiatives can be contained within the existing service level budgets as presented in forecasts. What service adjustments do you plan to make? Forecast Depending upon the outcome of the Request for Proposal for Internet voting and the proof of concept there may be a service adjustment to include Internet voting in the 2018 budget. This could potentially result in a cost of $500, for the service. Additionally, if there is an increased number of Compliance Audits, the budget may be adjusted to better reflect current experience. In 2017, a ward boundary review will be implemented to ensure ward boundaries reflect appropriate population distribution among the wards, both now and in future based on projections; established neighbourhoods and communities within the municipality; geographical features defining natural boundaries within the municipality; and, infrastructure boundaries such as roads, bridges, rail lines and transit routes. Upon conclusion of the City Clerk s review, he/she shall recommend if and how the wards should be re-divided for the upcoming election, based upon his/her findings and in keeping with the public interest. 4

In 2017, the proof of concept is to be tested and a decision made on whether it is feasible to proceed with Internet voting.

5 Key Performance Indicators How Much? 1. # of Hours Beyond Poll Closure until Final Tabulation Results n/a 3 n/a n/a n/a 3 Tabulation in 2010 was conducted at a central count location and was performed in 6.5 hours. It is anticipated that the move in poll tabulation will decrease this in How Well? 2. % of Calls Answered during the Election Month n/a 95% n/a n/a n/a 95% before the Threshold In 2006, this was 73.54%. This was improved in 2010 by adding an additional staff member and queue line to provide more efficient customer service. The result was 94.02% of calls were answered before the threshold. The same staff complement and queue lines are implemented for Is Anyone Better Off? 3. % of Voter Turnout* n/a 42% n/a n/a n/a 42% Voter turnout in 2010 was 39.1 % Voter turnout in the City of London is following Provincial trends *Based on data from across the Province, internet voting has little to no impact on voter turnout. 5

It is anticipated that the move in poll tabulation will decrease this in 2014. How Well? 2. % of Calls Answered during the Election Month n/a 95% n/a n/a n/a 95% before the Threshold In 2006, this was 73.

Plan and Bylaw Adoption Tools Original: May, 2005 Updated: September, 2010 Please use this update to replace earlier versions.

Plan and Bylaw Adoption Tools Original: May, 2005 Updated: September, 2010 Please use this update to replace earlier versions. 24 V.S.A Chapter 117 4384,4385 and 4441-4447 Table of Contents A. MUNICIPAL