Provincial auditor open to WUC probe
By The Windsor Star August 9, 2007
Coun. Alan Halberstadt said Thursday he will request that Ontario’s auditor general investigate the controversial 60 per cent water and sewer rate hike and past financial conduct of the Windsor Utilities Commission.
“There is going to be discussion at council Monday and I have not seen any (administration) report, so I did my own digging,” said Halberstadt, who contacted the province’s auditor general Jim McCarteron Thursday.
“He indicated he would probably be open to it. He said he was a bit behind, but that he could probably be able to do it in six to eight weeks.”
Halberstadt said he learned that to get a local auditor general investigation, a provincial government cabinet minister has to ask for it.
“I’m prepared to make a motion on Monday to request council to ask Minister (Dwight) Duncan or (Minister Sandra) Pupatello to request an audit by the Auditor General’s office,” Halberstadt said.
The financial mess surrounding the Windsor Utilities Commission and planned water rate hike has some city officials and residents calling for creation of Windsor’s own independent auditor general.
Changes to the Municipal Act at the start of this year has allowed Ontario cities to create an auditor general position. Toronto and Ottawa are among the few that have.
“An independent review of municipal affairs will go a long way to giving the public confidence,” said Coun. Bill Marra, who earlier this year requested a report from administration on the issue.
“The federal and provincial governments are subject to it, so it makes no sense that it doesn’t exist at the municipal level in Windsor.”
City auditor Mike Dunbar, who reports to council and senior administrators, is among those who agree the city needs an auditor general, citing the previous MFP scandal and the current concerns around WUC’s finances.
“We always believe there should be an independent set of eyes,” said Dunbar.
“If there was an auditor general here, they would be empowered to conduct an inquiry, something we can’t do. It has certain powers that are advantageous.”
Use of an auditor general role is prominent in municipalities across Quebec, but has been slow to catch on in Ontario, Dunbar said. But he sees that changing thanks to the Municipal Act being reworked.
In Toronto, the city’s auditor general is empowered to conduct audits in the areas of compliance, finances, value-for-money and the environment, and can undertake investigations around suspected fraudulent activities.
Windsor blogger Paul Synnott has included a petition calling for creation of a local auditor general position on his website.
He could not be reached Thursday, but his blog petition states: “We, the undersigned, call on Windsor city council to create the independent office of Windsor auditor general and fund said office as appropriate.”
Coun. Dave Brister said he is awaiting an administration report on the issue before making a decision.
“Since the WUC issue there has been some questions raised on this,” he said. “We have got to ensure we do all we can to keep the public’s trust, but also that we are not re-creating the wheel.
“I want to wait for the report on how best to address that. You want to make sure on something like this before we are spending public dollars.”
© (c) CanWest MediaWorks Publications Inc.
http://www.canada.com/windsorstar/story.html?id=e3d7fa59-ce9a-4865-a982-a7e3e6888dbc&k=39197
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