As the largest voluntary municipal association in Ontario, it is our position that local governments are the most transparent order of government with openness at the core of their operations as the level of government closest to the people. We believe that through modernized legislation, municipalities continuously improve on transparency and accountability. With this in mind, we are proud to announce the release of an all-new submission to the Province in support of our members and municipal staff.
Looking Ahead: A Proactive Submission to Modernize the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (MFIPPA)
This submission represents a significant milestone as it advances our Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, 1990 (MFIPPA) advocacy under the Legislation and Regulation category of our Issue Profile. This advocacy principle is about modernizing the legislative and regulatory environment to support and enable the work of municipal public servants, making it easier to understand, enforce and be innovative while ensuring policies and practices reflect current needs and situations and focus on outcomes.
Our submission highlights and provides examples of some of the biggest issues faced by administrators when it comes to administering the Act. The submission also recommends solutions to help ensure the next iteration of MFIPPA addresses new and emerging trends, provides much needed clarity, and promotes accountability and transparency.
Municipal administrators need legislation that:
- Supports effective local program delivery;
- Is responsive to current technology; and
- Reflects its original intent of open and accountable governance.
To initiate a more robust dialogue on MFIPPA modernization, we have sent the following letter and our submission to Minister of Public and Business Service Delivery, Todd McCarthy, with the goal of this ultimately leading to much-needed legislative and regulatory updates.
Read our Letter to the Minister
We’ve also prepared a short Issue at Glance briefing note that summarizes some of the key issues with MFIPPA and AMCTO members’ ideal solutions. This document can be used to as part of a council report, or to assist with talking about MFIPPA to local provincial representatives.
Download the Issue at a Glance
This work would not have been possible without the support of our MFIPPA Working Group. The Working Group, comprised of AMCTO members from across the province, reviewed, analyzed, and evaluated a suite of possible reforms to MFIPPA to support the creation of this proactive submission. We want to sincerely thank the AMCTO MFIPPA Working Group for their commitment to this project.
What’s Next
We will be continuing to engage the Ministry of Public and Business Service Delivery to press for MFIPPA reform. This includes continuing to look for opportunities to collaborate, co-design and share promising practices and lessons learned from you, our members, to inform legislation, policies, programs and services.
Our team also looks forward to continuing the conversation on MFIPPA with Minister McCarthy and other representatives at the Rural Ontario Municipal Association (ROMA) conference later this month.
For more information on this submission, please contact us.