Compliance Audit Committee
The full agenda, as filed
All 5 items in the clerk’s order. Each carries the city’s own words: the staff recommendation, what the body decided, and its status. Nothing below is written by us.
EA4.1amended
Application for a Compliance Audit received June 29, 2023, from applicant Marjolein Winterink for candidate Alejandra Bravo for City Councillor Ward 9 Davenport.
The Compliance Audit Committee rejected the application for a compliance audit of the Election Campaign Finances of Alejandra Bravo. 1. The Compliance Audit Committee met on July 24, 2023 to hear Item EA4.1, the Compliance Audit Application of Marjolein Winterink for a compliance audit of the Election Campaign Finances of the Respondent, Alejandra Bravo. 2. The Applicant appeared before the Committee and provided submissions related to the Application. 3. The Applicant provided information to the Committee to support the Applicant's belief that the Respondent contravened provisions of the Municipal Elections Act, 1996 relating to election campaign finances. 4. The Applicant raised concerns relating to the Respondent's compliance with the Act. In particular these related to: a. That Schedule 2, Part IV reported an expense of $11,640.64 for "Salaries Fundraiser Services (Independent Contractor)" which is included as an expense that is not subject to spending limits, however, more details are required to ensure this expense is an appropriate fundraising expense not subject to the general spending limit; and b. Specifically, the Applicant submitted that the contracted fundraiser did not undertake activities exclusively related to fundraising activities. 5. The Committee then provided the Respondent with the opportunity to respond. The Respondent and her accountant spoke to the issues raised in the Application. 6. The Respondent submitted that the application be denied because no specific contravention of the Act was cited; there was no evidence of any contravention and that comparables with incumbent candidates were not appropriate. 7. The Committee has discretion to determine whether to grant or reject an application. After consideration of the evidence provided, the Committee concluded that the concerns raised by the Applicant were addressed by the Respondent's submissions and that an audit of the campaign's finances would not further the public interest and is therefore not required. 8. The Applicant failed to raise reasonable grounds to believe that there had been an apparent contravention of the Act. 9. For the reasons stated above and in accordance with s. 88.33(7) of the Act the Committee rejected the Compliance Audit Application of Marjolein Winterink for a compliance audit of the Election Campaign Finances of the Respondent, Alejandra Bravo.
EA4.2amended
Application for a Compliance Audit received June 29, 2023, from applicant Marjolein Winterink for candidate Ausma Malik for City Councillor Ward 10 Spadina-Fort York.
The Compliance Audit Committee rejected the application for a compliance audit of the Election Campaign Finances of Ausma Malik. 1. The Compliance Audit Committee met on July 24, 2023 to hear Item EA4.2, the Compliance Audit Application of Marjolein Winterink for a compliance audit of the Election Campaign Finances of the Respondent, Ausma Malik. 2. The Applicant appeared before the Committee and provided submissions related to the Application. 3. The Applicant provided information to the Committee to support the Applicant's belief that the Respondent contravened provisions of the Municipal Elections Act, 1996 relating to election campaign finances. 4. The Applicant raised concerns relating to the Respondent's compliance with the Act. In particular these related to: a. That Schedule 2, Part IV reported an expense of $7,950.00 for "Salaries Fundraiser Services (Independent Contractor)" which is included as an expense that is not subject to spending limits, however, more details are required to ensure this expense is an appropriate fundraising expense not subject to the general spending limit; and b. Specifically, the Applicant submitted that there was a lack of transparency because the disclosure failed to provide sufficient details. 5. The Committee then provided the Respondent with the opportunity to respond. The Respondent and her accountant spoke to the issues raised in the Application. 6. The Respondent submitted that the application should be denied because there was no evidence of any contravention of the Act. 7. The Committee has discretion to determine whether to grant or reject an application. After consideration of the evidence provided, the Committee concluded that the concerns raised by the Applicant were addressed by the Respondent's submissions and that an audit of the campaign's finances would not further the public interest and is therefore not required. 8. The Applicant failed to raise reasonable grounds to believe that there had been an apparent contravention of the Act. 9. For the reasons stated above and in accordance with s. 88.33(7) of the Act the Committee rejected the Compliance Audit Application of Marjolein Winterink for a compliance audit of the Election Campaign Finances of the Respondent, Ausma Malik.
EA4.3amended
Compliance Audit Application by Peter George for the Election Campaign Finances of Ausma Malik
Application for a Compliance Audit received June 29, 2023, from applicant Peter George for candidate Ausma Malik for City Councillor Ward 10 Spadina-Fort York.
The Compliance Audit Committee rejected the application for a compliance audit of the Election Campaign Finances of Ausma Malik. 1. The Compliance Audit Committee met on July 24, 2023 to hear Item EA4.3, the Compliance Audit Application of Peter George for a compliance audit of the Election Campaign Finances of the Respondent, Ausma Malik. 2. The Applicant appeared before the Committee and provided submissions related to the Application. 3. The Applicant provided information to the Committee to support the Applicant's belief that the Respondent contravened provisions of the Municipal Elections Act, 1996 relating to election campaign finances. 4. The Applicant raised concerns relating to the Respondent's compliance with the Act. In particular these related to: a. That Schedule 2, Part IV reported an expense of $7,950.00 for "Salaries Fundraiser Services (Independent Contractor)" which is included as an expense that is not subject to spending limits, however, more details are required to ensure this expense is an appropriate fundraising expense not subject to the general spending limit; and b. Specifically, the Applicant asserted that precise details related to the fundraising activities were not expressly itemized or identified and thus the Respondent failed to provide sufficient transparency to demonstrate the specific allocation of expenses. 5. The Committee then provided the Respondent with the opportunity to respond. The Respondent and her accountant spoke to the issues raised in the Application. 6. The Respondent submitted that the Application should be denied because there was no evidence of any contravention. 7. The Committee has discretion to determine whether to grant or reject an application. After consideration of the evidence provided, the Committee concluded that the concerns raised by the Applicant were addressed by the Respondent's submissions and that an audit of the campaign's finances would not further the public interest and is therefore not required. 8. The Applicant failed to raise reasonable grounds to believe that there had been an apparent contravention of the Act. 9. For the reasons stated above and in accordance with s. 88.33(7) of the Act the Committee rejected the Compliance Audit Application of Peter George for a compliance audit of the Election Campaign Finances of the Respondent, Ausma Malik.
EA4.4amended
Compliance Audit Application by Francis Kung for the Election Campaign Finances of Frances Nunziata
Application for a Compliance Audit received June 29, 2023, from applicant Francis Kung for candidate Frances Nunziata for City Councillor Ward 5 York South-Weston.
The Compliance Audit Committee rejected the application for a compliance audit of the Election Campaign Finances of Frances Nunziata. 1. The Compliance Audit Committee met on July 24, 2023 to hear Item EA4.4, the Compliance Audit Application of Francis Kung for a compliance audit of the Election Campaign Finances of the Respondent, Frances Nunziata. 2. The Applicant appeared before the Committee and provided submissions related to the Application. 3. The Applicant provided information to the Committee to support the Applicant's belief that the Respondent contravened provisions of the Municipal Elections Act, 1996 relating to election campaign finances. 4. The Applicant raised concerns relating to the Respondent's compliance with the Act. In particular these related to: a. That the following expenses were missing from the Respondent's financial filing: i. shared event costs related to a "Somali Community Meet Up" event at the Istar Restaurant and Banquet Hall (235 Dixon Road) on October 15, 2022; ii. missing lawn signs on opening inventory; and iii. other potential omitted expenses; b. That disclosure of fundraising tickets of a major fundraising event on June 22, 2022 requires more details to verify that the event was a fundraiser and not a campaign event; and c. That costs shared with the Trustee Candidate require increased scrutiny to ensure any and all shared expenses were tracked and accounted for properly by the Respondent. 5. The Committee then provided the Respondent with the opportunity to respond. The Respondent's agent spoke to the issues raised in the Application. 6. The Respondent's agent submitted that the application should be denied for the reasons stated in his letter, dated July 20, 2023 and filed with the Committee. The Respondent's agent made brief submissions thereon. 7. The Committee has discretion to determine whether to grant or reject an application. After consideration of the evidence provided, the Committee concluded that the concerns raised by the Applicant were addressed by the Respondent's submissions and that an audit of the campaign's finances is not required. 8. The Applicant did not establish that there were reasonable grounds to believe that the Candidate contravened the Act. Moreover, there was no public interest in ordering an audit. 9. For the reasons stated above and in accordance with s. 88.33(7) of the Act the Committee rejected the Compliance Audit Application of Francis Kung for a compliance audit of the Election Campaign Finances of the Respondent, Frances Nunziata.
EA4.5received
Upcoming Meeting Schedule and Processes
The Committee will discuss the upcoming meeting schedule and meeting processes including the appointment of the Auditor and the process around over-contributions.
The Compliance Audit Committee received the item for information.