Item - 2015.EX9.5

The Executive Committee recommends that:

1.  City Council adopt the vision, objectives, recommendations, and actions contained in the TO Prosperity: Toronto Poverty Reduction Strategy as outlined in Attachment A to the report (October 9, 2015) from the City Manager, the Deputy City Manager Cluster A, the Deputy City Manager Cluster B, and the Deputy City Manager and Chief Financial Officer, including the 2015 - 2018 Term Action Plan.

2.  City Council request the Deputy City Manager, Cluster A, the Deputy City Manager, Cluster B, and the Deputy City Manager and Chief Financial Officer to develop annual work plans for 2017 and 2018 based on the TO Prosperity 2015 - 2018 Term Action Plan.

3.  City Council adopt the TO Prosperity 2016 Annual Work Plan for implementation as outlined in Appendix C to the report (October 9, 2015) from the City Manager, the Deputy City Manager Cluster A, the Deputy City Manager Cluster B, and the Deputy City Manager and Chief Financial Officer, and forward the recommended initiatives with financial impacts to the City Manager for consideration as part of the 2016 Budget process.

4.  City Council direct the Deputy City Manager and Chief Financial Officer, in consultation with the Executive Director, Social Development, Finance and Administration, to include consideration of the funding needs of TO Prosperity: Toronto Poverty Reduction Strategy in the Long Term Fiscal Plan.

5.  City Council approve the establishment of the TO Prosperity Accountability Table responsible for overseeing effective engagement, implementation, and measurement of the Strategy, with membership drawn from community, residents, business, labour and academia, and key funding institutions, comprised of the following work groups:

a.  Lived Experience Advisory Group comprised of Toronto residents with lived experience of poverty to contribute their expertise to the effective development, measurement and monitoring of poverty reduction initiatives;

b.  Senior Staff Steering Committee on Poverty Reduction, chaired by the Deputy City Manager Cluster A, with membership drawn from City divisions, agencies, boards, and commissions that impact poverty in Toronto;

c.  Private Sector Roundtable comprised of Toronto business leaders to contribute strategic opportunities and investments to advance the economic, employment and development goals of the strategy;

d.  Measurement and Monitoring Working Group comprised of measurement and evaluation experts to develop and execute the strategy's monitoring plan.

6.  City Council request the Executive Director, Social Development, Finance and Administration, in consultation with the General Manager, Toronto Employment and Social Services, the Executive Director, Corporate Finance, and the Executive Director, Financial Planning to develop a cost-benefit analysis and framework for poverty-related spending as part of the TO Prosperity implementation.

7.  City Council direct the Deputy City Manager Cluster A in consultation with the Accountability Table, to monitor the implementation of TO Prosperity and provide annual progress reports to the Executive Committee.

8.  City Council forward TO Prosperity: Toronto Poverty Reduction Strategy as outlined in Attachment A to the report (October 9, 2015) from the City Manager, the Deputy City Manager Cluster A, the Deputy City Manager Cluster B, and the Deputy City Manager and Chief Financial Officer, to the City-School Boards Advisory Committee, and the Board of Health, Toronto Library Board, Toronto Transit Commission Board, Toronto Police Board, and Toronto Community Housing Corporation Board for their consideration.

9.  City Council forward TO Prosperity: Toronto Poverty Reduction Strategy as outlined in Attachment A to the report (October 9, 2015) from the City Manager, the Deputy City Manager Cluster A, the Deputy City Manager Cluster B, and the Deputy City Manager and Chief Financial Officer, to the five Local Health Integration Networks (LHIN) for Toronto and the Strategic Advisory Council of the Toronto Central LHIN for their consideration.

10.  City Council forward TO Prosperity: Toronto Poverty Reduction Strategy to the Premier of Ontario; President of the Treasury Board and Minister Responsible for the Poverty Reduction Strategy; the Minister of Children and Youth Services; the Minister of Community and Social Services; the Minister of Economic Development, Employment and Infrastructure; the Minister of Education; the Minister of Finance; the Minister of Health and Long-Term Care; the Minister of Labour; the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing; the Minister of Training, Colleges, and Universities; and the Minister of Transportation for consideration on program and funding alignments. 

11. City Council forward TO Prosperity: Toronto Poverty Reduction Strategy to the Prime Minister of Canada; the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Canada; the Minister of Employment and Social Development Canada; the Minister of Finance; the Minister of Industry; the Minister of State (Social Development); and the Minister of Health for consideration on program and funding alignments.

Although Toronto is a prosperous and successful city, a growing number of its residents are living in poverty. According to Statistics Canada, close to 1 in 5 adults and more than 1 in 4 children live on an after-tax income below the Low Income Measure. This is considerably higher than the national average. At its meeting on April 1, 2014, City Council requested that the City Manager develop a City of Toronto Poverty Reduction Strategy. After a broad community engagement process, City staff brought an interim strategy to Council on July 7, 2015. City Council approved TO Prosperity: Interim Poverty Reduction Strategy in principle and directed staff to finalize the strategy.

Based on further input from residents, partners, City staff and Councillors, this report presents TO Prosperity: Toronto Poverty Reduction Strategy. Through 17 recommendations and 71 actions, TO Prosperity lays out a 20-year plan to advance equity, opportunity and prosperity for all Toronto residents. Through this strategy, the City of Toronto has the opportunity to be a leader in addressing the issues of poverty, creating meaningful solutions, and driving systemic change.

This report proposes an Implementation and Accountability Structure to oversee and coordinate the strategy's implementation, beginning with the first of five action plans, the TO Prosperity 2015 -2018 Term Action Plan. The report discusses how the Collective Impact model, an evidence-based approach increasingly used to address complex issues, shaped the development of the strategy and implementation plan. Next, it describes the five bodies that will comprise the Implementation and Accountability Structure: a multi-sector Accountability Table, a Lived Experience Advisory Group, a Senior Management Steering Committee, a Private Sector Roundtable, and a Monitoring and Evaluation Working Group. Finally, the report describes a City staff unit that will provide program management of the day-to-day activities related to the planning, implementation, evaluation, and reporting of poverty reduction actions and initiatives. This unit will lead implementation work in three critical areas: Community Engagement, Intergovernmental Partnerships, and Strategic Alignments.