Item - 2016.LS11.3

The Licensing and Standards Committee recommends that:

1.  City Council delegate to the Executive Director, Municipal Licensing and Standards the authority to waive witness fees for Landlord and Tenant Board proceedings when Municipal Standards Officers are summoned to attend by a tenant.

2.  City Council request the Executive Director, Municipal Licensing and Standards to:

a.  Develop policies, procedures and service standards for initiating remedial action and prosecutions for non-compliant landlords; and

b.  Develop a system that identifies, classifies, and weights property standard violations to facilitate the future development of a building quality rating system for multi-residential buildings.

3. City Council direct the Executive Director, Municipal Licensing and Standards, to apply the normal enforcement process for violations of a municipal by-law, including the timely escalation of enforcement to include Notice of Violation or Orders to Comply if compliance is not achieved, for alleged contraventions of Chapter 629-19 (stairway railing safety) discovered as part of Multi-Residential Apartment Building (MRAB) audits.

This report provides the annual update on the Multi-Residential Apartment Buildings (MRAB) Audit and Enforcement Program. The goal of the program is to ensure that minimum property and maintenance standards within multi-residential rental properties are maintained in accordance with the City's property standards by-laws and other applicable regulations. The goal contributes to ML&S's overarching vision that every person deserves a safe, secure and decent place to live. Since 2008, the program has audited 1,046 rental apartment buildings in Toronto.

This report describes operational enhancements undertaken in 2015 to improve efficiency and increase the impact of the MRAB program on the quality of rental housing in Toronto. The enhancements focussed on resolution and escalated enforcement, increased landlord engagement, new collaborations with stakeholders and a city-wide tenant education campaign. In response to requests from tenant organizations, this report proposes that City Council delegate to the Executive Director, Municipal Licensing and Standards the authority to waive witness fees for Landlord and Tenant Board proceedings when Municipal Standards Officers are summoned to attend by a tenant.

This report also provides 2015 year-end data related to program activities. In 2015, MRAB staff conducted 193 pre-audit assessments and 84 audits of multi-residential apartment buildings. Staff also conducted 1,917 re-inspections, closing 575 orders and rectifying 6,607 deficiencies. In response to wilfully non-compliant building owners, staff conducted six remedial actions that resulted in $111, 331.94 being added to the owners' property taxes. As a result of these activities, the rate of compliance with orders in private and TCH-owned buildings has increased from 82% to 89% since the last annual report.

The Tenant Issues Committee, on May 17, 2016, considered Item TD3.2 regarding the Multi-Residential Apartment Buildings (MRAB) Audit and Enforcement Program - 2015 Annual Report.