Approve the 2021 Halton Court Services (HCS) budget as presented; and
Approve a cost-recovery collections fee of $30.00 to be added to all defaulted fines effective January 1, 2021, and the collections fee to be reviewed every three years thereafter; and
Contribute $50,000 from net revenues to the capital reserve fund during 2021 to ensure that requirements of the capital reserve fund policy are met; and
Approve $40,000 for additional A/V equipment to deliver virtual court and remote interpretation solutions as per provincial requirements due to the pandemic funded through the capital reserve fund; and
Amend the memorandum of understanding and local side agreement to reflect the transfer of part three Provincial Offences Act (POA) prosecutions from the Ministry of Attorney General (MAG) to the municipal partnership; and
Approve the hiring of one Prosecutor to manage the download of responsibility from the province for the prosecution of part three offences; and
Approve the conversion of one part-time Case Administrator to one full-time position to manage the download of responsibility from the province for the case administration of part three offences; and
That recommendations 5, 6, and 7 above be subject to the terms of the transfer of responsibility for part three prosecutions being determined/clarified by the Province and its municipal partners, and HCS staff reporting back to the joint management board (JMB) on the following:
- amending the memorandum of understanding and local side agreement to reflect the transfer of part three POA prosecutions from MAG to the municipal partnership, and
- the staffing implications required to manage the download of responsibility from the province for the prosecution of part three offences, and
- the financial implications of the transfer of the prosecution of part three offences including mitigation opportunities; and
Direct HCS staff to report back to the JMB following the first quarter of 2021 on the status of the budget.