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Home My WebLink AboutCD-1-97 THE CORPORATION OF THE MUNICIPALITY OF CLARINGTON DN:VITALS REPORT Meeting: General Purpose and Administration Committee File# . _� �__� Date: Monday, January 6, 1997 Res. # T-T By-Law# — Report#:__.. CID-1 97-- File #: Subject: VITAL STATISTICS Recommendations: It is respectfully recommended that the General Purpose and Administration Committee recommend to Council the following: 1 . THAT Report CD-1-97 be received; 2. THAT the by-law attached to Report CD-1-97 be presented for Council's approval to authorize the implementation of the following fees effective February 1 , 1997: (a) $25.00 fee for a Live Birth Registration; (b) $25.00 fee for the issuance of a Burial Permit; and (c) $25.00 for the issuance of a Confirmation of Birth; and 3. THAT Bowmanville Memorial Hospital, Morris Funeral Chapel Ltd., Northcutt Elliott Funeral Home and Newcastle Funeral Home be advised of Council's decision. 1 . BACKGROUND 1 .1 The Clerk of every municipality is, by virtue of office, Division Registrar for the Registrar General's Office in Thunder Bay. P4PELRR RECYCLE 701 1 RIG B PRIMEDQ4 RECYCLED PAPER Report CD-1-97 - 2 - January 6, 1997 1 .2 Section 39 of the Vital Statistics Act reads as follows: "The Division Registrar shall: (a) Receive and sign statements and registrations and issue Burial Permits; (b) Supply, free of charge, any prescribed form required by any person in order to comply with the Act; (c) Keep all registrations, records, notices and documents.received by him or her in a place of safety; (d) Use all available means to obtain the necessary information for the purpose of completing the registrations required to be made by him or her; (e) Inform the proper person of the duty to furnish him or her with particulars for the registration of a birth, death or still-birth if the Division Registrar has reason to believe that any has taken place within his or her division and has not been registered, and on the failure of the person to make the registration within seven days, supply the Registrar General such information as the Division Registrar possesses regarding the failure of any person to furnish the required particulars; (f) Examine every statement of birth, death or still-birth in order to ascertain whether or not it has been completed in the prescribed form; (g) Ensure that every registration of birth, death or still-birth has been written legibly in durable ink; 702 Report CD-1-97 - 3 - January 6, 1997 (h) Refuse to accept any statement that does not contain all the items of information required therein unless he or she has received a satisfactory explanation for the omission; (i) Call attention to any errors in a statement of personal particulars or Medical Certificate of Death that is incomplete or unsatisfactory, and withhold the issuance of the Acknowledgement of Registration of Death and the Burial Permit until the errors have been corrected and initialled; Q) Sign every registration as Division Registrar in attestation of the date of registration in his or her office; (k) Number consecutively the registration of births, deaths and still-births in separate series, beginning a new series of registered births, deaths and still-deaths each calendar year; (1) Transmit to the Registrar General as required by the regulations the registration of every birth, death and still-birth made by him or her; (m) Report the fact to the Registrar General, in the prescribed form, if no birth, death or still-birth has been registered; (n) Keep such record as may be prescribed by the regulations; (o) Transmit to the proper Division Registrar within forty-eight hours every statement of Birth received by the Division Registrar that did not occur within his or her registration division; and 703 Report CD-1-97 - 4 - January 6, 1997 (p) Transmit to the proper Division Registrar within forty-eight hours notice of every registration of death or still-birth made by him or her that did not occur within his or her registration division." 1.3 In the past three years, the Province has introduced optical scanners to record the information on the Statements of Birth and Statement of Death. With the introduction of these scanners, processing changes have been implemented to accommodate their new system which has an effect of almost doubling our Staff's processing time of these forms. This is because the way in which the forms were completed prior to this change is no longer acceptable for optical scanners. No longer is it enough that the information is complete, it also has to be erp fectlX recorded. Corrections to the form now have to be done in a specific manner and initialled by both parents; things like white-out, brackets and pale ink now cause the statements to be rejected by the Registrar General and returned to the municipality. This means a delay in registering these events and one or two letters going back and forth to the parents before the form is acceptable. We are now even responsible for the Medical Certificates of Death being complete and correct. 1 .4 In summary, we are being held responsible for the completion and accuracy of information over which we sometimes have no control, which now takes twice as long to process, and for which the municipality no longer receives financial compensation from the Province. i i 704 Report CD-1-97 - 5 - January 6, 1997 1 .5 The table below reflects the events which we have processed in the last three years: YEAR BIRTHS DEATHS MARRIAGE LICENCES 1994 328 176 175 1995 356 240 172 1996 410 286 179 1.6 Other than the legislated fee for marriage licenses, the municipality receives no remuneration for its role in these processes. However, with the passing of legislation which permits user fees, there is a growing trend by municipalities to charge a fee for these services and some municipalities have put these in place. Accordingly, Staff is recommending the following: • MARRIAGE LICENSES - Legislated fee of $75.00 - Remain as is Fees are paid at the time the license is issued and therefore either the bride or groom are present. Although other municipalities are increasing the fee to $100.00, Staff is of the opinion that because it is a"legislated"fee and the Municipality's financial compensation is $27.00 for the issuance of each Marriage Licence, the fee should remain "as is". • BIRTH REGISTRATION - $25.00 (new fee) Parent(s) will be required to include payment with the signed Statement of Live Birth. Notice of the fee will be included with the blank Statement of Live Birth form provided to new parents at Bowmanville Memorial Hospital. 705 Report CD-1-97 - 6 - January 6, 1997 • DEATH REGISTRATION - $25.00 (new fee) The Funeral Home/person presenting documentation to the Municipality for the issuance of a Burial Permit will be responsible for payment of the fee. Our office will meet with the Funeral Home representatives in Bowmanville to determine the most efficient means of implementing this fee. • BIRTH CONFIRMATION - $25.00 (new fee) Staff are sometimes requested to complete a Birth Confirmation so as to provide an identity to a newborn child to allow her/him to travel to another country with his/her parent(s) if the Birth Certificate has not yet been received by the parent(s) or if the parent(s) has been tardy in forwarding a completed Statement of Livebirth to the Clerk's Department for registration. 1 .7 Bowmanville Memorial Hospital and all three Funeral Directors have been contacted and have not expressed a problem with the implementation of these new fees. We also discussed that, in the case of a unique or exceptional circumstance, common sense should prevail and Staff seeks Council's support of this position. 1.8 Fees for Vital Statistics were put in place by the City of Kingston on February 1, 1996 and other Municipalities will be implementing these fees effective February 1, 1997. We have contacted the other local municipalities within the Regional Municipality of Durham and were advised that they have not yet delved into this issue, however, two municipalities have requested a copy of this report. 706 Report CD-1-96 - 7 - January 6, 1997 2. RECOMMENDATIONS It is therefore recommended: 1 . THAT Report CD-1-97 be received; 2. THAT the by-law attached to Report CD-1-97 be presented for Council's approval to authorize the implementation of the following fees effective February 1, 1997: (a) $25.00 fee for a live birth registration; (b) $25.00 fee for the issuance of a burial permit; and (c) $25.00 for the issuance of a Confirmation of Birth; and 3. THAT Bowmanville Memorial Hospital, Morris Funeral Chapel Ltd., Northcutt Elliott Funeral Home and Newcastle Funeral Home be advised of Council's decision. Respectfully submitted, Reviewed by, P tti L. rrie, M.C.T. W. H. Stockwell Clerk Chief Administrative Officer MPK*PLB*Ib Attachment - By-law Interested Parties to be advised of Council's decision: Bowmanville Memorial Hospital Morris Funeral Chapel Ltd. 47 Liberty Street South 4 Division Street Bowmanville, Ontario Bowmanville, Ontario L1 C 1N4 Li C 2Z1 Northcutt Elliott Funeral Home Newcastle Funeral Home 53 Division Street 386 Mill Street South Bowmanville, Ontario Newcastle, Ontario L1 C 2Z8 1_113 106 707 Report CD-1-96 - 8 - January 6, 1997 Interested Parties to be advised of Council's decision: Mrs. Nora Symington Ms. Debbie Shields Deputy Clerk Clerk's Department Township of Uxbridge Town of Whitby 51 Toronto Street South 575 Rossland Road East P.O. Box 190 Whitby, Ontario Uxbridge, Ontario L1 N 2M8 L9P 1T1 708 THE CORPORATION OF THE MUNICIPALITY OF CLARINGTON BY-LAW 97- Being a By-law to establish a fee structure for Vital Statistics for the Municipality of Clarington, effective February 1, 1997. WHEREAS on January 29, 1996, the Province of Ontario did enact Bill 26 entitled, "An Act to Achieve Fiscal Savings and to Promote Economic Prosperity Through Public Sector Restructuring, Streamlining and Efficiency and to Implement Other Aspects of the Government's Economic Agenda"; AND WHEREAS this Act provides for the payment of fees for services rendered by the municipality notwithstanding any other Act; NOW THEREFORE the Council of the Corporation of the Municipality of Clarington enacts as follows: 1. THAT the fee structure for Vital Statistics for the Corporation of the Municipality of Clarington attached hereto as Schedule "A" be hereby adopted as the fee structure respecting services provided for Vital Statistics for the Municipality of Clarington. 2. THAT this By-law come into force and take effect on February 1, 1997. By-law read a first and second time this 13th day of January, 1997. By-law read a third time and finally passed this 13th day of January, 1997. Mayor Clerk 709 SCHEDULE "A" TO BY-LAW 97- Live Birth Registration - $25 . 00 Live Birth Confirmation - $25 . 00 Burial Permit - $25 . 00 i I 710