Commission on the Reform of Ontario's Public Services

Further steps should be taken to advance partnering with municipal and federal services —
efficiencies can be found by working collaboratively with other levels of government. For
example, ServiceOntario in Ottawa co-locates with the City of Ottawa and Service Canada to
provide services from one location, therefore improving the client experience. Additionally, the
new BizPal account (which allows Ontario businesses to manage multiple government
requirements from a single account) allows 127 Ontario municipalities (such as Kingston,
Timmins, Brampton and Sudbury) to partner with ServiceOntario and become more efficient in
issuing business permits and licensing. The creation of more such hubs, with their critical
mass, would make it easier to provide services in both official languages. Such synergies in
service delivery will improve customer experience and capitalize on economies of scale.
B. Improving how ServiceOntario Delivers its Services
How ServiceOntario delivers its services is just as important as the kinds of services it
delivers. Three principles — a focus on the client, efficiency gains and accountability —
should drive ServiceOntario’s delivery methods. This suggests a variety of changes, ranging
from the delivery of services through new or alternate platforms, all the way to partnerships
with the private sector, as long as accountability and a focus on the client are not
compromised by the transformation.
Recommendation 16-2: The government should direct clients to more convenient and less
expensive channels, such as online service delivery for birth registration.
Capital investment in new technology will play an important role in this transformation. Where
possible, services should be shifted to the least expensive platforms available, resulting in
savings for the government, a more efficient service experience for the client and a positive
environmental impact through digitized services (i.e., digital rather than paper records). As a
consequence, the government should stop delivering services in person if it can do so by
telephone or through the Internet. As long as the move does not compromise service delivery
— such as the provision of service in both official languages — the government should use the
lowest-cost platforms.
An example of shifting consumers towards more convenient and less expensive channels is
the provision of Vehicle Validation Stickers (Val Tag). ServiceOntario processed about
6.6 million validation stickers in 2010, at a cost of $18.4 million. Vehicles need not receive and
display a new sticker each year; instead, their registration could be logged in an electronic
database. Other jurisdictions, such as Quebec, have successfully moved away from vehicle
licensing stickers and found that technology-based enforcement (like licence-plate scanning)
is far more effective.
Recommendation 16-3: ServiceOntario should optimize current virtual processes.
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