ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT Date: October 30, 1996 TO: Vancouver City Council FROM: Director of Finance in consultation with the Director of Legal Services SUBJECT: Certificates of Judgment filed pursuant to the Offence Act RECOMMENDATION A. THAT Council authorize a By-Law Fines Clerk employed by the City of Vancouver to file and sign Certificates on behalf of the City of Vancouver under Section 72(6) of the Offence Act. B. THAT Council authorize the purchase of additional computer equipment, estimated to cost $5,000.00 to assist the By-Law Fines Clerk in processing Certificates of Judgment pursuant to the Offence Act, funding to come from Contingency Reserve. CITY MANAGER S COMMENTS The City Manager RECOMMENDS approval of A and B. COUNCIL POLICY There is no applicable Council policy. PURPOSE That the proposed recommendation be approved by City Council. BACKGROUND The Director of Legal Services and the Director of Finance report as follows: - 2 - Recently, amendments were made to the Offence Act which affect the City of Vancouver. The City of Vancouver frequently uses Certificates of Judgment to assist in collection of significant By-law fines. The form of the Certificate of Judgment has been amended by legislation and the City of Vancouver has been given authority to file Certificates of Judgment in Provincial Court. For practical purposes, it is requested that Council delegate the authority to sign those Certificates on behalf of the City of Vancouver to a specific City employee. The Certificates are presently prepared by a By-Law Fines Clerk employed by the City of Vancouver, after reviewing Court records. It is recommended that Council authorize the By-Law Fines Clerk to file and sign Certificates under Section 72(6) of the Offence Act on behalf of the City of Vancouver. Because the form of Certificate has been significantly altered, computer equipment presently used by the By-law Fines Clerk is unable to accommodate the new form. To process Certificates of Judgment in an efficient manner would necessitate the purchase of new computer equipment at a cost of $5,000.00. Funding is available for this purchase through the Contingency Reserve Fund. * * * * *