BY TRACEY DUGUAY
The province recently quashed a little-known alternative traffic program that put thousands of dollars of unregulated funds directly into the coffers of the Sudbury police department.
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DAVIDSON |
The program, referred to as Option 4, allowed drivers who violated the Highway Traffic Act (HTA) to avoid convictions and fines by paying a $75 fee at the police station and completing a simple test to refresh their driving skills.
Unlike the fines gathered through the Provincial Offences Act (POA), most of which are returned to the municipality, the money raised through the Option 4 program went directly to the police force.
Greater Sudbury Police Chief Ian Davidson said the program brought in about $100,00 to $140,000 in 2003. But last year, as Option 4 began to get phased out, revenues dipped to around the $23,000 mark.
According to the chief, the program has existed in Sudbury for about seven or eight years, with the revenues fluctuating from year-to-year.
?You could safely say we could generate $50,000 a year or higher,? he ball-parked when asked about an average annual revenue base for the program. That means approximately half a million dollars went directly to police coffers when the program was in operation.
Davidson said the money was spent on front-line policing and equipment.
Although the cancellation of the program would seem to indicate a large chunk of lost revenue, Davidson said it was only a small piece of the pie when compared to the department?s $35-million annual budget.
?We just have a little less money at our disposal. Eighty-six percent of our budget goes into paying the officers, benefits, cars, that sort of thing. The remainder goes into operating costs, special projects, equipment and training. The money that was generated from Option 4 just gave us more flexibility.?
The police service wasn?t required to report to the province how much revenue was generated, how many times Option 4 was exercised or whether they tracked information about drivers who used the program.
While not required to report to the province, Davidson said the funds were reported as general revenue in the police budget, which is approved annually by city council.
The McGuinty government decided to cancel the program because it wanted a consistent and fair approach to traffic safety and enforcement.
?Option 4 makes it difficult to identify high risk drivers,? said provincial Community Safety and Correctional Services Minister Monte Kwinter in a press release issued last November.
Sudbury was one of 21 police services that offered the Option 4 program, which had received criticism from various organizations, such as the Ontario Provincial Police and the insurance industry.
Aside from masking bad drivers, critics of the program said it wasn?t standardized across all police services in the province and it led to a two-tiered enforcement program.
?Those shortcomings could have been modified provincially,? Davidson said.
The Police Association of Ontario went even further in its criticism and stated the program ?calls the administration of justice into disrepute.?
The decision to offer Option 4 is based solely on the discretion of police officers.
?Another issue of course is the money goes to the police service and some people thought there was potential for misuse of the funds and that we would go generate income specifically for our budgets,? said Davidson.
?I won?t accept that argument because if that was the case, I was completely willing to turn over all revenue generated to the city,? the chief said.
?Anybody that tells you there?s a secret slush fund or we?re making secret money or we?re doing something inappropriate with the money is baring falsehood.?
He admitted the Option 4 program has created some turmoil with representatives from the local police association who have questioned repeatedly how much revenue has been generated and where the money goes.
?They?ve asked numerous times and we?ve told them numerous times,? Davidson said. ?Unequivocally, me, personally. I?ve told a number of people a number of times exactly what I told you.?
Davidson is also disappointed with the province?s decision about shutting down Option 4 because he thought the program had merit.
? We don?t need to hammer some poor individual that?s going to get a very heavy fine and face significant financial consequences...I recognize the need for punishment, and financial ramifications are certainly one measure of modifying driving behaviour, but my point is, it?s not the only one.?
