Year: 1981
Summary: Examines increased contracting of municipal services to the private sector. Recommends that a number of factors, not just cost-savings, must be taken into account.
Year: 1980
Summary: Reviews the history of individual user charges for municipal services, and outlines the political and social reasons for their limited use.
Year: 1976
Summary: Describes how various Ontario municipalities handle their animal control responsibilities. The objectives, scope of services, financial costs and results of different programs are identified.
Year: 1975
Summary: Assesses the quality of Metro Toronto's fire departments to determine whether amalgamation would be the most effective way to provide the best level of service.
Year: 1963
Summary: Metro Council's proposal to transfer local welfare services from area municipalities to Metro is seen by many as a step towards total amalgamation. It is not justified to relieve the burden of taxes on municipalities at the expense of those in need of welfare funds.
Year: 1962
Summary: News Brief about mill rates; social services provision - effects of demography and needed reform in order to improve efficiency.
Year: 1958
Summary: Analysis of function and challenges of fire departments in the Toronto area.
Year: 1946
Summary: Newsletter discussing summer recreation, general spending and taxation and suggesting two-year staggered term in city council instead of annual elections.
Year: 1940
Summary: An open letter to the citizens of Toronto, highlighting the need for better snow removal - including coordinating snow removal under one department, improving snow removal equipment, and keeping the snow removal budget consistent from year to year.
Year: 1939
Summary: Examination and analysis of the burden that unemployment relief payments place on the budget.
Summary: The Bureau notes that the cost of direct unemployment payments will challenge the city's budget through 1950 - and argues that it must be restructured and the responsibilities distributed more equitably between the three levels of government.
Year: 1934
Summary: Outlines what expenses on unemployment are and who should be addressing the issue. Argues that municipalities are not equipped to deal with the relief of unemployment - but that chronic relief, like public health, is a municipal issue.
Summary: Outlines the costs of welfare relief and raises the question of whether or not welfare relief should be continued after the depression ends. The advantages and disadvantages of several different relief systems are discussed.
Year: 1931
Summary: Provides a summary of annual reports of the Toronto Hydro-Electric System, Toronto Transportation Commission, and Toronto Harbour Commission.
Year: 1924
Summary: In this publication, the Bureau objects to the city's plan to enter the business of gasoline, milk and coal selling, claiming that the city has not proven to efficiently and competitively supply goods and the cost of expanding the city's activities.
Year: 1921
Summary: Co-ordination between the Public Health and Public Welfare Departments could be achieved by appointing members to a joint committee on Public Welfare.
Year: 1919
Summary: Discussion of need for centralized fire / fire and police department and previous recommendations for increasing fire safety efficiency. Suggests amalgamation of fire and police department. Details Bureau suggestions made for improvements to the fire department, and which of these suggestions have been implemented.
Year: 1918
Summary: A proposal calling for a federation of community workers into a more streamlined, centralized body to facilitate more efficiency in philanthropy and the development of a professionalized body of community service workers.
Year: 1916
Summary: Outlines expenditure on various municipal services; encouraging voter turnout based on citizens' stakes in key areas.
Year: 1915
Summary: Encourages citizens to vote to determine how their tax dollars are spent. Charts city services vs. cost per family in dollars and days of work.
Summary: Lists essential qualifications for the head of a Fire Department, based on merit and administrative skills.
Year: 1914
Summary: A self-recreative fund should be implemented to contend with the issue of unemployment. Certain private institutions are creating work in the community, and their endeavors should be supported.
Summary: Argues that the city tax rate is not easily reduced, but the fire loss tax rate is. Citizens pay the price for fire damage.
Summary: Presents a potential Fire Insurance Policy for the citizens of Toronto.
Summary: Creation of a permanent Rotary Relief Fund for Unemployment would provide a self-recreating fund for citizens, and make possible projects employing a large number of workers.
Summary: Presents a tentative scheme for central control of labor supply, unemployment, and immigration, with suggestions for: administration, legislation, fees and costs, methods and procedures, and interdepartmental co-operation.
Summary: Private citizens and government must both do their part to to strengthen Canada's economy and prevent unemployment.
Summary: Sample abstracts from articles in the Toronto Press about the Woodbine Hotel fire, and lack of fire safety in the city.
Summary: Two steps should be taken to increase fire safety in the aftermath of the Woodbine Hotel fire: establishment of a strong central authority and a Fire Prevention Commission.
Summary: The City Council should create a Fire Prevention Commission to establish rules and regulations upon the subject of fire prevention. There is too much division of authority in the matter of inspecting fire escapes, hence the need for a single commission.