FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
[La version française suit le texte anglais.]
ONTARIO’S FINANCIAL ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICER RELEASES 2019-20 ANNUAL REPORT
TORONTO, July 30, 2020 - Today, Peter Weltman, Ontario’s Financial Accountability Officer, submitted his 2019-20 Annual Report to the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly. The report summarizes Weltman’s activities during his second year in office in support of his mandate to provide all Members of the Legislative Assembly with relevant, authoritative, and timely information on the financial impact of government policies.
In 2019-20, the Financial Accountability Office (FAO) released a record 19 reports including a first-of-its-kind Expenditure Monitor, Expenditure Estimates, Ontario’s Long-Term Budget Outlook, a look at the Impact of an Economic Downturn on the Province’s Finances, and a review of the Province’s Long-Term Care Homes Program.
Additionally, the FAO commissioned two MPP surveys to better understand the effectiveness of its reports and help guide a new engagement strategy. The results led to the addition of “Quick Fact” bullets in media releases and the launch of a new digital strategy that uses videos and infographics to highlight key takeaways from FAO reports. By doing so, the FAO aimed to create greater awareness of its work and position the FAO as the trusted source for provincial fiscal and economic analysis.
So far, our strategy is working. Engagement with MPPs in-person, on committees and through our digital channels have exceeded expectations, with website visits doubling year over year, a ten-fold increase in mentions on Twitter, and shareable videos that have received over 20,000 views.
Looking ahead, the FAO expects to see a significant increase in MPP and Committee requests in 2020-21 due to economic and fiscal impacts from COVID-19 and the election coming up in 2022.
To read the full report, visit www.fao-on.org or click here.
Quick Facts:
- MPP engagement increased with 14 technical and 189 mentions in the Ontario Legislature, for an average of 2.4 times per sitting day.
- The FAO hosted 82 stakeholder meetings, up from 61 the previous year.
- The FAO appeared in 3,695 news articles and broadcasts.
- The FAO received ten research requests from MPPs, resulting in four reports. The remaining requests were either pushed to subsequent years or remain currently unfulfilled due to increasing demands for the FAO’s limited resources.
About the FAO
Established by the Financial Accountability Officer Act, 2013, the Financial Accountability Office (FAO) provides independent analysis on the state of the Province’s finances, trends in the provincial economy and related matters important to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario. Visit our website at http://www.fao-on.org/en/ and follow us on Twitter at https://twitter.com/InfoFAO.
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For further information, please contact:
Jessica Martin | 647 527 2385 | JMartin@fao-on.org | fao-on.org
