Sources and method

Where this comes from

Everything on these pages comes from public documents. Here they are, with how we used them, so anyone can check our work.

Documents

1. Ontario Financial Information Return (FIR)

   Ontario Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing · retrieved 2026-10-01

   The numbers behind the money and compare pages: 2019 to 2025 for Pickering, and 2025 for 6 similar places. Figures are what the municipality reported to the Province for each year, prepared on the same basis as its audited financial statements.

2. City of Pickering, budget documents

   City of Pickering · retrieved 2026-10-01

   The city’s published budgets. Used to check its plans against what it reported.

3. City of Pickering, Consolidated Financial Statements, December 31, 2024 (audited by Deloitte LLP)

   City of Pickering Finance (auditor: Deloitte LLP) · retrieved 2026-10-05

   Audited statements for 2024. Clean opinion dated November 17, 2025.

4. City of Pickering, Consolidated Financial Statements, December 31, 2023 (audited by Deloitte LLP)

   City of Pickering Finance (auditor: Deloitte LLP) · retrieved 2026-10-05

   Audited statements for 2023. Used for the date of the auditor’s report, December 11, 2024.

5. City of Pickering, Consolidated Financial Statements, December 31, 2021 (audited by Deloitte LLP)

   City of Pickering Finance (auditor: Deloitte LLP) · retrieved 2026-10-05

   Audited statements for 2021. Used for the date of the auditor’s report, May 8, 2023.

6. City of Pickering, 2026 Current Budget (deemed adopted December 29, 2025)

   City of Pickering · retrieved 2026-10-05

   The 2026 operating budget with the Treasurer’s analysis (pages A-1 to A-12).

7. City of Pickering, 2026 Capital Budget and 2027-2035 Capital Forecast (deemed adopted December 29, 2025)

   City of Pickering · retrieved 2026-10-05

   The 2026 capital budget and forecast, with the Seaton Recreation Complex & Library funding table.

8. City of Pickering, 2026 Budget Highlights

   City of Pickering · retrieved 2026-10-05

   The 2026 budget highlights with the Mayor’s message.

9. Principles Integrity, 2026 Integrity Commissioner’s Periodic Report, City of Pickering (September 2026)

   Principles Integrity · retrieved 2026-10-05

   Periodic report for May 1, 2025 to August 21, 2026.

10. Integrity Commissioner’s Recommendation Report (revised), June 15, 2026 (Corr. 14-26)

    Principles Integrity · retrieved 2026-10-05

    The ninth recommendation report about the same councillor.

11. Integrity Commissioner’s Recommendation Report, September 17, 2024 (with errata of September 21, 2024; Corr. 24-24)

    Principles Integrity · retrieved 2026-10-05

    Recommendation report that recounts the earlier 30 and 60 day suspensions.

12. Integrity Commissioner’s Recommendation Report, August 5, 2025 (Corr. 36-25)

    Principles Integrity · retrieved 2026-10-05

    Recommendation report with the “blunt instrument” comment.

13. Statistics Canada, Consumer Price Index, annual average (table 18-10-0005-01)

    Statistics Canada · retrieved 2026-10-01

    How much prices went up each year, so cost growth can be compared with inflation.

How the numbers are worked out

Day-to-day spending

Total expenses as reported, minus amortization ("wear and tear"), which is an accounting cost rather than cash spent that year. Costs are shown in the service where they were recorded, before the city spreads its office overhead across services, so the cost of running the office stays visible.

Per home

An amount divided by the number of households the city reported to the Province for that year.

Similar places

Ontario lower-tier municipalities with 60% to 160% of this population that had filed their 2025 return, in 2025. This gives 6 places. "Typical" means the median: half of similar places are above it and half below. The size limits are a judgement call; moving them a little adds or drops a few places, so treat small differences in rank as noise. Per-home figures use the household counts each city reports to the Province. Places do not all count the same way: some include seasonal homes, so per-home comparisons are a guide, not exact.

Faster than prices

Growth is compared with Canada's Consumer Price Index over the same years.

When a question is raised automatically

When a cost grew at least 25 percentage points faster than prices and faster than 80% of similar places; when a measure of money health is worse than 80% of similar places; or when a one-year tax increase is higher than 80% of similar places and well above inflation. "Needs an answer" means worse than 90% of similar places. When there are fewer than 20 similar places, automatic questions go no higher than "Worth asking", because one rank moves a lot in a small group.

What this cannot see

These records show totals by category, not individual payments. They cannot show whether a particular contract was fair, whether a purchase was split to avoid tendering, or who was paid. That needs the city's list of payments (its cheque register or accounts payable list), which residents can ask for under Ontario's freedom-of-information law (MFIPPA). That is the next thing we plan to add.