The Corporation of the TOWN OF MILTON

Transcription

1 The Corporation of the TOWN OF MILTON Report to: From: Chair & Members of the Administration & Planning Standing Committee Linda Leeds, Director, Corporate Services and Treasurer Date: September 17, 2012 Report No. CORS Subject: Epost Electronic billing option for Property Tax RECOMMENDATION: THAT Report number CORS dated September 17, 2012 regarding optional electronic delivery of property tax bills via Canada Post s Epost system be received for information REPORT Background Canada Post was the first to develop electronic mailing in They have made it easy for municipalities to convert their physical mail into digital mail thus providing the customer with an additional method for receiving their bills. Epost has 7.7 million registered Canadians, Canadians sign-up each day and over 100 companies are registered mailers. In 2011, Canada Post restructured into two divisions, Physical Delivery Network and Digital Delivery Network, to reflect a renewed focus on accelerating the expansion of Canada Post s digital capabilities. Their Board of Directors approved a significant investment over the next two years to advance Epost through the addition of new partners, new products and new services. Discussion Several years ago staff looked into the implementation of Epost for the delivery of tax notices and at that time it was cost prohibitive. With the new direction/investment into expanding the digital delivery system Canada Post approached staff with a new proposal that significantly reduced the cost of implementation. Staff has analyzed this proposal and has estimated that we require approximately 5% enrollment of ratepayers

2 The Corporation of the TOWN OF MILTON Report No.CORS Page No. 2 in year two to breakeven with the on-going costs; this is equivalent to 1,100 tax accounts. In Milton, there are currently 22,621 registered Epost users. Canada Post statistics indicate that new mailers (like the Town of Milton) experience an enrolment uptake between 5-20% in the first year. Advantages to implementing Epost are: 1. Enhanced Customer Service Epost provides our customer with the option of receiving their tax bills electronically. We have had numerous requests from taxpayers to provide this service. Instant notification that their tax bill is in their electronic mailbox Bill can be saved for up to 7 years in electronic format 2. Environmentally Friendly Solution Reduction in paper and ink 3. Ease of Implementation: Canada Post will provide a Project Manager and a Solution Manager to work directly with staff to develop and implement on-line digital mail delivery 4. It is easy and cost-effective to connect to the Digital Delivery Network for electronic bill delivery (Epost) Dedicated Canada Post IT resources specialized in digital mail delivery ensures fast response to market changes and end-to-end support. Compliance and auditing; that assures that our customer information is protected PCI compliance There are no costs to the ratepayer to enroll in Epost to receive their mail. 5. One-Stop Solution Canada Post provides a true 100% solution (Data capture, document presentation (electronic) and seamless connection to online banking sites) Easy reconciliation: we will receive a single invoice for all services, web presentment, fax or transmissions, and postage

3 The Corporation of the TOWN OF MILTON Report No.CORS Page No. 3 Staff spoke with municipalities that have implemented Epost for the delivery of tax bills and received positive feedback as it pertained to the ease of the system, the security and enrollment. Staff will promote the use of Epost through the Town website, on tax correspondence, when responding to tax inquiries over the phone and due date notification ads placed in the local paper. In conclusion, Canada Post is providing implementation incentives to encourage municipalities to utilize Epost for their bill delivery. Staff will be proceeding with the implementation of Epost for the delivery of our property tax bills. This provides our customers with another convenient and technologically advanced option for receipt of their tax bill. Relationship to the Strategic Plan Provide Responsive, Effective Municipal Government To provide strong leadership in the effective and efficient delivery of municipal services E-billing is a natural complement to the Town s ongoing sustainable development efforts as paper reduction is associated with environmental care. Financial Impact The Town s property tax system (Vailtech) will require modifications to allow for the electronic billing of tax bills. Vailtech has indicated that the cost for this modification is $5, These one-time costs will be funded from the previously approved 2012 Capital Budget for Vailtech service enhancement projects. On-going costs as outlined in the proposal are summarized as follows: Epost delivery fee of $0.39 Mail processing fee of $0.01 (based on PDF format) Monthly maintenance fee of $250 (for the months that transactions files are sent) The impact on the 2013 operating budget impact will be dependent upon the uptake of this service with a minimum cost of $250 per file sent. Staff is expecting to send only one file in 2013 (final tax bill). Since implementation and notification of this service will

4 The Corporation of the TOWN OF MILTON Report No.CORS Page No. 4 occur in January staff are not expecting enrollment of taxpayers for the interim bill which is printed and mailed the last week of January. Canada Post has also found that individuals who receive mail electronically also tend to pay their bills electronically. This can also provide additional savings of staff time in the processing of payments. The Town already utilizes on-line banking for the payment of taxes through various financial institutions so there would be no additional effort or cost for staff if the volume of usage increases for this payment method. Respectfully submitted, Linda Leeds, C.G.A. Director, Corporate Services and Treasurer LL:lp If you have any questions on the content of this report: Lesley Payton, , ext 2141 Attachments: Epost presentation CAO Approval:

5 Town of Milton July 12, 2012

6 Agenda Constituents Expectations for Digital Mail Delivery The Security and Simplicity of epost How epost can strengthen your Green Branding & Increase Customer Satisfaction What s New in 2012 Town of Milton July 12, 2012

7 Canadians have the Largest Number of Internet Users Per Capita in the World million Banked Online in Q of Canadians are online. 7.8 million Paid Their Bills Online 2 Sources: 1 Comscore Inc., April 16, Canadians active in online banking, Advisor.ca, July 27, 2011.

8 What is Important to Canadians? One Location Security Integrate w/ Online Banking 83% 80% 79% Source: TNS survey, November Online Filing 79% Digital Postmark 69%

9 What s in it for you? A Secure, Cost-Effective way to Deliver Mail Delivery Costs Production Costs Payment Processing Costs # of Calls to Customer Service * Digital Mail Delivery, Minus the Guesswork Leverage a Trusted, Secure, Hosted platform Environmentally-Friendly Solution Meet your Environmental Stewardship Mandates. Strengthen your Green branding *Source: E-billing adoption: overcoming barrier s and maximizing ROI, Prepared by PricewaterhouseCoopers. September 2009

10 E-Billing ROI goes well beyond paper savings Benefits were identified in every category analyzed: Reduction in billing costs 50 % Improvement Reduced payment processing Automated payment rose: 81% to 94% Improved DSO Reduced bad debt/collection expense Reduced customer care costs Low churn 1.5-day improvement Less likely to go into collection status 12% reduction in customer support calls Highly satisfied customers *96% e-retention rate Source: Overcoming barriers and maximizing ROI: A comprehensive study of e- billing adoption in the utility sector by Michael Dolenko & Phase 5, June 2009

11 Improve Customer Experience Consumers want to receive, file and store all their important mail in a single, secure location. Businesses want to reduce billing costs by cutting printing, processing and delivery expenses. % who rate epost TM better than biller direct services Online Bill Type Physical The security of your business transactions & information Reliability that you bill will be delivered on time Ease of Use The accuracy of the information that is delivered to you 21% 22% 30% 21% 12% 15% 14% 9% Source: E-Billing adoption: Overcoming barriers and maximizing ROI A comprehensive study of e-billing adoption within the utility sector p.32 August 2009, Prepared by Price Waterhouse Coopers

12 Decrease Bill Production Costs The billing cost savings to the Local Distribution Companies (LDC) associated with an e-bill compared to a physical bill is approximately $0.36 per bill, reflecting a greater than 50 % reduction in unit billing costs. Billing Cost Element Paper Bill E-Bill Cost Difference Printing, Envelope & Mailing Costs $0.14 N/A $0.14 Insert Costs $0.06 (avg.) N/A $0.06 Postage Costs $0.61 N/A $0.61 Transactional cost N/A $0.40 $(0.40) TOTAL cost per bill $0.81 $0.40 $0.41 Source: E-Billing adoption: Overcoming barriers and maximizing ROI A comprehensive study of e-billing adoption within the utility sector p.6 August 2009, Prepared by Price Waterhouse Coopers

13 Decrease Payment Processing Costs Residential Commercial Payment Type Physical E-Bill Physical E-Bill Tele-Banking 63% 63% 41% 49% Direct Deposit 22% 35% 19% 27% Cheque 15% 2% 40% 24% $0.30/payment cost premium for cheque processing A shift from physical to e-billing results in a net savings in payment processing costs. Based on the transactional analysis of payment methods above assuming a: 13% reduction in payments via cheque $0.30 cost differential COST SAVINGS: $0.039 per e-bill transaction Source: E-Billing adoption: Overcoming barriers and maximizing ROI A comprehensive study of e-billing adoption within the utility sector p.9 August 2009, Prepared by Price Waterhouse Coopers

14 Bank-Grade Security for Peace of Mind PCI Compliance Electronic Postmark Annual Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants (CICA) 5970 Audit All Documents Governed by: CanadaPost Corporation Act Privacy Act Government Security Policy (GSP)

15 We re fully committed to We re investing heavily $10x millions approved by Board of Directors for epost TM $5 Million Marketing and Advertising Campaign for epost TM We ve restructured to make it happen 2 Divisions at Canada Post: Physical Delivery Network Digital Delivery Network We ve brought on proven digital expertise Kerry Munro, former Managing Director of Yahoo! Canada, Group President Digital Delivery

16 Getting the word out Launch Date: May 2012 Marketing Investment: $5 Million Objectives: Increase awareness Drive traffic to the epost TM Registration Page Encourage Mailer Registration Supported by: National, Regional and Local Reach Campaign Elements to include: Mass Media Social Media Direct Mail Public & Media Relations Community Initiatives Mailer Co-Marketing

17 Critical Mass of mail required Research indicates a minimum of 5 documents are required in order to encourage adoption Property Tax * Nov 2011 TNS Survey How many bills, invoices, notices or statements would you have to be able to receive through epost for you to sign up for the service?

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19 Organizations Using epost Today