Q. Is this course vetted and recognized by a Provincial body?

A. Yes, the Ontario Traffic Council. (O.T.C.)           

Q. Who is the O.T.C.?

A. The Ontario Traffic Council (OTC) is a leading voice in multi-modal  transportation in Ontario, offering diverse expertise in traffic engineering, transportation planning, safety and traffic enforcement.

The organization promotes excellence in the multi-modal transportation field through education, guidance and sharing expertise supported by its members across Ontario regions, cities, towns, counties and industry businesses (consultants and vendors). Members include most Ontario Municipalities and officers who have a responsibility for traffic and active transportation planning and road user safety including police services, parking enforcement and other municipal staff.

Q. Will I get a certificate once I complete the course and will it be recognized by employers?

A. Yes.  Once you complete the assignments and the online quizzes successfully, you will get a certificate, suitable for framing. Your employer is the one who decides what training/certification to recognize or not. In the end, you have to adhere to the internal training requirements of the employer.

NOTICE:

If you work in the City of Toronto and intend to write tickets on behalf of the City of Toronto, you MUST attend a mandatory workshop run by the Toronto Police Traffic Division. This is to show you HOW to fill out their tickets, what the process is that is required for filing and prosecutions, as well as other local requirements such as signage and how to deal with vehicles in Handicapped spaces and towing of abandoned or illegally parked vehicles.

You must contact the City of Toronto to take this workshop in order to get your ticket book. There is a process for the private property owner to become approved to be able to do this. IF you are an employer or security guard company in Toronto, all the information required to permit the writing of tickets and to obtain certification/appointment as a Toronto Bylaw M.L.E.O. is on this website:

https://www.toronto.ca/services-payments/permits-licences-bylaws/private-parking-enforcement-agency/ 

Contact info:

Parking Enforcement Headquarters, Contract Services Section

Phone: 416 808-6608

Q. What is a M.L.E.O.?

A. The term is sourced in section 15 of the Ontario Police Services Act. It stands for Municipal Law Enforcement Officer, a term that is unique in Canada as it ONLY applies in Ontario. When a person is hired by a Municipality or obtains authority to write Parking Tickets on private property they are captured by this term.

Q. What is a “Provincial Offences Officer”(P.O.O.) and what is the relationship to being appointed as a M.L.E.O.?

A.  A P.O.O. is a person designated pursuant to the Provincial Offences Act. This legislation is the enabling statute that outlines the process for Parking Tickets in Part II. It is Provincial law and not a Municipal Bylaw so it supersedes, and works hand in hand with, local Bylaw appointments.

FACT: EVERY M.L.E.O. is a P.O.O. You would have to be in order to write tickets and process them according to law. As an aside, not every P.O.O. is also a M.L.E.O. For example, Provincial Ministry officers who do not enforce anything at the Municipal level are not M.L.E.O.’s. They have no need to be as they only enforce Provincial laws within their Ministry.

Q. What is the difference between a “Bylaw Officer” and a M.L.E.O.?”

A. Essentially nothing, it’s just semantics and labels. They are one and the same. Every Ontario M.L.E.O. enforces Municipal Bylaws. Parking is just one area of Bylaw Enforcement. Some use the term M.L.E.O. while others use the term Bylaw Officer.

Q. Can an Ontario licensed Security Guard also be a M.L.E.O. in order to write Parking Tickets on properties they patrol?

A. Yes. If the property owners is granted this privilege and also meets all the requirements, such as proper signage etc, then they are permitted to write tickets on their properties. If they contract security services for their properties, and that contract includes Parking Enforcement duties, then the guard is now an “agent of the property owner” and permitted to write the tickets. The guard will, of course, have to be approved and appointed as a M.L.E.O. by each Municipality that the guard works in to do so if they work at multiple sites in different locations.

Q. Can a Bylaw Officer/M.L.E.O. who does parking enforcement ALSO do general Bylaw Enforcement or Animal Control?

A. The short answer is yes. If the Municipality hires you to do more than just Parking Enforcement, they will ask that you also be trained in the other areas as well as Parking. Given that General Bylaw Services and Enforcement is also a specialized profession ie Property Standards, Noise Bylaw Enforcement, Animal Control, Licensing etc

Q. Is it true that some Municipalities are outsourcing some Bylaw Enforcement to Security companies?

A. Yes. Some smaller Municipalities are not only out sourcing Parking Enforcement but also General Bylaw services and Animal Control.

Q. Will I need to take any other training to be able to write Parking Tickets or gain the appointment as a M.L.E.O.?

A. In some Municipalities, they insist that you are trained by them in the process of how tickets are written, submitted and expectations. Only the City of Toronto currently charges an additional fee for this training. Some Municipalities will simply issue you a ticket book with instructions and specific details on when, where and how you are to use it.

Q. What if I leave Security work and go to work for a Municipality, will my M.L.E.O. training and appointment follow me and be valid?

A. If you are going to work for the same Municipality where you worked as a guard writing tickets, then yes and yes. It is valid and will follow with you. No need to repeat the training or gain a new appointment.

Q. Is M.L.E.O. officer training, including General Bylaws etc, the same as what Police Officers get at O.P.C. (Ontario Police College)?

A. Yes. Every police officer in Ontario is also a M.L.E.O. and P.O.O. Their appointment is much broader in terms of what legislation they can enforce of course, but the basic content is the same. Police do not get much involved in local Property Standards, Licencing, etc however they are empowered to write Parking Tickets, deal with Noise Bylaw complaints, Animal Bylaw offences. If this is your ultimate goal, then sign up for both the Parking Enforcement Course as well as the Core Competency program online.

NOTE: Materials are Copyright to M.D. Burgess And Associates Inc. Manuals and printable documents are registered ISBO documents in the Library of Canada and are re-printed with a paid tuition to the course. Burgess And Associates is an ISO 9001 complaint C.G.S.B. training company for security guards.