The Auditor General watches over the administration of Ontario’s finances to help the Legislature hold the government accountable. The Auditor does this by carrying out detailed scrutiny of government spending and then producing Annual and Special reports that provide MPPs with the information they need to judge how well public resources are being used.
The work of the Office is performed under the authority of the Auditor General Act. In addition, under the amended Government Advertising Act, 2004, the Auditor General is responsible for reviewing and approving certain types of proposed government advertising for compliance with this act. Also, they have a requirement to report on certain government reporting under the Fiscal Sustainability, Transparency, and Accountability Act, 2019, and in a year in which a regularly scheduled election is held, the Auditor General is required to review and deliver an opinion on the reasonableness of the government’s multi-year fiscal plan with its expectations for the financial performance of the Province over the next three fiscal years.
On April 1, 2019, the Restoring Trust, Transparency, and Accountability Act, 2018 transferred many of the responsibilities of the former Office of the Environmental Commissioner of Ontario to the Office of the Auditor General of Ontario. A Commissioner of the Environment, appointed by the Auditor General, works as an Assistant Auditor General reporting directly to the Auditor General. The Office conducts audits of government programs that impact the environment under the same processes as the Office’s value-for-money audits and has additional reporting responsibilities with respect to the operation of the Environmental Bill of Rights, 1993.
The Office is also able to report on energy conservation, greenhouse gas emissions reductions and any other environmental subjects the Auditor General considers appropriate to conduct work on and report on to the Legislative Assembly.
All five acts can be found at www.e-laws.gov.on.ca.