About Us

AMO works to make municipal governments stronger and more effective. Through AMO, Ontario’s 444 municipalities work together to achieve shared goals and meet common challenges.

Through our policy development, cost-saving programs, conferences and training opportunities, AMO provides municipal officials with tools to succeed, and programs to help maximize taxpayer dollars.

AMO’s Vision Statement

In Ontario’s municipalities, people and families can live, thrive and prosper in the communities they call home, and children will have the choice and opportunity to live and work in the communities where they were raised.

Mandate

The mandate of the organization is to support and enhance strong and effective municipal government in Ontario. It promotes the value of the municipal level of government as a vital and essential component of Ontario and Canada's political system.

The Mandate is delivered in a variety of ways. Of particular importance is the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between AMO and the Province. The MOU provides the opportunity for municipal input and reaction to provincial policy ideas (pre-consultation) so that they are fully informed as part of any provincial policy making process. The MOU also includes a Protocol that obligates the Province to consult with AMO and municipalities on matters that are of a federal-provincial nature that could affect municipal services and finances.  The Protocol also sets out the Province’s commitment to pursue a federal-provincial-municipal framework where municipalities have a ‘seat at the federal-provincial table.’

Activities

The activities of AMO support both its Mandate and Vision Statement. AMO develops policy positions and reports on issues of general interest to municipal governments; conducts ongoing liaison with provincial government elected and non-elected representatives; informs and educates governments, the media and the public on municipal issues; markets innovative and beneficial services to the municipal sector. The Association's Annual Meeting is held in August and is combined with a comprehensive conference program.

Organizational Structure

The governing body of the Association is the Board of Directors, elected every two years at the Association's Annual Meeting. The Board comprise 43 elected and non-elected municipal representatives which meets five times per year. An Executive Committee of the Board, responsible for the business of the Association between Board of Director meetings, meets monthly.

AMO hosts many foreign delegates who wish to learn about starting a similar local government organization and our business and information services.

Policy Centre

A team of policy advisors conducts policy research and analysis for the Association on a wide range of issues – from governance, financial structure, environment, labour, emergency services and human services. Policy staff works with Task Forces to develop and recommend policy positions to the Board of Directors and to review and monitor issues of municipal interest. Task Forces are established on an as-required basis to work on specific short-term tasks. For example, in the past the Association has struck special task forces to deal with land use planning, public health, affordable housing, water regulations and water taking, and the Municipal Act among many others.

AMO also represents the sector on a variety of provincial and federal committees, such as policing standards, source water protection, immigration, municipal rural infrastructure fund program, and emergency management, among many others.

Finance and Operations Centre

The Finance and Operations Centre is responsible for managing the Association’s and AMO related organizations’ accounting, financial systems, risk management, information technology, human resources, website management, information systems and data management. Information is disseminated to the AMO membership and the public-at-large using AMO and AMO-related websites and other electronic tools by leveraging our membership database.

The Centre administers a web based tool, Municipal Information & Data Analysis System (MIDAS), which allows municipalities to generate reports using Financial Information Return (FIR) data complemented with an open data portal cataloguing municipal government data.

Information is disseminated to AMO membership and the public at large through several AMO administered websites: AMO.on.ca, BuildingCommunities.ca, LAS.on.ca, MEPCO.ca, ONEInvestment.ca, OSUM.ca and ROMA.on.ca as well as a weekly electronic newsletter - the WatchFile and a variety of other communiques..

Enterprise Centre

AMO Enterprise Centre is focused on two main activities – the design and delivery of programs and services through LAS that position LAS as a preferred provider of competitively priced and sustainable business services for Ontario municipalities and the broader public sector. 

LAS help municipalities save money, make money, and build capacity. LAS was created in 1992 by AMO to deliver programs and services that help municipalities reduce the cost of common expenditures and increase revenues through economies of scale. The Centre will also pursue an AMO business partnerships program that complements AMO’s objectives and other municipal service activities of the organization.

Membership Centre

AMO members work in a dynamic environment requiring a broad range of skills to manage the decision-making requirements and service delivery pressures of municipal leaders.

AMO’s Membership Centre develops training and events to support its members. This includes the development and delivery of AMO’s Annual General Meeting and Conference. The Membership Centre also leads a number of AMO Board initiatives including increasing diversity on municipal councils, and addressing human resource pressures emerging in municipalities.  

Municipal governments are also served by the Membership Centre through the outstanding management and delivery of the Canada Community Benefit Fund (CCBF). AMO’s CCBF team delivers about $700 million annually to municipalities across Ontario on behalf of the Federal government in support of addressing critical infrastructure projects. AMO members also receive support through the Membership Centre on asset management strategies.