Between December 15, 2022 and January 13, 2023, the Authority consulted on proposed changes to the methodology to calculate the cash portion of the InKind obligation during the transition of the Blue Box Program for the 2024 and 2025 funding years.
The Authority considered all feedback received during the consultation to finalize changes to the methodology to calculate the cash portion of the InKind obligation. Read the consultation report.
Based on the feedback, the Authority approved the proposed addendum to the Blue Box Wind-Up Plan. The changes will be implemented starting in 2023 for the 2024 program year calculations, until the final wind up of the Blue Box Program on December 31, 2025.
The addendum was approved for the technical adjustment required for continued implementation of the InKind Advertising Program throughout the transition until the wind up of the Blue Box Program. The amended methodology will implement the following:
- In the event that fewer than two participating communities report tonnage and revenue for a grade of ONP, either #8 or #6, the calculation will be determined with just one of the two required inputs.
- The price index comparison steps described in the last paragraph of s.9.14.3 Contributions from the Newspaper Industry in the Blue Box Program Plan will be omitted from the overall calculation methodology.
Background
Under the Blue Box Program Plan, members of News Media Canada and Ontario Community Newspaper Association (NMC/OCNA) contribute newspaper advertising linage to municipalities and First Nations in lieu of cash funding. A cash payment, which is calculated based on a methodology outlined in the Blue Box Program Plan, is also required if commodity prices reach a certain level.
The Authority reviewed the methodology to calculate the cash portion of the InKind obligation to determine whether the methodology needed to be adjusted for the transition years of the Blue Box Program. The review was undertaken because certain data inputs required for the calculation will become unavailable as participating communities transition to the new producer responsibility framework under the Resource Recovery and Circular Economy Act, 2016. The Authority determined that a change to the methodology is required to accommodate for the loss of key data inputs in order to calculate the cash portion of the InKind obligation.
The Blue Box Program Windup Plan (WUP) states that the InKind Advertising Program is to continue without changes through to the end of the Blue Box transition in 2025. However, as the calculation used to implement the InKind Advertising Program is impacted by the loss of reported municipal data, a consultation and a resulting adjustment to the methodology is required.
Stewardship Ontario (SO) publicly consulted on the proposed methodology from November 14, 2022 to December 9, 2022. Review the consultation materials. Following the consultation, SO submitted a consultation report and proposed WUP addendum to the Authority.