Disclaimer and Privacy Policy

Disclaimer

Information on this Website

The City of Sault Ste. Marie provides this information in good faith and for Information purposes only. Every effort has been made to ensure the information is correct; however, the City does not warrant, covenant, or guarantee the completeness and accuracy of the information. The City does not assume responsibility nor accept any liability arising from any use other than interpretation. The City of Sault Ste. Marie shall not be liable to any person for any error in the information or any claims of any sort that may rise from use of or reliance upon the information by any purpose. The information is proprietary and may not be reproduced without consent from The City of Sault Ste. Marie.

Online Payment Systems

All prices are displayed in Canadian dollars. All sales are final. There are no refunds.

Privacy Policy

The City of Sault Ste. Marie (the "City") is committed to protecting the privacy of the personal information that may be provided while using the City's website at www.cityssm.on.ca ("City's Website"). As part of this commitment, the City wants you to be fully aware of how we manage that information, what type of information is collected, how that information is used, and when and with whom this information is shared.

Scope

This Privacy Policy only covers the practices of the City, and does not include its local boards, community action networks, nor outside corporations.

Collection and Use of Personal Information

Direct Collection of Information

The City collects information from you in your personal and professional capacity. Information about a business, association or non-profit is not personal information.

Information is collected from you to provide municipal services, programs or regulations in accordance with the Municipal Act, 2001, S.O. 2001, c. 25 and other statutes. The majority of the information collected is voluntarily provided to the City when an individual registers for programs or services through the City or participates in a public consultation program.

The City will collect personal information for the following purposes:

Public Consultation and Feedback Forms

The City will often ask the public for feedback or comments on the City's proposals, changes to municipal activities, projects, services or regulatory activities ("City Projects"). The information collected may contain personal information about individuals in the community, such as your name, address, contact information, and opinion about the City Project that was commented on. This information is collected for the purpose of the City's decision-making processes, and may be considered publicly by City Council or by a committee of City Council, and therefore may be a part of the public record. Wherever possible, the City shall attempt to limit the amount of personal information that is provided to the public.

Employment

We regularly advertise employment opportunities on the City's Website. To apply for or inquire about a job posting, you may provide personal information such as your name, contact information and previous employment or education related information. You may also provide your résumé, cover letter or completed application form. This information is used solely for the purpose of processing and responding to your application for employment or employment inquiry.

Online Payment Systems

The City offers online payment transaction services to allow you to make purchases or payments online. For example, you may purchase tickets to a concert at a municipal facility, pay a parking or traffic ticket or register for a leisure program. To pay for one of these services online, you are required to provide your name, contact information and credit card information. This information is collected so that the City can process the transaction. You will be redirected to a secure third party service to enter your credit card information for verification and processing.

Registering or Participating in City Programs or Services

The City collects information from you to register you or your family members for programs or services provided by the City. For example, you may register in the Child Care Registry or register a child in a swim class provided by the City. To register for these programs, you may need to provide your name, contact information, names of family members, dates of birth, and credit card information, in addition to the information that may be required for enrolment in the program or service. This information is collected so that the City can register you or your family member in the City program or service.

Contact Information for Elected Officials, City Staff and City Officials

On the City's Website, you can find the contact information for the members of City Council, City staff members, and other various City officials. If you contact these individuals, you may provide your personal information, including your name, contact information, and information about your inquiry, complaint or concern. This information is collected for the purpose of responding to your inquiry, complaint or concern, and may be forwarded to another Elected Official, City Staff Member or City Official who may be able to respond your inquiry, complaint or concern.

Miscellaneous

There may be occasions when the City may collect personal information for other reasons not specifically mentioned. When we do, the purpose for the collection, the authority for the collection, and who can be contacted if you have questions about the collection will be provided.

Indirect Collection of Information

You may visit the City's Website without providing any of your personal information to the City. However, the City may automatically collect information related to the use of the City's Website by using a browser tool known as a "cookie". A cookie is generated by the City's server, and is sent to your computer and stored there. These cookies contain information about your website browsing session, and are collected for the purpose of remembering your information as you traverse the City's Website. These cookies may contain information about the City programs or services for which you are registering, and information about the products or services you are purchasing from the City.

The City uses only "session cookies" which means that the information saved in the cookie is provided to the City only as long as you keep your browser open (in "session"). The City does not use persistent cookies which are stored on your computer and read by the server that sent the cookie every time that you visit the website on that server. The City does not combine the information gathered by its servers with other information in a way that could identify persons.

You may set your browser to refuse to accept cookies. Doing this may affect your ability to view certain portions of the City's Website or use certain applications on the City's Website.

The City also uses web analytics software that records site visits, which will include your Internet Protocol (IP) address. This information is collected in accordance with the Municipal Act, 2001 s.10(1) for the purposes of designing the City Website to better meet the needs of people visiting the City's Website, including analyzing trends, administering the site, and gathering broad demographic information for aggregate use. The IP address is not combined with other information to identify individuals personally.

From time to time we may report aggregated demographic information in the form of reports or statistics, but this information is not linked to any other information that could be used to identify a person.

Further Communication Arising from Information Provided

You will not receive phone calls, correspondence or emails from the City as a result of visiting the City's Website, unless you have indicated that you would like to be contacted by the City or your request implicitly requires a response.

Disclosure of Personal Information

Your information may be shared between City Staff, City Officials and Elected Officials only where that information is necessary for the performance of their duties. For example, the City Clerk may forward your information about a planning hearing to the Planning Department for their response.

The City will not disclose your information to a third party except where provided by this Privacy Policy or in accordance with the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. M.56 or other applicable law.

Disclosure to Service Providers

Certain personal information may be disclosed to third parties retained by the City to provide services to the City. For example, we may use a service provider to process payments for fines that are completed online. We give these service providers the information that they require to perform their duties.

Disclosure for Legal or Law Enforcement Purposes

The City may provide your personal information in response to a search warrant, order, other legal inquiry or in response to an investigation by law enforcement. The City may also disclose information for the purposes of making or defending a legal claim, responding to a complaint or as otherwise permitted by law.

Access to your Information

You have the right to access and correct inaccuracies in your information in our custody and control, subject to certain exceptions. In order to correct any inaccuracies that are discovered, please contact the relevant City Department to advise them of the requested change.

Retention of Information

The City will retain the information in accordance with the City's Records Retention By-law and any policies flowing from that by-law. The Records Retention By-law may be viewed at the Office of the City Clerk.

Security of Information

The City maintains your information in secure data storage to protect it from unauthorized access, use or disclosure. Because transfer of information over the Internet cannot be guaranteed to be secure, the City does not guarantee, represent or warrant that personal information will be protected against loss, misuse, unauthorized use or alteration. Furthermore, the City does not accept any liability for information that you have submitted or for the use, misuse or unauthorized use of your information by you or any third party. The City uses SSL encryption technology to protect personal information during transmission. Credit Card information is entered through a secure third party website that processes the transaction and returns the information to the City.

Links to Other Websites

The City's Website includes links to websites that are not affiliated with the City, and over which the City has no control. These links are provided as a courtesy to the public and the City has no responsibility or liability for the way that the third parties operate their websites, the content of the websites or how or if the organizations collect, use, disclose or otherwise manage your information. You may want to review that website's privacy policy to decide whether you want to proceed with visiting that website.

Questions Regarding this Policy and Contact Information

If you have questions or concerns about this policy, please contact the Information Technology Help Desk at 705-759-5304.

Changes to this Policy

The City reserves the right to modify this Privacy Statement from time to time. At such time, notification of such changes will be posted along with the latest version of this Policy.

Contact Us

Phone
705-759-2500

Email
info@cityssm.on.ca

Fax
705-759-2310

TTY
1-877-688-5528

Location
99 Foster Drive
Sault Ste. Marie, ON
P6A 5X6