Last night (June 19), Bylaw B-20/2017 was brought before City Council.

The bylaw would establish a new Code of Conduct for elected officials, and would also apply to members of the City's boards, committees and commissions.

The City currently has a Code of Conduct for elected officials, which was established in 2015, but there have been ongoing discussions about making the Code of Conduct more robust since then.

The Municipal Government Act will require that municipalities have a Code of Conduct for their elected officials, but as the regulations have not yet been laid out, the City based the bylaw on info provided to the City through workshops.

Councillor Ron Chapman asked whether the bylaw had been circulated to members of the boards, committees and commissions, since it would apply to them. When he heard that it hadn't he expressed a desire, which many Councillors echoed, to table the bylaw until feedback could be heard.

Councillor Allan Hunter said he supported the bylaw in intent, but some specifics made him worry about the rights of citizens, individual Councillors and Council as a whole. Hunter expressed concern at sanctions that he understood would limit a Councillors ability to communicate with the Provincial or Federal Government. Councillor Candice Kolson, with the help of City Clerk Sharon Pollyck, clarified that a sanctioned Councillor would only be limited in interactions with other governments as a representative of the City, not as an individual.

Mayor Peter Brown also questioned who would determine an infraction under the Code of Conduct, and who would hold the trial.

The Council voted 6-1 in favour of a motion from Councillor Chapman to table the bylaw until feedback from the City's boards could be sought.

 

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