GUELPH – Proposed updates to the procedural bylaw for Wellington County council and its committees would add provisions for closing meetings to the public.
A staff report from clerk Donna Bryce indicates the updates are required as a result of amendments to the Municipal Act and the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act through Bill 68, the Modernizing Ontario’s Municipal Legislation Act, 2017.
Section 239 of the Municipal Act was revised to add several new provisions to the reasons a municipal council and committee may close a meeting to the public:
– information explicitly supplied in confidence to the municipality or local board by Canada, a province or territory or a Crown agency of any of them;
– a trade secret or scientific, technical, commercial, financial or labour relations information, supplied in confidence to the municipality or local board, which, if disclosed, could reasonably be expected to prejudice significantly the competitive position or interfere significantly with the contractual or other negotiations of a person, group of persons, or organization;
– a trade secret or scientific, technical, commercial or financial information that belongs to the municipality or local board and has monetary value or potential value; and
– a position, plan, procedure, criteria or instruction to be applied to any negotiations carried on or to be carried on by or on behalf of the municipality or local board.
The new provisions “generally bring the Municipal Act into consistency with confidentiality provisions in the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act,” the report states.
Existing justifications for closed meetings include matters that relate to:
– the security of the property of the municipality or local board;
– personal matters about an identifiable individual, including municipal or local board employees;
– a proposed or pending acquisition or disposition of land by the municipality or local board;
– labour relations or employee negotiations;
– litigation or potential litigation;
– advice that is subject to solicitor-client privilege, matters related to consideration of a request under the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act;
– a matter in respect of which a council, board, committee or other body may hold a closed meeting under another act; or
– for educational or training sessions.
Additionally, the act provides that council must now close a meeting to the public if the subject matter relates to an ongoing investigation respecting the municipality, a local board or municipally-controlled corporation by the closed meeting investigator.
Alternates allowed
Also included in the report are updates that reflect current practice.
The Alternate Member Section 268 of the Municipal Act provides that the council of a local municipality may appoint one of its members as an alternate member of the upper-tier council, to act in place of a person who is a member of the councils of the local municipality and upper-tier, when the person is unable to attend a meeting of the upper tier for any reason.
For Wellington County, the legislation would only apply to an alternate for the mayors on council.
Town of Erin councillor John Brennan, on behalf of Mayor Alan Alls, who was absent from the Feb. 27 meeting, was the first local councillor to attend a county council meeting under this new provision.
Also, additional rules for delegations are being proposed to reflect the county’s current practice.
“Specifically, as the county has a standing committee system, it is appropriate that delegations present at the relevant standing committee. In keeping with practice, standing committees may ask the delegation to present at county council as appropriate,” the report states.
Council approved an administration, finance and human resources committee recommendation to refer the procedural bylaw report back to staff for clarification on the delegations section.
