HomeMy WebLinkAboutADMIN-7-91
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ATTACHMENT #1 TO
REPORT ADMIN. 5 - 92
TOW~ OF NEWCASTLE
REP1JRT
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By-law #
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SURECT :
General Purpose and Administration Committee
November 18 1991
ADMIN. 7 -91 FILE #:
Report of the Municipal Conflict of Interest Consultation
Committee to the Minister of Municipal Affairs dated July,
1991 and entitled "Municipal Conflict of Interest Review"
RECOMMENDATIONS:
With respect to the above Report and for the reasons set out
below, it is respectfully recommended that the General Purpose
and Administration Committee recommend that Council consider
advising the Honourable Dave Cooke, Minister of Municipal
Affairs, the following:
1) That Recommendation 13 should be clarified with
respect to the question of a potential for a
financial gain or loss;
2) That Recommendation 15 not be adopted and in its
place each council be given the power by by-law to
assign a dollar value to the term "remote or
insignificant";
3) That Recommendation 30 insofar as it would remove
the present saving provision from the Act
respecting "inadvertence" or "bona fide error of
judgement" not be adopted;
4) That Recommendation 37 respecting the oath of
office of a member not be adopted;
5) That the Ministry establish an adv~'
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available free of cha~ge to members of Councils to
provide advice as to the interpretation of the Act
and whether the disclosure and abstention
requirements of the Act apply in the particular
circumstances. The Act should be amended to
provide that a member relying on the advice given
by the Ministry's advisory service should be
deemed not to violate the Act if the advice is
followed in good faith;
6) That Recommendation 16 should be amended to permit
a council by by-law to determine a "community of
interest II of the ward councillors with the
electors of the ward generally in advance of the
consideration by council of a particular matter.
If such a by-law is passed, the Act should provide
that the ward councillors concerned may
participate in the consideration and decision on
the matter in question without contravening the
Act;
7) That Recommendations 33 and 34 be amended to
provide for financial s~pport to municipalities by
the provincial government, to allow the
municipalities to consider, prepare and tailor-
make a code of employee conduct which is suitable
for the municipality in question;
8) That Recommendation 32 should not be adopted in
its present form but rather that each municipality
should be given a permissive power by by-law to
prohibit the employment of a former member of
Council by 'the municipality concerned, for a
period of time which would be set out in the by-
law;
9) That Recommendation 36 should not be adopted untiJ
Council has a greater opportunity to consider ,Ie
implications than the opportunjtv ~_hi't 1;:
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made available to it by the Minister to this date;
and
10) That a copy of this Report be forwarded forthwith
to the Honourable Dave Cooke, Minister of
Municipal Affairs, and members of the Incoming
Council.
1.0
Introduction
1.1
In January, 1991 The Honourable Dave Cooke, the current
Minister of Municipal Affairs, continued the Municipal
Conflict of Interest Consultation Committee (the
"Committee") which had been established by his
predecessor in the previous Government of Ontario. The
Committee's mandate is to review areas of concern with
the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act and several
related issues and make recommendations regarding them.
The Committee's terms of reference and its members are
set out in Appendix A and Appendix B of the Committee's
Report.
1.2 In its Report of July, 1991, the Committee recommended
that a number ,of amendments to be made to the Municipal
Conflict of Interest Act, (the "Act"), the Municipal
Act, the Education Act and related statutes. The
Committee's Recommendations are reproduced in
Attachment "A" to this Report.
1.3 The Minister of Municipal Affairs requested that any
comments of Council on the Committee's Report be in by
November 15 1991. Staff have been advised that this
deadline will not be significantly extended.
1.4
The purpose of this Report is to identify and com,;,-
on those Recommendations contained i~ ,.
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Report which may be of particular significance to
Council.
2.0 The Present Municipal Conflict of Interest Act
2.1 The origin of the present Act is the Municipal Conflict
of Interest Act which was first enacted and came into
force in 1972. Prior to 1972, municipal conflict of
interest provisions were found primarily in the
Municipal Act. . They disqualified any member of a
municipal council who had a contract with or a claim
against the municipality if the same was acquired or
asserted after the member was elected or appointed to
the council.
2.2 The 1972 Municipal Conflict of Interest Act eliminated
the blanket prohibition of a person who had a contract
with or a claim against the municipality from holding
office on the municipal council, and replaced it with
statutory requirements of disclosure by a member of a
council's "pecuniary interest" in a matter before the
council and the abstention of the member from dealing
with the matter at council.
2.3 After extensive consultation, the Act was amended in
1983 but continues to present major difficulties to
,
members of the public and members of Council.
2.4 In considering the\present Act, Mr. Justice Robins (now
of the Ontario Court of Appeal) in a landmark decision
noted that:
The obvious purpose of the Act is to m-ohibi t
members of councils and local bOi to;J;"
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in the decision-making process in respect to
matters in which they have a personal economic
interest... So long as the member fails to
honour the standard of conduct prescribed by the
statute, then, regardless of his good faith or the
propriety of. his motives, he is in contravention
of the statute... Legislation of this nature
must, it is clear, be construed broadly and in a
manner consistent with its purpose.
2.5
In determining whether a member of a council has a
"pecuniary interest" in a matter that is a subject of
consideration at a meeting of the council, the Court
has decided that disclosure and abstention from the
council meeting are required, either (1) if a financial
gain will result from a decision of council on the
matter in question or, (2) if there is the potential
for such a gain. Under the present Act, if the Court
finds that the member's interest is so remote or
insignificant in its nature that it cannot reasonably
be regarded as likely to influence the member, the
disclosure and abstention requirements as well as the
penalty provisions of the Act do not apply.
2.6
There may be considerable uncertainty in particular
circumstances as to whether the remote or insignificant
"pecuniary interest" exception to the disclosure and
abstention requirements of the Act since a dollar value
has not been assigned in the Act to the terms "remote"
or "insignificant".
2.7
As the Committee noted, to the date of its Report, the
Courts in twenty ei~ht cases heard in Ontario since
1972 determined that a contravention of the ?"ct~ hcc'
occurred in twenty five of these case':c,
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most of these cases the members of council concerned
were excused by the Court from the penalties provided
by the Act by reason findings that the conflict of
interest had occurred either through II inadvertence II or
by reason of a" bona fide error of judgement". Urider
the present Act, the judge can decide not to impose a
penalty if a finding is made that the conflict of
interest had occurred as a result of inadvertence or
bona fide error of judgement on the part' of the member.
It is fair to say that this power of the Court to
relieve against consequences of contravention of the
Act has made the present Act workable.
2.8
The Courts' reaction to contraventions of the Act in
the majority of cases to date by relieving the members
concerned from penalty, undoubtedly reflects in part
the Court's concern with the vagueness of definitions
contained in the Act and the difficulties experienced
both by lay persons and by lawyers in determining
whether disclosure and abstention are required in the
particular circumstances.
2.9
In general, the Committee's Report recommends a number
of improvements to the present Act to make its intent,
scope of application and enforcement provisions clearer
and fa"irer both to members of councils and to members
of the public. 'These include the recommendation that
the Act be amended to make it clear that it applies to
any regular, special, committee, sub-committee or other
meeting of a municipal council. Only those
recommendations that may raise concerns of the members
of the Committee are commented on further in this
Report.
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3.0 Recommendations Made By The Committee Which May Be Of
Concern
3.1. The Meaning of "Pecuniary Interest" Contravention of
the Act and Oath of Office Provisions, (Recommendations
13, 14, 15, 25 and 30)
3.1.1
3.1.2
3.1.3
Section 5 of the present Act requires a member of
council to disclose his or her "pecuniary interest,
direct or indirect, in any matter" being considered by
the council.
Although the present Act defines the terms "indirect
pecuniary interest" and "deemed pecuniary interest" and
specifies a number of situations in which what
otherwise might be considered to be a "pecuniary
interest" triggering the member's requirement to
disclose and abstain from dealing with the matter
before Council, it does not contain a clear definition
of the term "pecuniary interest". . This has resulted in
a great deal of uncertainty as to what constitutes a
"pecuniary interest" for the purposes of the Act.
In interpreting the term "pecuniary interest", the
Courts have held that the interest must be measurable
in monetary terms although it need not necessarily
involve an actual monetary advantage. The Courts also
have held that the term applies to any situation of
potential financial profit or loss, and as well to the
maintenance of the members existing financial position.
The potential for monetary profit or loss is the key
factor in determining whether the member has a
pecuniary interest in the matter which council is
considering. The pecuniary interest, howeve:-: m:::c
already exist at the time of counciJ 'f' C":
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3.1.4
3.1.5
3.1.6
3.1.7
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the matter in question.
The cases that have been considered by the Courts
demonstrate the extraordinary difficulty that a member'
of council may have in determining whether there is a
potential for monetary profit or loss in respect of an
existing interest, for example, in land. The Act
provides no assistance to the member concerned in
determining whether the potential is too remote or
insignificant to be considered a "pecuniary interest"
which necessitates compliance with ,the requirements of
disclosure and abstention.
The Committee's Recommendation 13 (set out in
Attachment "A") is that the Act be amended to define
the term "pecuniary interest" and to provide that that
term is inclusive of an "indirect pecuniary interest"
and a "deemed'pecuniary interest". Coupled with
Recommendation 13 is the Committee's Recommendation 14
that the Act refer consistently to the term "pecuniary
interest" rather than variously as in the present Act
to "pecuniary interest" and the term "interest".
Recommendations 13 and 14, if adopted, will assist in
clarifying the legislation.
Nevertheless, if Recommendations 13 and 14 are adopted,
it will continue to be difficult and hazardous at times
for a member of council to determine whether or not he
or she has a "pecuniary interest" in a matter under
consideration by councilor a committee of council and
consequently is required to disclose and abstain if the
Act is not to be breached.
Although the language "potential for a financj ,;J CL'i_'
or the avoidance of a financial loss" 0 ~- -
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3.1.8
3.1.9
3 . 1.10
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by the Committee to be added to the Act by
Recommendation 13, it is likely that if the language
used in Recommendation 13 is reproduced in the Act, the
term "pecuniary interest" would be interpreted by a
Court to include by implication potential as well as
actual financial gain or the avoidance or a financial
loss. If this is the case, the language of
Recommendation 13 falls short of the clarity and
precision that should be reflected in the definition of
such a crucial term as "pecuniary interest" in the Act.
This is a particularly significant point in light of
the Committee's Recommendation 15. In it, the
Committee recommends that the exception in the present
Act that disclosure and abstention are not required and
a penalty cannot be exacted for a violation of the Act
if the "pecuniary interest" of the member is "remote II
or "insignificant", not be amended to assign a dollar
value to the term "remote" or "insignificant". This
may present a hazard to a member who make a bona fide
but incorrect judgement as to whether he or she has a
"pecuniary interest" in a matter which is considered by
council.
This hazard will be increased by the Committee's
Recommendation 25 that the provision of the present Act
empowering a judge to relieve against penalties where
the contravention of the Act is a result of
"inadvertence" or "bona fide error of judgement" be
removed from the Act, and certain mandatory penalties
be required to be imposed by the Court for violation of
the Act.
Further~ the significance of the above JS un ',-
the Committee's Recommendation j0
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Act, amongst others, be amended to provide that the
oath of office of each member state that he or she "has
read and agrees to comply" with the prOV1S10ns of the
Act. The difficulty of the position of a member who is
not a lawyer is aggravated by the Committee's refusal
to recommend that he or she be pe~itted to seek advice
on the application of the Act from the municipality's
solicitor for legal/ethical reasons.
Council should consider advising the Minister that:
1) Recommendation 13 should be clarified with respect
to the question of a potential for a financial
gain or loss for the ,reasons discussed above.
2) Recommendation 15 nQt be adopted and in its place
each council be given the power by by-law to
assign a dollar value to the term "remote or
insignificant II .
3) Recommendation 30 insofar as it would remove the
present saving provision from the Act respecting
"inadvertence" or "bona fide error of judgement"
not be adopted.
4) Recommendation 37 respectlng the oath of office of
a member not be adopted.
5) The Ministry establish an advisory service
available free of charge to members of Councils to
provide advice as to the interpretation of the Act
and whether the disclosure and abstention
requirements of the Act apply in the particular
circumstances. The Act should be amended to
provide that a member relying on the advice given
by the Ministry's advisory service should be
deemed not to violate the Act if the advice is
followed in good faith.
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3.2.1
3.2.2
3.2.3.
3.2.4
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Community of Interest (Recommendation 16)
The present Act excepts from its disclosure and
abstention requirements a member who has a "pecuniary
interest" in a matter "by reason of the member having
a pecuniary interest which is an interest in common
with the electors generally". In the case of the Town
the reference to electors is to be interpreted as to
reference to all of the electors of the Town and not
only to those electors who reside in any particular
ward.
In practice, situations may occur in which a member of
council will not have an interest in common with the
electors of the Town generally, although he or she may
have an interest in common with the electors of a
particular ward of the Town.
The Committee's Recommendation 16 is that this
exception from the disclosure and abstention
requirements be amended to give councils power by by-
law to determine in advance a "community of interest"
where a majority of the members have a pecuniary
interest in the matter which council may consider.
While this is a positive proposal, it does not go far
enough. Council should consider advising the Minister
that Recommendation 16 should be amended to permit
council by by-law to determine a "community of
interest" of the ward councillors with the electors of
the ward generally in advance of the consideration by
council of a particular matter. If such a by-law is
passed, the Act should provide that the ward
councillors concerned may participate in t1
consideration and decision on the ma~
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3.3
3.3.1
3.3.2
3.3.3
3.4
3.4.1
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without contravening the Act.
Prohibition Against Employment By Municipalities
(Recommendation 32)
In its Recommendation 32, the Committee proposes that
the Municipal Act, amongst others, be amended to
prohibit a member from being employed by the municipal
council on which he or she held office until a minimum
of six months has passed after he or she leaves office.
In particular circumstances, if adopted, this
Recommendation could present a hardship both to the
municipality and to a former member of council.
Undoubtedly, circumstances will vary from municipality
to municipality.
However, each municipality will be delegated an
additional permissive power by by-law to adopt higher
and additional standards for employee conduct beyond
those contained in the model code.
Council should consider advising the Minister that
Recommendations 33 and 34 be amended to provide
financial support to municipalities by the provincial
government, to allow the municipalities to consider,
prepare and tailor-make a code of employee conduct
which is suitable for the municipality in question.
Code of Conduct for Employees of Municipalities
(Recommendations 33 and 34)
In its Recommendations 33 and 34, the Committee deals
with the subject of a code of conduct for employees of
municipalities. The Committee recommends that the
province,prepare a model code of conduct which
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3.4.2
3.4.3
3.5
3.5.1
3.5.2
3.5.3
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municipalities would be required to adopt.
Each municipality would be delegated an additional
permissive power by by-law to adopt higher and
additional standards for employee conduct beyond those
contained in the model code.
Council should consider advising the Minister that
Recommendations 33 and 34 be amended to provide for
financial support to municipalities by the Provincial
Government to allow the municipalities to consider,
prepare and tailor-make a code of employee conduct
suitable for each municipality.
Use Of Confidential Or Privileged Information
(Recommendation 36)
In its Recommendation 36, the Committee recommends that
the Municipal Act, amongst others, be amended to
prohibit a member or former member from using
confidential or privileged information gained while in
office for the purposes of her or his own or another's
financial gain or avoidance of financial loss, if at
the time the information is used it is not public
information. Penalties for breaches are also
recommended.
As it stands, Recommendation 36 is onerous and may
dissuade otherwise qualified candidates for office from
seeking office.
Although the proposed prohibition against the use of
privileged information is understandable, as a
practical matter in particular circumstances, it hJ '
be very ,much a matter of judgement as to vlhnt 1 ,
particular information is confidcn"
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3.5.5
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the prohibition which is recommended by the Committee.
If it is adopted in its present form, Recommendation 36
may constrain a former member of Council from Carrying
on business or managing his or her personal affairs in,
a manner which now is not legally objectionable if the
information which had been available to the member
could possibly be regarded as confidential information
gained by him or her while in office. Further,
consideration needs to be given to
Recommendation 36 and its ramifications. However, this
has not been Possible given the Minister's short
deadline for the submission of comments on the
Committee's Report.
Council should consider advising the Minister that
Recommendation 36 should not be adopted until Council
has a greater opportunity to consider its implications
than the opportunity that has been made available to it
by the Minister to this date.
All of the above is respectfully sUbmitted,
~~:~~o~i;:~b
) Chief Administrative Officer
Attachment #1
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Recommendation 1
Recommendation 2
ATTACHMENT #1 TO
REPORT ADMIN. 5 - 92
Attachment #1 to
Report ADMIN. 7 - 91
SUMMARY OF RECOMMENDATIONS
, That the present title of the statute, the Municipal Conflict of Interest
Act. be retained.
That the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act be amended to Include, as
section 1, a statement of purpose explaining that the Intentions and
principles of the Act are
to preserve the Integrity of the local government decislon-
making process;
to ensure that members' personal pecuniary Interests do not
affect their public duties;
to ensure that members do not use their public office to
further their personal pecuniary Interests;
to provide a procedure for the disclosure of certain assets
and Interests by members;
to provide a procedure for the disclosure of a pecuniary
Interest and for withdrawal from the decision-making process
where the personal pecuniary Interest of a member may
conflict with the public Interest and where the exceptions do
not apply;
to facilitate enforcement through the Municipal Conflict of
Interest Commission, which would be empowered to enforce
the Act and bear the associated costs;
to provide remedies when a membe
personal pecun!C' '-\J r,;~('(~,'
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Recommendation 5
Recommendation 6
Recommendation 7
Recommendation 8
That section 5 of the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act be amended
to make It dear that the Act applies to any regular, special,
committee, sub-committee or other meeting of a municipal council,
school board or local board.
That the Municipal ContJIct of Interest Act be amended to Include the
pecuniary interest of the spouse of a member's child, if the
pecuniary Interest is known to the member, for the purpose of
determining a deemed pecuniary Interest of the member.
That the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act be amended to Include the
pecuniary Interest of the member's sibllng(s) and the spouse(s) of
the member's sjbling{s), if the pecuniary Interest is known to the
member, for the purpose of determining a deemed pecuniary interest
of the member.
That cJause 4(h} of the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act be amended
as follows:
-rhe duties of the member under this Act do not apply to a
pecuniary Interest in any matter that a member may have,
by reason only of the member being a director or senior
officer of 8 corporation Incorporated for the purpose of
carrying on business for and on behalf of the municipality,
school board or local board; or
by reason only of membership on a municipal council, school
board, local board or commission, or other body when that
membership Is required by a statute or regulation because:
a member's office on another munlclp3' r
or local board; or
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Recommendation 13
That the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act be amended as follows to
include a definition of .pecunlary Interest":
MFor the purposes of this Act, .pecunlary Interest. means an Interest
consisting of money, measured In money or related to money
(Including a financJal gain or an avoidance of financial loss), and
Includes the following:
a) a .dlrect pecuniary Interest" which exIsts where the pecunIary
Interest Is directly under the control of the member;
b) an Mlndirect pecuniary InterestM which exists where the
member or his or her nominee,
I) Is a shareholder In, or a director or senior officer of, a
corporation or agency that does not offer Its securities
to the public,
Ii) . has a controlling Interest In, or Is a director or senior
officer of, a corporation or agency that offers Its
securities to the public, or
III) Is a member of a body that has a pecuniary Interest In
. the matter; or
Iv) Is a partner or agent of a person who has a pecuniary
Interest In the matter; or
v) Is In the employment of a person or body that has a
pecuniary Interest In the matter;
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Recommendation 17
Recommendation 18
member to disclose the pecuniary Interest while allowing the
member to participate In discussion and voting on the matter.
That the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act be amended to require
each member of a municipal council, public utilities commission,
land division committee, committee of adjustment, planning board,
planning advisory committee, conservation authority or school
board, to file a disclosure statement of certain assets and Interests
with the municipal clerk or appropriate school or local board official
within sixty days after election or appointment.
The disclosure statement of certain assets and interests would apply
to each member and her or his spouse and would contain:
the municipal address of real property holdings, including
ownership and equitable and leasehold interests in real
property, within or adjacent to the area of Jurisdiction;
the municipal address of real property within or adjacent to
the area of Jurisdiction in which an interest in a mortgage or
charge Is held.
The member would be required to file a supplementary disclosure
statement within thirty days of any change in status of such assets
or liabilities.
(See Appendix E for proposed form.)
That tt)e Municipal Conflict of Interest Act be amended to requIre a
member to make a verbal disclosure of a pecuniary interest and to
file a written disclosure of the pecuniary Interest with the municipal
clerk or appropriate school or local board official.
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Recommendation 21
Recommendation 22
Recommendation 23
Recommendation 24
That the provisions in the Munlcloal Conflict of Interest Act which
outline the duty of a member be amended to make It clear that a
member who has a pecuniary Interest In a matter must not attempt
to influence any employee or member before, during or after the
meeting.
That the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act be amended to provide for
a quorum when the remaining number of members present, who are
not disabled from participating, at a meeting is not less than one
third of the total number of members of the body, but not less than
two members.
That the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act be amended to allow for
enforcement either through the court system or through the new
enforcement mechanism outlined in recommendation 24. The new
enforcement mechanism would relieve the elector of the
responsiblllty of undertaking legal proceedings and the burden of
associated costs.
That the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act be amended to provide for
an enforcement mechanism using the following model:
Central Enforcement Body
A body, to be called the Municipal Conflict of Interest Commission, would administer
enforcement of contraventions under the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act. The Commission
would have the following structure, functions and powers:
Structure
The Commission would be independent of any provincial ministry and would be directly
responsible to the Ontario Legislature.
The Commission would place an emphasis on service and acc"<'~-:-" 1h, i '
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11, In the Commission's opinion, a contravention had occurred, the Commission could
Initiate legal proceedings. The Commission would act as the complainant In the court
proceedings. Any penalties would be Imposed and enforced by the courts.
Costs
The complainant would not be responsible for costs associated with legal proceedings
Initiated by the Commission.
Appeal
The Commission's decisions would not be subject to appeal, except by way of judicial
review.
Umltatlon Period
A complaint would have to be filed with the Commission within ninety days of the elector,
municipal council, school board or local board becoming aware of the material facts, but
no longer than three years after the alleged contravention had taken place.
Recommendation 25
That the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act be amended to remove
the saving provisions of Inadvertence and bona fide error In
judgement and to provide for the following when a contravention is
found:
a declaration by a Judge that a breach of the Act has
occurred; and
mandatory suspension from office, without payor benefits,
for a period of up to ninety days Qf a fine of up to $5,000; and
mandatory restitution where the contravention has benefitted
the pecuniary Interest of the member. except where the judge
finds no measurable pecuniary gain; and
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Recommendation 32
Recommendation 33
Recommendation 34
Recommendation 35
That the Municipal Act. the Education Act and other appropriate
statutes related to local boards and commissions be amended to
prohibit a member from being employed by the municipal council,
school board or local board on which she or he held office until a
minimum of six months has passed after she or he leaves office.
That the Ministry of Municipal Attalrs and the Ministry of Education,
In consultation with municipalities, school boards, local boards and
local government employee associations, develop a model code of
conduct for employees of municipalities, school boards and local
boards and school boards.
That the Municipal Act. the Education Act and other appropriate
statutes related to local boards and commissions be amended to
require each municipal council, school board and local board to
adopt the model code of conduct for employees within a specified
period of time.
Each municipal council, school board and local board would have
permissive authority to adopt higher and additional standards for
employee conduct beyond those contained In the model code of
conduct.
That the Municipal Act. the Education Act and other appropriate
statutes related to local boards and commissions be amended to
regulate the acceptance of gifts and benefits In the same manner as
the Members' Conflict of Interes,t Act. which regulates Members of
the Ontario Legislature.
Members would be prohibited from accepting gifts or benefits except
for those related to protocol or social obligation. G(fts or benefits of
protocol or social obligation having a value greater than $200, or
gifts and benefit;S of protocol or social obligation received from a
single source during any twelve month period 11;('1 e>ceed a value of
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Recommendation 40
Recommendation 41
That the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and the Ministry of Education
strike a task force to examine further tf;le Issue of school board
employees-members as It relates to municipal conflict of Interest and
to review the existing provisions for municipal employees and school
board employees regarding eligibility to hold local government
office.
That no restrictions be Imposed on a member's employment
activities outside of her or his duties of local government office.
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ATTACHMENT #2 TO REPORT ADMIN. 5 - 92
COUNCIL DIRECTION D-9
City of EtobicoJ<e
OFFICE OF THE CLERK
416/394. 8075
Hilll 30 II 03 AN '9Z
March 26th, 1992
TO ALL MUNICIPALITIES IN ONTARIO
WITH A POPULATION OF 5,000 AND OVER
Subject: Proposed Amendments to the Provincial Municipal
Conflict of Interest Act
The Ministry of Municipal Affairs has recently drafted proposed
amendments to the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act for
consultation purposes.
In reviewing the draft legislation, the City of Etobicoke Council
has expressed concern with respect to certa1n portions of the
proposed amendments and has suggested certain changes to the
existing legislation, all as outlined on the attached schedule.
We have been advised by the Ministry of Municipal Affairs that
the deadline date for the consultat10n proces.s and any writ.ten
comments has been extended from March 30th to the end of April
1992.
Etobicoke Council would appreciate the support of your
Municipality in its concerns with respect to the proposed
amendments to the Act.
Yours truly,
C?&LyL<X ~r-
I
Cathie L. Best,
Deputy City Clerk.
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ATTACHMENT #2 TO REPORT ADMIN. 5 -9~
..:.,yof Etobicoke
MUNICIPAL CONFLICT OF INTEREST ACT
City of Etobicoke Council Submission to the Minister of Munic~pal Affairs
1. Council rejects the necessity for the proposed legislation
and submits that amendments to the existing Municipal Confl ict
of Interest Act be considered.
2. Such amendments to the existing legislation should
include:
a) discretion to the judge hearing a case under the Act
to award a complainant's costs against a municipality
where the judge considers it appropriate.
b) greater latitude to the judge to impose penal ties
where there is a breach of the Act. These penal ties
might allow discretion to impose fines or suspensions.
[As the Act is now worded, the judge in addition to
requiring restituti~.n may only declare the seat vacant
(and may disqualify the member for up to seven years) or
the judge may not disqualify on grounds of inadvertence
or bona fide error in jUdgment. There currently is no
middle ground.] The Act should permit a judge to make a
finding of bona fide error or inadvertence.
3. If the legislation is to proceed, the following matters be
considered:
a) the only asset to be disclosed would be land holdings
of the member, the member's spouse or any minor child o~
the member within the municipality or any immediately
adjacent municipality.
b) neither income nor liabilities would be disclosed.
c) that given the difficulty with the definition, the
reference to "gifts" be deleted from the legislation.
d) that the office of the Commissioner and all procedures
relating to that office be deleted.
e) that a judge be permitted to make a finding of bona
fide error.
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