Chestermere City Council gave the first and second readings of amendments to the code of conduct for elected officials bylaw, as directed by Municipal Affairs.
At the April 4 council meeting, city administration was directed to send a consolidated version of the bylaw for council consideration to be brought back for third reading by the April 18 council meeting.
Code of conduct bylaw amendments were included in the Municipal Affairs directives for Chestermere City Council, based on the findings from the municipal inspection report.
Minister of Municipal Affairs Rebecca Schulz directed city council to repeal and amend the bylaw to remove all provisions authorizing council to conduct preliminary reviews of code of conduct complaints.
Council was directed to appoint an independent third party to handle all complaints, including receiving complaints, conducting reviews, documenting, investigating, and presenting the findings and recommendations to council.
“The purpose of this code of conduct is to provide standards for the conduct of council members relating to their roles and obligations as elected representatives of the City of Chestermere and a procedure for the investigation and enforcement of those standards, the council presentation said. “This code of conduct is one aspect of accountability and transparency both internally, as among members and as between city council and city staff, as well as externally, with other orders of government, the media, and the public at large.”
Under the amendments, council will appoint an investigator by resolution, following a competitive procurement process, ensuring the individual is not currently employed by the city, and has previous municipal governance experience.
A formal complaint must be submitted in writing directly to the investigator, by mail, e-mail, or through the code of conduct complaint form. If any complaints are submitted to the city, the Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) will direct the complainant to submit the complaint to the investigator.
Formal complaints must meet a series of requirements including, the complainant’s full name, contact information, the elected official allegedly breaching the code, along with a detailed description of facts, identifying any witnesses or records relating to the incident.
After receiving the complaint, the investigator will begin a preliminary review of the complaint, determining whether to proceed with a formal investigation or dispose of the complaint.
During the preliminary review, the investigator can request the elected official to answer questions or provide records.
The review will consider if the complaint is within the scope of the bylaw, the context and intent of the complaint and if further action will serve the purposes of the complaint process.
Based on the findings of the preliminary review, the investigator will confirm in writing to the CAO if a formal investigation will be conducted.
If the complaint does not relate to non-compliance with the code of conduct bylaw, the investigator will advise the CAO and council that the complaint is not within the jurisdiction of the bylaw.
The investigator will not be under obligation to proceed with an investigation if it’s determined the complaint is frivolous or not made in good faith.
When the investigation is complete, the investigator will prepare a report outlining the complaint received, the findings, contraventions of the code of conduct, and any recommendations for corrective action.
Funds for the investigator will be allocated from council’s budget using contracted services or legal expenses line items. Final costs will be publicly disclosed to city council.
