HomeMy WebLinkAboutBRU 95 016 govern proceeding
THE CORPORATION OF THE TOWNSHIP OF BRUCE
BY-LAW NO. 95-16
BEING A BY-LAW to govern the proceedings of Council, the conduct of
its members and the calling of meetings for matters related to
affairs of the residents and ratepayers of the Corporation of the
Township of Bruce, excepting those meetings of Council which are
held for the purposes of conducting the affairs of the Bruce
Municipal Telephone System.
WHEREAS, pursuant to Section 55 of the Municipal Act, R.S.O. 1990,
Chapter M.45, as amended by the Planning and Municipal Statute Law
Amendment Act, 1994, every Council and local board shall adopt a
procedure by-law to govern the calling, place and proceedings of
meetings.
AND WHEREAS, pursuant to Section 102 of the Municipal Act, R.S.O.
1990, Chapter M.45, every Council may pass by-laws to govern the
conduct of its members.
NOW THEREFORE the Council of the Corporation of the Township of
Bruce hereby enacts as follows:
1. The rules and regulations contained in this by-law shall be
observed in all proceedings of the Council and shall be the
rules and regulations for the dispatch of business by Council
and its committees, excepting those meetings of Council which
are held for the purposes of conducting the affairs of the
Bruce Municipal Telephone System.
2. In this by-law:
(a) "Clerk" means the Clerk of the Township of Bruce;
(b) "Council" means the Council of the Township of Bruce;
(c) "Head" of Council means the Reeve.
3.
Council and Committee Meetings
Regular meetings of Counci 1 shall be held in the Counci 1
Chambers on the second and fourth Tuesdays of each month at
7:00 p.m..
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4. The inaugural meeting of counci I after a regul ar el ection
shall be held on the first Tuesday in December at 7:00 p.m..
THE CORPORATION OF THE TOWNSHIP OF BRUCE
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5.
Council may, by resolution, alter the date and/or time of a
regular meeting provided that notice of the change is posted
for at least one week on the bulletin boards in the Office of
the Township and on the notice board at the Bruce Township
Community Centre, and published at least once in the local
newspapers in advance of the regular meeting.
6. (a) The Head of Council may, at any time, summon a special
meeting.
(b) The Clerk shall summon a special meeting upon receipt of
a petition of the majority of the Council members for the
purpose and at the time and date mentioned in the
petition.
(c) In either case of (a) or (b) above, the Special Meeting
shall be held not sooner than 48 hours following the
Head's summons or receipt of the petition, as the case
may be and the Clerk shall provide written notice of the
Special Meeting immediately following receipt of the
summons or petition.
(d) Notwithstanding the notice requirement set out above, in
the event of a boni fide emergency the meeting may be
held as soon as practicabl e following receipt of the
summons or petition, as the case may be, and notice may
be given by telephone or personal contact as determined
by the Clerk.
(e) Unless otherwise specified in the notice described in
Paragraph 6(c) above, a special meeting shall be held in
the Council Chambers.
(f) The notice of a Special Meeting shall specify the purpose
for the meeting.
7. (a) The Reeve shall preside at all meetings of the Council.
(b) When the Reeve is absent or refuses to act, or the office
is vacant, the Deputy-Reeve shall act in the place and
stead of the head, and, while so acting, the Deputy-Reeve
has and may exercise all the rights, powers and authority
of the Reeve.
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(c) Notwithstanding Paragraph 7(b) above, the members may
appoint another presiding officer from among themselves
for the purpose of chairing a particular meeting.
(d) The Reeve or presiding officer may expel from a meeting
anyone who engages in improper conduct, as determined by
the Reeve or presiding officer.
8. (a) All Council and Committee meetings shall be open to the
public.
(b) Notwithstanding Paragraph 8(a) above, a meeting of
Councilor a Committee may be closed to the public if the
subject matter being considered relates to:
(i) the security of the property of the Township,
or local board;
(ii )
personal
individual
employees;
matters about an
including municipal
identifiable
or local board
(iii)
a proposed or
property for
purposes;
pending acquisition of real
municipal or local board
(iv) employee negotiations or labour relations;
(v) litigation or potential litigation including
matters before administrative tribunals,
affecting the Township or a local board;
(vi)
a matter in respect of which Council, a
Committee of Council or a local board has
authorized a meeting to be closed under an Act
of the Legislature or an Act of Parliament.
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(vii )
the receiving of advice that is
solicitor/client privilege,
communications necessary for that
subject to
including
purpose.
(c) Before all or part of a meeting is closed to the public,
the Council shall state by resolution:
THE CORPORATION OF THE TOWNSHIP OF BRUCE
BY-LAW NO. 95-16
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i)
the fact of the holding of the closed meeting;
ii) the general nature of the matter considered at the
closed meeting;
(d) Subject to Subsection (e) a meeting shall not be closed
to the public during the taking of a vote.
(e) Despite Subsection 31, a meeting may be closed to the
public during a vote if,
i) Subsection 8(b) permits or requires a meeting to be
closed to the public; and
ii) the vote is for a procedural matter or for giving
directions or instructions to officers, employees
or agents of the Township or persons retained by or
under contract with the Township.
(f) Meetings or sessions which are closed to the public may
be referred to as in-camera meetings or sessions.
Agendas and Supporting Material
9. (a) The Clerk shall prepare agendas of council and Committee
meetings as assigned.
(b) Insofar as is practicable, Council agendas, along with
supporting material, shall be prepared and made available
to members on the Friday prior to a regular meeting.
.
(c) Individuals or groups wishing to appear before Council at
a regular meeting shall advise the Clerk not later than
4:30 p.m. on the Thursday prior to the meeting and the
Clerk may make a determination as to deferral of
delegations to a subsequent meeting.
(d) Written reports of officers shall, insofar as is
practicable, be made available to Council by 4:30 p.m. on
the Monday immediately preceding regular meetings.
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(e) Agendas shall be generally formatted as follows, but
modifications to the matters to be included or the order
of business may be effected without requiring amendment
to this by-law.
(a) Call to Order
(b) Declaration of Conflict of Interest
(c) Minutes of Previous Meeting
(d) Deputations
(e) Accounts
(f) Correspondence
(g) Reports of Municipal Officers
(h) Peti tions
(i) Old Business
(j) New Business
(k) Motions and By-laws
(I) Report by Councillors
(m) Resolution to Move to an In-camera (closed) Session
(n) Resol ution to Move Out of an In-camera Session
(resume the open meeting)
(0) Adjournment
(f) The business of the Counci 1 shall be taken up in the
order as listed on the agenda unless otherwise decided by
the Reeve or presiding officer.
Minutes
10. Minutes shall record:
(a) The place, date and time of meeting;
(b) The names of the presiding officer or officers and record
of the attendance of the members;
.
(c) The presentation, correction and adoption of the minutes
of prior meetings;
(d) All other proceedings of the meeting without note or
comment.
No Quorum
11. If no quorum is present one half hour after the time appointed
for a Councilor Committee meeting, the Clerk or recording
secretary shall record the names of the members present and
the meeting shall stand adjourned until the date of the next
regular meeting or until rescheduled.
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THE TOWNSHIP OF BRUCE
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Curfew
12. Council and Committee meetings shall stand adjourned at 11:00
p.m., but business may be continued upon a resolution passed
by unanimous vote.
Duties of the Reeve
13. It shall be the duty of the Reeve or other presiding officer:
(a) to open the meeting by taking the chair and calling the
members to order;
(b) to announce the business before Council in the order in
which it is to be acted upon;
(c) to receive and submit, in the proper manner, all motions
presented by the members;
(d) to put to a vote all questions which are moved and
seconded, or necessarily arise in the course of the
proceedings, and to announce the result;
(e) to decline to put to vote motions which infringe upon the
rules of procedure;
(f) to enforce to all occasions the observance of order and
decorum among the members;
(g) to call by name any member persisting in breach of the
rul es or order of the Council, thereby ordering the
member to vacate the Council Chambers;
(h) to authenticate by signature all by-laws, resolutions and
minutes of the Council;
.
(i) to inform the Council when necessary or when referred to
for the purpose, on a point of order or usage;
(j) to represent and support the Council, declaring its will
and implicitly obeying its decisions in all things;
(k) to ensure that the decisions of Council are in conformity
with the laws and by-laws governing the activities of the
municipal Corporation;
THE C~RPORATION OF THE TOWNSHIP OF BRUCE
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(1) to adjourn the meeting without question in the case of
grave disorder arising in the Council Chambers;
(m) to order any individual or group in attendance at the
meeting to cease and desist any behaviour which disrupts
the order and decorum of the meeting and to order the
individual or group to vacate the Council Chambers where
such behaviour persists.
Conduct of Members of Council and Guests
14. No member shall:
(a) No member shall speak disrespectfully of the Reigning
Sovereign, or of any of the royal Family, or of the
Governor-General, the Lieutenant-Governor of any
province, or any Member of the Senate, the House of
Commons of Canada or the Legislative Assembly of the
Province of Ontario;
. (b) use offensive words or unparliamentary language in or
against the Counci 1 or against any member, staff or
guest;
(c) disturb another, or the Council, staff, or guest, by any
disorderly conduct disconcerting to the speaker or the
assembly;
(d) speak on any subject other than the subject in debate;
(e) criticize any decision of the Council except for the
purpose of moving that the question be reconsidered;
-e
(f) resist the rules of councilor disobey the decisions of
the Reeve or presiding officer or of Council on questions
of order or practice or upon the interpretation of the
rules of Council;
(g) leave a meeting without first obtaining permission from
the Reeve or presiding officer;
(h) be permitted to retake their seat after being ordered to
vacate, having commi t ted a breach of any rul e of the
Council, until the next meeting and without making an
apology to Council;
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(i) interrupt the member who has the floor except to raise a
point of order;
(j) when the Chair is putting the question no member shall
leave or make a disturbance.
15. No person shall be allowed to address Counci I or speak in
debate without permission of the Reeve or presiding officer.
16. Subject to Paragraph 17 and insofar as is practicable, notice
of motions, except those listed in Paragraphs 34 and 35, shall
be given in writing to the Clerk not later than 4:30 p.m. on
the Thursday preceding the next regular meeting so that the
matter may be included in the Council agenda package.
17. Any motion may be introduced wi thout notice if Counci I,
without debate, agrees on a verbal majority vote to dispense
with notice.
18. A motion must be formally seconded before the question can be
put or a motion recorded in the minutes.
19. When a motion is presented in Council in writing it shall be
read, or, if it is an oral motion, stated by the Reeve or
presiding officer.
20. (a) A motion to amend shall:
(i)
be presented in writing;
(ii )
be dealt with by Council before a previous
amendment or the main motion;
(iii)
not be further amended more than once provided
that further amendment may be made to the main
motion;
(iv) be relevant to the main motion;
(v)
not propose a direct negative to the main
motion;
(vi)
may propose
disposition of
a separate
a question;
and
distinct
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(vii)
shall be put in the reverse order to that in
which it is moved.
21. Once read or stated by the Reeve or presiding officer a motion
may not be withdrawn without the consent of the majority of
the members.
22.
Immediately prior to
presiding officer shall
it is to be recorded in
to the question.
voting on a motion, the Reeve or
state the question in the precise form
the minutes, including any amendments
23.
~fter a motion as amended is finally put, no member
bpeak to the question nor shall any other motion be made
after the vote is taken and the result is declared.
shall
until
24. Members shall not speak more than once to the same question
without the consent of the Reeve or presiding officer.
25. On an unrecorded vote, the manner of determining the decision
on a motion shall be at the discretion of the Reeve or
presiding officer and may be by voice, show of hands or
standing.
26. Where a vote is taken for any purpose and a member requests,
before or after the vote, that the vote be recorded, each
member present, except a member disqualified from voting by
any Act, shall, in an order determined by the Reeve or
presiding officer, announce their vote openly, and any failure
to vote by a qualified member shall be deemed to be a negative
vote and the Clerk shall record each vote.
.
27. When the presiding officer calls for the vote on a question,
each member shall occupy his seat and shall remain in his
place until the result of the vote has been declared by the
presiding officer.
28. When a member is speaking no other member shall pass between
him and the Chair or interrupt him except to raise a point of
order.
29. The Reeve or presiding officer, except where disqualified to
vote, may vote on all questions and when so doing, shall vote
last.
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30. Except where expressly provided in statute, any question on
whi ch there is an equal i ty of votes shall be deemed to be
defeated.
31. Subject to Subsection 8(e), no vote shall be taken by ballot
or any other method of secret voting and every vote so taken
is of no effect.
32. (a) Unless otherwise authorized by the Reeve or presiding
officer, all members, staff and guests shall address
Council through the chair and only when recognized to do
so.
I
(Ib) When two or more members seek to address Council, the
Reeve or presiding officer shall designate the member who
may speak first.
33. Any member may require the question or motion under discussion
to be read at any time during the debate but not so as to
interrupt a member while speaking.
34. The fOllowing matters and motions may be introduced orally
without written notice and without leave except as otherwise
provided by these rules:
(a) a point of order or personal privilege;
(b) presentation of petitions;
(c) to lay on the table (to defer temporarily)
(d) to postpone indefinitely or to a specific day;
.
(e) to move the previous question (immediate vote on the main
motion) .
35.
The following motions may be introduced
wi thout 1 eave, but such motions shall
signed:
(a) to refer;
without notice
be in wri ting
and
and
(b) to adjourn;
(c) to amend;
THE CORPORATION OF THE TOWNSHIP OF BRUCE
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(d) to suspend the rules of procedure.
36. Except as provided in Paragraph 34, all motions shall be in
writing and signed by the mover and seconder.
37. The Clerk and other officers may introduce matters to be deal t
with by motion subject to the notice provisions set out in
Paragraph 16.
38. Council may, from time to time, employ a confirming resolution
immediately prior to adjournment for the purpose of validating
~ecisions or direction given which is minor in nature and not
tet out in a by-law or resolution.
Points of order and Privilege
39. The Reeve or presiding officer shall preserve order and decide
questions of order.
40. The Council, if appealed to, shall decide the question without
debate and its decision shall be final.
By-laws
41. No by-law shall be presented to Council unless the subject
matter has been considered and approved by Council.
42. Every by-law shall be introduced upon motion by a member
specifying the title of the by-law.
43. Every by-law when introduced shall be in typewritten form and
shall contain no blanks except as may be required to conform
to accepted procedure or to comply with provisions of any Act.
44. Every by-law shall be given three readings prior to passage.
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45. The first and second readings of a by-law shall be decided
without amendment or debate.
46. By-l aws may be given three readings on the same day except
when requested otherwise by motion of the majori ty of the
members present or as otherwise provided in law.
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47. Every by-law enacted by the Council shall be numbered and
dated, and signed by the Clerk and the presiding officer, and
shall be sealed with the seal of the Corporation, and shall be
deposited by the Clerk in his office for safekeeping.
48. Any proposed by-law may be referred to a Committee, Department
Head or other officer for review and comment, including the
solicitor for the Corporation.
General
49. When the Reeve of Council is absent on a temporary basis,
under no circumstances shall the Counci 1 make a decision
regarding capital spending unless provision for the capital
spending is included in the estimates for that given year as
approved by by-law or unless the expenditure is required as a
result of an emergency.
50. In all matters and under all circumstances the members shall
be guided by and shall have regard to the Municipal Conflict
of Interest Act, or its successor Local Government Disclosure
of Interest Act 1994, upon Proclamation.
51. Individuals or groups which are listed on an agenda or are
otherwise approved to appear before Council shall, subject to
Paragraph 9(c), be limited to not more than ten (10) minutes
except that a delegation listed on the agenda as consisting of
more than five (5) persons shall be limited to two (2)
speakers each 1 imi ted to speaking not more than ten (10)
minutes.
52. Following a regular or new election, the Clerk shall provide
each member of Council with a copy of this by-law, including
any amendments thereto.
53. Any procedure under this by-l aw which is discretionary and not
mandatory under statute may be suspended with the consent of
a majority of the members present.
54. No amendment or repeal of this by-law or any part thereof
shall be considered at any meeting of the Council unl ess
notice of the proposed amendment or repeal is given at a
previous regul ar meeting of the Council and the waiving of
notice is prohibited.
55. By-law No. 89-8 is hereby repealed.
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56. This by-law shall become effective the day after enactment.
57. Where any by-law passed prior to this by-law conflicts with
this by-law, the terms of this by-law shall prevail.
By-law introduced and read a First time this TWENTY-FIFTH day of
APRIL, 1995.
By-law read a Second time this TWENTY-FIFTH day of APRIL, 1995.
By-law read a Third time and finally passed, signed, sealed, and
numbered 95-16 this NINTH day of MAY, 1995.
6v ;úM:-
~/4A
CLERK
REEVE
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