Council

Council Information

Council Meetings

Council meetings are being held electronically through Zoom video conference due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Zoom meeting links are made available in the Council Calendar page, you are required to register in order to attend the meeting electronically. Questions for Public Question period are required in writing in advance. Please contact Jessica Kennedy, Clerk if you have any questions.

Council meetings are open to the public. Please see the Council Calendar for agendas, minutes and public meetings.

Pursuant to Township of East Garafraxa Procedural By-Law 5-2019, as amended, Council Meetings are held the fourth Tuesday of each month, unless otherwise determined by Council; however, there are exceptions, including but not limited to the following:

Due to the ongoing COVID-19 Pandemic meetings are being held electronically/virtually and will be held the second and fourth Tuesday of the month, or at the call of the Chair.
Regular meetings of Council shall be held at 2:00 p.m., or at the call of the chair.
Regular meetings of Council shall not occur for the months of July and August unless deemed by Council to be required, or at the call of the Chair.
The regular meeting of Council held in December shall fall on the second Tuesday and will commence at 10:00 a.m., or at the call of the chair.
In the event that a holiday lands on the Monday of the week of the regularly scheduled meeting of Council the meeting shall be pushed to the following day.

Delegation Requests

A delegation is an opportunity to appear before Council to present information. The purpose of the delegation process is to allow residents to make their views known to Council.

A person or group wishing to make a Delegation/Presentation to Council shall submit a Delegation Request form to the Clerk or designate in-person, by mail, or by email to info@eastgarafraxa.ca.

Delegation Guidelines

Pursuant to Procedural By-Law 5-2019, as amended, the following apply:

A person or group wishing to make a Delegation/Presentation to Council shall submit a request to the Clerk or designate in writing no later than 4:30 p.m. the Tuesday preceding the meeting and such request shall state the nature of the business and the names of the persons in the Delegation/Presentation. A copy of the presentation must be provided for inclusion in the package.
Delegations/Presentations at the Council Meeting shall be limited to ten (10) minutes. The duration may be extended by majority vote specifying the additional time. Such question shall be decided by the Council without debate.
A maximum of three presentations per meeting will be scheduled by the Clerk or designate.
A person who is unable to attend a Council meeting may arrange for another person to appear as a deputation on such person's behalf and to read aloud a prepared statement pertaining to an item listed on the Council agenda.
Members may ask questions of clarification.
An organized body wishing to address Council as a deputation shall be limited to a maximum of ten (10) minutes regardless of the number of representatives of that group.
Where deputations have appeared on an item on the Council agenda, the item shall be brought forward for consideration immediately after the deputations have been heard.
Presenters may only present once every 12 months on the same topic.

Council By-Laws & Policies

Council of the Township of East Garafraxa has adopted the following by-laws/policies:

By-Law 5-2019, as amended by By-Law 11-2020, By-Law 21-2020, By-Law 49-2021, By-Law 18-2022 and By-Law 65-2022- To Govern the Proceedings of the Council of the Corporation of the Township of East Garafraxa
Accountability and Transparency Policy - The purpose of this policy is to provide guidance for the delivery of the municipality's activities and services in accordance with the principles as outlined in the policy.
Harassment and Respectful Workplace - Applicable to all persons who attend the Township workplace, including but not limited to visitors, contractors, venders, delivery persons, Council, Board and Committee members.
Complaint Protocol - Complaint Protocol with respect to Council and Staff Persons

Closed Meetings

Why are some meetings closed to the public?

In general, Council meetings are open to the public. However, the Municipal Act, 2001 allows municipalities to hold a Closed Meeting when the subject matter relates to certain specific topics. For these meetings, the public are not permitted to attend. The purpose of these meetings is often to get information or give direction to municipal staff or legal counsel.

If you believe that the Township held a closed meeting for a reason that is in contravention of the Municipal Act, you can request an investigation. All requests will be forwarded to the Closed Meetings Investigator. There is no fee required for submitting a request.

In Ontario, municipalities are required to appoint an investigator specifically to look at complaints about closed meetings. The Township of East Garafraxa has appointed the Local Authority Services (LAS) to perform Closed Meeting Investigations. LAS currently delegates its authority as Investigator to Aird Berlis. This company provides a panel of Review Officers who will conduct investigations on LAS’ behalf. The contact information for Aird Berlis is below.

Aird Berlis LLP

Brookfield Place, 181 Bay Street, Suite 1800

Toronto, Ontario M5J 2T9

A Request for Investigation of a Closed Meeting shall be submitted to the Clerk.

Integrity Commissioner

An Integrity Commissioner reports to Council and is responsible for preforming in an independent manner the functions assigned by the Municipality with respect to any or all of the following:

The application of the code of conduct for members of council and the code of conduct for members of local boards.
The application of any procedures, rules and policies of the municipality and local boards governing the ethical behaviour of members of council and of local boards.
The application of sections 5, 5.1 and 5.2 of the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act to members of council and of local boards.
Requests from members of council and of local boards for advice respecting their obligations under the code of conduct applicable to the member.
Requests from members of council and of local boards for advice respecting their obligations under a procedure, rule or policy of the municipality or of the local board, as the case may be, governing the ethical behaviour of members.
Requests from members of council and of local boards for advice respecting their obligations under the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act.
The provision of educational information to members of council, members of local boards, the municipality and the public about the municipality’s codes of conduct for members of council and members of local boards and about the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act. 2017, c. 10, Sched. 1, s. 19 (1).

The following documents have been adopted and/or passed by the Council of the Township of East Garafraxa:

Township of East Garafraxa Integrity Commissioner Contact Information:

Guy Giorno
Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP
Barristers and Solicitors
Bay Adelaide Centre
333 Bay Street, Suite 2400
P.O. Box 20
Toronto, ON M5H 2T6
IntegrityCommissioner@fasken.com