Integrity Commissioner Jean-Jacques Lacombe presented updated changes to Champlain Township’s code of conduct, complaint protocols, and amendments to the procedural by-law to have them more in line with other municipalities at the October 10 council meeting. The Ombudsman for the province of Ontario recommended in the fall of 2023 that councils revisit such items to ensure their continued validity and timely relevance.
Lacombe mentioned to council that these changes were made following the Ombudsman’s recommendations and were reasonable for implementation. He examined what was being done in other municipalities in the province and adapted the by-laws specific to Prescott-Russell’s context.
Some of the suggestions put forward by Lacombe included adding more detail to existing regulations and conduct of council as there was room for misinterpretation. Changes recommended by Lacombe gave more direction as to what is and is not allowed while serving as a municipal councillor in Champlain.
Lacombe also highlighted that any potential pecuniary conflicts of interest must be declared, except when the topic or item affects the whole population of the municipality or is of minimal importance.
The discussion then surrounded councillor conduct on social media as well as public encounters. Currently, the by-law on the code of conduct does not effectively deal with social media, but the municipality must include provisions to address the gap.
Lacombe explained that it is best practice for councillors to present themselves in the same way as they do in council sessions, as they represent the municipality and the larger council as a whole, 24 hours a day. This further includes if a council member has a public Facebook page or other social media accounts, that they are responsible for ensuring that content and comments posted on these pages, even those made by the public, are not racist or threatening in nature. If the council member believes this to be the case, the onus is on them to remove such posts. Although council members would be encouraging public engagement with constituents by having social media accounts, they cannot allow vulgarity to stay online.
The remaining time was then largely dedicated to councillors asking Lacombe for clarification on updated items and presenting additional alterations. Specifically, the topic of handling complaints against council members took centre stage and hosted a lengthy back-and-forth.
Councillors André Roy, Gerry Miner, Paul Burroughs, and Peter Barton sought Lacombe’s further explanation pertaining to anonymous complaints being filed against council members. Barton suggested that this anonymity likely would work for larger cities, but in smaller communities such as Champlain Township, it would be difficult to deal with these situations in countering complaints at such a local level.
Miner explained that there have been politicians resigning due to pressure that comes from the public enveloping harassment and ill-will against elected officials and that having anonymous complaints could aggravate the issue.
Lacombe then stated that complainants are asked for full disclosure should there be a criminal complaint brought forward, however, the law does not deem it necessary to name the complainant because it does not change anything if the proof in the complaint is not sufficient. He said that there must be a balance to ensure that complainants are protected as they could fear the power held by the council members or retaliation. Ultimately, releasing information or the name of the complainant would fall under the discretion of the Commissioner.
Council requested that Lacombe make some additional tweaks to the code of conduct, complaint protocols, and by-laws before passing them in the chamber. The amendments will be revisited and voted on at the November 14 Committee of the Whole meeting.
