Committee Rules of Procedure Municipal Election Compliance Audit Committee 1.

Background

Section 81.1(1) of the Municipal Elections Act, 1996 states that before October 1 of an election year, council must establish a committee for the purposes of considering applications requesting compliance audits of candidates’ election campaign finances and considering any resulting auditor reports. This committee is governed by the Municipal Elections Act, 1996. Section 81.1(4) says that the clerk of the municipality is required to establish administrative practices and procedures for the committee. The City’s clerk has established the following rules of procedure, in addition to the committee’s terms of reference, for the 2014 to 2018 term of Council to enable the committee to fulfill its duties in an open, consistent and responsible manner. 2.

Definitions

As used within these rules of procedure, the following terms are defined as follows: a. Acting Chair- means any Member selected under these rules of procedure to act in place of the Chair. b. Applicant- means a person who applies, under Section 81(1) of the MEA, for a compliance audit of a Candidate’s election campaign finances. c. Application- means an application for a compliance audit received by the Clerk under Section 81(2) of the MEA. d. Auditor- means a qualified individual licensed under the Public Accounting Act, 2004. e. Candidate- means the candidate whose election campaign finances are the subject of an Application. f. Chair- means the chair of the Committee, selected under these rules of procedure. g. City- means The Corporation of the City of Guelph. h. Clerk- means the Clerk of the City or the Clerk’s designate.

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i. Closed Session- means a Meeting or part of a Meeting that is closed to the public under Section 239 of the Municipal Act, 2001. j. Committee- means the Compliance Audit Committee of the City. k. Council- means the Council of the City. l. MEA- means the Municipal Elections Act, 1996. m. Meeting- means any regular, special or other meeting of the Committee. n. Member- means a member of the Committee. o. Minutes- means the record, without note or comment, of the Committee’s resolutions and decisions. p. Quorum- means the minimum number of Members required to be in attendance at a Meeting to conduct the business of the Committee, being two (2) Members. 3.

Purpose of these Rules of Procedure

These rules of procedure shall be observed at, and in respect of, all Meetings of the Committee. Subject to the MEA, the Committee may waive any of these rules, as it considers appropriate, to ensure that the questions are fairly and justly determined. 4.

Matters Not Addressed in these Rules of Procedure

If these rules of procedure do not provide for a matter of procedure that arises during a Meeting, the Chair shall determine the procedure, with consideration of the MEA, the Statutory Powers Procedure Act, and the City’s Procedural By-law (2014)-19784. The Chair may do whatever is necessary and permitted by law to enable the Committee to effectively and completely adjudicate the matter before it. 5.

Committee Chair

At the first Meeting of the Committee, the Clerk shall call the Meeting to order and the first order of business shall be the selection of the Chair. A Member may volunteer to act as Chair or the Committee may select a Chair from among its Members.

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When the Chair is absent or is otherwise unable to act, the Committee may appoint another Member as Acting Chair. While presiding, the Acting Chair shall have all of the powers and responsibilities of the Chair. If the Chair resigns as a Member or as the Chair, the Committee shall appoint another Member as Chair. Selection of the Chair and of the Acting Chair shall be made by way of motions. The Chair shall be the liaison between the Members and the Clerk on matters of procedure, practice and process. The Chair shall enforce the observance of order and decorum among the Members and the public at all Meetings. The Chair shall call Meetings to order as soon as Quorum is achieved and shall outline the Meeting’s agenda, facilitating Meeting discussions and identifying the order of proceedings to speakers. The Chair shall lead the Committee through the agenda until the consideration of all matters has been completed. The Chair shall put to vote all motions that are regularly moved and seconded and shall announce the results of the votes. The Chair shall ensure that any public attendees are fairly and appropriately engaged at Meetings and shall ensure that there is adequate follow-up on action items in preparing for future Meetings. 6.

Committee Secretary a. The Clerk shall act as the secretary to the Committee. b. The Committee shall meet at the request of the Clerk. c. In accordance with Section 81(4) of the MEA, the Clerk shall forward each Application to the Committee. The Clerk shall request that a Meeting be held at least eight (8) business days after receipt of the Application by the Committee, and no more than thirty (30) days after receipt of the Application by the Clerk. d. Before each Meeting the Clerk shall provide an agenda to each Member. The agenda shall include a copy of any written submissions made by the Applicant or the Candidate at least five (5) business days prior to the Meeting. e. Each Meeting shall commence at a date and time set by the Clerk.

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f. The Clerk shall record and prepare Minutes of each Meeting of the Committee outlining the substance of items listed on the agenda, reports, motions, resolutions, decisions, actions, and, if applicable, submissions of Applicants, Candidates and Delegates. The Clerk shall provide Members with a copy of the Minutes as soon as they are available. Members shall review and sign the Minutes to confirm that the Minutes reflect the Committee’s actions. g. The Clerk shall carry out any other duties required under the MEA to implement Committee decisions. 7.

Meetings – General Rules a. The provisions of Section 239 of the Municipal Act, 2001 (meetings) shall apply to all Meetings. b. Meetings may be for purposes of fulfilling the Committee’s statutory duties or for educational and training purposes. c. Meetings shall be held at the City’s City Hall or such other location as the Clerk determines to be appropriate. d. A Meeting may only be held if Quorum is met, and shall not continue if Quorum is lost. If Quorum remains unattained thirty (30) minutes after the time fixed for a Meeting, or for the resumption of a Meeting after an adjournment, or if a Quorum at a Meeting becomes lost for a period of thirty (30) consecutive minutes, the Clerk shall record the names of the Members present and the Meeting shall stand adjourned until the next Meeting is scheduled by the Clerk. e. Meetings shall be open to the public, subject to a resolution passed by the Committee to meet in Closed Session. f. Portions of Meetings that are open to the public may be recorded and audio/video streamed on the City’s website. g. Before holding a Closed Session, the Committee shall state by resolution: i. ii. iii.

The fact of the holding of the Closed Session; The provision within Section 239(2) or 239(3.1) of the Municipal Act, 2001 that authorizes the Closed Session; and The general nature of the matter to be considered at the Closed Session.

h. No vote shall be taken in Closed Session, unless the vote is for a procedural matter, or for giving directions or instructions to officers,

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employees or agents of the City or persons retained or under contract by the Committee. i. At a Meeting at which the Committee considers an Application, it shall give an opportunity for each of the following to address the Committee in respect of the Application for not more than ten (10) minutes, unless the Committee grants an extension to that time limit: i. ii. iii. iv.

The Applicant; The Candidate; The Auditor (if one has been appointed); and Any delegate who has registered with the Clerk at least five (5) business days prior to the Meeting.

j. Committee Members shall comply with the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act and shall disclose a pecuniary interest, or other conflict of interest as outlined in the Committee Terms of Reference, to the Clerk and absent himself/herself from Meetings for the duration of the consideration of the Application, including all discussion and voting with respect to it. k. Each Meeting shall be adjourned on a vote of the Committee. 8.

Confidentiality of Information and Documents

Members shall ensure that confidential information disclosed to them in Closed Session and materials provided to them in respect of a Closed Session, are kept confidential. In accordance with Section 88(5) of the MEA, all documents and materials filed with or prepared by the Clerk are public records and, until their destruction, may be inspected at the Clerk’s office. Minutes shall be made publicly available on the City’s website. 9.

Application and Response

Upon receipt of an Application, the Clerk shall forward it to the Committee and to the applicable Candidate in respect of whose election campaign finances the Application was made. The Clerk shall notify the Candidate that he/she may submit to the Committee a response to the Application, and that if the Clerk receives the response at least five (5) business days prior to the Meeting at which the Application will be considered, then the Clerk shall include such response with the Agenda to be provided to the Committee in respect of that Meeting. The Clerk shall give reasonable notice to the Applicant and Candidate with regard to the time, place and purpose of the Meeting. The Clerk, in this notice,

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shall make it clear that, if the Applicant and/or the Candidate fail(s) to attend the Meeting, the Committee may proceed despite such absence and the absentee shall not be entitled to any further notice in relation to the Meeting. The notice to the Applicant and Candidate shall include the content of the Application and any written response submitted by the Candidate. 10.

Public Notice of Meetings

The Clerk shall publish public notice of a Meeting on the City’s website at least seven (7) business days prior to the Meeting. The Clerk shall make any documents forming part of the Meeting agenda, including any Application and any written response submitted by the applicable Candidate, publicly available, upon request, at the Clerk’s Office or ServiceGuelph. 11.

Meetings – Order of Business a. Call to order by Chair and opening statement- If the agenda includes consideration of an Application, the Chair shall read an opening statement outlining the procedure and format of the Meeting. The Chair shall introduce the Members and officers, employees or agents of the City or persons retained by the Committee participating in the Meeting. Only those matters identified in the Application shall be the business of the Committee. Any submissions presented after the agenda was published may be considered by the Committee in its sole discretion. b. Conflict of interest- A Member may declare a conflict of interest, as defined in the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act and as outlined in the Committee Terms of Reference, with respect to a matter contained in the Meeting agenda. c. Agenda sequence- Prior to consideration of an item on the Committee agenda, the Chair shall identify the agenda item(s) to be considered. d. Identification and introduction of Applicant and Candidate- Before considering an Application, the Chair shall request the Applicant and Candidate to identify themselves, and to provide their names to the Clerk for the record. e. Presentation of Applicant (if present) i. The Applicant or the Applicant’s agent may address the Committee. ii. The Committee may, through the Chair, ask questions of the Applicant or the Applicant’s agent.

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iii. iv.

The Applicant or the Applicant’s agent shall not ask questions of the Candidate or the Candidate’s agent. The Candidate may view any documents submitted by the Applicant.

f. Presentation of Candidate (if present) i. The Candidate or the Candidate’s agent may address the Committee. ii. The Candidate may respond to the content of the Applicant’s address to the Committee. iii. The Committee may, through the Chair, ask questions of the Candidate or the Candidate’s agent. iv. The Candidate or the Candidate’s agent shall not ask questions of the Applicant or the Applicant’s agent. v. The Applicant may view any documents submitted by the Candidate. g. Presentation of Auditor (if present) i. The Auditor may address the Committee. ii. The Committee may ask questions of the Auditor. iii. The Applicant and Candidate, or their respective agents, may view any documents submitted by the Auditor. h. Presentations of delegates i. Any person, for or against an Application, who, in advance of the Meeting, registered with the Clerk as a delegate shall be listed on the Meeting agenda and may address the Committee. ii. The Committee shall not hear a delegate unless he/she speaks with respect to an Application currently before the Committee. iii. Each delegate shall address the Committee through the Chair. iv. Until five (5) days prior to the Meeting, each delegate may register to present at a Meeting and provide written materials to the Clerk for submission to the Committee. i. Rules of debate i. The Chair shall preserve order and decorum and decide questions of order. ii. When two or more Members wish to speak, the Chair shall designate the Member who has the floor. iii. A Member may ask a question only for the purpose of obtaining information relating to the matter currently under discussion. iv. To maintain the Committee’s impartiality, Members shall not, until all relevant persons have been heard: discuss an

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Application prior to a Meeting; state preferences or impressions; or render decisions. j. Motions i. ii.

iii.

iv.

v.

k. Voting i.

ii. iii. iv.

Any Member may propose a motion in respect of a matter then under consideration, which the Clerk shall record in writing. Every motion must be introduced by a mover and a seconder before the Chair may put the question or motion on the floor for consideration. If no Member seconds the motion, the motion shall not be on the floor for consideration and shall not be recorded in the Minutes. After a motion is properly moved and seconded, it shall be in the possession of the Committee, but may be withdrawn by the mover at any time before decision with the consent of the Committee. A motion to amend shall relate to the subject matter of the main motion, shall not pose a direct negative to the question, and multiple motions to amend shall be put to vote in reverse order to the order in which the amendments were moved. Any further amendments must be made to the original motion as amended. If there is more than one motion concerning a matter, the Clerk shall record all motions in writing and read each motion to the Members before a vote is taken. Every Member present at a Meeting when a question is put, shall vote on the question, unless prohibited by statute, in which case the fact of prohibition shall be recorded in the Minutes of the Meeting. The matter put to a vote shall be in the form of a motion addressing the matter under consideration. In the event of a tie, the motion shall be lost. The Committee shall try to render its decision on each matter at the Meeting at which the matter is first raised, but the Committee may reserve its decision if further deliberation is required.

l. More than one Application- If the agenda includes more than one Application, each Application shall be dealt with by the Committee in its entirety before considering the next Application.

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12.

Committee Decisions on Applications

In accordance with Section 81(5) of the MEA, within thirty (30) days after the receipt of the Application, the Committee shall decide whether to grant or reject the Application. No decision of the Committee on an Application is valid unless it is agreed to by the majority of the Members. The decision of the Committee, whether granting or refusing an Application, shall be in writing and shall set out the reasons for the decision, and shall be signed by the Members who concur with the decision. In addition to the written decision, nothing herein prevents the Committee from delivering an oral decision at the Meeting. If the Committee decides to grant the Application it shall, by resolution, appoint an Auditor to conduct a compliance audit of the Candidate’s election campaign finances. The Clerk shall forward notice of the Committee’s decision to the Applicant and the Candidate at the addresses provided to the Clerk. 13.

Auditor

When appointed, the Auditor shall promptly conduct an audit of the Candidate’s election campaign finances to determine whether he or she has complied with the provision of the MEA relating to election campaign finances, and shall prepare a report outlining any apparent contravention by the Candidate. The Auditor shall submit the report to the Clerk, who shall distribute the report to the Members, the Candidate, the Applicant and Council. The Auditor shall have all the powers as set out in Section 81(12) of the MEA. 14.

Committee Consideration of Auditor’s Report

In accordance with Section 81(14) of the MEA, within thirty (30) days after receipt of an Auditor’s report, the Committee shall consider the report. If the report concludes that the Candidate appears to have contravened any provision of the MEA relating to election campaign finances, and if the Committee commences a legal proceeding against the Candidate for the apparent contravention(s), then the Committee shall, with the assistance of the Clerk, engage the services of legal counsel. If the report concludes that the Candidate does not appear to have contravened any provision of the MEA relating to election campaign finances, then the Committee may make a finding as to whether there were reasonable grounds for the Application.

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If the report concludes that there was no apparent contravention and the Committee finds that there were no reasonable grounds for the Application, then the Committee shall submit its findings to Council, and Council is entitled to recover the Auditor’s costs from the Applicant.

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