THE CORPORATION OF THE TOWNSHIP OF CHATSWORTH

BY-LAW 20t2-40
PROCEDURAL BY-LAW

WHEREAS Section 238(2) of the Municipal Act, S.O. 2001. C.25 and amendments
thereto states that every municipality shall pass a procedural by-law for governing the
calling, place and proceedings of meetings;

AND \ilHEREAS the Council of the Corporation of the Township of Chatsworth deems
it necessary to set rules and regulations with regards to Council and Committee
proceedings;

NOW THEREFORE the Council of the Township of Chatsworth enacts as follows.

1.0

Introduction
From and after the passing of this by-Law, the procedures herein shall govern the
proceedings of all meetings, including committee meetings, of the Council
Township of Chatsworth.

2.0
2.1

of

the

Definitions
a) "Council" shall mean the Council of the Township of Chatsworth.
b) "Head" shall mean the Mayor
c) "Clerk" shall mean the Clerk or Deputy Clerk.

3.0

Meetinss

3.1

The meetings of the Township of Chatsworth shall be held at a location and date to be
determined by the Council from time to time.

3.2

A quorum shall be constituted by any (3) three members of the Council of the Township
of Chatsworth

If there is no quorum present within

J.J

15 minutes after the time appointed for the meeting,

the Clerk shall record the names of the members of the Council present and the meeting
shall stand adjourned until the next scheduled meeting.

3.4

As soon after the hour fixed for the meeting as there is a quorum present, the Mayor shall
call the members to order. In the absence of the Mayor or if this office is vacant, the
Deputy Mayor shall exercise all the rights, powers and authority of the Mayor. In the
absence of the Mayor or Deputy Mayor, the Members of Council present shall establish a
Chair Person for the meeting

3.5

The Council shall stand adjourned at 12:00 p.m. for a lunch break and if necessary
reconvene and stand adjourned at 4:00 p.m. for day meetings whether or not the business
is concluded. Council preparation for the day meeting is considered as part of their day
for compensation purposes. The Council shall stand adjourned at 10:00 p.m. for evening
meetings whether or not business is concluded. Upon a vote of the majority of the
members present, the meetings may be extended.

3.6

a) The Mayor may at any time summon a Special Meeting of the Council or Committee

of the Whole.
b) The Mayor or 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 of a) or b), the Special Meeting shall be held not sooner than 48 hours
following the Mayors summons or receipt of the petition, as the case may be, and that the
Clerk shall if practical provide written notice. If it is not practical to give written notice,

notice may be given by telephone, email, fax or personal contact of a Special Meeting
immediately following receipt of the summons or petition.

3.7

Notwithstanding the notice requirements set out above, in the event of a bona fide
emergency, the meeting may be held as soon as practicable following receipt of the
summons or petition, as the case may be, and notice may be given by telephone, email
fax or personal contact as determined by the Clerk.

3.8

The notice for a Special Meeting shall specify the purpose for which the meeting is
convened and no business shall be disposed of at a Special Meeting of the Council or
Committee of the Whole except that to which such notice related.

4.0

Meetins Asenda

4.1

The business of the meeting shall be taken up in the following order:

l.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.

Call to Order
Moment of Reflection
Disclosure of Pecuniary Interest
Minutes of the Previous Meeting
Delegations/Deputations
Public Meetings
Accounts
Reports/Recommendations/Quotes
New Business
Information items
Unfinished Business
Closed Meeting (if necessary)

Bylaws
Agreements
Adjournment

4.2

Any Council Member, Committee appointed by the Council, or Municipal Staff may,
prior to the preparation of the agenda, file in writing, or by fax or personal phone call,
with the Clerk, an item for inclusion on the agenda, no later than four full working days
prior to the meeting of the Council.

4.3

The business of the Council shall in all cases be taken up in the order in which it stands
upon the agenda, unless otherwise decided by the Council.

4.4

An item of business not listed on the Council agenda cannot be introduced at the Council
meeting without the approval of the Council.

4.5

All motions called in pursuance of the agenda and not

4.6

The agenda shall be available for Members two working days immediately
preceding the scheduled meeting.

5.0

Deleqations

disposed of shall be placed on the

decided
by
the Council.
agenda for the next meeting unless otherwise

5.1

Persons or groups wishing to appear before the Council shall advise the Clerk no later
than four full working days prior to the meeting and a determination may be made as to
defenal of the delegation to a subsequent meeting, and that the number of Delegations be
limited to Four per meeting.

5.2

Persons or groups shall submit a written summary of the presentation three working days

prior to the meeting, for inclusion in the agenda package.

5.3

Persons making a presentation shall be limited in speaking to not more than five minutes
except that a delegation consisting of more than five persons shall be limited to two
speakers, each limited in speaking time to not more than five minutes.

5.4

A person may speak longer than ten minutes if granted leave by the Chair.

6.0

7.0

Duties of the Chair

7.1

When the Chair is called upon to decide a point of order or procedure, the Chair shall
state the ruling and if an objection is made to the ruling by at least two members, they
shall submit it to a vote of the Council without debate in the following word, "shall the
ruling of the Chair be sustained?", and the decision of the Council shall be final.

7.2

V/hen two or more Members speak at once, the Chair shall name the Member who is first
to be heard and the other or others shall have the privilege of speaking thereafter in the
order named by the Chair.

7.3

The Chair, except when he is disqualified to vote by reason of Pecuniary Interest or

otherwise, shall vote.

7.4

The Chair shall receive and submit, in the proper manner, all motions presented by the
Members of the Council.

1.5

The Chair shall put to vote all questions which are moved and seconded in the course
the proceedings, and announce the results ofthe vote.

7.6

The Chair shall decline to put to a vote motions which infringe the rules of procedure.

7.7

The Chair shall restrain the Members, when engaged in debate, within the rules of order.

1.8

The Chair shall ensure the decisions of the Council are in conformity with the laws
governing the activities of the Council.

7.9

The Chair may expel any person present at a meeting who speaks or makes a noise or
behaves in a riotous, disorderly or unseemly manner or otherwise disturbs or interrupts
the proceedings of the meeting.

7.10

The Chair may adjourn the meeting without the question put, in the case of grave disorder
arising in the meeting room.

8.0

Duties and Privileges of Members

8.1

Members, prior to speaking to a question or motion, shall obtain the permission of the
Chair.

8.2

No Members shall use indecent, offensive or insulting language against the Council or
any Member thereof.

8.3

No Member shall speak except to the issue in debate.

8.4

No Member shall interrupt a member who has the floor except to raise a point of view or

of

order.

8.5

No Member shall disturb another, or the Council itselt by any conduct disconcerting to

any member speaking.

8.6

No member shall be permitted to retake their seat at any meeting after being ordered by
the Chair to vacate after committing a breach of any rule of order of the Council, without
making apology and the consent of the Council expressed by a majority of the Members
present, determined without debate.

8.1

No member shall walk across or out of the meeting room or make any noise or
disturbance when the Chair is putting the question and each Member present shall occupy
their seat while a vote is being taken and until the result thereof is declared.

8.8

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.

8.9

Any Member may appeal the decision of the Chair on a point of order to the Council,
who shall decide the question without debate.

8.10

Every Member present when a question is put, shall vote thereon, unless they have
declared a Pecuniary Interest in the question as provided by the Municipal Conflict
Interest Act, R.S.O. 1990, and amendments thereto.

9.0

Motions and Amendments

9.1

All motions shall

of

be in writing and be moved and seconded before the Chair can put the

question.

9.2

The following matters and motions with respect thereto may be introduced orally without
written notice and without leave, and do not require a seconder and are not debatable
except as otherwise provided by this By-Law:

a)

b)

presentation of petitions,

c)

to defer,

d)

to table,

e)

to separate the question,

to postpone indefinitely or to a day certain,

g)

to move the previous question,

h)

to go into Committee of the Whole,

i)

to recess for a time definite,

j)

to adjourn.

point of order,

9.3

After the Chair reads a motion, it may be withdrawn at the request of the mover and
seconder at any time before the decision and amendment with permission of Council.

9.4

A motion to amend

a)
b)
c)
d)
e)

shall not be further amended

a further amendment may be made to the main question
shall be relevant to the question
shall not be received if it proposed a direct negative to the question
shall be put in reverse order to that in which it is moved

9-5

A Notice of Motion shall be in writing and distributed to members with the agenda.

9.6

A Motion to table can be submitted from the floor by a Council Member, stating the
reason for tabling and if the Motion to Table is carried, the original motion shall be
placed on Unfinished Business until dealt with by the Council.

10.0

Takine the Vote

10.1

Where a vote is taken for any purpose and a Member requests immediately prior or
immediately subsequent to the taking of the vote that the vote be recorded, each Member
present, except a Member who is disqualified from voting by any Act, shall announce
their vote openly and any failure to vote by a Member who is not disqualified shall be
deemed to be a negative vote and the Clerk shall record each vote .

10.2

The names of those who vote for and those who vote against the question shall be entered
in the Minutes. Each Member voting for the question shall say "yes" and each Member
voting against the question shall say "no".

10.3

When recording the 'yes' votes and the 'no' votes, the Clerk shall call the names of the
Members in their alphabetical order and before the result of the vote are announced by
the Chair, the Clerk shall, if requested, read the vote so taken.

10.4

Any question on which there is an equality of votes, shall be deemed to be negated.

11.0

Reconsideration

1.1

Any motion except a motion to refer, to amend, to table, to postpone indefinitely or to set
a specific day or to adjourn may be reconsidered subject to the provisions contained in
this section.

11.2

No discussion of the main question or the motion to reconsider the main question shall be
allowed unless and until the Council shall have voted to reconsider the same, by the
member who gives the notice may have the privilege of stating their reasons for doing so.

11.3 A motion to reconsider a decision of the Council shall be moved only by a Member

who
voted with the majority of the Council on that decision and before accepting a motion to
reconsider, the Chair shall ask the Member to confirm that he voted with the majority on
the issue in question.

ll.4

No motion to reconsider shall be considered more than once during the same meeting.

12.0 Minutes

l2.I
I2.2
12.3

The Minutes of the Council shall consist of a record of the place and time of the meeting,
the name of the Chair, a record of all Members present, and the names of those absent,
together with all resolutions and decisions of the Council.
It shall be the duty of the Clerk at the close of each meeting to transcribe the proceedings
as outlined in 12.1 in the Minute Book.

At the next regularly scheduled meeting of the Council, the Minutes of the previous
meeting shall be considered so that any errors therein may be corrected and approved.

13.0

l3.l

Accounts
The Council shall receive and approve all accounts dealing with the operation of the
Council.

1.4.0 Open Meeting Provisions

14-l

All meetings of the Council shall

be open for the attendance of the public excepr if the

following subject matters are being considered:
a) the security of the propefiy of the municipality or local board;
b) personal matters about an identifiable individual, including municipal and local

c)
d)
e)

g)
h)

board employees;
a proposed or pending acquisition or disposition of land by the municipal or local
board;
labor relations or employee negotiations;
litigation or potential litigation, including matters before administrative tribunals
affecting the municipality or local board;
advice that is subject to solicitor-client privilege, including communications
necessary for that purpose;
a matter that relates to the consideration of a request under the Municipal
Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act;
a matter in respect of which a council, board, committee or other body may hold a
closed meeting to be closed under another Act.

14.2 Before holding a meeting or part of a meeting that is to be closed to the public, the
Council shall state by resolution;
the fact that it is holding a closed meeting
the general nature of the matter or matters to be considered at the closed meeting
any persons other than a Member of the Board and staff or Alternate authorized to
attend the closed meeting.

a)
b)
c)
14.3

No meeting shall be closed to the public during the taking of a vote if,
a) Section 14.1 and 74.2 permits or requires a meeting to be closed to the public;
b) the vote is for a procedural matter or for giving directions or instructions to
offtcers, employees or agents for the Council or local board or persons retained by
or under contract with the municipality or local board.

14.4

The rules of the Council shall be observed in closed meeting so far as may be applicable.

14.5

No Member or other person attending a closed session shall release a confidential report
or content of a discussion
considered at a closed meeting, or discuss the content of such a report or discussion with
persons other than Members of Council, or municipal staff members and/or agents of the
Council concerned with the report, without the authorization of the Council.

15.0

Reading of by-Laws and Proceedings Thereon

15.1 No by-law except a by-law to confirm the proceedings of the Council shall be presented
to Council unless the subject matter thereof has been considered and approved by the
Council and a copy of the by-law has been attached to the agenda or tabled for Council..

15.2

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 the
provisions of any Act.

15.3

The first and second reading of a by-law shall be decided without debate.

15.4

Prior to the third and final reading, the by-law may be debated by the Council.

15.5 All amendments

to a by-law shall be open to debate and amendment before it is ordered

for a third reading.

15.6

Every by-law enacted by the Council shall be numbered and dated and shall be signed by
the Mayor and Clerk and shall be deposited for safe keeping in the by-law book.

16.0 Public Notice

16.1

17.0

Where it is required that the Municipality give notice under the Municipal Act, notice
shall be given in the following format:
a)

items not on the agenda that have arrived after the preparation of the agenda, that
in the opinion of Council are to be dealt with immediately in the Public's Best
Interest shall be announced by Council after the Moment of Reflection and will be
considered by Council with the approval of the Members present at a time later in
the same meeting as specified by Council

b)

notice for by-laws and any other items that require public notice under specific
Acts shall be given as required under those specific Acts by either first class mail
or by placing an advertisement in the Owen Sound Sun Times or by other means
as deemed appropriate and adequate by Council, and, reasonable notice and/or
simple notice for all other situations shall be given by placing a notice on the
main entrance door to the main office foyer two (2) days prior to the meeting or in
any manner that Council deems reasonable, appropriate and adequate for each
individual matter.

Suspension of Rules

Any procedure required by this by-law may be suspended with the consent of
of the Members of the Council present except for the matters in 14.1.

This By-law shall come into force and effect upon final passing thereof.

Read a

of

""' ^2:,"'^

MAY

Read a third time and

Ddav

finall

this

lTth

CLERK

majority