DIDSBURY - The Town of Didsbury's policy and governance committee will review proposed changes to the council procedural bylaw, which includes updates to the rules around decorum and keeping order during council meetings.
At the Sept. 23 council meeting, council discussed and commented on the proposed changes.
The committee has already reviewed the proposed updates on instructions from council in an April 23 motion.
Deputy mayor Curt Engel is on the policy and governance committee.
“The committee considered legal guidance on principals that can be set forth in the procedures bylaw that can assist with keeping decorum, while keeping within the limitations placed upon council by the Municipal Government Act,” said Engel.
“Therefore, in consideration of those limitations, the committee is recommending some additional processes for consideration in the procedures bylaw that can provide council with some helpful tools to assist in keeping order and decorum in the meeting.”
The purpose of the bylaw itself is to establish rules to follow in governing Town of Didsbury council meetings, special council meetings, organizational meetings, public hearing and in-camera meetings.
The proposed updated Meeting Decorum section reads, in part, that, “Members who persist in being disruptive and disrespectful to the chair’s ability to keep order will be asked to leave the meeting. If the member in question refuses to leave the meeting upon request, council may make a motion to further request that the member leave.
“Alternatively, the chair may call a recess or council may adjourn the meeting. A council member may, at any time, make a motion to call for the vote. Such motions are not debatable and require a two-thirds majority to pass. If passed, the vote will immediately be called.”
“Our committee has been looking at this for a little while and we’ve done an awful lot of work on it,” deputy mayor Engel.
The updated bylaw also include changes to the Electronic Participation in Meeting section.
“It seems to be work in progress,” said mayor Rhonda Hunter. “I trust that we will get it right going forward.”
Council granted first reading to the update bylaw and forwarded it to the committee for further review and recommendations. A date for the matter to come back before council was not set.
In other news from the recent council meeting, council decided to keep the current ATCO franchise fee of 25 per cent and the current Fortis franchise fee of 17 per cent unchanged for 2025.
