New Legislation means Municipal Politicians could be Fired for Serious Misconduct

By Staff

December 12th, 2024

BURLINGTON, ON

The Toronto Star reported today that “Municipal politicians could be fired for serious misconduct — and barred from running for four years — under new legislation introduced by the province.

The move comes in light of efforts by non-partisan advocacy group The Women of Ontario Say No, which brought more than 200 municipalities on board in asking for help to deal with code of conduct violations.

“We had to make sure we got this right, which is why we worked with Ontario’s Integrity Commissioner to find the best path forward to create a standardized code of conduct process across the province,” Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister Paul Calandra said in a written statement on introducing the new bill.

“This process will support consistent accountability across our municipalities.”

Can this lot be considered the “usual suspects”?  The legislation will give them reason to at least pause.

Those found in “serious violation” of the code of conduct could be fired if the municipal integrity commissioner has investigated, and both the local and the Integrity Commissioner of Ontario recommend the move, along with a unanimous vote of all other Councilors.

The act will apply when local politicians’ conduct “that is the subject of the inquiry has resulted in harm to the health, safety or well-being of persons … and the existing penalties are insufficient to address the contravention or ensure that the contravention is not repeated,” the ministry said in a news release.

The Municipal Accountability Act will help set out code of conduct rules, how to handle Integrity Commissioner inquiries and require Councillors and other local elected officials to undergo training.

Last January, the province promised “airtight” legislation to address an issue that municipalities have struggled to deal with, after Progressive Conservative MPPs previously voted down a private member’s bill from Liberal MPP Stephen Blais (Orléans) last year.

Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister Paul Calandra

At the time, Calandra had said he needed to “ensure that it’s constitutional, that it does what it’s supposed to do.”

“I don’t want to do something or bring something forward that can, in any way, make it harder for somebody to get the justice that they are seeking, ” he said.

As it now stands, local politicians can be removed from office for campaign finance violations but not for harassing staff, leaving municipalities with no options to address egregious behaviour.

Blais introduced his bill after serving on Ottawa council with Rick Chiarelli, who former staffers said made inappropriate comments, urged them to go braless and shared sexually explicit stories. In the end, Chiarelli was docked pay, but could not be ousted.

Emily McIntosh of The Women of Ontario Say No had said “this is really about workplace safety,” noting that staff in any other sector who harass others can be fired. “We’re talking about people that have the most power in communities held to a lower standard than any other workers in Ontario,” she said.

The Association of Municipalities of Ontario, Ontario Big City Mayors and the Rural Ontario Municipal Association had all asked for help on code of conduct compliance.

Leaders of all opposition parties had also said such legislation is needed