The night Quesnel City Council’s regular open meeting of February 1st, 2022 was disrupted by anti-mask and anti-vax protesters, one of the protesters yelled that he hadn’t come to hear about putting standing waves in the Quesnel River (the delegation presentation that evening), while another demanded the right to speak to Council on the issues that mattered to them (on a topic that was not on the agenda nor within the scope of Council’s authority).
Council understands the frustration and consternation that some groups and individuals can feel toward Council’s legally constrained meeting and decision-making processes, but it is these very processes and procedures that protect our democracy by ensuring all citizens know when their elected Council will meet and what it will be discussing.
By law, Council must post an annual meeting schedule for both regular Council meetings and for all of Council’s Standing Committees (Finance, Policy & Bylaw, Executive, and Public Safety and Policing). While some of these meetings may be cancelled due to no, or insufficient agenda items, and some may be rescheduled with advanced notice to the public, the publishing of an annual meeting schedule enables the public to know well in advance where and when Council and its Committees will meet.
Public notice is also given for in-camera (confidential) meetings, and these meeting notices must refer to the section of the Community Charter (the provincial legislation governing municipal governments) under which Council is closing the meeting to the public. In practice, these reasons are generally limited to legal, land, labour, and sensitive government-to-government issues. Council’s strategic planning process and discussions about potential new services are also initially held in-camera to allow Council the freedom to speak about the widest range of potential issues and concerns.
While in-camera discussions remain confidential, the decisions of these in-camera meetings must be made public as soon as the circumstances allow; only a very few of these decisions ever remain confidential, and there must be justifiable, legal reasons for doing so.
Council is also required to hold open, public hearings for certain issues. Again, these issues are circumscribed by law and the subject of the public hearing must be within the purview of Council. Significant advance notice of public hearings must be given following a legal process established by the Province. This legal process serves to protect the public interest by ensuring that every citizen who wishes to comment on the topic of the public hearing can participate either in writing or in-person.
Giving advance notice of meeting times and places is the initial level of transparency protection for citizens, the next level is the requirement to publicly post agendas and supporting documentation well in advance of these meetings. In fact, the general public can access upcoming meeting agendas and documents at the same time as they are made available to the elected Council.
Publishing agendas in advance ensures the public is made fully aware of what Council will be discussing and what decisions Council is being asked to consider at their next scheduled meeting. That’s why Council must make every effort to stick to its published agenda because deviating from the published agenda negates the right of every citizen to advance notice that a particular topic is going to be discussed.
Showing up at Council meetings and demanding the right to speak may seem to be the most democratic thing to do. In reality, if Council concedes to those demands, they would negate all the protections put in place to ensure that every citizen knows not only when and where their Council will meet but also what, exactly, they will be discussing.
Find meeting agendas and minutes here: quesnel.ca/agendas-minutes.
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