Open Government

Under Section 239 of the Municipal Act, 2001, as amended, any individual may request that an investigation be undertaken to determine whether a municipality or local board has complied with the Municipal Act or its Procedure By-law in respect of a meeting or part of a meeting that was closed to the public.

Read about the closed meeting investigator process.

The Municipal Conflict of Interest Act and the Town of Huntsville’s procedural by-law state that members of Huntsville Council:

• Identify and disclose pecuniary interests
• File a statement in writing to the Clerk, using the declaration of conflict of interest form

After each Council or committee meeting, the Municipal Clerk or designate:

• Updates the registry
• Makes the registry available
• Offers the registry in an alternate format, on request

How to get this info

• There is a list of the declarations of interest (s) on the open data page
• The forms and meeting minutes are available at Town Hall during regular office hours

The Integrity Commissioner acts as an independent advisor to Council on a range of issues. The position is responsible for providing education and advice to Members of Council, and presiding over investigations of complaints.

On April 24, 2017 Town Council passed By-law 2017-50 appointing Robert J. Swayze as Integrity Commissioner for the Town of Huntsville for a 4 year term.

About

Specifically, the Integrity Commissioner's functions include:

• Upon their request, advising Members of Council, Council as a whole, and local boards on their obligations and responsibilities under the Code of Conduct, and any other legislation, rule or policy governing their ethical behaviour;
• Receiving, assessing and, where appropriate, investigating complaints made by Council, a Member of Council, a member of local board, a staff member or a member of the public, on an alleged breach of the Code of Conduct;
• Determining whether and how investigations will be conducted; and
• Reporting back to Council on whether an investigation's findings confirm a breach of the Code of Conduct.

View the Code of Conduct on our by-laws page.

How to contact

Residents may contact Robert J. Swayze by:

Telephone: 519-942-0070
Fax: 519-942-1233
Email: robert.swayze@sympatico.ca
Mail:
Robert J. Swayze Town of Huntsville Integrity Commissioner
20736 Mississauga Road
Caledon, Ontario L7K 1M7

All inquires made to the Integrity Commissioner will be noted and reviewed in some fashion. The decision to pursue an investigation into a possible breach of the Code of Conduct or other Town policy can only be made by the Integrity Commissioner based on the circumstances at the time of the complaint.

If the Integrity Commissioner undertakes an investigation following a public complaint and the findings confirm a breach of the Code of Conduct, appropriate penalties, as defined in the legislation, will be recommended to Council, and will become a matter of public record.

Penalties permitted under the Municipal Act, 2001 include a reprimand or the suspension of the Council Member's salary for a period of up to 90 days.

Note: The Municipal Act, 2001, specifies that the role of the Integrity Commissioner pertains to Members of Council only.

Submitting a Request for Service

Definition of "Request for Service":

• A Request for Service is a request made to the Town of Huntsville for a specific service or to notify the Town that a scheduled service was not provided on time. Examples of service requests could include repairing of a street surface, reporting a burnt out street light, reporting a bylaw or parking infraction.

How to submit a Request for Service:

• If your concern is a request for service rather than a complaint, please contact customer service to get in touch with the appropriate department.
• If your concern is related to Town roads, the Submit a Road Inquiry form can be completed. Alternate formats are available upon request.

Submitting a Complaint

Definition of "Complaint":

• A Complaint is an expression of dissatisfaction related to Town of Huntsville programs, facilities, services, staff or operational procedures, where it is believed that the Town has not provided a service experience to the customer's satisfaction at the point of service delivery.

How to submit a Complaint:

The Town of Huntsville has a Municipal complaint policy for receiving and handling complaints from citizens who are dissatisfied with service, actions or lack of action by a Town department or staff member.

1. Step 1: Speak with us: Speak with a Town of Huntsville staff member in the appropriate department about your concern. We want to make things right and will help try to resolve your complaint at first point of contact.
2. Step 2: Escalate your complaint: If you are unsatisfied with the results from speaking with us and wish to escalate your concern, a Municipal complaint form must be submitted and will be received by the Town Clerk's Department staff who will log each complaint, give it a tracking number and direct it to the appropriate department as needed; keeping you informed during the process. Alternate formats are available upon request.
3. Step 3: Contact the Ombudsman's Office: If you are still unhappy with the results after going through Step 1 and Step 2, you may contact the Ombudsman office directly for external review.

All complaints will be dealt with in a confidential manner according to the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act. Information will be collected, used and disclosed in accordance with the Act.

The Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (MFIPPA) provides an individual with the right to access information under the custody and control of an institution, including one's own personal information.

Individuals wanting to submit a formal request for information under the Municipal Freedom of Information Act must fill out a Freedom of Information Request request.

• Accountability and Transparency Policy By-law
• Designation of Head and Delegation of Administrative Functions under the Ombudsman Act By-law
• Routine Disclosure/Active Dissemination Policy
• Procurement Policy By-law
• Delegation of Powers and Duties Policy By-law
• Provision of Notice Policy By-law
• Council Code of Conduct By-law
• Municipal Complaint Policy

These and more on the by-laws and policies page.

Public disclosures for members of Council