I.

CALL TO ORDER

1.

Disclosures of Pecuniary Interest

That it BE NOTED that no pecuniary interests were disclosed.

II.

CONSENT ITEMS

2.

STAFF REPORT - 2017 Citizen Satisfaction Survey

That, on the recommendation of the City Manager, the staff report dated August 21, 2017, with respect to the City of London 2017 Annual Community Survey, BE RECEIVED for information. 

Motion Passed

YEAS: M. Brown, M. van Holst, B. Armstrong, J. Helmer, M. Cassidy, J. Morgan, P. Hubert, A. Hopkins, V. Ridley, S. Turner, H.L. Usher, T. Park (12)

III.

SCHEDULED ITEMS

3.

Final Report of the 2016 Council Compensation Review Task Force

That the following actions be taken with respect to Council compensation:

a)         effective with the commencement of the next term of Council, the annual compensation for serving as a Ward Councillor BE SET at the 2016 median full time employment income for Londoners; it being noted that while 2016 data will not be available until the Fall of 2017, based upon the 2011 National Household Survey data, about 35% of Londoners ages 15 years and over worked full year, full time with employment income in 2010 and had a median employment income of $47,805 and an average employment income of $57,112;

b)         NO ACTION BE TAKEN at this time with respect to the provision of additional compensation for the role of Deputy Mayor; it being noted that the level of compensation for this role should be reassessed once the role is more clearly defined and is not reliant on the discretion of each mayor;

c)         NO ACTION BE TAKEN with respect to the provision of additional compensation for Ward Councillors serving as the Chair of a Standing Committee and all Council Members BE ENCOURAGED to serve as Chair throughout the course of their term of office;

d)         the current formula for adjusting Council compensation on annual basis BE CONTINUED;

e)         notwithstanding that there will be a minor budgetary impact by doing so, the City Clerk BE DIRECTED to bring forward the necessary by-law to eliminate the “1/3 tax free” allowance for Council Members, effective for the next Council term;

f)         a review of Council Compensation BE UNDERTAKEN by an independent body, once per Council term, subject to the following:

i)          the review should be completed no later than twelve months in advance of the date that nominations are accepted for the next municipal election;

ii)         any adjustments should be effective on the first day of the next Council term;

iii)         the Task Force should, as much as possible, reflect the diversity of the community and ideally the participants should have knowledge in the areas of municipal government, research, statistics, public engagement and compensation;

iv)        the Task Force should be limited to no more than five individuals;

v)         the review should include a review of the major supports required for Council Members to efficiently and effectively carry out their role to the best of their ability as the availability of these supports helps to inform compensation;

vi)        the review should consider if median full time income remains an appropriate benchmark for Council Member compensation;

vii)       the review should consider if the current formula for interim adjustments remains appropriate; and

viii)       public engagement should continue to be a component of the review process and that engagement should be undertaken in a manner which recognizes community preferences and needs;

g)         the Municipal Council BE REQUESTED to consider how it can better educate the public with respect to the legislative and non-legislative roles of Council Members;

h)         the Municipal Council BE REQUESTED to establish and make publicly available a reasonable timeframe for an initial response to an enquiry made by a constituent to a Council Member so that service standards are available to the public, recognizing that staff support should be utilized in a manner that expedites the response process as much as possible;

i)          opportunities BE EXPLORED to determine what support services might be needed in order to ensure that the right conditions are set for a Council Member to perform their policy and constituency duties to the highest level of their ability;

j)          when a review of the adequacy of staff resources is undertaken, that review BE DONE in conjunction with a review of Council Members’ annual expense allocation;

k)         NO ACTION BE TAKEN with respect to the consideration of a system of performance-based compensation for Council Members; and

l)          the Mayor BE REQUESTED to send a letter to each of the members of the 2016 Council Compensation Review Task Force to thank them, on behalf of the Municipal Council, for the time and effort they put into fulfilling the Task Force’s mandate;

it being noted that the Strategic Priorities and Policy Committee received a verbal overview of the Final Report of the 2016 Council Compensation Task Force from D. Ross, Task Force Chair.

Motion to Approve parts b), c), d), e), g), h), i) and k).

Motion Passed

YEAS: M. Brown, M. van Holst, B. Armstrong, M. Salih, J. Helmer, M. Cassidy, P. Squire, J. Morgan, P. Hubert, A. Hopkins, V. Ridley, S. Turner, H.L. Usher, T. Park (14)

Motion Passed

YEAS: M. Brown, M. Salih, J. Helmer, J. Morgan, P. Hubert, A. Hopkins, V. Ridley, H.L. Usher, T. Park (9)

NAYS: M. van Holst, B. Armstrong, M. Cassidy, P. Squire, S. Turner (5)

Motion Passed

YEAS: M. Brown, B. Armstrong, M. Salih, J. Helmer, M. Cassidy, P. Squire, P. Hubert, A. Hopkins, V. Ridley, S. Turner, H.L. Usher, T. Park (12)

NAYS: M. van Holst, J. Morgan (2)

Motion Passed

YEAS: M. Brown, M. van Holst, B. Armstrong, M. Salih, J. Helmer, M. Cassidy, P. Squire, J. Morgan, P. Hubert, A. Hopkins, V. Ridley, S. Turner, H.L. Usher, T. Park (14)

Motion Failed

YEAS: M. Brown, B. Armstrong, M. Salih, M. Cassidy, P. Hubert, V. Ridley (6)

NAYS: M. van Holst, J. Helmer, P. Squire, J. Morgan, A. Hopkins, S. Turner, H.L. Usher, T. Park (8)

Motion Passed

YEAS: M. Brown, M. van Holst, B. Armstrong, M. Salih, J. Helmer, M. Cassidy, P. Squire, J. Morgan, P. Hubert, A. Hopkins, V. Ridley, S. Turner, H.L. Usher, T. Park (14)

IV.

ITEMS FOR DIRECTION

4.

3rd Report of the Governance Working Group

That the following actions be taken with respect to the 3rd Report of the Governance Working Group from the meeting held on July 19, 2017:

a)         the following actions be taken with respect to the Council Policy Manual Review:

i)          the revised proposed by-law appended to the Governance Working Group report dated July 19, 2017 as Appendix C BE INTRODUCED at the Municipal Council Meeting to be held on August 22, 2017 to revoke and repeal the following Council policies related to: Short Listing Agenda Items Requiring Staff Reports, Administrative Planning Advisory Group Meetings – Closed to Public, Notification of Claims, Personal Enquiries of Elected Officials, Process for Seeking and Handling Citizen Applications for Appointments to Various Committees, Boards and Commissions, as representatives of the City of London, Appointment of Citizens and Council Members to Advisory Committees, Reporting of Imperial Measurements, Requests for Preparation of By-laws, Elected Officials to Attend Provincial Meetings when London Private Bills Being Addressed, Allocation of Controllers’ Offices, Processing of Confidential Communications, Committee Conduct Policy for Members of Advisory Committees, Special Committees or Task Forces, Snow Removal from Private Property, Fire Hydrants on Private Property, Fire Route Designations, Rescue Unit Outside City Limits, Erosion Problems, Retaining Flood Plain and River Bank Lands, Municipal Standards for Condominium Developments, Demolition Control By-law and Rental Housing Protection Act, Heritage Properties, Housing Partnership Policy, Refunding of Lottery Licence Fees, Revoking of Licences by Clerk – N.S.F. Cheques, Merchandising on Sidewalks and in Shopping Malls, Sale of Lottery Tickets, Approval and Issuance of Business Licences, Lottery Licences Issued by the Province, Taxi Fare Adjustments, Lodging Houses, Taxicab Licences to Population Ratio, Sidewalk Café, Review of Taxicab/Limousine Regulations, Refusing, Suspending or Revoking Business Licenses, Exemption from Cat identification Fees for Cats Residing on Agricultural Lands, and Door-to-Door Selling for Profit by Children;

ii)         the revised proposed by-laws appended to the Governance Working Group report dated July 19, 2017 as Appendix D BE INTRODUCED at the Municipal Council Meeting to be held on August 22, 2017 to revoke, repeal and replace the following Council policies related to: Appointment of Deputy Mayor, Advising Public of Existing Policies, Resolutions of Other Municipalities, Discussion on Elected Officials’ Salaries to be in Public, Council Appointee to External Board or Commission – Membership Paid by City, General Policy for Advisory Committees, Delegations by Union Executives to Standing Committees and Board of Control, Anonymous Communications, Etc., Establishment of Task Forces and Working Groups, City Representations at “Out of Town” Functions, Payment of Tickets or Entrance Costs that Directly Benefit a Political Party, Civic Administration - Not to be Appointed as Voting Members to Boards, Commissions and Advisory Committees, Allocation of Councillors’ Offices, Use of Corporate Resources During a Municipal Election Year, Issuance of Computer Equipment to Council Members, Code of Conduct for Members of Council, Remuneration for Elected Officials and Appointed Citizen Members, Appointment of Council Members to Standing Committees of Council and Various Civic Boards and Commissions, Review of Ward Boundaries, Process for the Public Release of Information Pertaining to Investigations Undertaken by the Ontario Ombudsman, Audio Recording of Municipal Council and Standing Committee In Closed Session Meetings Policy, Affordable Housing Reserve Fund Implementation Policy, Risk Management Policy, Legal Services and Accounts, Enforcement by City Personnel, Urgent, Last Minute or “Walk-in” Recommendations, and Dedication of Fire Stations;

iii)         the Integrity Commissioner BE REQUESTED to consider if any of the provisions of the Council Policy pertaining to Personal Enquiries of Elected Officials should be incorporated into the Code of Conduct for Members of Council, particularly as it relates to a protocol for handling matters pertaining to personal interests of Council Members; it being noted that this Policy read as follows:

“That a policy be established whereby all elected representatives be requested to direct all enquiries pertaining to their personal business or professional capacities to the Department Head, Deputy or designated staff person of the department concerned, and that the civic staff be requested to provide an answer, in writing if required and if time permits, as promptly as possible.”

iv)        at such time as the modernization phase of the Council policy review process occurs, consideration BE GIVEN to implementing a policy amendment that would require each Advisory Committee to provide a comprehensive annual update to the appropriate Standing Committee which incorporates information regarding the Advisory Committee’s annual budget and expenditures, attendance record of members, a proposed Work Plan for the coming year and a summary of accomplishments for the preceding year;

v)         the Civic Administration BE REQUESTED to report back, as part of the comprehensive review of Advisory Committees, with the necessary policy changes to provide that no Striking Committee member shall be eligible for appointment to anybody for which the Striking Committee is recommending appointments, during the term that individual is sitting on the Striking Committee;

vi)        the Civic Administration BE REQUESTED to report back at the next meeting of the Governance Working Group with suggested changes to the Council policy pertaining to “Urgent Last Minute or ‘Walk-In’ Recommendations” that provide for the continued requirement of an executive summary, a brief recess to review the submission and the potential for deferring the matter to a future meeting to allow sufficient time to review the matter;

vii)       the Civic Administration BE REQUESTED to report back to the Governance Working Group on whether or not current legislation makes the Council Policy pertaining to “Payment of Tickets or Entrance Costs that Directly Benefit a Political Party” redundant;

viii)       the City Clerk BE REQUESTED to consider providing more clarity in the Council Policy pertaining to “Use of Corporate Resources During a Municipal Election Year”, specifically in part 1(iv)(a), in order to reflect that this does not apply to funds used to assist a Council Member for running for office as the City of London’s Council representative on a municipal organisation (e.g. Federation of Canadian Municipalities, Ontario Good Roads Association, etc.);

ix)        the City Clerk BE REQUESTED to ensure that the forthcoming update of the Council Policy regarding “Issuance of Computer Equipment to Council Members” is as flexible as possible; and

x)         the Civic Administration BE REQUESTED to liaise with the London Professional Fire Fighters Association to obtain their feedback with respect to the Council Policy pertaining to “Dedication of Fire Stations”;

b)         on the recommendation of the City Manager, the following actions be taken with respect to the Council policies entitled “Tours onto 12th Floor Deck” and “Animals in City Hall”:

i)          the proposed by-law appended to the Governance Working Group report dated July 19, 2017 as Appendix “A” BE INTRODUCED at the Municipal Council Meeting to be held on August 22, 2017 to revoke and repeal the Council policies entitled “Tours onto 12th Floor Deck” and “Animals in City Hall;  and,

ii)         the Civic Administration BE REQUESTED to investigate the appropriateness of establishing an administrative procedure to address animals in City-owned and operated facilities;

c)         consideration of the Municipal Council resolution from its meeting held on June 13, 2017, with respect to a ranked ballot voting process for citizen appointments to various Committees, Boards and Commissions, BE DEFERRED to the next meeting of the Governance Working Group as the first order of business; and

d)         clauses 1, 2, 5 and 7 BE RECEIVED.

Motion Passed

YEAS: M. Brown, M. van Holst, B. Armstrong, J. Helmer, M. Cassidy, J. Morgan, P. Hubert, A. Hopkins, V. Ridley, S. Turner, H.L. Usher, T. Park (12)

V.

DEFERRED MATTERS/ADDITIONAL BUSINESS

VI.

ADJOURNMENT