Integrity Commissioner Duties
The mandate of the Integrity Commissioner is to ensure that the code of behaviour and ethics governing elected officials is objectively applied. This may entail:
- To conduct inquiries into requests made by a member of the public, Council, or a Member of Council, into whether a Member of Council has contravened any applicable code of conduct;
- To determine whether a Member of Council has in fact contravened Council's Code of Conduct and report any violation with any recommendation for sanction, in accordance with the Municipal Act and any prevailing Town protocols or policies, to a public meeting of Council and to the general public through the Town's website;
- Providing written and oral advice to individual Members of Council about their own situation under the Code of Conduct and other policies and protocols governing the ethical behaviour of Council;
- To provide Council with specific and general opinions and advice on the Town’s policies and protocols regulating the conduct of Members of Council and issues of compliance with those policies and protocols;
- To publish an annual report on the work of the Office of the Integrity Commissioner, including examples in general terms of advice rendered and complaints received and disposed of; and
- To provide general advice to Members of Council and Town of Whitchurch-Stouffville staff on issues of ethics and integrity including codes of conduct, policies, protocols and office procedures, and emphasizing the importance of ethics for public confidence in municipal government.