Purpose of Municipal Council
According to the BC Government website:
“Municipal councils are democratically elected to make decisions on behalf of the community, and are accountable for those decisions to their electorate. Councils are composed of a mayor and councillors, and vary in size from five to eleven members depending on population of the municipality. Mayors and councillors serve a four-year term.
Municipal councils typically have full discretion to set policies, adopt bylaws and establish direction for their communities in accordance with legislation and other legal rules. Sometimes the discretion of a council may be constrained by the need for input or approval from the electors or the Inspector of Municipalities before, for example, a bylaw is adopted. Municipalities are also subject to the jurisdiction of bodies such as Ombudsperson, the Information and Privacy Commissioner and the courts.
Council oversees several key functions to the running of a municipality, including:
Passing bylaws
Budget planning and approval
Committee, board and commission appointments
General oversight of municipal administration
Due to these responsibilities, council has a close working relationship with the municipal administration which provides professional advice to council and implements its direction. Key municipal administration members are the chief administrative officer and the required municipal statutory officers (corporate officer and financial officer).”
The role of Council as a corporate body is then further described as:
“A municipal council is the governing body of a municipality. It has the authority to make decisions and act for the municipal corporation (the municipality), consistent with the purposes of a municipality and its authority and requirements under legislation, bylaws and policies. The purposes of a municipality include:
Providing for good government of its community
Providing for services, laws and other matters for community benefit
Providing for stewardship of the public assets of its community
Fostering the economic, social and environmental well-being of its community
A municipal council makes decisions collectively, meaning that it is not individual council members but rather the council as a whole, based on a majority vote, that decides and acts for the municipality.
Municipal councils are supported by municipal staff (officers and employees), often referred to as the municipal administration. While council sets the policy direction for a municipality, the municipal administration implements that direction.”
Here in North Cowichan, we have a full time Mayor and a 6 member council who serve part time. More information about who they are and their individual portfolios is available from the Municipality’s website.