Municipal government is the level of government below a provincial government. It has authority over municipal affairs. It is sometimes called “local government,” which also includes boards and agencies such as school boards and health units.

Working well with municipal government requires a sound understanding of both its structure and its decision-making processes. Here are the most common ones.

Legislation

In Ontario, the Municipal Act and the City of Toronto Act give municipalities a range of powers. They empower two-tier municipalities to govern their affairs as they consider appropriate and to respond to municipal issues.

The Municipal Act recognizes the importance of ongoing consultation between the Ontario government and municipalities on matters of mutual interest. It recognizes the memorandum of understanding between the Province of Ontario and the Association of Municipalities of Ontario. The City of Toronto has a similar arrangement with the Province, called the Toronto-Ontario Cooperation and Consultation Agreement.

Currently there are 444 municipalities in Ontario. Each municipality is a geographic area whose inhabitants are incorporated. For municipal purposes, municipalities are defined under the Municipal Act as:

  • Single-tier municipality: a municipality, other than an upper-tier municipality, that does not form part of an upper-tier municipality (such as the City of Thunder Bay or the City of Ottawa).
  • Upper-tier municipality: a municipality of which two or more lower-tier municipalities form part (such as the Region of Waterloo or the County of Bruce).
  • Local municipality: a single-tier or lower-tier municipality.
  • Lower-tier municipality: a municipality that forms part of an upper-tier municipality (such as the Town of Bancroft, which is part of the County of Hastings).
  • Regional municipality: an upper-tier municipality that was a regional or district municipality or the County of Oxford on December 31, 2002 (such as the Regional Municipality of Peel).
  • Consolidated Municipal Service Managers: these are municipalities that have been designated to deliver selected services for one or more municipalities.
  • District Social Service Administration Boards: these boards deliver particular services in a way similar to Consolidated Municipal Service Managers on behalf of areas without municipal organization in Northern Ontario. They deliver social assistance programs including Ontario Works, social housing and child care services.

Municipal councils

Regardless of size, all municipalities are governed by a council. Council members are elected by the citizens of the municipality. Upper-tier councils are made up of representatives from lower-tier member municipalities.

Head of council

The head of council – the mayor or the reeve – sets the tone. He or she can influence priorities during the term of council. While mayors and reeves, like other councillors, have only one vote, they can influence the way others vote.

Councillors

Councillors have different roles in their work as elected officials. Some focus on issues related to their community. They tend to bring local concerns to the table. Others get more involved in issues that affect the whole municipality.

The role of elected officials includes:

  • Representing their constituents. For example, they may defend a neighbourhood decision to protect a park and not allow development.
  • Representing their municipality and their constituents at community events.
  • Developing and supporting policies that guide the services the municipality provides.
  • Passing laws, known at the municipal level as by-laws, to regulate the actions of people and businesses in the municipality (for example, parking and noise by-laws).
  • Approving the municipality’s strategic plan
  • Sitting on council committees such as the waste management, budget, or accessibility advisory committee. Councillors may sit on more than one committee.
  • Deciding what services and level of service the municipality should offer and determining how to pay for them, within the limits of provincial legislation.
  • Working with other agencies involved in similar issues. Examples include housing, social services, environment, and transportation agencies.

By-laws

By-laws are rules and regulations governing everyone – including associations or corporations. Municipal councils pass municipal by-laws which can affect the local community. Your accessibility advisory committee can help ensure that accessibility issues are part of any new by-laws.

For example, there are:

  • by-laws that set the number of parking spaces designated for use by people with disabilities
  • by-laws that direct the way council and its committees work and depending on local by-laws, some accessibility advisory committees may have to manage their meetings according to Robert’s Rules of Order.

Municipal committees

Much of the work of municipalities is done by committees. Following are examples of the most common ones.

Standing committees

Standing Committees undertake a wide range of activities. For example, they oversee administrative operations, conduct hearings or act as review bodies. Councillors normally sit on standing committees, while municipal staff act as advisors. In some cases, standing committees include members of the public.

What standing committees do

A municipal standing committee usually focuses on a specific area of business. For example, it may deal with planning and development, social housing, public health or public works. Standing committees also provide a forum to debate issues and allow interested groups and people to make presentations. The chair of the committee presents regular reports to council and asks for changes in policies and procedures.

Ad Hoc Committees

Ad Hoc Committees are created by standing committees to investigate and report on a particular matter. Unlike a standing committee, an ad hoc committee is not a legal entity. It has no statutory powers.

Executive Committees

Executive Committees are usually part of a budget or policy committee.

Citizens’ advisory committees

Citizens’ Advisory Committees are made up of citizens and experts as well as councillors and municipal staff. These committees vary in structure, responsibility and length of term. An accessibility advisory committee is an example of this type of committee.

Administrative staff

Every municipality has staff to administer the policies, programs and services that council has approved. Staff must operate within applicable provincial legislation, guidelines and standards.

Staff: an important resource

Municipal staff provide expert advice to help council members make decisions. They also support the accessibility advisory committees and are a key resource for them. However, accessibility advisory committees should not be completely dependent on municipal staff to determine their workplan or priorities.

Many municipalities have an accessibility coordinator who promotes and coordinates accessibility throughout the municipality and assists an accessibility advisory committee with its work. The accessibility coordinator is the liaison between accessibility advisory committee members and municipal staff and elected officials. As a single point of contact, he/she guides accessibility advisory committee members through municipal processes, provides advice, and channels their questions to appropriate municipal staff. The accessibility coordinator is the key contact for accessibility advisory committee members and helps the committee run smoothly.

Staff expertise

Municipal staff can include experts such as engineers, planners, librarians, electricians, computer technicians, accountants, and social workers. Some staff, such as the Ontario Provincial Police and nurses, may not be considered municipal staff at all, yet they work closely with municipalities. Staff are in a good position to contribute to the evaluation of a policy – sharing what works well, and what doesn’t. And remember: as an accessibility advisory committee member, you too have special expertise that can help municipal staff in their work.

Municipal budgets

Municipalities raise money in three main ways:

  • property taxes
  • fees and charges (such as recreation program registration fees, licenses, and other user-pay programs)
  • transfer payments from provincial and federal governments

Through a yearly budget process, municipal councils set spending priorities for the year. They also determine how they are going to pay for municipal programs and services.

Budgets: a key opportunity

During the municipal budget process, citizen input is encouraged through a mix of public meetings, committee work and council meetings. This is a prime opportunity for your accessibility advisory committee to raise awareness of accessibility issues within the municipal budgeting process. The accessibility advisory committee can ask to make a presentation to their municipal council, and often this must be requested ahead of time.

Municipal government policy

A policy is a high-level plan or statement that:

  • identifies goals
  • sets the direction and/or a course of action to achieve those goals

Who implements policy?

Once council has approved a policy, the municipal administration will put it into action. This team can include the chief administrative officer, city clerks, standing and executive committees, corporate services and other departments.