HomeMy WebLinkAboutAppointment to Boards and Committees - GOV-BOA-063POLICY GOV-BOA-063
APPOINTMENT TO BOARDS &
COMMITTEES
Category
GOV -
Governance
Sub-category
BOA - Board &
Committee
Approval Type
COUNCIL
Department/Division
Corporate Services
Department,
Legislated Services
Author and Position
City Clerk, Director of Legislated
Services
Date Approved
September 8, 2008
Last
Reviewed/Amended
November 18, 2024
Next Review Date
June 1, 2027
Related Policies or Procedures
•
Policy Purpose
The purpose of this policy is to define the City’s advisory committee and board structures,
and provide consistent and transparent process for public appointments to advisory
committees and local boards at the City of Kitchener.
Definitions
“Advisory Committees” those committees, whose members are appointed by Council, to
provide advice and recommendations to Council as requested on areas within their mandates
with no authority for decision making or independent actions.
"Chair" the individual appointed by a Committee to act as the Chair of the Committee at any
given meeting.
“City” the Corporation of the City of Kitchener.
"Clerk" the person appointed by Council under Section 228 of the Municipal Act, 2001, S.O.
2001, c. 25. d).
“Local Boards” those established by legislation and members are appointed by Council. They
have authority to address their responsibilities as determined under the relevant legislation.
Examples include the Kitchener Public Library Board, Kitchener Housing Inc. Board, Centre
in the Square Board of Management, Downtown Kitchener Business Improvement Area
Board of Management and the Belmont Business Improvement Area Board of Management.
"Member" an individual who has been appointed by Council as a member of an Advisory
Committee, Quasi-Judicial Tribunal or Board.
"Nominating Committee" a Committee established by Council, which makes
recommendations to Council regarding the appointment of members of the public to all
Advisory Committees and Quasi-Judicial Tribunals. They receive and review all applications
from members of the public who wish to serve on Committees or Tribunal.
“Quasi-Judicial Tribunals” operate independently from the City and hold hearings to resolve
disputes, regulate activities, adjudicate on matters and determine legal rights and benefits.
"Scoring Matrix" a scorecard used to compare basic quantitative and qualitative suitability of
candidates.
"Staff" the City staff member(s) who provide administrative and legislative assistance.
“Statutory Committees” those permitted or required by provincial legislation and perform
functions as specified in the relevant legislation. Examples include the Committee of
Adjustment, Property Standards Committee, Municipal Election Audit Compliance
Committee, Accessibility Advisory Committee, and the Heritage Kitchener Committee.
“Vice-Chair” means the individual appointed by a Committee to act as the Vice-Chair of the
Committee at any given meeting and shall assume the authority and perform all the
duties of the Chair in the absence of the Chair.
Policy Scope
This Policy shall govern the actions of Legislated Services staff, Council and the Nominating
Committee formed by Council to make recommendations to Council regarding appointments.
This Policy does not apply to provincial appointments made by the Order of Council.
Application
☐ Employees (Indicate below which categories apply: All employees, Permanent full-time, Temporary full-time, Continuous part-
time, Casual, Probationary, Student, Management, Non-union)
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☐ Unions (Indicate below which categories apply: All Unions, CUPE 68 Civic, CUPE 68 Mechanics, CUPE 791, IATSE, IBEW, KPFFA)
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☒ Council
☒ Specified Positions: City Clerk
☒ Other: Local Boards and Advisory Committees
Policy Content
1. Recruitment for Advisory Committees, Quasi-Judicial Tribunals and Local Boards
1.1 There are three occasions when recruitment occurs.
a) Immediately after a municipal election.
b) In the last quarter of year 2 of the Council term.
c) As vacancies occur throughout the year.
1.2 A notice of call for applications will be issued by Legislated Services in
accordance with Section 1.4 of this Policy.
1.3 The notice of the call for applications will include:
• Name of the Committee or Board;
• The number of positions to fill;
• Eligibility criteria, key qualifications and desired competencies, if
applicable;
• Process for submitting applications and deadline for receipt of
applications;
• Direction to detailed information about the committee/board, current
members and meeting times; and
• Note regarding the confidentiality of personal information.
1.4 The following methods may be used to provide notice of recruitment:
• The City’s website through the Boards and Committee web page;
• The City’s social media accounts;
• Printed newspapers including cultural and ethnic newspapers;
• Printed publications posted at community facilities;
• Direct email from city staff, council and/or agency stakeholders; or
• Workshops and/or focus groups, and
• Any other notice mechanism deemed eligible by the Clerk.
1.5 Persons wishing to apply to an Advisory Committee, Quasi-Judicial Tribunal or
Board must complete an Application Form and provide any required or optional
support material in the prescribed format.
1.6 Complete Application Forms are to be submitted on or before the application
deadline.
1.7 Alternate methods of submissions may be made available upon request.
1.8 Applications will be received un 11:59 p.m. on the specified date. Applications
received after the submission deadline and for non-advertised vacancies shall
not be considered, but may be retained to fill future vacancies.
1.9 All personal information will be treated in confidence and protected pursuant to
the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act.
2. Demographic Diversity Information
2.0 To enable the City to achieve its objectives for access, equity and diversity and
to assist the City in its efforts to appoint Committees, Tribunals and Boards that
collectively reflect the diversity of the community, applicants are encouraged
but not required to include self-identified information in their applications.
2.1 The application will include a self-identification form where applicants can
provide information about their gender, age group, Aboriginal status, racial
group, disability status, and sexual orientation.
2.2 Self-identified diversity data (applicant pool, short-listed candidates, appointed
members) may be monitored and reported on in summary form at different
stages of the selection process. The identities of specific candidates shall be
kept confidential.
2.3 The purpose of this monitoring is to assess how well diversity objectives have
been met and ascertain what improvements could be made such as targeted
outreach or removing barriers to participation.
3. Eligibility Requirement
3.1 Except where eligibility requirements are legislatively controlled or set by
Policy, members appointed to Advisory Committees, Tribunals or Boards must
either reside, work or own property in the City of Kitchener to be eligible for
appointment. Staff shall, to the best of their ability, make this determination and
where one of the above cannot be substantiated, advise Council through the
appointment meeting notice or addendum.
3.2 If during the term of the appointment a Member no longer meets the eligibility
requirement referenced herein, they are required to advise the City Clerk in
writing of the change, prior to the date Council next meets to make annual
appointments, on which date that member’s term will expire, if the member has
not resigned in the intervening period.
4. Term and Length of Service
4.1 Members will be appointed for a period of time set out in the Terms of
Reference for the applicable Committee or Board, and will continue to serve
until any of the following scenarios occur:
i) Their term expires;
ii) Their appointment is revoked by Council;
iii) They no longer meet the required Eligibility; and,
iii) The Board or Committee to which they are appointed is dissolved by Council.
4.2 Notwithstanding Section 4.1, Members shall continue to be appointed and
serve beyond their term of appointment until the appointment of successors.
A Member may only be appointed to the same committee for a maximum
number of 8 consecutive years.
4.3 Any appointment to fill an unexpired term shall not be considered as part of the
calculation with respect to the maximum term.
4.4 Any individual will be eligible for re-appointment to the same board or
committee only if a minimum period of 1 year has elapsed between the
completion of an 8-year maximum term and the commencement of the new
term.
4.5 Applicants are to be appointed to only one committee at any one time.
5. Boards
5.1 Where a Board has established a Nominating Committee they will forward their
nominations for Board vacancies to Council by the required date set by staff.
5.2 Council will consider the nominations and decide whether to accept or refer the
nominations back to the Board’s Nominating Committee.
5.3 Where a Board has not established a Nominating Committee, staff will
advertise for applications, setting deadlines for submission and present the
applications for Council’s consideration.
6. Advisory Committees
6.1 Advisory Committee Structure
That City’s Advisory Committee structure shall consist of:
a) Arts & Culture Advisory Committee
b) Safe & Healthy Community Advisory Committee
c) Heritage Kitchener Committee
d) Downtown Advisory Committee
e) Economic Development Committee
f) Climate Change and the Environment Committee
g) Active Transportation and Trails Advisory Committee
h) Compass Kitchener Committee
NOTE: See individual policies for each Committee’s membership and mandate.
6.2 Chair and Vice-Chair System
A Chair and Vice-Chair System shall be adopted for each Advisory Committee,
or in its place Co-Chairs may be appointed by the Committee.
A member of Council may sit as either Chair, Vice-Chair or Co-Chair.
6.3 Sub-committees
Where an Advisory Committee feels a sub-committee(s) is required, such
committee be ad hoc in nature, with a specific, clearly articulated mandate, and
be reviewed annually to determine whether they need to continue.
Membership on sub-committees may be expanded, if required, to include
people who are not Advisory Committee members, to benefit from individual
expertise.
6.4 Nominating Committee
A Nominating Committee will be appointed by Council comprised of five
community members and City staff persons as prescribed by the Nominating
Committee Terms of Reference (GOV-BOA-010).
Following an accessible and inclusive recruitment and application process, the
Nominating Committee will assess applicants to Advisory Committees on the
basis of expertise / interest and in light of each committee’s Terms of
Reference, use a Scoring Matrix to evaluate candidate applications, and
present Council with a list of qualified candidates for each committee.
Council will consider the eligible candidates and decide upon a slate of
nominees for appointment to each committee with eligibility for re-appointment
for a maximum of two additional terms.
Results of Review
☐ No Edits Required
☐ Housekeeping Edits
☒ Substantial Edits
☐ Repeal/Replace
Policy History
Administrative and Housekeeping Changes
Date Nature of Change
2016-06-01 I-063 policy template re-formatted to new numbering system and given
number GOV-BOA-063
Substantial Changes
Date Council/CLT Directive
2012-10-01 As per Council/CLT directive.
2024-11-18 As Per Council/CLT Directive - Report COR-2024-018