Wawa Municipal Council's approved an update to the municipality's procedural by-law.
The revised by-law was passed during last night's Corporate Planning Committee meeting, months after it was initially brought to Council with the warning that the previous by-law was "outdated", having last been reviewed in 2011, so it didn't include changes made to Ontario's Municipal Act in 2017.
Those changes are now in the by-law, including setting Council's "inaugural meeting" as the first Monday after November 15th, rather than early December, though the by-law maintains the current meeting schedule of the first and third Tuesday of the month, except for certain months - and it requires at least 24 hours notice for a special meeting, which must be called for specific business - and no revisions could be made to that agenda after notice is given.
Under the updated by-law, Council members can participate in meetings "electronically", though each member is limited to four times per calendar year, and councillors attending electronically don't count toward the required "quorum" for a meeting, so three members still need to be there physically, with those wanting to attend electronically given approval on a "first come, first served" basis.
Councillors attending electronically are not be able to participate in a closed meeting.
The revised by-law also calls for Council to review it annually, though it includes a process for early review, too.
