Registers
From time to time the public may be excluded from Council and Committee meetings.
Section 90 of the Local Government Act 1999 provides that a Council or Council Committee may order the public to be excluded from attendance at a meeting.
To do this the Council or Committee must apply for an order which will specify the reason for the order, duration of the order or the circumstances in which the order will cease to apply, or a period after which the order must be reviewed.
Council or a Council Committee will only make an order that a document associated with a discussion from which the public are excluded will remain confidential if it is considered proper and necessary in the broader community interest.
A review of the reports or documents that are the subject of orders of confidentiality are conducted to ensure that items are released to the public, in accordance with the resolutions of Council.
Section 80A of the Local Government Act 1999 (the Local Government Act) and Regulation 8AA of the Local Government (General) Regulations 2013 (the General Regulations), sets out
the legal requirements for training and development for council members.
A council member must comply with the prescribed mandatory requirements, which includes the LGA Training Standards set out in this document.
Failure to comply will result in a suspension of the council member by Council (unless the member satisfies the council there were good reasons for the failure to comply). A council member must undertake the Mandatory Training within the first 12 months of their four-year term.
Subsection 80A(2h) of the Local Government Act 1999 requires the CEO to maintain a register relating to training and development of council members. This is a register of scheduled and
completed mandatory training.
Under section 70(a1) of the Local Government Act 1999, the chief executive officer must publish the Register on a website:
- the member’s income sources (within the meaning of Schedule 3 to the Local Government Act) or employer;
- the name of any political party, any body or association formed for political purposes or any trade or professional organisation (within the meaning of Schedule 3) of which the member is a member
- any gifts received by the member that are required to be included in the information entered in the Register in relation to the member
Under section 70(a2) of the Local Government Act 1999; however, the chief executive officer must ensure that the following details are not published under subsection (a1):
(a) a person's residential address;
(b) any other address suppressed from the Register under section 68(4)(a)
The below attachments contain the required information which is current as at:
2023 - 24 Ordinary Returns Combined
2022 Primary Returns at 16 December
2018 Primary Returns at November Election
GIFTS & BENEFITS REGISTER
The Elected Members Mandatory Code of Conduct became operational as of 1 September 2013. The Code of Conduct stipulates that a Gifts & Benefits register is to be maintained by the Council's Chief Executive Officer and updated quarterly.
Council Members who receive a gift or benefit of more than $100 as published in the Government Gazette by the Minister, must ensure that details of each gift are recorded with in the Gifts and Benefits Register.
The gifts & benefits register for Elected Members remains at 'Nil' as at 30 June 2023 for all Elected Members.
Legislation introducing a Code of Conduct for Council Employees commenced on 13 February 2014. It was amended in 2018, coming into operation on 2 April 2018.
The Code of Conduct says that if an employee of a council receives a gift or benefit of an amount greater than the amount determined by the Minister, by notice in the Gazette, then the gift or benefit must be entered onto the Gifts and Benefits Register.
The threshold amount governing when a gift or benefit must be registered has been gazetted at $50.00.
Council is committed to transparency in decision making, and to providing access to a fair and objective procedure for the internal review of decisions.
Grievances may arise as a result of dissatisfaction with a decision made by Council, or its employees, on a wide range of issues including policy, procedure, service, fee, etc. All attempts will be made to resolve grievances quickly and efficiently, without the need for a formal request for review.
This Policy and Procedure provides information on formal requests for internal review of decisions of Council, its employees, and other people acting on behalf of Council. ‘Council’ refers to the decision making group of Elected Members, not the entire organisation.
Dealing with grievances at the local level is the most effective way of resolving matters quickly. Applicants for review of decisions will be encouraged to participate in the review handling process cooperatively. However, nothing in this Policy and Procedure negates community rights to seek external review through the State Ombudsman, other legal appeal processes, or the Courts at any time during the internal review process.
Councils Internal Review of Council Decisions Policy and Procedure has been adopted in accordance with Section 270 of the Local Government Act 1999. The Procedure is one aspect of Council’s customer focused approach to service delivery. It provides a further opportunity to review the way Council provides services to the community, and to identify areas for improvement.
The Internal Review of Council Decisions Policy and Procedure Document can be found in our Policies page here