Special Council Minutes

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Council Chambers
Whitby Town Hall
Present:
  • Mayor Roy
  • Councillor Bozinovski
  • Councillor Cardwell
  • Councillor Leahy
  • Councillor Lee
  • Councillor Lundquist
  • Councillor Mulcahy
  • Councillor Shahid
  • Councillor Yamada
Also Present:
  • M. Gaskell, Chief Administrative Officer
  • S. Klein, Director of Strategic Initiatives
  • J. Romano, Commissioner of Community Services
  • F. Santaguida, Commissioner of Legal and Enforcement Services/Town Solicitor
  • F. Wong, Commissioner of Financial Services/Treasurer
  • R. Saunders, Commissioner of Planning and Development
  • M. Dodge, Executive Advisor to the Mayor
  • C. Harris, Town Clerk
  • K. Douglas, Legislative Specialist (Recording Secretary)

1.
Call To Order: The Mayor

 

2.
Call of the Roll: The Clerk

 

3.
Declarations of Conflict of Interest

 

There were no declarations of conflict of interest.

4.
Presentations

 

4.1
M. Trudel, Senior Manager of Procurement

 

Re: Purchasing Policy

M. Trudel, Senior Manager of Procurement, provided a PowerPoint presentation regarding proposed revisions to the Town's Procurement Policy. Highlights of the presentation included:

  • the purpose of revising the Procurement Policy;
  • an overview of the proposed revisions such as the addition of a statement of ethics, modernized procurement thresholds, delegated authority to Senior Leadership staff, limited tendering, and clarity regarding emergency procurement;
  • key definitions included in the proposed Policy;
  • the current and recommended approval thresholds for competitive bids and sole source procurements; 
  • a summary of procurement awards reviewed by Council between 2019 and 2021, and how this process will be impacted by the proposed new Policy; 
  • the Council approved procurement awards of comparator municipalities;
  • benefits of the changes proposed in the new Policy;
  • exemptions to the Policy; and,
  • next steps in the review and approval of the new Procurement Policy.

A question and answer period ensued between Members of Council and Staff regarding:

  • the frequency and transparency of procurement updates to Council and Staff; 
  • clarification regarding the proposed changes to procurement thresholds;
  • justification for the recommendation that Council approve any sole source procurements above the current Trade Agreement threshold;
  • the sole source procurement threshold of comparator municipalities; 
  • redundancies identified when reviewing the current Procurement Policy;
  • clarification regarding emergency procurement;
  • criteria for vendor disqualification; 
  • the process for reviewing procurement awards regarding park refurbishments, and whether the recommended changes to the Procurement Policy will impact park consultation; 
  • the impact on the approved budget in the event no competitive bids are received for a given tender;
  • consultation between Members of Council and Staff regarding the scope of work included in a given tender through the procurement process; and,
  • ensuring public consultation on project proposals relating to public amenities and services.

4.2
F. Wong, Commissioner of Financial Services/Treasurer

 

Re: Council Expense Policy

F. Wong, Commissioner of Financial Services/Treasurer, provided a PowerPoint presentation regarding proposed revisions to the Town's Council Expense Policy. Highlights of the presentation included:

  • an overview of the current Council Expense Policy;
  • business expense budgets for Members of Council in comparator municipalities;
  • a recommendation that business expense budgets be indexed annually based on the April Consumer Price Index (CPI);
  • a summary of expenses that qualify as corporate expenses;
  • the eligibility of mileage and car allowance expenses of comparator municipalities, and proposed changes to the Town's Policy concerning eligible mileage expenses for travel outside Town limits;
  • the eligibility of mobile phone expenses of comparator municipalities, and proposed changes to the Town's Policy to remove reimbursement of personal phone plans as an eligible expense; 
  • proposed changes to the eligibility of expenses relating to books and subscriptions, event tickets, training, seminars, conferences, and constituency meetings; 
  • an overview of the current Election Year Restrictions and proposed changes concerning Town-issued mobile phones; and,
  • communication, advertising, and constituency meeting expenses that are eligible and ineligible for reimbursement under the Council Expense Policy.

A question and answer period ensued between Members of Council and Staff regarding:

  • changing the effective date for Election Year Restrictions;
  • eligible training, seminar, and conference expenses;
  • indexing the annual expense limit for Members of Council with inflation;
  • a preference to retain the taxable benefit for corporate mobile phones purchased by Members for personal use at the end of the Council term; 
  • aligning the effective date for Election Year Restrictions with the beginning of the nomination period as stipulated in the Municipal Elections Act; 
  • increasing the frequency of Town Hall meetings; 
  • revising expense restrictions pertaining to raffle tickets, silent auctions and table prizes at community events; and,
  • differentiating the annual expense limits for Local Councillors, Regional Councillors, and the Mayor.

5.
Adjournment

 
  • Moved byCouncillor Cardwell
    Seconded byCouncillor Yamada

    That the meeting adjourn.

    Carried

    The meeting adjourned at 6:57 p.m.


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