Delegations & Public Participation

In accordance with the Municipal Government Act (MGA), when this or another enactment requires Council to hold a public hearing on a proposed bylaw or resolution, the public hearing must be held unless another enactment specifies otherwise,  

• Before the second reading of the bylaw, or 
• Before Council votes on a resolution  

Before the Public Hearing

Public Hearings allow taxpayers to inform Council of support or opposition to certain items, such as Bylaws. 
 
When this or another enactment requires a public hearing to be held on a proposed bylaw or resolution, Council must  

• Give notice of the public hearing in accordance with section 606 of the MGA, and 
• Conduct the public hearing during regular or special council meetings.

Residents can send written correspondence to Mayor & Council by   

• By Mail or In Person:
  Town of Fort Macleod 
  PO Box 1420
  410 20th Street
  Fort Macleod, AB
  T0L 0Z0
• Email: cao@fortmacleod.com

All written submissions will form part of the public record via the meeting agenda. We ask those who submit any material not to include any personal information that otherwise should not be disclosed to the public. 

If you wish to speak at the Public Hearing, you will be asked to register before the start of the Public Hearing. This is to have a record of presenters, to have people present in an orderly manner and allow for everyone to have an opportunity to be heard. 

Public Hearing Procedures

As per the Council Procedural Bylaw Section 10. 

10.1 Public Hearings will be held in conjunction with a regular Council meeting. However, a special Council meeting for the purpose of holding a Public Hearing may be called.

10.2 A Statutory Public Hearing on any proposed bylaw or resolution must be held before:

A. second reading of the bylaw, or

B. Council votes on the resolution.

10. 3 The procedure for a Public Hearing is as follows, in sequence:

A. The Chair will declare the Public Hearing open and outline the purpose of the Public Hearing, the process to be followed and any preliminary matters;

B. Administration will introduce the proposed item, followed by questions of clarification from Council;

C. If applicable, the applicant(s) will be invited to identify themselves and make verbal presentations, followed by questions by Council;

D. Presentations from the public, in the following order:

• those speaking in favour,
• those speaking against, and
• any other person desiring to speak to the matter, and
• follow up questions from Members;

E. Questions of the Administration from Members; and

F. motions.

10.4 All individuals speaking at the Public Hearing shall state their name, who they represent, if applicable, and shall be subject to a five (5) minute limit for their presentation. No individual shall speak more than once per agenda item.

10.5 Notwithstanding Section 10.4, the applicant(s), if applicable, shall be entitled to speak for ten (10) minutes.

10.6 If written submissions were received, administration will read the written submissions into the record or, where determined to be appropriate by administration, administration may provide a report on the number of written submissions received and a general overview of the contents of the written submissions;

10.7 If applicable, the applicant(s) will be entitled to provide a final five (5) minute verbal submission, followed by questions by Council;

10.8 At the conclusion of the business of the Public Hearing, the Chair shall declare the Public Hearing closed, or call for continuance and establish a date for reconvening the Public Hearing, and recess the Public Hearing.

10.9 At the discretion of the Chair, the time limits for speaking and presentations may be extended to ensure that all interested parties have had a fair and equitable opportunity to express their views.

10.10 The use of slides, maps, videos and other similar materials is permitted, and these, along with written submissions, become the property of the Municipality as exhibits to the hearing.

10.11 The Chair is hereby authorized to make any other decisions or determinations with respect to the process or rules of order for the Public Hearing.

10.12 The minutes of a Council meeting during which a Public Hearing is held must contain the names of the speakers and a summary of the nature of representations made at the Public Hearing.

After the Public Hearing

When deliberating a third reading of a bylaw, Council considers the information received at the public hearing and all the information gathered before the hearing.  
 
Council cannot accept any submissions once the public hearing has concluded.

Should you wish to schedule a delegation to Council at a future Council meeting, please contact the Chief Administrative Officer for their consideration.

Anthony Burdett, CAO
cao@fortmacleod.com
403-553-4425

Be sure to provide a detailed description of the information you wish to present.

Communications must be

-legible and coherent;
-clearly identify the writer and the writer’s contact information;
-must be on paper or in an electronic, printable format; and
-not be defamatory, impertinent or improper.

Any person or group wishing to directly represent the Council shall advise the Chief Administrative Officer in writing according to the Council Procedural Bylaw, Section 25, listed below. 

25. COMMUNICATIONS TO COUNCIL 

25.1 Requests for an appointment to make a presentation to Council must be delivered to the CAO and must:

A. be in writing and received at least fourteen (14) calendar days prior to the date of the Council meeting at which they request to appear;

B. be legible;

C. clearly identify the reason or purpose of the appointment and provide sufficient background information to allow for an understanding of the matter being presented;

D. identify the individual or primary contact for a group or organization; and

E. include contact information, including the current mailing address and daytime telephone number(s), of the individual or organization.

25.2 If the standards set out in section 25.1 are not met, the CAO may file the communication without any action being taken.

25.3 If the CAO determines that the presentation is within the governance authority of Council, and that the delegation will be allowed, the CAO shall:

A. include the matter on the relevant agenda for future consideration by Council; and

B. inform the primary contact person for the delegation of the date, time and location of their appearance before Council, and of the rules set out in sections 25.5 and 25.6.

25.4 If the CAO determines that the proposed presentation is not within the governance authority of Council, the CAO will:

A. refer the communication to administration for a report or a direct response and provide a copy of the original correspondence and the referral to the Councillors; and

B. take any other appropriate action on the communication.

25.5 Subject to Section 26.2, approved delegations shall have fifteen (15) minutes to make their presentation.

25.6 Approved delegations shall deliver any written materials that are relevant to their presentation to the Town Office no later than 5 business days prior to the date of their appearance before Council.

25.7 Council may choose to delay Considerations of Delegations to the following regular Council meeting if required.

WRITTEN COMMUNICATION TO COUNCIL 

25.8 Any written communication intended for Council received by the Town shall be forwarded to the CAO and:

A. must be legible and coherent;

B. must clearly identify the writer and the writer’s contact information;

C. must be on paper or in an electronic, printable format; and

D. not be defamatory, impertinent or improper.

25.9 If the standards set out in section 25.7 are not met, CAO may file the communication, or dispose of it, unless the CAO determines the communication to be defamatory, impertinent or improper, in which case the CAO shall summarize the communication and inform Council that it is being withheld.

25.10 Council may direct that any communication withheld under this section be forwarded to members of Council.

25.11 If the CAO determines the communication is within the governance authority of Council, the CAO shall include it as an item on the agenda for the next regular Council meeting in either full or summary form, except where received less than 5 business days from the date of the next regular Council meeting, in which case it shall be included as an agenda item for the following regular Council meeting.

25.12 If the CAO determines the communication is not within the governance authority of Council, the CAO will:

A. refer the communication to administration for a report or a direct response and provide a copy of the original correspondence and the referral to the Councillors; and

B. take any other appropriate action on the communication as the CAO determines appropriate.

* A full copy of the bylaw is listed at this page's top.