Have your say on revised governance policies

Have your say on revised governance policies

Published on 09 July 2020

Council is seeking community feedback on two revised governance policies which have been drafted in line with the new Local Government Act 2020 (the Act).

Draft governance policies now available for community review include:

Public Transparency Policy: A new policy which guides how and when Council’s will make information available to the community. Council will always strive to be transparent and release information to the public without the need for a formal process. Governance Rules: A new policy which will incorporate and replace the existing Meeting Procedure Local Law, Community Participation Time Policy and Election Period Policy. This policy will determine how Council Meetings are run and how the community can participate. This policy aims to encourage public participation in Council Meetings.

Both revised policies have been drafted in accordance with the new Act, which received Royal Assent on 24 March 2020.

The Act aims to strengthen democracy, accountability and equity in local government, delivering a higher degree of transparency and integrity for the public. It focuses on a principles-based approach rather than prescriptive and provides Councils and their communities the opportunity to review and reset a number of policies and practices.

Council must adopt the new policies by 1 September 2020.

Have your say

Community members are invited to provide feedback on these two significant draft policies.

Under the Act, both policies are not required to go on public exhibition, however Council is committed to operating transparently and providing more opportunities for the community to get involved in Council projects. Council expects to amend the draft policies to reflect the feedback received.

Full details are available at www.bawbawshire.vic.gov.au/HaveYourSay

This consultation opportunity is now open for two weeks until Thursday 23 July 2020.

Quotes attributable to Mayor Cr Danny Goss

“These revised policies aim to strengthen Council’s transparency and accountability to ensure good governance across the board. The revised policies guide governance practices for things like Council meetings and local elections, as well as processes around making Council information available to the public. We welcome and encourage all community feedback.”