As new provisions of the Local Government Act 2020, Council is required to review and update Governance Rules regarding virtual meetings. Thank you to those who provided feedback. Your views will be included for Council consideration.
The current Governance Rules were adopted at a Council meeting held 14 December 2021. Since that time, the Victorian Government has introduced new provisions into the Local Government Act 2020 (the Act) that relates to electronic attendance and participation in Council Meetings on a permanent basis. The new provisions within the Act take effect on 2 September, 2022, therefore Council must amend its Governance Rules in consultation with the Community to comply with the new provisions relating to attendance and participation via electronic means.
The proposed amended Governance Rules largely remains unchanged; however, this update includes minor amendments to various rules, including a new rule that governs the conduct of meetings (virtual meetings). Some of the key changes include, but are not limited to:
Primary amendments - to support virtual meetings:
- Rule 82 – provides for in person, wholly online and hybrid, a combination of in-person and electronic.
- Rule 83 - Council may vote to modify the Rules to facilitate more efficient and effective business of the meeting when held wholly online and hybrid, a combination of in-person and electronic.
Additional amendments
- Chapter 6 – Disclosure of conflicts of interest have been updated with additional context concerning the disclosure requirements for conflict of interest. A disclosure must indicate whether it is a general or material conflict of interest.
- Minor amendments to various Rules have been made throughout the document, correcting some administrative errors, e.g. Sub-rule 12.2, and to make the document gender neutral.
This community engagement process was endorsed by a resolution of Council on 26 July 2022. Members of the public can view the Officers report and the minutes of the meeting on Council’s website.
