"Delegation" means any person, group of persons, firm or organization, who is neither a Member of Council nor a member of City staff, and who is speaking to Council on an item on the agenda;
Requests for Delegations to Council shall be submitted in writing to the Clerk twenty-four (24) hours prior to the commencement of the Meeting.
"Appointment" means a request to address Council on a matter not on the agenda, but must be related to Council;
Requests for Appointments shall be submitted in writing to the Clerk no later than seven (7) days before the date and time of the Meeting.
A maximum of five (5) Appointments shall be permitted per meeting
A written request for an Appointment to address Council shall include:
- the person’s name;
- address;
- telephone number;
- the name, address and telephone number of the person or organization the requester represents (if applicable); and
- a detailed brief of the topic to be discussed and the request/direction the presenter is seeking from Council.
A written Appointment request will form part of the official record of the proceedings of Council and will be considered to be a public document.
Delegations and Appointments shall be limited to not more than five (5) minutes to address Council, unless otherwise determined by Council.
Delegations and Appointments shall not be permitted on the following topics:
- labour relations;
- union negotiations;
- any employee relations;
- advertisements for products or services; and
- election campaigning.
- matters which are not within Council's jurisdiction;
- matters which have been decided upon by Council during the current term of Council;
- matters which have been referred to staff for a report, until the matter is before Council or Committee; and
- matters which are the subject of an Education and Training Session.
Complete the Delegations and Appointments to Council Form to submit your information to the Clerk.
Written Correspondence addressed to City Council
Written correspondence addressed to City Council may be placed on the public agenda, which in turn is posted on the City's website. Any personal information you choose to disclose in your letter will become part of the public record and your name may be published on the City's website.
To correspond with City Council, submit written correspondence to the City Clerk via email to [email protected] or by mail to 4310 Queen Street, Niagara Falls, ON L2E 6X5, Attn: City Clerk.
Correspondence must include the author's full name and current contact information including, at minimum, the author's residence address and telephone number or e-mail address.
Correspondence must be submitted no later than 12 noon the day preceding the Council meeting.
The Clerk will neither respond to nor place on an agenda any correspondence which, in the Clerk's determination, is anonymous, illegible or that contains any disrespectful or offensive language nor will such correspondence be considered by Council or a Committee.
Correspondence related to staff performance, labour relations, ongoing legal proceedings or solicitation of business will not be considered by Council or a Committee.
Correspondence that, in the Clerk's determination, relates to the following, will not be placed on the agenda:
- Matters which are not within Council's jurisdiction;
- Matters which have been decided upon by Council, during its current term;
- Matters which have been referred to staff for a report, until the matter is before Council or Committee;
- Matters which are the subject of an Education and Training Session; and
- When containing false or misleading information.
- When the correspondence appears to be campaigning for an upcoming election.
Correspondence addressed to an individual Member of Council is not placed on an agenda.
As per Council's Procedural By-law, the Clerk may submit such written communication to Council in summary form.
In addition to the above information Council has received information from Staff, via report L2024-04 on April 9, 2024, that the following parameters will be followed when considering written correspondence and appointment/delegation requests:
Staff will be excluding written correspondence or proposed appointments/delegations to Council where Staff determines that one or more of the following criteria exist:
i. The correspondence or proposed delegation is clearly vexatious and will cause the City to incur additional costs;
ii. The correspondence or proposed delegation misrepresents the process and purpose of Council; or
iii. The correspondence or proposed delegation harasses or is abusive towards Council or Staff.
Staff has statutory authority under the Municipal Act to exclude correspondences or proposed delegations on this basis.
Exclusion on the basis of the above three criteria is a reasonable limit on the right of expression and engagement with Council. Expressions and engagement in this regard must be respectful, must not misrepresent the structure of Council, and must not be vexatious or increasing costs to the City.
Petitions addressed to City Council
- A petition is a legibly written request signed by more than one member of the public in support of a shared cause or concern. A petition may be presented in paper format, electronically, or through the use of an on-line system. Council will be the only body that can receive a petition, via the City Clerk.
- A petition may be delivered in person or sent by mail, fax or email to the City Clerk.
- A petition must contain the following:
- The date of when the petition commenced;
- The name and local civic address, telephone number or email address of the organizer who started the petition for contact purposes;
- The name and address of each person who signed or electronically submitted their name to the petition, and;
- A clear, legible statement, which communicates the purpose of the petition. All petitions MUST be related to matters within the direct jurisdiction of the City.
- A petition shall not contain any obscene or improper matter or language.
- All information on the petition, including names, addresses and telephone numbers shall become part of the public record of the meeting at which it is received.
- Petitions must be received by noon on the Friday before a scheduled Council meeting in order to appear on the Council agenda. No petition shall be presented or accepted by Council without first appearing on a Council agenda.
- Petitions that relate to a matter listed on the Council agenda will appear as additional correspondence listed under the related agenda item **. At that time any petitions may be read into the record by stating the purpose of the petition and indicating how many ‘relevant’ individuals have signed. “Relevant’ meaning; those who have listed both their name and local address to the petition.
- Unless otherwise directed by Council by way of a motion, petitions pertaining to a matter on the agenda, will be received and filed for information.
- A petition not relating to an item on the agenda may be listed as under ‘Communications of the City Clerk’ and will also be received and filed for information unless otherwise directed by Council by way of a motion.
- The City Clerk shall refuse to list a petition on the council agenda where the subject matter involves;
- current or pending litigation;
- insurance claims;
- labour relations, union negotiations or employee relations;
- advertisements for products or services;
- election campaign related;
- matters not within Council’s jurisdiction
- matters which have been decided by Council during the current term;
- matters which have been referred to staff for a report, until the matter is before Council for consideration; and
- matters which are the subject of an Education and Training Session of Council.
** NOTE: As per Council's Procedural By-law, the Clerk may submit such written communication (including petitions) to Council in summary form. This may include listing the written correspondence and/or petitions in one area on the Council agenda under "Communications of the City Clerk".
