As an elected official, you should recognize when you have a legitimate conflict of interest, so that you will be sure to disqualify yourself and not vote on the particular issue at hand.
Under O. Under this Act, disclosures of financial interests in property subject to a zoning action are required, and failure to disclose may constitute a crime. Please note, however, that a council member should only abstain from voting on an issue if he or she has a legitimate conflict of interest, not to avoid voting on a controversial issue. Your constituents expect you to perform the job they elected you to do. Do not lose sight of your commitment to your community.
You will be bombarded with requests, from family, friends, associates, and business leaders, which may or may not be ethical. However, remember the voters trusted you to represent their well-being, and you will be the only one who has to answer to your electorate. Interaction with other governmental officials at the local, state, and national levels can be extremely important to your city. At the local level, it is important that your city communicate with other city and county officials.
In fact, the Georgia Service Delivery Law for Local Governments requires cities and counties to work together to develop a service delivery strategy for the entire county. Effective communication with state legislators is also important, as the General Assembly annually passes numerous pieces of legislation that impact local governments.
While personal interaction is usually the best approach, it is often difficult to meet with your legislator during the legislative session. However, telephone calls, emails, and faxes are effective methods of communicating with your legislators. Cities are also encouraged to organize Hometown Connections to build relationships with legislators. Remember, communication is the key to any healthy relationship. However, when speaking to others, always remember to be polite. Once upon a time you were a constituent.
It is important that you remember the level of respect you demanded as a voter. Your constituency expects you to understand their problems and issues and to be genuinely concerned about their well-being.
Never forget who put you in office, because they will not forget you on Election Day. Since being elected to office, you probably have gained a better appreciation for those that serve. Attending every event you are invited to may be impossible.
It is, however, strongly suggested that you attend every council meeting scheduled during your tenure. They expect you to vote to protect their needs and their community for generations to come.
Let your constituents know the best means of contacting you e-mail, social media, snail mail, fax, or phone. Always remember that you were elected to represent the public rather than to hide from them. As an elected official, it is your responsibility to respond to any phone calls, letters, emails, or faxes you may receive from your constituents. It may be time- consuming, but in the end, the voters will applaud you for your effort and your willingness to attend to their needs and concerns.
At some point during your term, you may find yourself being attacked by the mayor, councilmembers, voters or reporters. But remember, it is always better to take the high road.
As a public official, you have become a role model for your entire community. You should always remain level-headed. People are watching, and that includes the future leaders of your community. If they perceive that you have changed and your behavior is no longer in line with your performance as a candidate, they may lose faith in you.
When serving the people, always remain a humble servant. Once you have learned the issues affecting your city, it is your responsibility to articulate the needs of the city to your state legislators. It is important that you help them to understand where your city stands on each individual issue so that they may vote or act accordingly. Remember that speeding ticket you received prior to taking office?
Well, this is not the time to get even. Do not use your new role to make political or personal attacks on anyone you feel wronged you before or after taking office.
Remember to not get caught up in all the hype. As an elected official, your sole responsibility is to serve the people to the best of your ability. You obviously ran for office because you believed that you had something good to offer to the people. Many elected officials are confronted with ethical dilemmas daily. City officials are encouraged to take the Ethics course offered by the Harold E. This course will provide officials with a better understanding on what approach to take when facing these occasionally unavoidable situations.
Always strive to do the right thing, regardless of popularity. Site by Old Town Media, Inc. Join Today! Member Directory! Member login! In contrast to that are a half-dozen things we want to see in City Council candidates: Honest. The key characteristic for an elected official is their honesty in both their actions and being intellectually honest with their approach to issues.
A councilperson is a representative of all of the people, not a champion of a special interest group or a narrow perspective. Philosophically a good candidate is one that brings a balanced view. For example, they value the environment while understanding the need for a strong local economy; they support a viable street infrastructure while being open to alternative transportation.
Being balanced also means being able to work well with professional city staff while not automatically deferring to their judgment. Doing the job right requires a significant dedication of time and energy. Local government assets include everything from roads, bridges, buildings and parks, to computers and telephones, software, and intellectual property IP. This information is used by council in the setting and adoption of the annual budget. Throughout the year, reports are prepared to enable councillors to review council finances, ensure that the council is adhering to its budget or make appropriate modifications.
As with all local government business, finance is a matter for discussion and resolution by the full council. Councillors should maintain an active interest in budgeting since the council is responsible to the community for the results achieved. To review activities effectively, councillors need to obtain relevant information from both community members and local government staff through appropriate channels. Council members have a duty to attend all council meetings to ensure that electors are adequately represented.
Under the Local Government Act the Act , a councillor who is absent from three consecutive ordinary council meetings without leave being granted by the council is automatically disqualified.
If a member needs to be absent for more than six consecutive ordinary meetings, Ministerial approval is necessary as well as council approval. Applications for leave of absence must be approved by council before or at the start of the meeting s the council member is to be absent from. Leave of absence cannot be approved retrospectively. Many local governments operate using a system of committees to reduce the work at council meetings.
Committees then make recommendations to the full council. Each committee usually includes a small number of councillors. Some committees include non-elected members such as employees, consultants or community members.
The number of meetings a councillor must attend each month will vary according to the frequency of council meetings and the number of committees on which the elected member sits. Most local governments have monthly or fortnightly council meetings. Committee meetings may be held several days prior to the council meeting or on the same day. Some local governments have other types of meetings outside of the formal council meeting framework which allows councillors and officers to meet and discuss matters.
If a council member is present at a council meeting, he or she has a duty to vote on all matters before that meeting, unless he or she has a financial interest in the matter. The lodging of proxy votes is not permitted at meetings of council or its committees. Without this background reading, it is extremely difficult for councillors to effectively assess issues and provide constructive input to council debate and decision making. Further information should be requested if there is insufficient material available to make an informed decision.
Background reports and papers can often be lengthy. Consequently, councillors must set aside adequate time for preparation prior to each council meeting.
Because councillors are required by law to vote on all issues that require a decision at a council meeting, ward councillors if the district has wards should obtain information on, and remain informed about, issues occurring outside their ward but within other areas of the local government district. Councillors should also endeavour to remain informed about current affairs at a state and national level. This will give an elected member a broader perspective on issues affecting council.
Electors are then reassured that their local government takes notice of them. Maintaining contact with electors, attending meetings of council, performing other civic duties, and remaining informed about all relevant local issues is time consuming. This is particularly so for newly elected councillors who are unlikely to have background knowledge of many of the issues being considered. Newly elected councillors need to examine their present commitments and establish priorities to manage their time effectively.
This support should be gained before standing for election. Additionally, you will often need assistants, especially for running an election campaign. Local government councillors are accountable to the council and to the electors of the local government district. Members of the public can attend all local government ordinary council meetings and certain committee meetings.
They also have the right to access certain local government records and information, including:. Members of the public do not have a right to inspect agenda, minutes or notice papers for closed meetings or parts of meetings.
Meetings can only be closed in a limited number of circumstances as prescribed by legislation. Councillors must disclose certain financial interests at council and committee meetings and in primary and annual returns.
Disclosures at meetings and in primary and annual returns are recorded in a register to which the public has access. This enhances the accountability of councillors to the public. At the same time, protection is given to councillors because it is an offence for a person to publish information from the register unless under specified circumstances. It is pointless to seek election to local government to address a single issue in which you have a financial interest, because you would be unable to vote on that issue.
In this case, it would be better for you to join a community group and lobby council regarding the issue. The department has prepared guidelines on financial interest disclosures in both meetings and annual returns. In addition to financial interests, councillors must declare interests that the community may perceive would affect their ability to act with impartiality. An interest which commonly falls within this definition occurs when a councillor is a member of a group, club or association that brings a matter before the council for a decision.
The department has produced a guideline in relation to disclosure of interests affecting impartiality. Local governments are subject to the Freedom of Information FOI Act , which gives the public a legally enforceable right to access any document held by a local government, unless it has been exempted for a limited number of reasons. For example, personal information can be exempted from release. Both FOI legislation and the access provisions in the Act are aimed at encouraging public participation in government and maximising the accountability of local governments to their community.
A councillor is not personally liable for the actions of a local government where that person has acted in good faith and is properly exercising his or her powers and functions under the Act.
However, councillors are effectively the trustees of local government funds and property. Any unauthorised act may result in councillors being personally liable for any loss or damage. If a councillor is convicted of misapplying money and ordered to repay it, the person may be disqualified from acting as a councillor for up to five years, even if the money has been voluntarily repaid.
Council members are not protected from defamation in the same manner as Members of Parliaments for statements they make in the council chamber. It may be divided into libel, which relates to written or pictorial material, and slander, which relates to oral comments. Defamation can be defined as anything that tends to lower a person in the estimation of members of society. In a council meeting, the elected member fulfils a public duty and is therefore given limited protection from legal actions of defamation.
This means that protection is only provided if the statements are made in good faith. Statements made with malice or made recklessly are not protected. Statements made outside council meetings are unlikely to attract qualified privilege. This is particularly pertinent in relation to social media. While it can be a powerful tool for communicating ideas and policy platforms directly with the community, care should be used. The Act and associated Regulations and the Defamation Act apply in the virtual world, just as they do in real life.
The test is whether a councillor would feel comfortable saying something on social media that could still be said in a public forum like a council meeting or on the front page of a newspaper. A person elected as a councillor, mayor or president must make a declaration to observe the code of conduct of the local government before acting in the office. In council or committee meetings, a member can request that either his or her vote, or the votes of all members present, be recorded in the minutes.
If such a request is made, the vote s must be recorded. A council member is entitled to be on at least one committee. The council determines the committee s on which the councillor sits.
0コメント