Any person, group, corporation or organization, not a Council Member or Staff, that wishes to appear before Council to present general information or to make a request of Council shall submit a written request to the Clerk, in accordance with the process established by the Clerk. The request shall include the details of the matter to be presented and any material they would like distributed to Council.
Timelines for registration for a delegation shall be:
- For an item on the agenda: Registration with the Clerk by 10am on the day of the Meeting.
- For an item not listed on the agenda: Registration with the Clerk eight (8) days prior to the Meeting and provide in writing what they intend to say (subject matter) to Council.
The Clerk shall ask delegations if they wish to make a written delegation to Council instead of speaking to Council. In such an instance, the written delegation will be distributed to Council in advance of the Meeting and during the Meeting the Clerk shall verbally note to Council that written delegations have been received and indicate the names of the persons listed on the delegation. The written delegation shall be entered into the minutes without the need for a motion to receive.
The time limits allotted to delegations shall be strictly enforced. The Clerk shall set a timer at the commencement of the delegation’s presentation. The Clerk shall provide Council and the speaker with a 1-minute wrap-up warning. At the conclusion of the allotted time, the Clerk shall inform Council and the speaker that the time limit has been exhausted. Time limits shall be:
- Items not on the agenda: 5 minutes
- Items on the agenda: 5 minutes
- Matters subject to notice: 10 minutes
Upon the completion of a delegation, Council Members may ask questions for clarification only. Council Members shall not enter into debate with the delegation. Delegations may not ask questions of Council or Staff. The total time limit for follow up questions and answers shall be 5 minutes but can be extended at the discretion of the Chair. The Clerk shall set a timer and inform Council when the time limit has been exhausted.
The Chair may stop any delegation and the person(s) appearing shall withdraw and may not challenge the decision of the Chair.
Where there are numerous delegations taking the same position on a matter, delegates are encouraged to select a spokesperson to speak on behalf of the group.
Delegations shall not:
- Speak disrespectfully of any person;
- Use offensive words;
- Speak on any subject other than the subject for which they have received approval to address Council;
- Disobey a decision of the Chair or Council; or
- Enter into cross-debate with other delegations, Staff, Council Members, or the Chair.
The Clerk, in consultation with the Mayor, may decline to grant a request to appear before Council if it is apparent that the subject matter is not suitable for discussion at a Meeting or the content is outside the jurisdiction of Council.
The Clerk may direct the request to a Committee of Council if the subject matter is better suited for such.
If a delegation has previously presented the same or similar content at a Committee of the Whole meeting, then the delegation shall not be permitted to speak at a Council meeting unless the person making the delegation has new or additional information.
For the complete Township of Pelee Procedural By-Law visit: Procedural By-Law 2022-47
Delegation Request Form
A delegation is any person(s), group(s), corporation(s), or oganization(s), approved by the Clerk to make submissions at a council meeting. Personal Information on this form is collected under the authority of the Municipal Act 2001 P.S.O. c45 and may be included in Agendas and Council Meeting minutes, both of which become part of the public record and posted on our municipal website.
