Ioannoni reinstated to hydro board
Coun. Carolynn Ioannoni has been reinstated to the board of the Niagara Falls Hydro Holding Corp.
The decision was part of a motion brought forward Tuesday night by Coun. Kim Craitor, which called for Ioannoni to be reinstated “retroactively” and that “she be made whole for anything that she may have lost because of us removing her from that board.”
In a recorded vote, Craitor and fellow councillors Vince Kerrio, Victor Pietrangelo and Wayne Thomson supported the motion.
Mayor Jim Diodati and councillors Wayne Campbell and Joyce Morocco voted against the motion.
Coun. Mike Strange did not attend Tuesday’s meeting, while Ioannoni declared a conflict.
Recently, council also voted in favour of a motion by Craitor for Ioannoni to be reinstated back to the library board as the council representative.
The mayor and each member of council is paid for sitting on the Niagara Falls Hydro Holding Corp. board, the company that owns the city’s share of Niagara Peninsula Energy.
Councillors on the library board are not paid.
In June, council voted in favour of a motion brought forward by Kerrio that, in part, asked Ioannoni to resign her seat on council, which she declined.
The motion came after Integrity Commissioner Brian Duxbury’s conclusion that, “on a balance of probabilities,” Ioannoni improperly disclosed sensitive and confidential information discussed during a Jan. 24, 2017 closed-door meeting to a third party who was not entitled to such information.
Duxbury concluded Ioannoni breached the city’s Code of Ethics/ Conduct.
Kerrio’s motion, which was unanimously supported (with Ioannoni declaring a conflict), also, in part, called for a 90-day remuneration penalty to Ioannoni, and for her to be removed from all council boards and committees, effective immediately.
Ioannoni denied she breached the code, and filed a complaint with the Ontario Ombudsman to investigate Duxbury’s probe, believing “key evidence” she provided to Duxbury was not included in his report.
During Tuesday’s meeting, Craitor said he believes council “had gone too far” by removing Ioannoni from the boards, and that council’s decision in June went above and beyond Duxbury’s recommendation.
In his report to council, Duxbury said the municipality may impose either of the following penalties on a member of council or of a local board if the commissioner reports to the municipality that, in his or her opinion, that member has contravened the code of conduct: a reprimand or a suspension of the remuneration paid to the member in respect to his or her services as a member of council or of the local board, as the case may be, for a period of up to 90 days.
Craitor said he remembers receiving Duxbury’s report “only a couple days” before the June 13, 2017 council meeting, and that the Integrity Commissioner was not open to questions during the session.
Craitor said after the meeting, he contacted some lawyers and prosecutors who questioned some aspects of the report.
He said he took issue with the report’s “presumption of guilt.”
Craitorsaidhe’snotsurehowmuch Ioannoni is owed retroactively, but the purpose of his motion “was just simply it shouldn’t have happened in the first place.”
“She’s going to be treated on the basis that she shouldn’t have been removed in the first place, so whatever it is, it is.”
Campbell asked if there are any ongoing investigations involving Ioannoni that “could impact upon our decisions sometime today or in the future.”
City solicitor Ken Beaman said there are ongoing investigations, “but I don’t think that council should look upon the two things as being connected.”
“This is Coun. Craitor’s motion to the situation now and what happened in the past. Future findings should not be used to evaluate the actions of the (past).”