City outlines investigation process for code of conduct complaints
Kelowna city councillors won’t know immediately if someone has suggested their behaviour has violated the city’s new Code of Conduct.
A report that went to council on Monday outlines the process by which complaints are to be handled under the new code, implemented last September.
The code, similar to ones adopted by other municipalities, is intended to “set expectations around professional, responsible, and ethical conduct without limiting freedom of expression”, according to a city report.
The city’s code of conduct for councillors is a six page document that covers many topics. Provisions include refraining from making disparaging comments about other council members, not bullying people, and not trying to use their office for personal gain or benefit.
It also states: “When presenting their individual opinions and positions, council members will explicitly state that it is their own personal view and that they do not represent council or the city in those views”.
The staff report Monday says people filing a complaint against a councillor under the Code of Conduct must be able to “clearly make a connection” between provisions of the code and the supposedly bothersome behaviour.
When a complaint is received, the councillor in question will not be immediately notified. Instead, city manager Doug Gilchrist and city clerk Stephen Fleming will assess if the complaint has merit. The city’s lawyer might be consulted on “more challenging assessment”, the report states.
Only when a decision is made to either close the file or open an investigation, which would be conducted by a third-party investigator (not the city’s solicitor), would members of council be notified.
If no violation is determined by the investigator to have occurred, only the complainant and members of council will be notified. If the investigation determines a violation did occur, a public report would be issued.
Only one complaint under the code was received in 2023.
However, there were suggestions from some people that councillor Ron Cannan might have violated the code in January after an opinion piece he wrote was published by online news site Kelowna Now.
Among other things, Cannan predicted Donald Trump would be elected president again of the U.S. this fall, and said that local school trustees would continue to take criticism for the Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity resource materials used in schools.
In response, Mayor Tom Dyas said the column would be “given due consideration” under the provisions of the code of conduct.
The city has not released any information about the matter since then, suggesting the complaint has been investigated and dismissed.
For his part, Cannan told The Daily Courier: “I am well aware of the code of conduct and I respect it. I continue to serve with honesty and integrity. I respect that some may not agree with my opinions and I am sorry if some may be offended.”
A code of conduct was approved by Penticton City Council last week.