Code of conduct revisions called ‘ridiculous’
Revisions to regional council’s proposed code of conduct may have rendered the document “virtually meaningless,” after more than two years of debate about its development.
And as a result of those revisions, regional councillors contacted by The Standard fear adopting the new policy would fail to address concerns that led to its development in the first place.
Regional Chair Alan Caslin called a special council meeting for 6:30 tonight in the hope of resolving “any unfinished business” related to the code of conduct.
Caslin also tentatively scheduled a second special meeting for Friday morning, just in case council isn’t able to adopt the new code a night earlier.
But councillors including Fort Erie Mayor Wayne Redekop remain concerned that the revisions made to the draft document have “completely emasculated” the policy.
“When you take the essence of a code of conduct and you water it down to the point where it’s virtually meaningless, then one has to wonder what its purpose is,” Redekop said.
Welland Coun. George Marshall said the revisions “characterize the level of absurdity that I’m experiencing right now as it relates to this document.”
“It’s chaos and it’s frustrating and it’s painful to watch,” he said.
One revision would severely limit the jurisdiction of the code of conduct, making it only applicable to councillors acting in an official capacity.
“When you’re an elected official, you’re an elected official 24 hours a day,” Redekop said.
“The things that you say, the things that you do could reflect on the office you hold and the community you represent.”
Pelham Mayor Dave Augustyn said efforts to develop the new code of conduct began in response to a series of “mean-spirited, derogatory social media tweets on a segment of the population” sent by St. Catharines Coun. Andy Petrowski in 2015.
Although Petrowsk’s tweets were found to be in violation of the Region’s code of conduct adopted in 2013, Augustyn said those tweets would be permitted by the proposed code — if they were sent while the councillor was ‘off duty.’
“I think people are looking for the new code to be as strong or stronger (than the existing one.) Unfortunately, some councillors are wanting to water down the code and I think that’s wholly inappropriate and goes against what the public is expecting,” Augustyn said.
Earlier this year, Niagara Falls Coun. Selina Volpatti worked with Grimsby Coun. Tony Quirk to revise the draft code of conduct, originally developed by Niagara’s previous integrity commissioner, John Mas carin. After being considered by council at a meeting in July, their revisions were referred to Toronto lawyer Edward McDermott, who replaced Mascarin as the Region’s integrity commissioner, for review. McDermott is expected to be at the meeting to report on the revised code.
Despite the concerns, Volpatti said she’s a part-time councillor and shouldn’t face a full-time threat of potential code of conduct complaints.
Volpatti said, for instance, if she has a disagreement about who was first to arrive at the last parking spot, or she is accused of cutting in line at the grocery store checkout, it should not result in an investigation by the integrity commissioner.
“I think it should be only when acting in official capacity, and that is spelled out very well (in the draft policy),” she said.
St. Catharines resident Perry Schlanger, who has closely followed the Region’s efforts to develop a new code of conduct, shared concerns about the draft document.
“It’s ridiculous,” he said.
“I’m a teacher. I have to show that I’m of good character at all times. It doesn’t matter if I’m in a classroom or not,” he said. “They’re saying they don’t have to unless they are specifically in a very limited context.”
Volpatti said other changes to the document were an effort to streamline it.
For instance, she pointed out the sentence “Members shall not use indecent, abusive or insulting words, phrases or expressions” was removed from a section on discrimination and harassment.
Although similar wording has been included in the Region’s code of conduct since it was first adopted in 2013, Volpatti said the gist of that sentence is later summarized in the same paragraph.
“I’d like to see this as concise as possible, really,” Volpatti said. “I don’t think we should be using a lot of words when fewer words will do. I think it just complicates the issue.”
But Augustyn said people are looking for “stronger standards by which members of council might be judged.”
“The examples we have, just from this term (of office) alone, are indicative of what people expect,” he said. “The code should be as strong or stronger than what we currently have, and if that’s not the case it’s not worth supporting and changing.”
Lincoln Mayor Sandra Easton agreed that the revised document doesn’t live up to expectations.
“I’m not supportive of that level of leniency,” she said. “At the very least, people are looking for a demonstration of ethics and integrity.”
Easton said the Town of Lincoln recently developed its own code of conduct for local representatives, and developing that policy “was a much more satisfactory and satisfying experience than looking for reasons to exclude yourself from proper behaviour.”
Meanwhile, the timing and urgency of the meeting was a concern for councillors as well. With less than two weeks to go before Christmas, it’s a busy time of year particularly for mayors. Both Redekop and Easton won’t be able to attend the meeting, due to other commitments.
“I don’t understand why it’s necessary to have this meeting prior to Christmas,” Redekop said.