Whereas responsible conduct of elected officials, both individually and collectively as a Council or Board, is essential to sound and effective governance; And whereas local governments are best served by tools and resources that reflect the legislative framework for local government in British Columbia, which is based on foundational concepts of autonomy, empowerment, accountability and collaboration: Therefore, be it resolved that UBCM ask the provincial government to: - Introduce a legislative requirement that all local governments in British Columbia must consider the adoption or updating of a Code of Conduct at least once early in each new term of office; - Work collaboratively with UBCM and others to consider the design of a mandatory educational module that would support responsible conduct by local elected officials; - Update the oath of office prescribed by regulation to embed the foundational principles identified by the Working Group on Responsible Conduct; and - Provide guidance for local governments that have established an oath of office by bylaw so that these oaths may be updated with the same foundational principles for responsible conduct.
Ministry of Municipal Affairs Local elected officials have a responsibility to provide for good governance and engage in responsible conduct while carrying out their roles and responsibilities as decision makers for their communities. Responsible conduct refers broadly to how local elected officials conduct themselves with their colleagues, with staff and with the public, and includes acting with honesty and integrity and in a way that furthers a local governments ability to provide good governance to their community. Good governance requires acting in a way that is accountable, transparent, ethical, respectful of the rules of law, collaborative, effective and efficient. Responsible conduct in BC is encouraged by a framework that includes education and training, legislation, legislated offices and the courts. BCs local government legislation sets out rules around roles and responsibilities of elected officials, along with councilboard governance, procedures, ethical standards, conflict of interest and accountability. The Province recognizes local governments as democratically elected, autonomous, responsible, and accountable orders of government within their jurisdiction and believes that the responsible conduct framework should align with these principles. Recognizing the need to explore issues related to responsible conduct and approaches to strengthening responsible conduct in BC, the Ministry, Union of British Columbia Municipalities UBCM and the Local Government Management Association LGMA formed the Working Group on Responsible Conduct WGRC in 2016. Since that time, the WGRC has undertaken collaborative research and policy work on the issue of responsible conduct of local government elected officials. To date, the WGRC has made several resources available to support local government initiatives. A set of foundational principles was identified to act as a guide both for the conduct of individual elected officials and the collective behaviour of a council or board. Building on these foundational principles, the WGRC also released a model for local governments seeking to develop their own Code of Conduct and a companion discussion guide. As well, it published a comprehensive guide to provide advice on fostering responsible conduct, maintaining good governance, resolving conduct issues and enforcing codes of conduct. Following extensive policy work undertaken by the WGRC and consultation with UBCM and the LGMA, the Legislature passed the Municipal Affairs Statutes Amendment Act No. 2, 2021 in Fall 2021. Once brought into force by regulation, its amendments to the Local Government Act, Community Charter and Vancouver Charter add a new requirement for all municipal councils and regional district boards to publicly consider developing codes of conduct for their council or board members. Government is pleased to take action that reflects this Resolutions request. The legislated requirement provides an additional and complementary tool to BCs local government responsible conduct framework by creating a regular process for elected officials to engage in conversations about shared expectations for conduct as they carry out their responsibilities and govern together. Further, the approach continues to respect BCs traditions of local government autonomy and direct accountability to citizens. The WGRC continues its collaborative work, including on a work program that also covers review of the oath of office regulation and gaining better understanding of the desired outcomes for and therefore potential approaches to a continuing education module for elected officials. The Province recognizes that how elected officials conduct themselves in their relationships with elected colleagues, staff and the public is directly connected to how a community is governed. The Ministry will continue to work collaboratively to identify new and existing opportunities to strengthen the responsible conduct framework.