Update on motions won’t be made public

Last night, a proposal to publish a document that highlights the progress of council requests was shot down.

Only two people we in support on this proposal – Deputy Mayor Stephen Chase and Councillor Gary Sullivan.

Chase said his proposal would have brought greater accountability to City Hall by showing people how public business was moving ahead.

Chase said many councillors present motions based on requests from their constituents and those people have an interest in knowing where those motions have gone.

I followed up with the Deputy Mayor, and I received more details on the proposal:

In terms of a general observation and comment, I understand that the public has not been able to access this document.  I believe they should, if not for their simple reason that all the motions are in fact public already.  But much larger than that reason, council and administration must recognize that the public is an integral component in the functioning of an open government.

Council members construct their motions based on: staff reports, observations of the community; observations and knowledge of administrative and management processes; knowledge of programs; requests by citizens or community groups; and, through consultations with citizens.  Essentially, motions may be considered a measurement of the judgment and skills of council members collectively and as individuals in carrying out what is in the best interests of the city. It would follow, naturally, that the public has a vested interest in accessing this measurement of performance of the council members they elected.

A running and publicly accessible record of motion status would be a mechanism towards providing open, accountable and transparent government.  It also serves as a reference point for staff and council members to what progress is being made on the business of the city.  Moreover, with this reference point being set against the knowledge that public also has access to it, with the expectations of action being undertaken increases the level of accountability – again another measure of performance of both staff and council members by the public.

What do you think?

I think it’s a great idea, the city should be putting out this information for us to see.

The fact is – we are paying for this work to be done, and we deserve to be updated on the progress!