Public & Delegation attendance

Public presenting to the Board

Accessibility

The Board of Director Meetings is open to the public. To support the welcoming of the public the following will occur:

• A meeting room will be open to the public to wait for the Meeting.
• Copies of the Agenda and minutes of the previous Board Meetings being discussed within the Board Meeting will be provided to the public in attendance.

Participation

The public can participate in the Board Meeting:

• By requesting time to present prior to the meeting and presenting within the time period allowed on the agenda item Public Presentation.
• By asking questions to the Board allowed on the agenda item ‘Questions to the Board'. The questions may be asked and responses will be provided as directed by the Chair. This may include a response in the meeting if appropriate. However, common practice is to answer the inquiry outside the meeting in a reasonable timeframe based on the availability of information and complexity of the question.

Delegations presenting to the Board

Time Allotment

Generally, delegations are given five minutes to make the presentation, however the time may be extended by the Chair of the meeting, but not beyond ten minutes in total. It is expected that the speakers will be limited to two persons as representatives on behalf of the delegation.

Relevance Of The Subject Matter Of A Presentation

The subject must have some relevance to the mandate of the Society. However, the Board will not hear matters that are:

• The subject of labour negotiations;
• The subject of contractual negotiations or service agreements with service providers;
• In relation to a specific client, employee or volunteer of the Society.

Generally, the Board will not hear matters that are subject to the requirement to be heard in camera. However, there may be circumstances where the Chair believes that the Board should receive representations on such an issue and accordingly such representations shall be heard in camera, subject to the same limitations of time.

Becoming A Delegate

Anyone wishing to become a delegation to the Board gives notice at least ten days prior to the date of a regular Board meeting, with a written statement as to the subject matter of the presentation and those who will be in attendance. It is desirable that a written summary of the presentation be provided for distribution to the members of the Board before the meeting.

Questions

Following a delegation's presentation, a question period of a maximum of five minutes will be allowed for the purpose of seeking clarification from the delegation. 

Delegations To Committees

It may be more appropriate for a delegation to be heard in the first instance by a committee of the Board. Where such is the case, the delegation will be encouraged to appear before the committee. The above-mentioned rules apply to the proceedings before a committee, subject to determination by the chair of the committee. Board Committees are working groups of set membership that bring recommendations to the board for decision.

Involvement In Discussions

Public participation in the discussion at Board Meetings is not generally allowed as defined by the Bylaw 7.05. To ensure transparency, all committee business and recommendations are brought to the Board of Directors meeting following the committee meeting in the form of minutes or verbal reports. Therefore there is no public attendance to committee meetings other than by the invitation of the Committee.

Similar Matters

The chair may limit the number of delegations that are to appear respecting the same issue. A delegation that has been heard on an issue may not appear again on that same issue within the twelve months following the presentation, except that it may be given an opportunity to comment should the issue raised come back to the Board for a report following consideration of the initial representations.