How should municipalities handle letters from residents that become part of the council agenda packages forwarded to council members?
• Letters from residents normally include personal information, such as name, address, phone numbers, and possibly opinions and other personal information. In deciding whether to disclose the personal information of individuals at public council or committee meetings, municipalities need to balance the dual objectives of open government and protection of privacy. • Under section 197 of the Municipal Government Act (MGA), meetings of a council or a council committee must be conducted in public, except where there is authority to hold the meetings in the absence of the public. Under section 198 of the MGA, the public has a right to be present at council and committee meetings that are conducted in public. Given the public nature of council and committee meetings, an individual writing to a councillor or to the administration of a municipality may have a reasonable expectation that their correspondence, including their personal information, could be disclosed at a public council or commit
Related Questions
- How should municipalities handle letters from residents that become part of the council agenda packages forwarded to council members?
- Can a Metis settlement administrator disclose personal information of settlement members/residents to council members?
- Do Council tax offices usually have somebody there to sign for packages/letters over the weekend?
