The City of Fredericton adopted a Code of Conduct By-law for members of City Council on August 10, 2020. The by-law applies to the Mayor and all City Councillors and serves as a public declaration of the principles of good conduct and ethics that the councillors have decided the public can expect from their elected officials.
The Code of Conduct is in place to provide guidance to Council on items such as use of local government property, resources and services, and use of communication tools and social media. These rules relate to, but are not limited to:
- Improper conduct when representing the local government
- Improper conduct respecting the decision-making process
- Failure to abide by provincial legislation, Council policies, procedures and by-laws
- Inappropriate and / or disrespectful treatment of fellow Council members, employees and the public
- Misuse of confidential information
- Failure to disclose conflicts of interest and improper use of influence
- Inappropriate use of municipal property and resources
You can read a full copy of the by-law here.
Complaint Process
If you see a behaviour or activity that you believe violates the Code of Conduct for members of City Council you can submit a complaint. There is both a formal and informal process for complaints, compliance and enforcement.
Informal Process
You are encouraged to use of the informal complaint process to address behaviour immediately and settle the manner in a timely way. You may do this by phone, email, or in person.
- Any person can inform the Councillor that their behaviour or activity appears to be in violation of the code of conduct and encourage the councillor to acknowledge and agree to stop the behaviour or end the activity.
- Any person can request that the Mayor (or Deputy Mayor) facilitate an informal discussion of the alleged complaint to resolve the issue.
- It is recommended that all parties document all relevant information and interactions involved in the informal process.
- If, in your opinion, the informal approach has not worked, or if you are uncomfortable with the process, you can make a formal request for an investigation.
Formal Complaint
To file a formal complaint, you must:
- Complete the Statement of Complaint.
- Place the completed statement of complaint in a sealed, stamped envelope addressed to:
City Clerk
City of Fredericton
Re: Code of Conduct
397 Queen Street
Fredericton, NB E3B 1B5
The Process
After your complaint has been filed, you will receive a written confirmation of receipt from the City Clerk. The City Clerk will also provide a copy of the statement to the Councillor in question, inform all City Councillors that a complaint has been filed, and the complaint will be delivered to the Mayor (or Deputy Mayor when appropriate) for initial assessment.
If the complaint is determined to be frivolous and / or vexatious, the complainant will be notified that the case is considered closed and no investigation will be held. If it appears to be a complaint made in good faith, Council / The City will procure the services of an external investigator. This process should be completed within 90 days or less.
A final investigative report will be provided to City Council, who will then deliberate whether a breach of the code of conduct has occurred based on information provided in the report. Council will also decide if and what sanctions are appropriate.
A list of sanctions and the full investigative process can be found here.