Ombudsman's Message - A decade of progress This annual report is a milestone for the Ombudsman’s Office. We are approaching our 40th anniversary, and I have had the honour of serving Ontarians as Ombudsman for just over 10 of those years. The past decade has been a time o...
/resources/reports,-cases-and-submissions/annual-reports/2014-2015-annual-report
The Ombudsman received a complaint about a special meeting held by the Township of Russell on April 2 by electronic participation due to COVID-19. The complaint alleged that the meeting agenda did not provide a link to the website where the meeting would be broadcast. The Omb...
/resources/reports,-cases-and-submissions/municipal-meetings/2020/township-of-russell
The Ombudsman received several complaints related to the meeting practices of the Board of Management for the Greater Napanee Business Improvement Area (the Greater Napanee BIA), which is a local board in the Town of Greater Napanee. The complainants alleged that the Board of...
/resources/reports,-cases-and-submissions/municipal-meetings/2021/town-of-greater-napanee
The Ombudsman concluded that a gathering of 12 council members in the City Hall cafeteria between meetings on June 24, 2014 - prior to a vote to fill a vacant council seat the next day - did not violate the open meeting requirements of the Municipal Act, 2001 .
/resources/reports,-cases-and-submissions/municipal-meetings/2014/city-of-london-turning-tables
Ontario’s Independent Officers of the Legislative Assembly are calling on the provincial government to reverse plans in the Budget Bill that they believe will significantly reduce important oversight powers.
/resources/news/press-releases/2015/statement-from-ontario-s-independent-legislative-officers
On September 21 2016, Ontario Ombudsman Paul Dubé spoke to delegates of the Association française des municipalités de l’Ontario during their 27th Annual Meeting, in Hearst.
/resources/speeches-and-articles/speeches/2016/ombudsman-oversight-of-municipalities-what-to-expect-if-the-ombudsman-calls
The Ombudsman received complaints about in-person closed meetings held by council for the City of Richmond Hill on April 16 and May 14, 2019, and about electronic council meetings held on April 1, April 22, and May 14, 2020. The Ombudsman found that at each meeting where it w...
/resources/reports,-cases-and-submissions/municipal-meetings/2021/city-of-richmond-hill
The Niagara District Airport Commission contravened the Municipal Act on July 14, 2016, when it went in camera to discuss ongoing airport fee negotiations and related airport upgrades. This meeting did not fall within the “advice subject to solicitor-client privilege” excep...
/resources/reports,-cases-and-submissions/municipal-meetings/2016/niagara-district-airport-commission
We received a complaint that members of council for the City of Hamilton contravened the open meeting provisions by exchanging emails relating to a vacant council seat in June 2018. The complaint also alleged that the city’s General Issues Committee contravened the rules by d...
/resources/reports,-cases-and-submissions/municipal-meetings/2019/city-of-hamilton
Our Office received a complaint that Norfolk County's council-in-committee held an illegal closed meeting on December 1, 2015 when it went in camera to discuss whether to approve a legal services contract extension with two law firms. Our investigation determined that the maj...
/resources/reports,-cases-and-submissions/municipal-meetings/2016/norfolk-county