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Chief Administrative Officer (CAO)
Dog Control Facts
Request to Appear before Council
Formalities at Council Meetings
The CAO acts as Council's principal policy advisor while overseeing the overall administration of the District, its officers and employees. The CAO is charged with keeping Council up to date on corporate matters and ensuring that Council policy is implemented, and ensuring the financial affairs of the District are being properly managed and bylaws are enforced. The CAO promotes the District through economic development and other initiatives and provides for the overall emergency planning preparedness. The CAO liaises with community organizations, other municipalities, adjacent first nations, provincial and federal agencies and departments.
Corporate Services is responsible for supporting the legislative matters and decisions of Council and for providing the official secretariat for Council and all other statutory bodies within the corporation. This function includes agenda preparation, recording of official minutes, administration and certification of bylaws, and the execution of all legal documentation on behalf of the District. The department is responsible for providing Council with up-to-date legislative, statutory and procedural information in which local governments operate. Corporate Services also administers the corporate records management program and is responsible for compliance with Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy (FOI) legislation. The department conducts the triennial general local and school district elections, as well as by-elections and referenda.
This department also oversees the bylaw enforcement and dog control and encourages bylaw compliance on various property maintenance standards, nuisance, dog control, noise, parking, traffic, business licence, zoning, illegal dumping, building violations, litter, graffiti, and controlled substance bylaws currently in force.
You may request to be scheduled as a formal delegation to Council, should staff be unable to address your situation or concerns.
Requests are made in writing to the Corporate Officer and should be accompanied by background information on the issue you wish to address. Request to Appear as a Delegation Form
Your request will be reviewed and you will be contacted by the Corporate Officer.
Comments at Council meetings should be directed to the Mayor or member of Council presiding at the meeting.
Introduce yourself - please clearly state your name and address before making your comments.
Be sure to speak loud enough so your input can be clearly heard.
The Mayor may be referred to as "Your Worship", other Council members as "Councillor".
Delegations are limited to 10 - 15 minutes.
Freedom of Information Protection of Privacy Act (FIPPA)
Purpose and Function of the Act:
The Freedom of Information Protection of Privacy Act (the Act), was created to make public and local public bodies more open, transparent and accountable by providing the public with a legislated right of access to government records, specifying limited exceptions to those rights of access, while protecting the public's right to personal privacy by prohibiting the unauthorized collection, use or disclosure of personal information. The Act also provides individuals the right to request access to their own personal information as well as the right to request that their personal information be corrected.
Routine Release Requests vs. Freedom of Information Requests:
Start by making an informal request for routinely releasable information. To do this, please contact the relevant department directly that you may think has the information you seek.
If there are no exceptions to disclosure, the records and information may be released as a routine request for information. Information provided through routine channels include answers to general questions related to departmental and governmental operations. Examples of routinely released information
Approved Guidelines
Board of Variance Agendas, Meeting Minutes and Reports
Building Plans (Except Interiors)
Official District Bylaws (Not Bylaw Infractions)
Committee Agendas and Meeting Minutes
Corporate and Administrative Policies and Procedures
Council Agendas and Meeting Minutes from Open Council Meetings (Information from Closed Meetings is Excepted from Disclosure)
Issued Licenses (Not including the personal information supplied in support of the application for the license)
Issued Permits (Not including the personal information supplied in support of the application for the permit)
Land Proposal Packages
Land Tender Packages
Official Community Plans
Parcel Tax Roll Review Panel Agendas and Minutes
Routine Inspection Reports
Making a Formal Request for Information ( FOI Application Process and Form):
The FIPPA Act applies to official records that are in the custody and control of the District of Hope.
If the information you are seeking is not routinely available to you by the department, an official FOI request for records must be made in writing (see electronic form below).
Freedom of Information (FOI) requests are processed through the Corporate Services Department at the Town Hall. Requests for records should be as specific as possible and include sufficient detail to allow the District to locate, access and retrieve the relevant records as quickly as possible. This form also specifies how you wish to receive the records (e.g., view in person, pick up a copy, or have the records mailed).
To make a request, please click here to download a request form, fill it out, sign it and submit it to our office via email, regular mail, fax, or in person to:
Records Coordinator
325 Wallace Street
Hope, BC V0X 1L0
Email: ssecord@hope.ca
FOI Review and Response:
Depending on the nature of the request, the District may or may not have custody and control of the records you seek (no responsive records). We will advise you in writing if we do not have any relevant records, and/or we may suggest another public body for you to contact further.
Upon receipt of your request, we will send out a "Letter of Acknowledgment" and begin searching for the records relating to your request. Sometimes, we may want to contact you (by telephone or email), to clarify or narrow the scope of your request. Also, under Section 7 of the FIPPA Act, the District has up to 30 business days to respond to your request. We will make every effort to respond sooner than the Act allows. However, in the event that the request requires further time to process (e.g., large volume), then we may request a 30 day extension.
FOI Fees and Fee Schedule:
The FOIPPA Act permits the District to charge fees (Section 75), for certain costs to provide you with the records. If there are extensive costs involved with retrieving and photocopying records to meet a request, then we will advise applicants in writing with a "Fee Estimate Letter". This letter will provide details on how we assess applicable fees and your prior approval is required before we may proceed with processing your request. A portion of the fee, or its entirety it is a small amount, may have to be paid prior to the request being processed. However, no charge is assessed for an applicant's own personal information. Also, if an applicant simply wishes to view the records onsite, then fees may be reduced, because there would be no photocopying charges.
Commercial Applicants:
Commercial applicants includes anyone making a request for records access to obtain information for commercial purposes. Commercial purposes are uses in connection with a trade, business, profession or other venture for profit, and are subject to fees that will be assessed in order to cover the actual cost of providing this service to them.
Appeals:
If an applicant is dissatisfied with the response to their request for information, under section 52 of the Act they may apply to the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner for a review within 30 days of receiving a response. It is advised, however, that applicants apply first to the District of Hope for a review of their access-to-information request in an effort to resolve the matter more expeditiously. If an applicant is still dissatisfied with the response, s/he may apply directly to the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner of BC for a review and include in their request:
Their name, address and telephone number
The file number assigned to their request (i.e. FOI 10-08)
The type of request that they made to the District of Hope (i.e. access, correction, fee complaint, time limit complaint, etc. or a copy of the request)
A copy of the District of Hope's decision, and
The reasons or grounds upon which they are requesting the review
Questions or Concerns:
For information related to the Freedom of Information Protection of Privacy Act, please contact the District of Hope Records Coordinator at 604-869-5671 (ext. 311) or Director of Corporate Services 604-869-5671 (ext. 321) or contact us by email at info@hope.ca.
Find out more about your local government: Local Government in BC: A Community Effort
CAO John Fortoloczky cao@hope.ca
Director of Corporate Services Donna Bellingham dbellingham@hope.ca
Manager of Human Resources/OH&S Dagny Guy dguy@hope.ca
Executive Assistant Tammy McLaren corporate@hope.ca
Records Coordinator Scott Secord ssecord@hope.ca