To view or download this policy as a PDF click Governance and Elected Member Policies Documents

Purpose

This Policy responds to the NT Local Government Act, 2019 and associated Guideline 1.

Local Authorities are established under the NT Local Government Act, 2019 to assist Central Desert Regional Council (CDRC) to achieve effective integration and involvement of local communities in the system of local government.

Local Authorities must comply with any guidelines made under the NT Local Government Act, 2019; and, they are subject to control and direction by the Council of CDRC.

This policy applies to all Local Authorities in the CDRC region.

Scope

This Policy includes areas, delegations, functions, membership and roles and responsibilities of Local Authorities, Council and CDRC.

Definition and Terms

Council: the elected members as a whole of CDRC.
CDRC: Central Desert Regional Council as a whole.
CEO: Chief Executive Officer of CDRC.
Local Authority: as established under the NT Local Government Act, 2019.
Elected member: a member elected to the Council of CDRC.
Appointed member: a member nominated from the community and appointed by the Council to represent the community of the Local Authority area.
Chair: elected by the Local Authority and responsible for running the meeting and ensuring that members are following the conventions of the meeting.

Legislation and Reference

Local Government Act 2019
NT Local Government Act Guideline 1 – Local Authorities

Policy Statement

Local Authorities will assist CDRC to achieve effective integration and involvement of local communities in the system of local government as it relates to CDRC’s region.

Local Authority Areas

CDRC’s nine Local Authority areas are Anmatjere, Atitjere, Engawala, Lajamanu, Laramba, Nyirripi, Willowra, Yuelamu and Yuendumu.

Delegations

The Council has delegated to Local Authorities the power of decision making and approval of the allocation and expenditure of funds from the Northern Territory Government’s ‘Local Authority Project Funding’ program.

Conflict of Interest

When a decision is being made, or a matter is being considered, each member must consider whether they have a conflict of interest and, if so, they must leave the meeting while the matter is considered.

Members who are staff must ensure a conflict is declared if the discussion includes issues and/or projects that directly impact their area of work.

Functions of Local Authorities

Local Authorities:

• Involve local communities in local government
• Advocate and provide a voice for their community
• Provide input into Council policies, plans and budgets
• Make recommendations on community issues and needs
• Endorse cemetery plan and cemetery policies for each public cemetery

Membership

Number of members

In order to encourage all community members wishing to be involved, the number of members on each Local Authority can change at any time. There must be a minimum of 6 members and a maximum of 14 members, which includes elected members for the relevant ward.

Members

Under the Local Government Act, 2019 s77 (1), A Local Authority consists of:

1. At least one member of the council appointed by the council by resolution Council Policy

An appointed member should be a member of the community. Community residents over 18 years who live in the Ward, for the majority of the time, can nominate or be nominated for Local Authority member except that two (2) members of a Local Authority maybe under the age of 18 years.

Employees of CDRC are permitted to be members, however, must declare a conflict of interest.

Council will have the final say on Local Authority membership.

Ideal membership makeup

A local authority should:

• Include members who are committed to attending and participating in meetings

• Be representative of key groups within the area

Nominations

Nominations can be received for a Local Authority at any time.

To become a Local Authority member the candidate needs to fill in a Local Authority nomination form. The completed nomination form can be handed directly to Council Services Office, emailed to the This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or tended at the next Local Authority meeting. The Governance team will submit the nomination form to Council to deliberate on at the Ordinary Meeting of the Council. Council will have the final say on Local Authority membership.
When membership drops, or is likely to drop, below the minimum number of appointed members, or where nominations are received above the maximum level, Council will call for additional nominations and will allow 21 days for nominations to be received.

The appointment of nominees is subject to the approval of Council.

Term

The term of a Local Authority member is ongoing unless membership is revoked.

Revocation of membership

Membership is revoked when a member:

• Resigns in writing
• Passes away

Council may revoke an appointed member if the member:

• Breaches the Code of Conduct – Elected and Appointed Members
• Is convicted of an offence
• Misses 50 percent of the scheduled meetings per financial year.

Proxy membership

• The local authority may resolve to endorse provisional membership for any vacancies at an ordinary meeting or a provisional meeting.
• Provisional membership will count for the purposes of quorum but must subsequently be ratified by council.
• A member of a Local Authority may be represented by a proxy (substitute) during a meeting or provisional meeting.
• A proxy can only substitute for each local authority member at a maximum of 2 meetings in a financial year.
• Appointment of a proxy for a meeting should be notified to council at least 2 days before a meeting.

Meetings

Chair and Deputy Chair

The term of the Chair and Deputy Chair shall be ongoing unless the Local Authority membership determines otherwise by resolution.

The election of the Chair and Deputy Chair will be conducted in the following way:

• Nominations shall be called for from all members (elected and appointed) of the Local Authority for the positions of Chair and Deputy Chair.
• The calling for nominations shall be conducted at the Local Authority meeting
• Nominations must have a nominator and seconder of the nomination
• The Local Authority shall elect the Chair and Deputy Chair by a show of hands.

Number of meetings

Council will plan to hold four meetings each financial year to comply with the minimum of four meetings in each financial year as stipulated in Guideline 1: Local Authorities.

Postponing or cancelling a meeting

With nine Local Authorities and a scheduled calendar of events to cover four scheduled Local Authorities a year and six ordinary Council meetings there is not a lot of available time to re‐schedule a meeting.

In the event that a quorum cannot be achieved, the chair of a local authority may reconvene a meeting by providing notice to the CEO or delegate at least three days prior to the scheduled meeting date. The meeting date must not coincide with other Council scheduled meetings, as the secretariat would not be available. A Chair may decide to re‐schedule and organize its own secretariat with minutes provided back to the Head Office and Council.

Provisional meeting

At the time and place set for a local authority meeting when a quorum has not been established, number of members (appointed or elected) present is one third or more of the number of appointed members for the local authority, a provisional meeting may be held under the provisions of Guideline 1.

A provisional meeting does not have the powers or functions that the council may have delegated to the local authority. During provisional meetings, all agenda items may be discussed. Minutes must be taken and the minutes clearly state that it was a provisional decision. Members at a provisional meeting can confirm the minutes of a previous provisional meeting. However, members at a provisional meeting cannot confirm the minutes of a previous local authority meeting.

Roles and Responsibilities

Local Authority:

• Elects a Chair and Deputy Chair
• Considers and promotes the views of all community members
• Provides leadership to the community in relation to local matters
• Makes recommendations to the Council and the CEO on local matters.
• Reports back to the community regarding recommendations raised with Council
• Decides what the minutes should say within the governance framework

Council:

• Provides secretariat support to ensure compliance with relevant legislation
• Provides training and guidance to all members of the Local Authority
• Advertises meetings in a timely fashion
• Provides sufficient notice to members of meetings dates and times, including changes.
• Where possible, ensures the Chair has input into, and is familiar with, the agenda before the meeting.

Attending a meeting:

Details relating attending a meeting via audio or audio-visual means at a local authority meeting or special local authority mirror the requirements of a council meeting.

• It is preferable that members attend meetings in person and members are encouraged to do so where possible.
• Except in cases of emergency, the members will give at least 2 days’ written notice to the CEO that they intend to attend a meeting via audio or audio-visual conferencing system and the reason(s) for not being physically present at the meeting.
• If the Chairperson is attending the meeting via audio or audio-visual conferencing system, the Chairperson may decide to delegate the function of chairing the meeting to the deputy, or if there is no deputy, another member.
• Where a conflict is declared, the member must disconnect from the conferencing system prior to the discussion of the particular agenda item. If member has disconnected from the conferencing system due to a declared conflict, the chairperson will contact the member as soon as the agenda item has concluded and invite the member to re-join the meeting.
• Members attending meetings remotely will ensure that people in their presence who are not members cannot see, overhear or listen to the member or the meeting (unless the Council is aware and accepts the circumstances) and not record the meeting.

Council Officers Attending Local Authority

The following officers should attend Local Authority meetings whenever possible.

• CEO
• Regional Manager(s)
• Directors, at their discretion
• Governance Officer (secretariat)

Attendance Fees

Members who attend Local Authority meetings will receive the following:

• Elected members – an extra meeting allowance as prescribed in the Elected and Appointed Members Facilities, Benefits and Allowances Policy
• Appointed members – a sitting fee as determined by the Remuneration Tribunal if they are present for at least 75 per cent of the scheduled meeting time
• CDRC staff who are Local Authority members – under the CEO’s delegation, may receive an attendance fee, comparable to the sitting fee, should they attend the meeting outside of their regular working hours

All members must fill in and sign the Extra Meeting Allowances form prior to receiving payment.

Deputations

Anyone who contacts the Council wishing to make a deputation or presentation to a Local Authority must seek permission from the Local Authority Chair by returning a Deputation Request Form to the CEO. The Form should be received at least two weeks prior to the meeting date and the Chair has the right to decline a deputation.

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