Strong Mayor Powers, Decisions and Directions

Effective May 1, 2025 the Mayor of the Township of Laurentian Valley has assumed special powers and duties under Part VI.1 of the Municipal Act, 2001. 

These include powers to:

• Appoint and dismiss the Chief Administrative Officer (CAO)*;
• Hire and dismiss various division heads (excluding the prescribed list) and determine the organizational structure of the Township of Laurentian Valley*;
• Create Committees of Council, assign their functions and appoint the Chairs and Vice Chairs of Committees of Council*;
• A prescribed committee consists solely of members of Council;
• Propose the Municipality’s budget subject to Council amendments, a Mayoral veto and a Council override process;
  • The Budget shall be prepared on or before February 1^st, if not, Council shall prepare and adopt the budget;
• Bring matters to Council that advance certain Provincial priorities and veto any by-laws passed by Council that may interfere with the advancement of those priorities; and
• Direct Municipal Staff in writing.

*The Mayor may choose to delegate these specific powers and duties.

 The Mayor is required to exercise those powers in writing and make them available to the public, subject to the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act.

These changes to the Municipal Act, 2001 are put in place to support the Province’s priority and commitment to increasing the housing supply by 1.5 million homes by December 31, 2031. The powers and duties of the Mayor are further described in O. Reg. 530/22 and O. Reg. 580/22.

A public listing of Mayoral Decisions are available online.

Mayoral Decisions