Public Hearings

When are public hearings held?

In accordance to the Municipal Government Act (MGA), when this or another enactment requires council to hold a public hearing on a proposed bylaw or resolution, the public hearing must be held, unless another enactment specifies otherwise,

(a) before second reading of the bylaw, or,

(b) before council votes on the resolution.

Public Hearings are an opportunity for ratepayers to inform Council of support or opposition to certain items, such as Bylaws.

Athabasca County Procedural Bylaw

A BYLAW OF ATHABASCA COUNTY TO REGULATE THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE MUNICIPAL COUNCIL PURSUANT TO THE MUNICIPAL GOVERNMENT ACT, RSA 2000, C. M-26, AS AMENDED.

Public hearings will be held in accordance with Section 216.4 of the Municipal Government Act;
Public hearings shall be held during Regular Council or Special Council meetings.
The Chair shall declare the public hearing in session, state the purpose of the public hearing and outline the public procedures;
The County Manager (or designate) shall present an overview and summary regarding the resolution, bylaw, or matter to be dealt with, as well as any written submissions received prior to the public hearing;
The Chair shall request those who wish to make a verbal presentation to identify themselves. A person who does not identify himself or herself will not be given the opportunity to speak. Those wishing to speak in support of the bylaw resolution will be invited to make the first presentation. Presentations by those in opposition of the bylaw or resolution shall present second. The Chair shall then open the floor to public presentations;
Public presentations may be made verbally, in writing, or both, with copies of written submission being filed with the County Manager;
Presentations shall be directed to the chair and be limited to five (5) minutes in duration;
Persons making presentations may be questioned by Council and Administration for clarification, however, Council shall not enter into debate during a Public Hearing;
The Chair shall invite the applicant to make closing comments, if any;
Following verbal presentations, the County (or designate) will respond to any questions from Council;
The Chair shall close the public hearing;
Once the public hearing is closed, the Chair shall advise that no further information on the matter shall be received by Council;
The Chair may recess or postpone the public hearing;
If a public hearing is recessed or postponed, Council shall not receive any additional submissions in relation to the subject matter until it reconvenes the public hearing;
Debate concerning matters raised at the public hearing shall take place during a Council meeting following or subsequent to after the public hearing is closed.
Minutes of the public hearing shall reflect the name of those who spoke and a general statement of their position on the matter, such as whether the presenter was in favour or opposed to the matter.
Pursuant to section 199 of the Act, public hearings held under Part 17 of the Act must be conducted through electronic means and the following provisions apply:

electronic means shall be by electronic communication platform that enables audio and video communication (such as Zoom, Microsoft Teams or an alternate platform approved by the County) and persons attending a meeting may choose to join online (audio and video) or by telephone;
immediately after the call to order, the Chair must conduct roll call to verbally confirm the identity of the attending members;
the method of giving notice of the meeting is by publishing to the Athabasca County Website;
the CAO will provide public access to the meeting through electronic means and information identifying how the meeting can be accessed electronically is published on the Athabasca County Website;
information that is to be made publicly available is published on the Athabasca County Website;
the Athabasca County Website contains instructions on how the public may make submissions; and
any person attending a public hearing by electronic means must register by the specified deadline and comply with the procedures outlined in the notice of public hearing for filing submissions. Only those who have registered to attend by electronic means will be provided with the information to access the hearing electronically.