members and shall be permitted to participate in any portion of a meeting which is closed to the public”;

Passing these amendments has made it possible for Windsor City Council to continue to meet regularly during the pandemic. In fact, while the original regular Council Calendar for the period March 17 to July 17, 2020 had only 8 open meetings of Council scheduled, Council has actually held 12 open meetings in that time period..

Discussion:

Pending Legislation:

While Bill 187 allowed for electronic participation of Council members which would count towards quorum, under the legislation, these virtual meetings were only to be allowed for as long as there was a declared state of emergency in the province and municipality. However, the Province has now introduced Bill 197 which proposes further amendments to the Municipal Act which will allow for electronic participation at Council meetings without the requirement of a declared emergency.