4. License committee COMITÉ DES PERMIS |
That Council
approve the appointments of Councillors Bellemare, Chiarelli, McRae, Leadman,
Qadri and Thompson to the panel from which the License Committee membership
shall be drawn.
Recommandation du Comité
Que le Conseil approuve la
nomination des conseillers Bellemare, Chiarelli, McRae, Leadman, Qadri et
Thompson au groupe dont les membres du Comité des permis seront issus.
DOCUMENTATION
1.
Deputy City Manager report dated 22 January 2007 (ACS2007-CPS-BYL-0003).
Report to/Rapport au :
Community and Protective Services Committee
Comité des services communautaires et de protection
and Council / et au Conseil
22 January 2007 / le 22 janvier 2007
Submitted by/Soumis par : Steve Kanellakos,
Deputy City Manager/Directeur municipal adjoint,
Community and Protective Services/Services communautaires et de
protection
Contact Person/Personne ressource : Susan
Jones, Director/Directrice
(613) 580-2424
x25536, susan.jones@ottawa.ca
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SUBJECT: |
License committee
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OBJET : |
REPORT RECOMMENDATIONS
1.
That the Community and Protective Services Committee
recommend to Council that the following be approved:
a)
that License
Committee be reconvened from a panel of six (6) members of Council, a minimum
of three (3) of which shall also be members of the Community and Protective
Services Committee;
b)
that three (3)
members of this panel shall form License Committee for any hearing to be
brought before it;
c)
that the members of
the panel be appointed at the February 15, 2007 meeting of the Community and
Protective Services Committee and confirmed by Council at it’s meeting February
28, 2007; and,
d)
that the licensing
by-laws be amended accordingly to reflect Recommendation a) and b), and that
references to “Emergency and Protective Services Committee” in any of the
by-laws administered by the By-law and Regulatory Services Branch be amended to
“Community and Protective Services Committee”.
RECOMMANDATIONS
DU RAPPORT
1. Que
le Comité des services communautaires et de protection recommande au Conseil municipal d’approuver ce qui suit :
a)
Que le Comité des permis soit
reconstitué à partir d’un groupe de six (6) membres du Conseil, dont au moins
trois (3) devront être également membres du Comité des services communautaires
et de protection.
b)
Que trois (3) membres de ce groupe
forment le Comité des permis pour toutes les audiences demandées au Comité.
c)
Que les membres du groupe soient
nommés à la réunion du 15 février 2007 du Comité des services communautaires et
de protection et que leur nomination soit confirmée par le Conseil à sa réunion
du 28 février 2007.
d)
Que les règlements municipaux sur
les permis soient modifiés pour tenir compte des recommandations (a) et (b) et
que toute mention du Comité des services de protection et d’urgence dans les
règlements municipaux qu’applique la Direction des services des règlements
municipaux soit remplacée par la mention « Comité des services
communautaires et de protection ».
BACKGROUND
Under the Municipal Act, 2001, municipalities in Ontario are charged with the responsibility of enacting by-laws respecting the licensing of businesses, such as restaurants, itinerant sellers, taxis, food premises, among others, to address issues of public health and safety, public nuisance, and consumer protection. Special legislation obtained by the City in 2001 further authorized Council to establish a License Committee, sitting as a quasi-judicial body, which may suspend or revoke municipal licenses after affording the licensee an opportunity to be heard. This statute also provides a License Committee with the authority to impose conditions as a requirement for obtaining, continuing to hold, or renewing a license.
DISCUSSION
The function of licensing is to provide a set of standards for individuals wishing to engage in certain trades, callings, businesses or occupations that the City has determined appropriate to regulate. The issuance of a license is subject to suspension or revocation, for just cause, in accordance with the Municipal Act, 2001, any special legislation that has been obtained by municipalities to govern that activity, and the City’s Licensing By-law No. 2002-189.
The City of Ottawa has established a number of business licensing by-laws that:
· initiate inspections and approvals by internal and external regulatory offices (i.e. fire, health, zoning, property standards, and police);
· regulate the application process and ensure pre-requisite approvals and standards are observed as well as establish criteria for refusals and suspensions, and the creation of a License Committee;
· prescribe additional minimum entry standards such as training, conditions of vehicles, proof of insurance;
· regulate after-licensing performance; and
· stabilize the trade environment for fixed premises and iterant/mobile businesses (designated spaces for street vendors).
Over the past three years, the Community and Protective Services Department undertook a phased approach to harmonizing the business licensing by-laws of the former municipalities. This initiative was given a high priority in light of the potential financial impact to individuals, businesses and the City.
In April 2001, Council approved the amendment to a number of former municipal by-laws with respect to licensing and License Committees. The amending by-laws outlined the License Committee structure, meeting schedule and purpose under the new City. Special legislation obtained in December 2001 expanded the role of the License Committee giving it authority to make final and binding decisions. The legislation also enhanced and harmonized the authority of the License Committee across the new City of Ottawa.
In accordance with the historical and planned Terms of Reference associated with the Standing Committee responsible for business licensing by-law related matters, the License Committee is responsible for:
· reviewing, in accordance with the Statutory Powers Procedures Act, cases relating to license suspensions, revocations, refusals and renewals brought forward by the Chief License Inspector; and
·
making final and binding decisions respecting license
suspensions and revocations as well as the imposition of conditions as a
requirement for obtaining, continuing to hold or renewing a license.
The License Committee affords an individual the opportunity to appeal a
decision made by the Chief License Inspector.
Committee members are expected to accord procedural fairness to the
person seeking a hearing, allowing them to question witnesses presented in
support of the Chief License Inspector's decision and present their own
evidence either through individuals or by way of documentation. Ultimately, in deciding to uphold the
decision of the Chief License Inspector, or in reversing or otherwise modifying
that decision, members of the License Committee are acting in the public
interest.
In light of the new term of Council as well as the merging of the Emergency and Protective Services and the Health, Recreation and Social Services Committees to establish the new Community and Protective Services Committee, it is appropriate and necessary that the composition of License Committee be reviewed and that members be appointed to serve on the Committee. In the meantime, an interim License Committee is conducting hearings and other associated business as required.
To facilitate the scheduling and completion of License Committee hearings, and giving due consideration to the extent and nature of commitments of Council members, it is proposed that a group of six (6) members of Council be established from which to draw to serve on License Committee and that three (3) of those must be members of the Community and Protective Services Committee, which mandate includes business licensing matters. For any given hearing, only three (3) of the six (6) will sit as License Committee, as has been past practice.
Further, in accordance with the direction of the previous Council and as provided in the Licensing By-law, a regular meeting of License Committee will be scheduled for 9:30 a.m. on the third Monday of every second month beginning in March 2007, to ensure that hearings are conducted as expeditiously as possible. If no reports are scheduled two weeks in advance, the regularly scheduled meeting will be cancelled. However, from time to time, the License Committee may be requested to convene on an urgent basis to hear a case, which, because of its nature or due to time limitations prescribed by by-law, cannot be postponed to a regular meeting.
Training of License Committee Members
Once the formal membership of the License Committee has been established, it will be imperative to ensure that all members undergo training with respect to their role and legal responsibilities pursuant to the applicable licensing by-laws and the Statutory Powers Procedures Act as members of a quasi-judicial body.
As such, it is recommended that the By-law and Regulatory Services Branch, in consultation with the Legal Services Branch, provide License Committee members, prior to their first license status review, with a training session and a License Committee manual. This training will include an overview of the following:
Ÿ Licensing By-laws;
Ÿ License Committee;
Ÿ Statutory Powers Procedure Act;
Ÿ explanatory notes related to such procedures;
Ÿ administrative tasks chart; and
Ÿ commonly asked questions.
CONSULTATION
Given the administrative nature of the recommendations, no public consultation is necessary and none was undertaken.
FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS
There are no direct financial implications
associated with the recommendations.
DISPOSITION
Members of the License Committee will be appointed at the February 15, 2007 meeting of the Community and Protective Services Committee, and subsequently confirmed by Council on February 28, 2007.
The By-law and Regulatory Services Branch, in
consultation Legal Services Branch, to provide License Committee members with a
training session and a License Committee manual prior to the first hearing of
the Committee.
Legal Services Branch to ensure that any required revisions to the relevant by-laws are undertaken.