Municipal Legislation Review Questionnaire

Thank you for your interest in contributing to the Municipal Legislation Review by completing this survey.  We are especially interested in hearing from the organizations and professionals who use municipal legislation in significant ways, and from all individuals directly affected by it. Your input in valuable in helping us best understand what is required of municipal legislation to ensure that the province’s cities, towns, and local service districts operate in efficient and effective ways to meet the needs of residents.

All feedback collected as part of this survey will be considered as officials prepare recommendations for modernizing the legislation.

This legislative review is focused on the legal framework for cities and municipalities to represent the interests of and respond to the needs of their communities.  The Acts under review, collectively referred to as “municipal legislation”, are limited to:

• The Municipalities Act, 1999
• The City of St. John's Act
• The City of Mount Pearl Act
• The City of Corner Brook Act.

The questions contained in this online questionnaire are specifically related to these four Acts.  The survey address a number of topics including: enabling vs. prescriptive legislation; municipal structures and purposes; powers and authority; transparency and accountability; professional conduct; service delivery; and, revenue sources.

Please note that this questionnaire is lengthy and can take more than an hour to complete if you answer all the questions. All multiple choice questions are mandatory, but the discussion (long answer) questions are not.  Additionally, you can leave the survey unfinished and return to it at a later time without losing your work.  Therefore, if you prefer, you can work on the survey at your own pace over multiple sessions rather than completing it all at once.

While it is not necessary to read the Discussion Guide prior to answering the questionnaire, it may be helpful to increasing your understanding of the questions posed.  We also recommend having a copy of the discussion guide open for reference as you complete the questionnaire.

If you have attended an in-person engagement session, you will have had the opportunity to contribute to some of the following questions already.  Please note, however, that not all of the questions in this survey were posed at the in-person sessions. As you work through the survey, feel free to respond to any of the questions (including those you have already seen) or to skip those you have already answered at other sessions, as you prefer.