OBCM ’s Big City Mayors

Terms of Reference (as amended January 2021)

A. Mandate Ontario’s Big City Mayors (OBCM) aim to support and enhance strong and effective local government in Ontario’s biggest cities.

OBCM considers matters of interest to its member municipalities and takes united action on matters where the rights, services or programs of its member municipalities may be affected. OBCM advances the standards of municipal government through public policy development, advocacy and discussion. OBCM ultimately represents and expresses the large urban municipal viewpoint and to other authorities and levels of government.

B. Membership OBCM is comprised of 29 member municipalities with populations of 100,000 or greater:

1. Ajax 2. 3. 4. 5. Burlington 6. Cambridge 7. Chatham-Kent 8. 9. 10. Hamilton 11. Kingston 12. Kitchener 13. London 14. Markham 15. Milton 16. 17. Oakville 18. 19. 20. Pickering 21. Richmond Hill 22. St. Catharines 23. 24. 25. 26. 27. Waterloo 28. Whitby 29. Windsor

Mayor Jeff Lehman, Chair 70 Collier Street, Barrie ON L4M 4T5 [email protected] ● 705-792-7900 ontariobigcitymayors.ca @ONBigCityMayors

Regional governments are not members of OBCM as they are represented by the Mayors and Regional Chairs of Ontario (MARCO). The Mayor of each municipality serves as its representative on OBCM. a) Annual Membership Fee Schedule: (adopted January 15, 2021)

Municipal Population Fee 100,000 – 500,000 $10,000.00 500,000 – 1,000,000 $15,000.00 > 1,000,000 $20,000.00

C. Objectives OBCM aims to: a) Provide an opportunity for consultation and cooperation among member municipalities by being a forum of open discussion.

b) Ensure all OBCM members have access to full and timely information on key priorities and arising issues.

c) Develop policy positions and reports on issues of importance to large urban municipalities.

d) Provide strategic and timely advice to AMO, the Province of Ontario, and/or the Government of Canada on key priorities and arising issues.

e) Achieve measurable progress on key policy areas.

f) Develop and carry out advocacy plans for important issues.

g) Deliver a common message and react to change in a nimble and organized fashion.

h) Provide solidarity and share resources required to meet the priorities of OBCM.

i) Work with MARCO on issues of mutual concern and interest, maximize opportunities for collaboration between the two groups and avoid duplication of efforts as much as possible.

D. Chair and Vice-Chair A Chair and Vice-Chair will be elected by the OBCM members each for a two-year term. The role of the Vice-Chair is to act for the Chair if he/she is not available. The Vice-Chair will automatically succeed the Chair.

Election of the Chair and Vice Chair will take place through a vote of the members at the first OBCM meeting following municipal elections. Two years later, the Chair and Vice Chair positions will be again voted by the members at the last OBCM meeting of the two-year term.

E. General Responsibilities of the Chair The Chair will ensure that each meeting is supported administratively and will approve the final meeting agenda, Chair the meetings, and ensure follow-up on issues. The Chair will also provide leadership on advocacy plans and serve as the spokesperson for OBCM. The Chair will be a sitting member of the AMO-MOU board and serve as a liaison between OBCM and AMO, MARCO, and other key groups.

F. Meeting Frequency OBCM will meet four times per year, per a schedule set out at the start of each year. One of the four meetings will be scheduled during the AMO annual meeting and conference, which is held in the third week of August. This meeting will be a joint meeting with MARCO on issues of mutual concern. Additional meetings may be called on an ‘as required’ basis. Each OBCM member will ensure the administrator for the meetings has been notified of their acceptance or regret to be present for the meeting.

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G. Quorum Quorum is reached if a majority of the 29 member municipalities of OBCM are in attendance at the meeting. A Mayor may send a designate if he/she cannot attend.

H. Meeting Location and Guests Meetings will be held at a location approved by the Chair, which may include by conference call or video conference.

Representatives from AMO and the members’ municipalities’ CAOs and staff will receive a standing invitation to OBCM meetings. Other guests will be invited as needed for the agenda.

I. Minutes Minutes will include decisions and action items arising from each meeting and will be distributed back to OBCM members in a timely manner. Action items will be reviewed at each meeting to determine progress made on each item.

Whenever possible, the agenda and materials for each meeting will be distributed to all OBCM members a week ahead of the meeting.

J. Resources The sitting OBCM Chair will provide support and administrative resources for the term of office.

OBCM funds collected from the membership will primarily support advocacy work, which may include engaging consultants or technical knowledge to support this activity.

OBCM members may be requested to contribute additional funds from time to time in support of advocacy work.

The outgoing OBCM Chair will transfer the balance of OBCM funds on deposit to the incoming Chair within 30-days of the change of office.

K. Subcommittees or Working Groups Subcommittees and/or Working Groups may be established on an as-required basis to work on specific short-term tasks, upon review of a described work plan or terms of reference and approval by OBCM.

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Mayor Jeff Lehman Date Chair, Ontario’s Big City Mayors

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Mayor Date Vice Chair, Ontario’s Big City Mayors

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