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Home | Review Minutes | A: Our Inner West 2036 | B: Community Strategic Plan | C: Vision Statement | D: 5 Strategic Directions | E: Key Community Challenges 

Wed 10 Aug 2022								Recipient: 6132MCc1
REF: ACBNHAn1			IN THE PUBLIC INTEREST			Y/R: Rate-payers & Councils

Councillor							E: mail@monash.vic.gov.au
MONASH COUNCIL							M:{61}(4}
293 Springvale Rd GLEN WAVERLY 3150 				P: {61}(3) 9518 3555
PO Box 1 GLEN WAVERLY 3150					W: Monash Councillors

Dear Councillor						cc	Australian Legislators 
								Interested Parties eg Rate-payers 

       YOUR LOCAL GOVERNMENT ACT 2020 CHANGED THE WAY COUNCILS INFORM THE PUBLIC 

Further to our recent communications and now that the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham England 
have concluded after brilliant results by our Athletes, it is worth reviewing how Local Government finances 
and Electricity cost are linked (ref letter 03 Jun 2022 Many Councils have Electricity as highest source of 
Greenhouse Gas emissions) 

Indeed, it is also important to note in 2020 the Victorian Parliament passed the "Local Government Act 
2020"and is the only State or Territory to update its Local Government Act so far

However judging by previous legislation eg the Electronic Transactions Acts & Regulations 1999-2003, 
it is only a matter of time before every Australian State & Territory Parliaments issue their own updated 
Local Government Act

One of the key issues of the Victorian "Local Government Act 2020" is to establish a number of "Advisory 
Committees" to help with:

5	increased transparency of council decisions.

It will be interesting to see how many Committees are established by each Council and whether the 
committee minutes are provided as On-line minutes or as On-line PDF/Word files eg Monash Council 
minutes 22 Jul 2022 with 27 PDF files which have to be downloaded to be reviewed

Here is an example of On-line Committee minutes from Electronic Business Australia in 2002

It will also be interesting to see what incentives are provided for Council rate-payers to join those 
committees or whether the Local Government Association of Victoria will consider an eCredits system for 
committee participation

Here is a link to the participants in Electronic Business Australia Committee meetings 2000-2002 with their 
participation records which can be used to offset Council costs and provide revenue for local businesses

This is an extract of "Local Government Act 2020 - Victoria"

The Act is the main legislative instrument for Victoria's 79 councils.

The Act's preamble restates the constitutional recognition of local government as a distinct and essential 
tier of government. 

Part 1A of the Act contains the local government charter, which describes the purpose, objectives and 
functions of councils.

The Local Government Act also includes provisions for:
o	entitlements for residents and ratepayers to vote in council elections
o	the conduct of local council elections, including nominations and vote counting
o	independent electoral representation reviews by an electoral commission
o	council governance requirements, including codes of conduct and disclosure of conflicts of interest
o	council decision making, including records of meetings, confidentiality and limits 
o	levying and payment of council rates and charges
o	preparation of council plans, budgets and annual reports
o	councils' powers to make and enforce local laws.

The Local Government Act 2020 (Vic) empowers councils to establish delegated committees of the Council 
and delegate certain powers, duties and functions to the delegated committee. 

The public are able to attend Council meetings or find out the outcomes of past meetings.

Key advisory committees and groups

As a capital city council, the City of Melbourne delivers a range of programs and initiatives that contribute to 
the cultural, social and economic vitality of Melbourne.

To assist with this process, the Council has in place a number of key advisory bodies whose work facilitates 
development and implementation of such activities.

Outlined below is a list of key advisory committees, bodies and groups including current members.

a	Chief Executive Officer Employment Matters Advisory Committee
b	City Collection Advisory Panel
c	Disability Advisory Committee
d	Family and Children's Advisory Committee
e	Homelessness Advisory Committee
f	Night-time Economy Advisory Committee
g	Parks and Gardens Advisory Committee
h	Public Art Advisory Panel

The Local Government Act 2020 received Royal Assent on 24 March 2020.

The new Local Government Act 2020 is the most ambitious reform to the local government sector in over 
30 years. 

The Act drives improved service delivery, innovation, collaboration, and sustainable futures for all 
Victorians through:

1	better financial management and community engagement
2	clearer standards of behaviour for elected representatives
3	increased council and councillor accountability
4	changes to election processes and candidate requirements
5	increased transparency of council decisions.

The Act was proclaimed in four stages. The first stage was proclaimed on 6 April 2020 and final stage was 
proclaimed on 1 July 2021:

Stage 1 (complete) 
focused on electoral processes and the development of candidate training.

Stage 2 (complete) 
focused on transparency and community engagement.

Stage 3A (complete) 
focused on integrity and governance.

Stage 3B (underway) 
focused on integrated strategic planning and reporting.

Stage 4 (complete)
focused on procurement, complaints handling and key regulations articulating the powers of councils.

The implementation of the Act is nearly complete. The only remaining requirement for councils is to 
develop, adopt, and keep in place an Asset Plan by 30 June 2022.

Parts of the Local Government Act 1989 remain in force until further notice. 

Sector engagement

Local Government Victoria worked closely with representatives from the sector and peak \bodies to assist 
councils in meeting the requirements of the Act. 

The department hosted webinars and workshops to either inform or co-design guidance materials that 
would assist councils in the development of their plans and documents. 

These guidance materials are available for councils.

Visit EngageVic to contribute to the development of guidance material that will support councils in meeting 
the new requirements of the Act - many will be closing in the next view weeks.

NEXT STEPS

It will be interesting to see how many Committees are established by each Council and whether the 
committee minutes are provided as On-line minutes or On-line PDF/Word files minutes to enable 
"increased transparency of Council decisions"

Here is an example of On-line Committee minutes from Electronic Business Australia in 2002

It will also be interesting to see what incentives are provided for Council rate-payers to join those 
committees or whether the Local Government Association of Victoria will consider an eCredits system for 
committee participation

Here is a link to the participants in Electronic Business Australia Committee meetings 2000-2002 with their 
participation records

Yours sincerely



Peter AXTENS LLB (Retired)		Stephen GOULD
Chair - NSW Digital Economy Review Cmt	Chair - On-line eBusiness Cmt
SUSTAINABILITY ACTION NETWORK		OPEN INTERCHANGE CONSORTIUM 

B: PO Box 517 Neutral Bay Junction   2089
E: trustee.THD@gmail.com
M: {61}(4)1600-9468


LEGEND

EDI	Electronic Data Interchange
SME	Small and Medium size Enterprises
UNFCCC United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change [UNFCCC]
XML	Extensible Mark-up Language


I	Other Inner West Council Documents that are part of the CSP2036

	a	Strategies
	b	Plans
	c	Statements
	r	Research References

a	Strategies

Is1 Resourcing Strategy [ReS] 2018-2028 Adopted Jun 2018- PDF File		
Is2 Climate + Renewables Strategy [CRS] - draft On-line		
Is3 Employment and Retail Lands Strategy [EaRLS] - PDF File		
Is4 Housing Strategy [HS] - PDF File
Is5 Integrated Transport Strategy [ITS] Adopted 03 Mar 2020 - PDF File
Is6 Asset Management Strategy [AMS]2018-28 Adopted Jun 2018 - PDF File		
Is7 Workforce Management Strategy [WMS] 2018-22 Adopted Jun 2018 - PDF File		
Is8 Information and Communication Technology [ICT] Strategy 2018-2022 Adopted Jun 2018 - PDF File

b	Plans

Ip1 Community Strategic Plan [CSP] 2036 Endorsed Jun 2019 - On-line
Ip2 Economic Strategic Development Plan [EDSP] draft - On-line
Ip3 Long Term Financial Plan 2019-2029 Adopted Jun 2019 - PDF File

c	Statements

It1 Local Planning Statement [LPS]		

r	References

R6 2019-01-19 Adelaide Advertiser: Compensation paid to Slave Owners 1835 - 2015 (180 yrs)

R5 2003-2014 Value of Volunteers to Australian State Economies

R4 2014-11-07 IBM "Blockchain" solution for the Diamond Industry Video

R3 1997 Lessons from a Dozen Years of Group Support Systems Research - 4,000 IBM projects

R2 Sir Evelyn de Rothschild - Director De Beers 1977-1994 & IBM UK 1972-1995

R1 1987-04-23 RUBAC Automatic eProcess Synchronisation Video

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