2012 February MUNICIPALITIES TODAY

2012 MUNICIPAL GENERAL ELECTIONS - UPCOMING DEADLINES

Municipal general elections will be held later this year and deadlines are approaching for council to exercise discretionary authority respecting certain matters. Please take note of the following deadlines that may apply to your community.

To change the size of council:

• in resort villages the deadline was January 29;
• in other urban municipalities the deadline is April 26;
• in northern municipalities the deadline is March 22, March 29, or April 5 depending on the date chosen by council as Election Day;
• in rural municipalities please refer to altering division boundaries in The Municipalities Act.

Additional information and deadlines about other municipal election considerations will be available in future publications of Municipalities Today. Watch for more information about:

• Requiring a Criminal Record Check with a candidate's Nomination Form;
• Appointing a person other than the administrator or clerk as the returning officer (not in rural municipalities);
• Required disclosure of campaign contributions and expenses or imposed campaign spending limits;
• The preparation and use of a voters list;
• Altering the order of candidates' names on ballots.

Plans are currently being developed to deliver training to municipal election officials at various locations throughout the province during the month of May. For more information about training or municipal elections please contact Advisory Services at 306-787-2680 or at muninfo@gov.sk.ca.

MUNICIPAL EVENTS NOTICE REMINDER

Spring is right around the corner and with it comes the nice weather. Spring and summer are great times to host grand opening events or celebrate project milestones and many funding agreements require these types of events be held. We would like to remind municipalities that both federal and provincial funding partners require at least four weeks notice prior to an event to ensure adequate time to secure a representative to attend. Request for government representatives at events should include the date, time, location, agenda and other logistical details about the event.  

Please reference the Checklist and Timelines For Municipal Project Milestones document available on the Municipal Affairs website for more information about municipal events, funding partner contact information and event checklists. 

ASSET MANAGEMENT - IT'S A GAME CHANGER

More and more municipalities are hearing about asset management. But what exactly is asset management? How does it work? We sat down with industry experts and some fellow municipalities who are participating in pilot projects to get the inside scoop.

With the help of sector partners we have developed the Municipal Asset Management and Saskatchewan video series. Watch the full length video on our YouTube channel. You can also watch specific chapters from the video as well. Simply visit the Municipal Affairs YouTube channel and select the section you would like to view. Choose from: Chapter 1-State of Affairs; Chapter 2-Asset Management Principles, Chapter 3-Asset Management Process; Chapter 4-Call to Action.

Share this video with your council and residents to help them learn more about how asset management can help your community remain strong, vibrant and sustainable.