Douro-Dummer will no longer include detailed accounts payable reports on the council agenda.
Treasurer, Stacy Grenier submitted a report requesting that council direct staff to bring forward an amendment to the Procedural By-law to remove “Accounts” from the Order of Agenda; and that staff continue to provide financial oversight information through summary financial reporting, budget reporting, procurement compliance reporting, and the audited financial statements.
This recommendation is intended to support sound municipal governance, maintain appropriate financial oversight, reduce unnecessary disclosure of detailed transactional information, and ensure that Council’s review remains focused on strategic and policy-level matters rather than routine administrative processing according to Grenier.
Grenier gave some background on why the report was generated and it stemmed from a council meeting from September 2025 where correspondence was received which asked why the accounts were no longer included in the agenda.
At that meeting council deferred the complaint until a new treasurer was hired. Grenier is that treasurer.
The report stated that municipalities are sometimes asked to publish detailed accounts payable payment listings as a measure of transparency. While this may appear, at first glance, to provide greater openness, detailed accounts payable listings are not, in themselves, a strong governance tool and do not provide meaningful oversight at the Council level.
Accounts payable listings are operational records. They reflect payments that have already been processed through existing administrative controls, approved under established authority, and made within the broader framework of Council-approved budgets, procurement requirements, internal controls, and audit review.
Councillor Johnston said he had no issue with discontinuing the reports on the regular agenda, but wanted a commitment that council would receive quarterly reports.
Mayor Heather Watson asked if quarterly reports were included in the work schedule to which Grenier replied they hope to submit the first quarterly report at a May council meeting.
Councillor Shelagh Landsmann moved that they follow the recommendation.
Councillor Johnston seconded the motion with the caveat that the motion includes mandatory quarterly reports.
The motion carried.
