The Municipal Act, 2001, Part VI.1 – Special Powers and Duties of the Head of Council – outlines additional authorities that may be granted to a Head of Council through regulation. These are commonly referred to as “strong mayor” powers. Further details are provided in O. Reg. 530/22: Part VI.1 of the Act.

Effective May 1, 2025, the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing extended strong mayor powers to an additional 169 Ontario municipalities, including the Township of Ramara.

Some strong mayor powers are related to provincial priorities, as outlined in O. Reg. 580/22: Provincial Priorities. Provincial priorities include the following:

• Building 1.5 million new homes by December 31, 2031
• Constructing and maintaining infrastructure to support housing, including:
• Transit
• Roads
• Utilities
• Servicing

Overview of Powers and Duties

Strong mayor powers and duties include the following:

• Appoint a chief administrative officer.
• Hire municipal division heads, excluding statutory positions, and change organizational structure.
• Create, assign functions, and appoint chairs of committees where all members are Council members.
• Bring forward matters for Council consideration related to provincial priorities.
• Propose certain municipal bylaws if the Head of Council is of the opinion that the proposed bylaw could potentially advance a prescribed provincial priority. This power requires that more than one-third of all Council members vote in favour of the bylaw.
• Veto power for certain bylaws if the Head of Council is of the opinion that all or part of the bylaw could potentially interfere with a provincial priority. Council may override this veto if two-thirds of all Council members vote to do so.
• Direct staff to perform certain research or work related to additional powers and duties. Direction under this authority must be provided in writing.
• Propose the budget for the municipality each year by February 1.
• Initiate and prepare in-year budget amendments to raise additional amounts from property tax.

Mayoral Decisions and Directives

When the Head of Council uses any of these additional powers or duties, they are required to provide written documentation to the municipal clerk and members of Council, and this written documentation must also be available to the public, subject to the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act.

The Township of Ramara maintains a public, online repository of written mayoral decisions and directives on its CivicWeb Portal.

Access the Mayoral Decisions and Directives Repository