The recent revelations of Mayor Chirico’s expense account irregularities set off a firestorm of criticism on local social media pages.
As the dust settles, it appears there is cause for alarm due to his errors in judgement and the disconnect between long-established policies and procedures, which is made worse by the lack of transparency – even when public reporting is required by the Ontario Municipal Act.
To be sure, the use of a corporate credit card to cover personal expenses is a dismissible offence in most private sector situations, but in the public sector, the line between personal and business expenses can be more obtuse. This is where a detailed expense policy should provide guidance as to what is business and what is considered personal.
It was reported that Council directed the CAO to prepare a new travel and expenses policy which is needed and should confirm the City’s commitment to the Municipal Act requirements. And there are now two motions hitting the council chambers Aug. 8, both suggesting big changes to how expense accounts are communicated to the public. See the latest BayToday story HERE. It features Coun. Jamie Lowery’s comprehensive motion and notes the one put forward by Coun. Lana Mitchell.
From the existing Travel and Expense policy:
The procurement policy clearly states that Corporate Cards must not be used for personal expenses, so it would be up to the Mayor and the CAO to confirm that the expense was justified as a City business requirement.
In fact, the City Treasurer is required by the Municipal Act, Section 284 to provide an itemized statement of expenses paid in the previous year to council, which would mean it should be publicly available in the minutes of the relevant meeting. Using a Google search, (since the City website search function is dysfunctional) one can find the statement for 2023 and 2024. Unfortunately the itemization is somewhat lacklustre in the 2023 report and in the case of 2024, not even posted.
Mr. Chirico has been reported as saying some expenses were “absent mindedly” put on the corporate card and some were seen as an entitlement under previous employment. He is also quoted as saying he discussed those expenses with CAO Severino and yet the 2023 report, approved by CAO Severino, included $6,100 of incorrectly claimed expenses. The Integrity Commissioner may not include that breakdown in oversight in his report. The 2024 report did not even include an itemized statement of expenses, as required by the Municipal Act.
In his quest to be elected as Mayor, Mr. Chirico put forward a platform with the following as the first item of what he stood for..
Mr. Chirico has called for an investigation by the Integrity Commissioner to see if he violated the Code of Conduct. If he did, Council could impose forfeiture of 3 months pay, as they did when Councillor Inch was found to have contravened the Code of Conduct.
There are currently public hearings being held to consider Bill 9, which would modify the Municipal Act and provide a larger role of the Integrity Commissioner of Ontario, as well as a standardized code of conduct for municipalities including the mechanism to declare the seat of an inquiry subject vacant. Written opinions can be submitted until Aug 18, 2025 here
Regardless, a ruling from the Integrity Commissioner will have no affect on the culture at City Hall, which Mr. Chirico assessed as closed off, secretive and territorial….nor will it make staff accountable as he had promised they would be.
The entire process needs to be reviewed and changes made, if necessary, to ensure the Municipal Act and City policies are followed with staff being held accountable by those policies.
If one looks at how similar cases of Mayors not following expense policies, it appears recent cases in Woolwich Township, Orangeville and Brampton all involved a police report at the outset to ensure there was no criminal liability. Councillor Lowery is well within the bounds of these precedent setting cases to request an opinion on the same situation in North Bay. With the criminality aspect likely cleared out of the way, the focus should be on ways to restore the public trust, admittedly already at a low level.
A full examination of the process is needed to provide guidance in how staff will be kept accountable, since the length of time the “absent minded” purchases occurred stretched beyond the time oversight reports were filed. It will be interesting to see which Councillors believe a fulsome investigation is required and which ones believe the issue is best handled quickly and by the Integrity Commissioner alone.
Worked at the Ontario Northland Transportation Commission for his career, in a number of positions, from front line supervisor to union leader. After retirement in 2011, he continued his interest in government policy and uses social media to stay active in political discussions. Send feedback to: [email protected]
