Committees

Table of Contents

Strategic Policy Committee

The 2014 legislation provides for Strategic Policy Committees to deal with economic development and support for enterprise. A Strategic Policy Committee shall be established for each authority in relation to economic development and matters connected with the promotion and support of enterprise.

Ministerial guidelines for their operation may make requirements in relation to consultation of the SPC’s in the formulation of policy and the presentation of policy papers. Ministerial guidelines may provide for procedures for presentation of proposals to the local authority connected with the formulation, development, monitoring and review of policy for these purposes.

They may provide for format, layout, and classes of policy, paper and other documents including preliminary documents prepared by or presented to the Strategic Policy Committee. They may provide for procedures to insert in sufficient times where inferred by the Strategic Policy Committee as provided prior to completion and subsequent presentation to the local authority.

For the purpose of assisting a Strategic Policy Committee in considering matters within its limit, the Committee may request attendance of a public authority at the meeting. There are provisions that seek to ensure that members of the public authority as required attend.

An SPC may request attendance of representatives of a public authority at a meeting of the SPC to assist it in relation to its functions and to consider matters connected with formulating developing, monitoring and reviewing policies relating to the functions of a local authority. SPCs are obliged to have regard to the spatial and economic strategy of the relevant regional assembly.

The local authority may by resolution, remove from office a chairperson of a strategic policy group for stated misbehaviour or for reasons related to the performance of functions.There are provisions for removal of chairperson of the corporate policy group and Strategic Policy Committee. A two thirds majority of those present in voting is required.

Local Community Development

Provision is made for the promotion of the interests of the local community and general development of the area including enterprise and economic development. The 2014 Act provides for Local Community Development Committees.

There are to be committees of each local authority in each local government area. Their purpose is to enhance strategic planning and coordination and community development programs. Existing city and county development boards were dissolved.

Local Community Development Committees are independent in performance of their functions. Their functions include preparation of five year local and community development plans for the local and community development of their areas.

Plans must be consistent with the core strategy and objectives of the development plan under planning law. Legislation provides procedures for adoption of the local and community plan by the Committee, consideration by the municipal district members and approval by the elected council.

There is provision for members of the Committees and for their staffing, management and administration. The Minister for the Environment and Local Government may make regulations generally in relation to Local Community Development Committees. He may issue general policy guidelines with which committees must apply.

Specified bodies must cooperate with Local Community Development Committees and ensure their policies and program are consistent with the objectives of the local and community plan. The bodies concerned are specified in Schedule 5.

LDC Arrangements

The Local Community Development Committees are to be established by resolution of each local authority. A Local Community Development Committee for the purpose of developing, coordinating and implementing a coherent and integrated approach to local and community development.

There is provision for selection of nominees and their appointment to the committee by resolution of the local authority. The chief executive of the local authority is to assign an employee or employees to assist the committee in exercise of its functions. One of those person shall be designated by the chief executive to be chief officer of the committee. He is to have responsibility for carrying out, managing and controlling generally the administration of the business of the committee and arranging appropriate support.

Each Committee is independent in the performance of its functions. With the approval of the Minister, more than one Local Development Committee may be established by a council.

The function of the Local Development Committee is

to prepare and adopt community elements of every six year, local and economic community plan in accordance with regulations or general policy guidelines issued by the Minister for this purpose;
to implement or to arrange implementation of the community elements of the plan;
to undertake a review of the community elements of the plan at least every six year and if necessary to amend it or prepare new community elements;
to monitor and review on an ongoing basis, the implementation of the community elements of the plan, including performance against benchmarks or indicators of performance set out in the community elements of the plan and other relevant indicator;
in furtherance of the above, to coordinate manage and oversee the implementation of Local and Community Development Programs that have been approved by resolution or agreed between the Committee and public authority and to ensure any plans and strategies relating to those programs are implemented in accordance with the community elements of the plan;
seek effectiveness, consistency and coordination and avoidance of duplication between Local and Community Development Program, pursue coordination generally of all Local and Community Development Programs within its functional area of the Committee,
to consider and adopt a statement in respect of economic elements of the draft of the plan prepared by the local authority;
annually to prepare, adopt and submit to local authority, a report in relation to performance of its functions in the year.

The Committee may enter into agreements with public authorities, local development or community development bodies or other persons for the purpose of carrying out its functions. They may be on such terms, conditions, and restrictions as the Committee considers necessary and specifies in the agreement. Local development or community development bodies includes not for profit organisation that provide programs, offer services or engage in other activities that promote and support the interest of the local community.

Additional Functions

The Minister may by order confer on a committee such additional functions as are determined. The committee in performing its functions are to have regards to

its resources wherever originating from,
the need for cooperation and coordination of its activities with those of local authorities, public authorities, and public funded bodies, the performance of some of whose functions may affect the committee so as to ensure efficiency and economy in the performance by the committee of its functions;
the need for consultation with public authorities and public funded bodies;
the need for consistency with the policies and objectives of the government insofar as they relate to the committee’s functions;
the need to integrate sustainable development considerations in the policy development and implementation;
the need to promote social inclusion.

The committee is to comprise partly of persons who are members and partly of persons who are not members of the local authority. The committee is to include

the members of the local authority, chief executive and such other persons employed by or seconded by the local authority as are nominated by the chief executive;
representatives of public authorities having responsibility for provision of services within the area

Provision is made for eligibility, disqualification and tenure of members of the NOAC.

representatives of local community interests;
individuals acting in private capacity who are or have been members or otherwise associated with anybody of a prescribed type,
representatives of public funded or supported local development bodies concerned with promoting the interests of local communities and
such other bodies as may be specified by the regulations or guidelines;

The chief officer of the committee shall in consultation with the corporate policy group, seek and select nominees to the committee in accordance with regulations and ministerial guidelines.

Corporate Policy Group

The 2014 Act restructures membership of the Corporate Policy Group from the current Chathaoirleach and chairperson of each Strategic policy Committee to include also the leader of each registered political party in the council with at least 20% of the elected members,not included as one of these members and a member from an unrepresented municipal district.

The Minister may change this percentage up to a maximum of 25%. There is provision for the Corporate Policy Group to promote greater coordination in the performance of local authority functions by municipal district members and for ministerial guidelines on timely presentation of policy proposals.

Other Committees

A local authority may establish a local area committee or for a local electoral area or for two or more adjoining area. The provision is applicable only to the municipal local authorities in Dublin, Cork and Galway.

The elected council of each local authority is to form a committee, known as a policy group. This consist of chairman who chairs the group, chairpersons of the Strategic Policy Committees of the local authority, and a new municipal district member for each municipal district concerned selected by the municipal district members for that district or failing such selection, such as the Cathaoirleach of the municipal district concerned or such other member as the Cathaoirleach may select.

Local authorities must seek to secure that as regards the establishment of committees and the meetings of the authority in each of their committees and municipal district members, they are organised and operate so as to promote effectiveness and efficiency in the discharge of business.

Information & Support

The Chief executive is obliged to provide information to the council and municipal district members, Strategic Policy Committees and Local Community Development Committee. A chief executive shall when requested by council, the municipal district members, Strategic Policy Committee, Local Community Development Committee or a joint body afford all information he may be in possession of or within its procurement with regard to any act, matter or thing relating to or concerning any business or transaction affecting them.

There is to be a monthly management report prepared for the members by the chief executive in relation to the performance of executive functions, implementation of policies and other matters required by the council in exercise of its reserved functions and provision of services.

Regulations on Committees

The Minister, following consultations with appropriate public authorities may make regulations either generally or in relation to a committee or a particular class of committee. They may relate to:

matters relating to establishment of members of a committee including representational or sectoral interests, tenure of the chairperson and members,
procedures to apply fairness and equity in the selection of members and election of a chairman;
performance of functions of a committee;
procedures in relation to certain decisions,
involvement of public authorities and other bodies carrying out management and control of the administration,
meeting and proceedings of the committee.

The Minister may also issue general policy guidelines relating to a range of matters affecting the work of the committees .Relevant bodies must cooperate with Local Community Development Committee. Relevant bodies include a regional assembly,

a local authority,
a trust or other body,
a publicly funded body and
bodies listed in Schedule 16 to the legislation.

Relationship with Executive

It is the duty of the relevant body in so far as not inconsistent with the performance of its functions and subject to law

to cooperate with the committee in the performance of its functions,
to comply with all lawful respects in the committee in respect of information sought that is of relevance to the committee’s functions and
to ensure insofar as practicable in respect of any of the relevant bodies, Local and Community Development Programs and related policies and strategies and insofar as those programs and related policies and strategies impact on the functions of the committee, that they are consistent with the objectives of community elements of the plan and the plan generally and the actions duly taken by the committee in furtherance of the plan.

They are as appropriate, to have due regard to any advice it may be given or recommendations made to the relevant public authority by the committee.

The Minister may declare bodies to be public bodies or not. A public authority that is not a relevant public body is to have due regard to the community elements of the plan and the plan generally and any recommendations made to it by a committee as above. It is to use best endeavours to facilitate any request of the committee.

Subject to and in accordance with the functions of the committee,regulations and policy guidelines made by the Minister in relation to those functions, the committee may for the purpose of ensuring consistency with the objectives of the community elements of the plan and the plan generally, advise the local authority and establish it as to the way in which the Local and Community Development Programs and related programs or strategies of the local authority should be developed or operated as regards the administrative areas of the authority concerned.

In other cases, they may make recommendations to any public authority or public funded body as to the way in which the Local and Community Development Programs and related policies as that relate to such public authority or body should be developed or operate as regards to the county or city concerned.