Mayoral powers, directions and decisions pursuant to the Municipal Act, 2001
On September 8, 2022, the Ontario government passed Bill 3, the Strong Mayors, Building Homes Act, 2022 that provides mayors in municipalities prescribed by the Minister with new executive powers within their respective municipalities.
On April 9, 2025 the Minister proposed amendments to O. Reg 530/22 which would see the expansion of Strong Mayor Powers from 47 municipalities to an additional 169 municipalities. The Township of Leeds and the Thousand Islands was included in this amendment and the municipality was prescribed by the Minister as a municipality that will have strong mayor powers effective May 1, 2025.
The following provides a more detailed overview of the legislative framework governing the Mayor’s special powers and duties under Part VI.1 of the Municipal Act, 2001.
Bill 3, Strong Mayors, Building Homes Act, 2022
Bill 3, the Strong Mayors, Building Homes Act, 2022, received Royal Assent on September 8, 2022, and came into force on November 23, 2022.
This legislation and associated regulations (O. Reg. 530/22 and O. Reg. 580/22) provide the Mayor with additional powers beyond those previously set out in the Municipal Act, 2001 and outlines the provincial priorities that the powers may be used for.
Bill 3 provides the Mayor, as the head of Council, with the ability to veto certain by-laws approved by Council if the Mayor “is of the opinion that all or part of the by-law could potentially interfere with a prescribed provincial priority.” The Mayor is required to provide written notice of intent to consider vetoing the by-law within a prescribed time period. Council may override the Mayor’s veto if two-thirds of Members vote in favour of such an override.
Bill 3 and O. Reg. 530/22 also grant the Mayor, as head of Council, powers related to proposing the annual budget and initiating in-year budget amendments. Under O. Reg. 530/22, the Mayor is required to propose the budget by February 1. After the Mayor proposes the budget, Council can pass resolutions to amend the budget within 30 days. The Mayor may veto a Council budget resolution and Council may then override a mayoral veto with a two-thirds majority vote. At the end of this process, the resulting budget is deemed to be adopted by the municipality.
Under the new legislation, the Mayor's powers include:
- determining the organizational structure of the municipality;
- hiring and dismissing the Chief Administrative Officer as well as various department heads subject to limitations in subsection (3);
- appointing Chairs and Vice Chairs of local boards;
- establishing or dissolving committees, appointing the committees chairs and vice-chairs and assigning functions to committees;
- bringing matters forward for Council consideration if the Mayor “is of the opinion that considering a particular matter could potentially advance a prescribed provincial priority”;
- vetoing certain by-laws approved by Council if the Mayor “is of the opinion that all or part of the by-law could potentially interfere with a prescribed provincial priority”;
- proposing and preparing the municipal budget; and,
- directing municipal staff in writing to undertake research, provide advice, or carry out duties related to the Mayoral special powers.
Bill 39, Better Municipal Governance Act, 2022
Bill 39, the Better Municipal Governance Act, 2022, received Royal Assent on December 8, 2022. With respect to Mayoral powers, Bill 39 amends the Municipal Act, 2001, to allow the Mayor to propose, and require Council to consider and vote on, certain by-laws related to prescribed Provincial Priorities (e.g. O. Reg. 580/22: Provincial Priorities). The by-law is considered passed if more than one third of Members of Council vote in favour of the by-law.
The Mayor is required to exercise these powers in writing and make them available to the public, subject to the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act. A public listing of Mayoral Directions and Decisions is included below.
| Mayoral Decisions and Directions 2025 |
| Mayoral Decision 2025-01 - Approval of Passed By-laws May 5, 2025 |