Council

Who decides, and how you can hold them to account

Centre Hastings is run by an elected council of 5 people. They set the budget, approve big purchases and hire the senior staff who run the town day to day.

Current council

• MayorTom Delinetdeline@centrehastings.com
• Deputy MayorEric Sandfordesandford@centrehastings.com
• CouncillorMike Kerbymkerby@centrehastings.com
• CouncillorJudy Brantjbrant@centrehastings.com
• CouncillorKevin McLaughlinkmclaughlin@centrehastings.com

Names and official email addresses from the town's council page. None of the members lists a public social media account there.

Top number: pay. Second number: benefits and expenses together, such as health cover, mileage, conferences and training. Exactly what goes in it differs a little from town to town; the note below says what this town’s statement includes. Some members take the town’s health plan and some do not, so a higher second number is not a problem by itself. The statements give only totals; the receipts behind them can be requested from the clerk.

Each year links to the town's statement. Typed by hand from the municipality's yearly Statement of Remuneration and Expenses for council (Municipal Act, s. 284), which the finance director presents to council each March. Pay is the honorarium under the council pay by-law. Other is everything else on the statement: the employer's share of statutory costs and benefits, phone, professional development, conferences and mileage, and amounts from boards members sit on for the municipality (conservation authority and other appointments). It is the Amount column minus the honorarium. The 2025 statement's total line, $110,646.37, is one cent more than its rows add up to. Jim Bonter resigned from council on May 2, 2023 and Judy Brant was appointed on May 17, 2023. Roles for 2021 and 2022 are taken from the order and size of the honoraria.

• Yes
  Budgets posted online

  Budget packages for 2020 to 2026 and shorter highlights for 2015 to 2019 are posted. The 2026 package is marked "Draft v2" on every page, although council adopted that version on January 21, 2026 (By-law 2026-09). Source

• Yes
  Meeting agendas and minutes

  On the CivicWeb portal from 2015 to today, as one big agenda package per meeting, with staff reports attached. Minutes are printed in the next meeting's package. The package for the September 29, 2026 special meeting was posted the same day. The town's web page says regular meetings are on the third Wednesday, but in 2026 council has met about every two weeks. Source

• Unknown
  Meeting videos kept online

  We did not find a video channel, livestream or recordings linked from the town's website or the meeting portal. Source

• Partly
  Council pay and expenses

  The yearly statement required by the Municipal Act (section 284) is presented to council each March and printed in that meeting's agenda package. We found the statements for 2021 to 2025 there. We did not find them on a page of their own on the town's website. Source

• Unknown
  Conflicts of interest registry online

  We did not find a registry of declared conflicts on the town's website or meeting portal. The law requires a registry the public can inspect, not necessarily online. Declarations are rare in the minutes we read (one, on February 21, 2024). Source

• Partly
  Open tenders posted

  The tenders page says "Nothing at this time" and points to the Hastings County bids and tenders website, where big tenders are run. We did not check that site's archive. Source

• Yes
  Tender results (who won, how much)

  When council awards a tender the staff report names every bidder and its price. For example, the March 28, 2025 report on the St. Lawrence and Durham Streets work lists all four bids, and the September 29, 2026 report on the standpipe lists both bids and their scores. Source

• No
  List of contracts awarded

  We found no standing list of contracts, suppliers and amounts. Awards over $125,000 appear in council reports one at a time. Source

• Unknown
  Integrity Commissioner and closed-meeting reports

  The Integrity Commissioner page explains how to complain and lists no past reports. We did not find a closed-meeting investigator named on the town's website. We do not know whether there have been any reports. Source

• Yes
  Audited financial statements

  Statements for 2015 to 2025 are posted. The 2025 statements carry a clean opinion from Baker Tilly KDN LLP signed May 22, 2026 and were presented to council on May 20, 2026. Source

• Unknown
  Candidates' campaign finances

  We did not find the 2022 candidates' financial statements on the town's election pages. The 2026 disclosures are not due yet; the town's page says they are "not yet available". Source

• Partly
  Closed sessions

  Agendas list the reason for each closed item by section of the Municipal Act. Council has also voted in public to confirm decisions first made in closed session, for example the March 19, 2025 vote on the pool. We have not counted closed sessions over a full year. Source

• Meeting portal (agendas and minutes)

  Every council agenda package, with staff reports, and the minutes (which are approved at the next meeting and printed in the next agenda). Runs on CivicWeb and goes back to 2015.

• E-Updates

  Residents can sign up on the meeting portal to be told about the meetings they care about.

• News and Notices

  Official notices from the municipality.

• Facebook

  The municipality's Facebook page, linked from its website.

• LinkedIn

  The municipality's LinkedIn page, linked from its website.

1. Send the request in writing to the town clerk (the freedom of information coordinator), on the town’s form or in a letter, with the $5 application fee.
2. Describe the records, not the answer you want. Dates, departments and the kind of record (a list, invoices, emails) make a request quicker and cheaper.
3. The town has 45 business days to answer (the law changed in 2026; older guides say 30 days). It can charge for search time and copies, but must send an estimate first if the fees will be over $25.
4. Some parts can be held back, such as legal advice or personal information about other people. The town must say which part of the law it relied on.
5. If you are refused, or the fees seem too high, you can appeal to the Information and Privacy Commissioner within 30 business days of the town’s decision.

The town's request form (on its Forms page) · The law · Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario

• Every payment the municipality made

  The yearly reports give totals by service, not who was paid. A list of payments is the most useful record for spotting repeat suppliers, purchases split into smaller pieces, and the size of the no-tender awards.

  Show the request wordingHide the wording

  I request, under the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act: A list of all payments made by the Municipality of Centre Hastings from January 1, 2025 to the date of this request, showing for each payment the date, the name of the payee, the amount, and the description or account it was charged to (for example, the cheque register, EFT register or accounts payable listing). An electronic copy, such as a spreadsheet, is preferred.

  Copy the wording

• No-tender purchases, and why

  The procurement policy requires a written justification (Appendix C) for each no-tender award. These forms show what other options were considered and how the price was judged reasonable. Related question: Why were several large 2026 water, sewer and bridge contracts awarded without a tender?.

  Show the request wordingHide the wording

  I request, under the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act: For each purchase or contract of $20,000 or more awarded by the Municipality of Centre Hastings without a public tender or request for quotes from January 1, 2024 to the date of this request (including single-source, sole-source, direct-award and emergency purchases), the supplier, amount, date, and the completed Non-Competitive Procurement / Direct Award Justification form (Appendix C of Policy FIN-001) or equivalent written justification, and any reports to council about them.

  Copy the wording

• Where the extra $2,987,411 on the Madoc standpipe comes from

  The September 29, 2026 report gives a forecast total of $9,560,511 but not every piece. The estimate behind the original $6,573,100 and the breakdown of the forecast would show what changed. Related question: Why is the new Madoc water tower forecast to cost $2,987,411 more than council approved?.

  Show the request wordingHide the wording

  I request, under the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act: For the Madoc Standpipe Replacement project (tender PW-ENV-2026-01): the cost estimate on which the approved budget of $6,573,100 was based, with its date; the revised project expenditure forecast of $9,560,511 broken down by item (tank, construction contract, controls contract, engineering, contingency, non-recoverable HST and other); and the revised project expenditure forecast submitted to the Ministry of Infrastructure.

  Copy the wording

• The annual repayment limit and list of loans

  The March 2025 report showed the municipality's debt-limit calculation. A current one with all approved and planned loans would show how much room is left. Related question: How much debt will Centre Hastings carry once its water and sewer projects are built?.

  Show the request wordingHide the wording

  I request, under the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act: The most recent Annual Repayment Limit calculation for the Municipality of Centre Hastings, any version prepared since January 1, 2026 that includes the standpipe, trunk sanitary sewer and St. Lawrence/Durham Streets borrowing, and a schedule of all outstanding and approved but not yet issued debentures with their payments by year.

  Copy the wording

• The pool reserve fund and refunds

  The fund was described as $185,518 in September 2025 and $176,518 at the end of 2025. The records would show where the difference went and how the remaining money is accounted for. Related question: What will happen to the money raised for the Madoc pool, now that the pool is permanently closed?.

  Show the request wordingHide the wording

  I request, under the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act: For the Pool Reserve Fund of the Municipality of Centre Hastings from January 1, 2025 to the date of this request: the transactions in the fund (deposits, transfers and refunds), the number and total amount of donor refunds paid, and the contract and invoices for Redbrick Communications' work on the pool engagement. Personal information about donors can be removed.

  Copy the wording

• Council expense claims

  The yearly statements give one total for each member's benefits, conferences and mileage. The claims show what the money was spent on.

  Show the request wordingHide the wording

  I request, under the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act: Copies of the expense claims and supporting receipts for conferences, mileage, out-of-town meetings and any other reimbursements paid to members of Centre Hastings council in 2024 and 2025. Personal information such as home addresses or banking details can be removed.

  Copy the wording

The wording is a starting point, not legal advice. Narrow the dates if the town says a request is too broad or too costly.

1. Speak or write to council

   Ask the clerk to be put on a meeting agenda as a delegation. Meetings are held in Council Chambers, 7 Furnace Street, Madoc.

2. Ask for the records

   Anyone can ask the municipality for its records under freedom-of-information law, for a $5 fee. The wording for useful requests is above.

3. Integrity Commissioner

   For complaints that a council member broke the Code of Conduct or the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act. The municipality has appointed Benjamin Drory of ADR Chambers. Complaints are in writing, signed, and need a sworn affidavit, and go through the clerk.

4. Ontario Ombudsman

   Looks into complaints about how Ontario municipalities treat people and run their affairs, once local options are used up. Free.

5. Police

   If you have evidence that a crime such as fraud or theft has happened, report it to police. Questions and concerns belong with the options above; evidence of a crime belongs with police.