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Not the full picture. Built from public records, which leave things out.Read by hand, Oct 2026DetailsThis is built from public records, which leave a lot out, and some of it may be wrong or out of date. Check the sources, and tell us if you spot a mistake. What this site can't tell you
Read by hand. We read Petrolia's own documents for this site in October 2026; the Sources page lists which ones. The comparisons with other places still come from the Province's yearly reports.

Council

Who decides, and how you can hold them to account

Petrolia is run by an elected council of 7 people. They set the budget, approve big purchases and hire the senior staff who run the town day to day.

Current council

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

How open is Petrolia?

What a resident can find online without asking, as of October 7, 2026.

  • Yes
    Budgets posted online

    The proposed 2026 budget (published October 31, 2025 under the Strong Mayor Act process the Town describes) and the adopted 2026 budget are posted as PDFs on the financial information page. The budget book shows 2025 actuals only through August 31, 2025. Source

  • Yes
    Audited financial statements

    The 2025 statements carry a clean opinion ("present fairly") from MNP LLP dated July 13, 2026; the 2024 statements carry a clean opinion dated September 8, 2025. In the 2025 PDF, the management report and the statement of financial position have no text layer (they are images), so we did not use figures from them. Source

  • Partly
    Council pay and expense statements

    Statements are linked for 2014 to 2018 and 2020. We did not find 2019 or 2021 to 2025. Source

  • Unknown
    Meeting agendas and minutes

    The Town points to a CivicWeb portal for agendas and minutes. That host's robots.txt tells all automated readers to stay out, so we did not read it and cannot say whether minutes are up to date. Source

  • Unknown
    Meeting video

    The council meetings page links a YouTube channel for recorded meetings. We did not check how many are posted. Source

Where the town speaks for itself

Petrolia's official channels, as linked from its own website. Council members may also post on their own pages; we link only to official municipal channels.

  • Town of Petrolia on YouTube

    The Town's council meetings page says recorded council meetings and education sessions can be viewed on YouTube, and links this channel. We did not check which meetings are posted.

Ask for the records

Anyone can ask the town for its records under Ontario's Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (MFIPPA). You do not have to say why. Here is how it works, and the wording for the records that would answer the questions on this site.

  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

  • Working capital reserve movements in 2025

    The budget book shows $1,491,297 going into the working capital reserve for 2025, while the audited reserve fell from $690,764 to $89,421. Related question: The 2025 budget set aside $1,491,297 for the working capital reserve. Why did that reserve fall from $690,764 to $89,421?.

    Show the request wordingHide the wording
    Under the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, I request the 2025 continuity schedule for each reserve and reserve fund of the Town of Petrolia (opening balance, transfers in, transfers out and the purpose of each transfer out), and any report to Council on the use of the working capital reserve in 2025.

  • Funding plan for the Bright's Grove water intake

    The contract is $14,139,433 including HST and the 2026 budget takes $2,024,081 from water reserves. Related question: How will Petrolia pay its share of the $14,139,433 Bright's Grove water intake, and will its water reserve be nearly empty afterwards?.

    Show the request wordingHide the wording
    Under the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, I request the funding plan for the Bright's Grove water treatment plant intake replacement: the grant agreements, the sources of Town funding (reserves, borrowing, rates) and the latest cost-to-complete report to Council.

  • Victoria Playhouse Petrolia 2025 season result

    The 2026 budget book shows 2025 only through August 31, 2025. Related question: The Town runs the Victoria Playhouse Petrolia and budgets it to break even. How did the 2025 season actually finish?.

    Show the request wordingHide the wording
    Under the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, I request the full-year 2025 revenue and expense report for the Victoria Playhouse Petrolia, including any use of reserves, and the end-of-season report to Council.

  • Council remuneration and expense statements, 2019 and 2021 to 2025

    The Town's site links statements only to 2018 and 2020. Related question: Where are the council pay and expense statements after 2020?.

    Show the request wordingHide the wording
    Under the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, I request the annual statements of remuneration and expenses for members of council required by section 284 of the Municipal Act, 2001 for 2019 and for each of 2021 to 2025.

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

How to raise a concern

From the gentlest step to the most serious. Start at the top.

  1. Integrity Commissioner

    The Town's page names Aird & Berlis LLP as Integrity Commissioner and lists investigation reports from 2018 and 2022 and a 2021 public summary. We did not build any question on them. The 2021 summary is a scan we could not read reliably.

  2. Closed meeting investigator: Ontario Ombudsman

    The Town's page names the Office of the Ontario Ombudsman as its closed meeting investigator and links a May 2018 Ombudsman report. That link returned a "not found" error when we tried it.

  3. Conflict of interest declarations

    The Town posts a table of declarations of pecuniary interest by date, member and item. We did not build any question on it.