Municipal Election Laws Being Reviewed

SERVICE N.S./MUNICIPAL RELATIONS--Municipal Election Laws Being Reviewed

A discussion paper on revising the province's municipal and school board election rules has been released and Nova Scotians are invited to have their say on the proposals.

The paper was prepared by a committee representing the Nova Scotia government, the Union of Nova Scotia Municipalities and the Association of Municipal Administrators. Among the issues it addresses are the question of providing time off work for people to vote and in which municipality post-secondary students may vote.

All municipalities were asked following the October 2000 municipal elections to identify any issues or concerns they had with the Municipal Elections Act. Many of these issues, plus some that were identified during the review process, are included in the discussion paper. The discussion paper has been sent to all municipalities and the Nova Scotia School Boards Association for their review and comments.

Service Nova Scotia and Municipal Relations intends to recommend changes to the act to be implemented in time for the next municipal and school board elections in 2004. Nova Scotians can view the discussion paper at online at www.gov.ns.ca/snsmr/muns/info/ . They may obtain copies by calling 1-800-670-4357 (424-5200 in the Halifax area). Feedback will be accepted until Nov. 1.