Petition

“The following persons respectfully petition the Hobsons Bay City Council to advocate for changes to Part 8 Division 1 of the Local Government Act 2020 (Vic). to ensure Councillors reside in the municipality to which they are elected.   The current Act permits persons who pay rates in a municipality to be elected to that municipal council even if they reside elsewhere and are not required to disclose this to voters.  We believe Councillors and Mayors must live in the municipality they serve.”

Background

Being a Councillor is all about the community and serving the community in which they are a part of.  Councillors should live it, breathe it, walk the streets, shop there, use the local parks and sports facilities, send their children to local kindergartens and schools, experience our local public transport and roads, and live with the consequences of council infrastructure, services and charges. This is the foundation for fostering community cohesion and spirit which will be an essential part of our COVID-19 recovery and why I’ve raised this petition.

Is it too much to expect this of our elected community representatives on council?

At the very least, if candidates or councillors live outside the municipality, they should have to disclose that to residents at election time for total transparency and to allow voters the ability to make an informed decision about whether they want their elected representative to live outside Hobsons Bay.