Compliance Audits
Reviewing compliance related to election campaign financing.
Joint Municipal Election Compliance Audit Committee
The City of Burlington, the Town of Halton Hills, the Town of Milton and the Town of Oakville are partnering to establish a Joint Municipal Election Compliance Audit Committee for the upcoming election term. The Committee makes decisions on applications for compliance audits of campaign finances for candidates and third-party advertisers in a municipal election or by-election.
This Committee is required by the Municipal Elections Act, 1996 (the Act) to:
- Consider applications for compliance audit of the campaign finances of Candidates and/or Registered Third Parties and decide whether they should be granted or rejected. If an application is granted, appoint an Auditor to conduct a compliance audit of the Candidate’s and/or Registered Third Party’s election campaign finances
- Consider the Auditor’s report and if the report contains a conclusion of apparent contravention of the Act, decide whether to commence a legal proceeding against the Candidate and/or Registered Third Party for the apparent contravention
- Receive and consider reports from the Clerk identifying any contributors to a Candidate and/or Registered Third Party who appear to have contravened established contribution limits and decide whether to commence a legal proceeding against the contributor for the apparent contravention.
The Committee will serve the same as the term of office of Council, from November 15, 2026 to November 14, 2030. The Committee will serve for any by-election that may take place during that time.
Join the Committee for 2026-2030
Recruitment has now closed for the 2026-2030 Committee and we thank applicants for their interest.
To support a fair and transparent auditing process and in alignment with the Council-approved Terms of Reference for the Committee, people with a connection to a Candidate and/or a Registered Third Party for the 2026, 2022 and 2018 elections cannot be appointed to the Committee. This includes:
- A connection through a Family member
- An employment, contractual, business or partnership relationship
- Assisting the campaign of any Candidate or Registered Third Party either directly or indirectly, including providing professional advice and/or prepared financial statements for an election candidate or any third-party advertiser
Committee members also cannot be:
- An employee or officer of a partnering municipality
- A Member of Council of a partnering municipality
- A candidate in the municipal election
- A registered third-party in a partnering municipality
Term and commitment
The Committee will be established by October 1, 2026 and continue until 2030. Following an initial meeting in early 2027, the Committee convenes as required when applications are received. Meetings may be held in a hybrid format.
For more information about the Committee, please review the Joint Compliance Audit Committee Administrative Practices and Procedures (pdf) and the Terms of Reference (pdf).
If you have any questions about the Committee, please contact the Town of Oakville’s Clerks Department at townclerk@oakville.ca.