At its regular meeting on Jan. 12, Peace River town council was asked to review its membership on the Peace Regional Mental Health Task Force and to provide feedback on the force’s terms of reference.
“We were asked to provide feedback on the terms of reference provided by the organization,” says Mayor Shelly Shannon.
“However, this does not alleviate the absence of a governing authority and the fact that it remains an ad hoc committee without bylaws or society status. We feel there needs to be a more formal structure that protects the individuals that sit on the committee.”
The task force is a compilation of council members from the M.D. of Peace, Village of Berwyn Town of Grimshaw, Northern Sunrise County, County of Northern Lights, and Peace River, in addition to a member from each RCMP, Recovery Alberta, Canadian Mental Health Association, Peace Regional Women’s Shelter, Sagitawa Friendship Society, First Nations Community, Metis Community, and one member at large.
“Our main concern is the lack of a governing authority and the lack of access to information,” explains Shannon.
“A large portion of the meetings are held in closed session with limited reporting shared. In essence, we are supporting an ad hoc committee but do not have access to all proceedings and information resulting from the meetings.”
Shannon says the task force was formed as an advocacy group com- prised of community and industry leaders concerned with lack of access to resources for mental health and addictions.
Council has asked administration to mail a letter to the task force for clarifications on a number of issues.
“Council’s decision was guided by the need to ensure appropriate governance, clarity, and accountability,” says Shannon.
“The task force requested council’s feedback on the terms of reference to help address questions related to operations and procedures. However, until the committee is formally established as a society with its own governing authority, council must proceed cautiously to mitigate potential liability and be certain the Town’s interests are protected.”
A decision on long-term membership on the task force will be made at a future council meeting once a response is received about council’s concerns.
Emily Plihal
Local Journalism
Initiative Reporter