Office of the Regional Chair / CAO

Regional Chair and CEO

The Regional Chair is the head of Regional Council and is the Chief Executive Officer of the Regional Corporation. The Regional Chair presides over all meetings of the Regional Council and is a member of all standing committees. An important function of the Regional Chair is to promote and advance the Regional position. As part of this position, the Regional Chair meets regularly with representatives and residents to ensure that they are aware of issues and actions within Durham Region, and to also understand their concerns. The Chair represents the various boards, committees and organizations. Profile of the Regional Chair and CEO

Chief Administrative Officer

The Chief Administrative Officer is the most senior staff person in the Region of Durham and reports to Regional Council, working in close collaboration with the Regional Chair. He is responsible for the overall management of the Regional organization, and for ensuring that policy development is completed for presentation to Council, and subsequently its implementation and administration. All of the departments within the Region report directly to the Chief Administrative Officer and he is responsible for ensuring that Council directives are co-ordinated between Departments and any relevant outside agencies. A critical responsibility of the Chief Administrative Officer is to ensure that all operations in the organization are conducted within the timeframe of the values and goals of the corporation. In addition, the Chief Administrative Officer liaises with other government agencies, provincial and municipal, to provide Regional Council with the necessary comprehensive information they require to develop plans and policies. Profile of the CAO

Council Structure

The number of seats of the Regional Council held by each Area Municipality was established by The Regional Municipality of Durham Act, 1973 and was designed to achieve a balanced representation between the Area Municipalities. In 1996, following an internal review of the structure and organization of Council, membership was downsized from 32 to 28 members.

Each candidate running for election must declare his candidacy for either a combined Regional and Local, or strictly Local office. The Mayors of the Area Municipalities, by virtue of their office, are members of Regional Council. The following table lists the Area Municipalities and number of representatives for each.

Area Municipalities	Representatives
City of Oshawa	8
Clarington	3
City of Pickering	4
Towns	Representatives
Ajax	3
Whitby	4
Townships	Representatives
Brock	2
Scugog	2
Uxbridge	2

The initial term of Regional Council ran from 1973 to 1976 inclusive. This was followed by three terms, each consisting of two years. In 1983, the legislation was amended to provide for a three-year term. It was amended once again in mid-2006 to accommodate the current four-year terms. The term of office for the present Council is December 2006 to November 2010.

Roles and Responsibilities

The Regional Council is required and empowered to act on such matters as:

Adoption of Current and Capital Budgets and authorization of construction programs
Adoption of annual appropriations and imposition of annual levies for water and sewage operations
Approval of long-term borrowing by-laws
Approval of collective employment agreements and establishment of wage and salary rates
Appointment of Department Heads and other statutory officers
Adoption of comprehensive planning and land division policies relating to Regional operations