The City of Hamilton remains without a City Clerk, nearly eight months after the last City Clerk announced her resignation.
The job posting closed on October 20, over five months ago.
Asked for an update on the search, the City Manager directed TPR to General Manager of Finance and Corporate Services Mike Zegarac.
Zegarac says the process is ongoing and did not divulge details.
In 2018, the last time the City Clerk job was vacant, the City had to post the job multiple times.
Importance of the City Clerk
Ontario’s municipal clerks fulfill essential statutory duties under the Municipal Act, including independently administering and overseeing elections.
The clerk, and deputy clerks, are protected positions. They cannot be dismissed by the head of council under ‘strong mayor’ powers and cannot be removed by municipal councils during election periods.
All municipalities are required to have a person designated as clerk. In large municipalities, such as Hamilton, it is increasingly common for the municipal clerk to be a practicing lawyer due to the complexity of quasi-legal and statutory decisions the person makes.