New policy to monitor key council personnel, and their families

In order to comply with new NSW government legislation, Orange City Council is introducing this new ‘Related Parties’ policy.

This policy establishes a system so that any financial transactions handled by the council’s key management personnel (and anyone in their extended family who could influence them in their dealings with the council) can be declared and then assessed.

In the preparation of the annual Financial Statements, these transactions would be assessed to determine the required level of disclosure.

Key Management Personnel are people who are responsible for planning, directing and controlling the Council. This would include :

• Councillors
• Administrators
• General Manager
• Directors

Close family members of the key management personnel are those family members who may be expected to influence, or be influenced by, that person in their dealings with the Council, and include:

• that person’s children
• that person’s spouse/domestic partner
• children of that person’s spouse/domestic partner
• dependants of that person or that person’s spouse/domestic partner.
• that person’s brothers and sisters
• that person’s spouse/domestic partner’s brothers and sisters
• aunts, uncles, and cousins of that person’s or that person’s spouse/domestic partner
• dependants of those person’s or that person’s spouse/domestic partner
• that person's or that person's spouse/domestic partners', parents and grandparents.

Relationships with key personnel

Related Party relationships are a normal feature of commerce and business.

A Related Party relationship could influence the normal business operations of Council even if Related Party Transactions do not occur.

The mere existence of the relationship may be sufficient to affect the transactions of the Council with other parties.

The new policy includes deadlines when disclosure would have to be made using standard disclosure forms.

More information can be found by downloading the policy here.

While the new policy is on exhibition for community comment, Orange City Council cannot change the requirements of the policy which are determined by statement legislation.

The deadline for community comments is Friday 3 February 2017.