other · Shoalhaven City Council
Shoalhaven code puts excluded agenda items under CEO scrutiny
Councillors proposing business that does not make the agenda must now be told why it was excluded and what assistance was offered.
Shoalhaven City Council has adopted a meeting code requiring its chief executive officer to explain why proposed agenda business was excluded and what assistance was offered to the councillor who moved it.
The requirement is part of the 2026 Draft Code of Meeting Practice, adopted after public exhibition at the council’s ordinary meeting on 25 August. The updated code also includes amendments reflecting changes to the Local Government (General) Regulation 2021.
When proposed business is not included on an agenda, the CEO must explain the reason for its exclusion and identify the assistance offered to the mover. The provision creates a formal account of how proposed council business is handled before a meeting.
The change applies to councillors seeking to bring issues before the council and gives residents more information about why an item did not reach public discussion. It does not require every proposed item to be placed on an agenda.
The code was adopted alongside a schedule for Ordinary Council Meetings and broadcast public forums. Ordinary Meetings will generally be held on the fourth Tuesday of each month from September 2026 to October 2027. They will generally start at 5.30pm.
Broadcast public forums will generally be held on the third Thursday of each month at 5.00pm. A workshop will consider starting times for future Ordinary Meetings.
The adopted schedule excludes Ordinary and Committee Meetings from public holidays and specified periods unless urgent or unusual circumstances require immediate council consideration. Those periods include the Christmas and New Year break from 21 December 2026 to 15 January 2027, Australia Day on 26 January 2027, and the Easter break from 26 March to 29 March 2027.
For councillors and residents, the updated code sets a clearer process for proposed business that does not reach the public agenda. The CEO must account for both the exclusion and the assistance offered to the councillor who put the item forward.
Reference minutes
Shoalhaven City Council, Ordinary Meeting, 25 August 2026.
Key facts from the minutes
- Shoalhaven City Council adopted the 2026 Draft Code of Meeting Practice after public exhibition.
- The code includes amendments reflecting changes to the Local Government (General) Regulation 2021.
- The CEO must explain why proposed agenda business was not included and what assistance was offered to the mover.
- Ordinary Council Meetings will generally be held on the fourth Tuesday of each month from September 2026 to October 2027.
- Broadcast public forums will generally be held on the third Thursday of each month at 5.00pm.
- Ordinary Meetings will generally commence at 5.30pm.
Why it matters
- The updated code gives councillors and residents more information about why proposed council business does not reach the public agenda, while setting the meeting and public forum timetable through October 2027.