At the Monday meeting, city council rescinded the three readings that dealt removing fluoride from the drinking water.
The Cease Fluoridation Bylaw was intended to authorize stopping the addition of fluoride to the public drinking water if the Nov. 15 referendum vote had succeeded. Since it hadn’t, the bylaw readings needed to be rescinded.
“The assent of the electors was not obtained on Nov. 15, 2014,” read Mayor Lee Pratt.
City staff’s recommendations was to rescind the three readings.
Council voted unanimously to rescind the “City of Cranbrook Cease Fluoridation Bylaw No. 3799, 2014.”
The bylaw was given three readings on May 12, 2014. Council sought the assent of the voting public on Nov. 15, 2014 to end the addition of fluoride to the city’s water supply.
City staff noted in the report that Section 68 of the Community Charter states that a Council must not fluoridate its municipal water supply unless it has adopted a bylaw and the bylaw has received the assent of the electors. It was back in 1966 that electors gave their consent to fluoridate the municipal water supply by referendum, which was required by the Municipal Act at the time.
City staff also noted that Section 137 (1) (b) of the Community Charter says that the power to amend or repeal is only available through a bylaw.
Staff wrote that because the assent of the electors was not obtained on Nov. 15, the bylaw can’t be adopted by council.
“As per past practices and recommendation from the City Solicitor, it is advisable for administrative and record keeping purposes to rescind the three readings given on May 12, 2014,” city staff wrote.
