Council meeting process

About Council Meetings

The City of Rockingham Council and Committee meetings are guided by the Council Policy - Governance and Meeting Framework.

Council and Standing Committee Meetings are livestreamed and recorded in accordance with Council Policy Recording and Streaming Council, Standing Committees and Annual Electors Meetings.

The dates of the public meetings are made available on the City's website.  

The public has the opportunity to participate at public meetings. If you have a question you would like to ask at the Standing Committee or Council meetings or participate in the Annual Electors' Meeting, see Public Participation for more information.

Council Meetings

Ordinary Council Meetings are the formal meetings of the Council as defined by the Local Government Act 1995  in which decisions are made by the Council, the peak decision-making body of the City of Rockingham.

A monthly cycle of meetings commences in February of every calendar year. Ordinary Council Meetings are held on the fourth Tuesday of the month  (exceptions do apply), starting at 6pm in the City's Council Chambers. 

Committee Meetings 

The City has two Standing Committees:

• Planning and Asset Services Committee
  • Held at 5pm on the Monday the week before the Ordinary Council Meeting 
• Corporate and Community Development Committee
  • Meetings held at 5pm on the Tuesday the week before the Ordinary Council Meeting.

Standing Committees consider matters relevant to the particular Standing Committee’s areas of consideration and make recommendations to the Ordinary Council for determination.

Committee recommendations are placed before the Council Meeting for decisions. Council may accept Committee recommendations, amend them, or send them back to the appropriate committee for further consideration. Correspondence from individuals or organisations which cannot be handled through the routine processes and policies of the City are referred to the appropriate committee through an officer's report.

The Standing Committees are held in the City of Rockingham Council Chamber at 5pm and members of the public are welcome to attend.

Advisory committees

Advisory committees are made up of Council members and community members. They provide recommendations to Council in line with their terms of reference. We have advisory committees that range from culture and the arts to community safety.

Advisory committees meet as and when required as determined by the committee members or Council. Their role is providing professional advice and executive support.

To keep our advisory committees vibrant and relevant, Councillor memberships to these committees are reviewed after each ordinary local government election. Community membership and membership from specific organisations and government agencies are reviewed every two years between July and September each non-election year. 

​You can find the terms of reference and membership of each advisory committee on the Representations on Council and Non-Council Committees document.

Public participation

Public Question Time 

Members of the public present at the following public meetings will have an opportunity to ask questions during public question time, with questions limited to a maximum of three minutes. Any person who wishes to ask a question at the meeting must be present or have arranged a person to ask the question on their behalf, otherwise the questions will be responded to in the City's normal procedural manner and not recorded in the minutes of the meeting.  

• Questions at Standing Committee Meetings must relate to a report contained in the agenda. 
• Questions at Ordinary Council Meetings must relate to a matter that affects the City of Rockingham.
• Questions at Special Council Meeting must relate to the purpose for which the meeting has been called.
• Questions at an Annual Electors' Meeting must relate to the relevant Annual Report or a function or responsibility of the City of Rockingham. 

It is encouraged that questions are submitted as early as possible prior to the meeting, as this may allow time for a response to be provided at the meeting. Where a response to the question is unable to be provided, the question will be taken on notice and the question and response will be included in the next month's agenda.

Please post or hand deliver the Public Question Time form to the City of Rockingham Administration Building or email the completed form to customer@rockingham.wa.gov.au.

Petitions

Information regarding Petitions can be found under Clause 3.4 in the Standing Orders Local Law 2001.

A petition, in order to be effective, is to:

• (a) be addressed to the Mayor;
• (b) be made by electors of the district;
• (c) state the request on each page of the petition;
• (d) contain the names, addresses and signatures of the electors making the request, and the date each elector signed;
• (e) contain a summary of the reasons for the request;
• (f) state the name of the person upon whom, and an address at which, notice to the petitioners can be given.

Electors' Meetings

The Local Government Act 1995 states that a local government must hold:

• An Electors' Special Meeting upon presentation of a petition signed by 300 electors; and
• An Annual Electors' General Meeting once every financial year.

Annual Electors' Meeting

The Annual Electors' Meeting for the 2022/2023 financial year was held on Thursday 8 February 2024, at the City of Rockingham Administration Building in the Reception Room. The meeting recording is available via the City's website.

Following the Annual Electors' Meeting, a report is prepared to confirm the minutes of the meeting and the outcomes. The motions carried at the Annual Electors meeting are considered at the next practicable Ordinary Council Meeting.

For purposes of the 2022/2023 Annual Electors' Meeting the reports resulting from motions will be considered during the March cycle of meetings, including the relevant Standing Committee meeting and ultimately, the March Ordinary Council Meeting. To view the Agenda for the relevant meeting visit the Agenda and Minutes page., Agendas are available the Friday before the relevant meeting.

Public questions at an electors' meeting

Electors and the general public have the opportunity to participate at the Annual Electors' Meeting. If you have a question you would like to ask at the meeting please see Public Participation for more information.

There is no requirement to register to attend the meeting, however electors will need to identify themselves before participating in the meeting.

Moving Motions at an Electors Meeting

Electors' meetings are open to all members of the public, however only electors may move, second, speak to and vote on motions. 

Electors may raise any motion that is related to the responsibilities and functions of the City of Rockingham. To allow motions to be recorded accurately and scheduled for discussion the motions are required to be lodged in writing, addressed to customer@rockingham.wa.gov.au by 5pm, two business days prior to the meeting.

Motions may be submitted using the Notice of Motion form below which provides information on how to write a motion.

Each elector present is entitled to one vote on each matter to be decided, but is not required to vote.