Motion calls for forensic audit of North Bay mayor’s expenses

Coun. Jamie Lowery is proposing an independent audit of Mayor Peter Chirico’s expenses after a review found $16,000 in personal charges on a city credit card.

A motion headed to North Bay city council July 8 calls for an outside auditor to be hired to review Mayor Peter Chirico’s expenses.

The motion also calls on the mayor to step down from the city’s police services board until the audit is complete.

Chirico has been under fire since it emerged that he charged $16,000 in personal expenses on the corporate credit card in 2023 and 2024.

He said in June that all expenses that were deemed personal, including some that fell into a “grey area,” were fully repaid.

And on June 26, he held a last-minute news conference to call on the city integrity commissioner to investigate the expenses, at the same time insisting that he won’t resign over the controversy.

However the motion that will be heard at the July 8 city council meeting -- moved by Coun. Jamie Lowery and seconded by Coun. Sara Inch -- goes much further.

It calls for the city to hire “an independent auditing firm with forensic experience to conduct a review the mayor’s expenses and business development opportunities to ensure compliance with applicable rules, policies and best practices.”

Results would be made public

Lowery’s motion would include a review of how the personal expenses were approved “or overridden” and “clarification of the roles and responsibilities of city staff involved in authorizing or processing reimbursements.”

Once the review is complete, the auditor would also be asked to provide an “opinion on whether any aspect of the conduct warrants further review by appropriate oversight or law enforcement agencies.”

The findings of the audit would then be brought to an open committee, where the public could ask questions.

In addition, Lowery’s motion calls for Chirico to step down from the police services board “until the completion of the independent review and the findings have been brought forward to council.”

It would be a “temporary adjustment not be interpreted as a presumption of wrongdoing, but rather a proactive step to protect the integrity of the city’s institutions and reassure the public of council’s commitment to open and accountable government.”

Finally, the motion calls for a committee to be struck to examine the bylaw that allows council to hold closed-door meetings.

Read the full motion here.

Chirico declined to comment Thursday.

“He has indicated that he will not be making any further comments at this time,” North Bay spokesperson Gord Young said in a text Thursday to Eric Taschner of CTV News.

“He has referred the matter to the Integrity Commissioner and will await the outcome of that review before providing any additional statements.”

A separate motion that will also be heard July 8 instructs city staff to bring forward a transparency and accountability bylaw, requiring council and mayoral expenses to be published online every quarter.

“The report will include detailed transactions, including payee, date paid, amount, and a general description of the nature of the expense as it relates to city business,” the motion said.

Moved by Coun. Lana Mitchell and seconded by Coun. Gary Gardiner, if passed, the bylaw would be ready by September.