Tashi Farmilo
Published in the Pontiac Journal on February 11, 2026.
MUNICIPALITY OF PONTIAC – Pontiac was one of 20 municipalities in Quebec included in a recent Commission municipale du Québec (CMQ) audit, which reviewed code of ethics management and professional conduct. This was to confirm whether the municipality was meeting legal obligations, but also actively promoting a culture of ethical governance among elected officials and employees.
Pontiac was selected as part of a broader review of municipalities with fewer than 100,000 residents.
According to the CMQ, Pontiac was among a small number of municipalities that proactively included a rule addressing political interference in its code of ethics, a measure recognized as a strong step toward protecting the integrity of decision-making.
However, the report also identified areas for improvement, such as better staff engagement during the development of the code and more consistent efforts to ensure employees are aware of and understand the rules that apply to them.
Responding to the report, Mayor Roger Larose said, “Overall, the findings are reasonable and show that we’re on the right path. There are areas that need adjustment,
particularly in how we communicate and apply the code with our staff, that we will working to improve.”
Municipalities included in the audit are expected to prepare action plans to follow through on recommendations. The full report is available on the CMQ’s website;
https://www.cmq.gouv.qc.ca/fr/verification-municipale/rapports-publies/codes-d-ethique-et-de-deontologie
