The Association of Municipal Managers, Clerks and Treasurers of Ontario (AMCTO) represents excellence in local government, management, and leadership. Since 1938, we have provided education, accreditation, leadership, and management expertise for Ontario municipal professionals. With more than 2,200 members working in municipalities across the province, we are Ontario’s largest association of local government professionals and the leading professional development organization for municipal professionals. Our mission is to deliver professional growth, networks, advocacy, and leadership to support and strengthen the knowledge, skills, and capabilities of municipal professionals now and into the future.
On an annual basis, the AMCTO policy and government relations team will work with a paid research assistant to undertake new research projects and initiatives to further support our sector advocacy. Applications for our 2025 paid research assistant opportunity are open now until Friday, June 20 to all Student and New Professional members - read below for details and how to apply.
AMCTO plays an important role in supporting municipal administrators. Our advocacy aims to create a modern legislative and regulatory environment that supports and enables the work of municipal professionals, making legislation easier to understand and enforce, and encourages innovation while ensuring policies and practices reflect current needs and situations, focusing on outcomes.
The Municipal Act (MA) should be reviewed and updated with a focus on modernization, accountability and transparency, financial fairness, good governance, and continued enabling provisions. On behalf of our members, the Association is undertaking work to determine what changes need to be made, what promising practices could be adopted in Ontario, and we are looking to address and mitigate the impacts of strong mayor provisions on municipal leaders, staff, and administration. Our goal is to present recommendations to influence the Province’s direction on changes and updates to the MA.
This project will examine the legislation applied to municipalities in other Canadian jurisdictions and internationally, with a guiding question: How can Ontario’s Municipal Act (MA) be improved to better serve local communities?
Objectives:
The results of the project will help inform our continued advocacy with respect to reviewing and modernizing the MA and other related legislation to better support our members and municipal administrators.
We are looking for someone with a solid understanding of municipal administration, operations, and the Municipal Act. See further details on qualifications and how to submit an expression of interest below.
Research Scope:
Phase one will explore enabling legislation in Canada and internationally. At a minimum, the main enabling legislation should be reviewed, with attention to key finance, licensing, governance, accountability, transparency, and related frameworks. Focus should be given to the role and responsibilities of the head of council and council, municipal leadership such as the city manager and/or CAO, and the role of staff, including political-administrative provisions and regulations.
In the review of several jurisdictions, the research assistant will consider questions such as:
We expect that where legislation is supporting positive municipal outcomes in other jurisdictions, this can be considered to improve municipal administration in Ontario.
Phase two will draw out key findings, best practices, and innovations to be considered for Ontario (from the scan and a literature review). The focus should be on legislative changes and provisions that will improve the municipal legislative environment, operations and service delivery, considering best practices to apply in Ontario. Various implications including benefits, costs, and risks should be summarized. This work will culminate in a presentation that will be shared with AMCTO members.
Out of Scope:
Project Timelines: July 2025 – February 2026 (exact start and end date TBD)
Work Plan and Compensation Schedule: Compensation will be provided upon satisfactory completion of each project milestone laid out below. Note: Check-in meetings will be set in consultation with the successful candidate and held between deliverable dates.
| Project Phase | Project Plan and Deliverables | Anticipated Delivery Date | Payment Schedule |
| Initiation | Kick-off meeting | Monday, July 21, 2025 | N/A |
| Scoping & Alignment | Identification of selected jurisdictions with rationale and early findings | Tuesday, August 5, 2025 | N/A |
| Phase 1 | First draft of literature review | Tuesday, August 26, 2025 | $500 |
| Phase 1 | First draft of jurisdictional scan | Tuesday, October 14, 2025 | $500 |
| Phase 2 | First draft of key findings | Tuesday, December 9, 2025 | $500 |
| Phase 2 | First draft of deck with key findings and best practices for review | Tuesday, January 20, 2026 | $1,500 |
| Completion | Final copy of deck with all feedback implemented | Friday, February 13, 2026 | $1,000 |
If you are interested in this paid research assistant opportunity, please submit the following information no later than Friday, June 20, to Charlotte Caza, AMCTO Policy Advisor, via email:
To be eligible for this opportunity, you must be an AMCTO Student or New Professional Member in good standing. Expressions of Interest must be submitted by the stated deadline each year. Only those being considered for the position will be contacted, and late expressions of interest will not be considered.
AMCTO is committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion and values the voices, lived experiences, and perspectives of individuals of all backgrounds. It is important that our Association reflects the diverse communities we serve. We strongly encourage AMCTO members from diverse backgrounds to apply.
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