COLUMN: Report from the Legislature – The duties and responsibilities of an MLA explained

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 23/01/2024 (456 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

When you start a new job, it is important to make sure you understand the duties and responsibilities that are put upon you. This is important, because you then know what you are required to do, and what someone else’s job is. This is doubly important for elected officials, as our duties and responsibilities are mandated by law, enshrined in our constitution, and separated between municipal, provincial, and federal officials. Often, we get confused as to what elected officials are responsible for, so I want to take some time to discuss what an MLA can and can’t do for you.

One of the core responsibilities of a member of the legislative assembly is that of a representative. As your MLA, I represent your concerns and issues to the Manitoba government, regarding issues that fall under the purview of the provincial government. For example, we often receive emails from constituents regarding issues with health care related concerns. As health care is a provincial mandate, that is something we can (and do) help with. Often it entails us sending the issue on to the Minister of Health.

However, it is not possible for an MLA to represent a constituent on an issue that does not fall under their mandate. For example, an MLA cannot help when it comes to issues such as immigration or garbage pickup. Those are federal and municipal issues, respectively. Our office does tend to get quite a few emails and inquiries regarding issues such as these, and we unfortunately cannot help constituents with them. All we can do is forward them onto the local MP or municipal officials.

A gray area is that of roads. I often receive emails about snow clearing, or road repair. It can be confusing as to whether a road falls under provincial or municipal jurisdiction. One key thing that can help a person tell which jurisdiction the road falls under is the prefix of the road. If the name of the Road starts with “PTH” or “PR”, chances are that it is a provincial road. PTH stands for “Provincial Trunk Highway”, and PR stands for “Provincial Road”, which helps with identifying the jurisdiction. For municipal roads, they will often have names such as “Park Road”, or “James Way”.

It is key that we have a proper understanding of what an elected official can and can’t do for their constituents. Not only does it make finding the solutions to your problems easier, it helps to speed up a prompt response to the issue.

The work I value most is serving you and your family as your MLA for Springfield-Ritchot. I welcome any questions or comments by email to Ron@RonSchuler.com or by mail to Box 150, Oakbank, MB R0E 1J0.