Bylaw Complaints

If you have a bylaw complaint or have witnessed or know of a bylaw infraction, please call 403.230.1401 or use the online report form.

Registering a Complaint

• When you make the complaint, you will be required to provide your full name and address, and a phone number where we can reach you at home, at work and/or on cell. The County does not accept anonymous complaints. Please fill in all the information so that we can take appropriate action on your request. Your name and contact information is treated in confidence. Your information will not be shared, and will be managed in accordance with the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act.
• When providing the incident details, describe:
  • the situation you wish to report. Provide the names of all involved (if known), date(s), day(s) of the week, month, year and time(s) the event or activity occurred.
  • the address or location where the event occurred
  • what you saw or heard, providing as much detail as you can to describe the matter you are reporting. For example, if you are reporting a barking dog, we will ask you to start a log to record dates and times, and to identify the dog.
  • the action you wish taken
• Once we receive the complaint, we will assign an Enforcement Officer.
• Complaints are responded to on a priority basis. Response time will depend on availability of personnel at the time of the call, and the priority of your complaint compared with other calls received by the unit.
• If your complaint is not urgent, we may ask for your assistance. For example, if you have found a stray dog and an Enforcement Officer is not available, we may ask if you will:
  • keep the dog until an officer is available
  • take the dog to the Humane Society yourself

Enforcement Process

The enforcement procedure depends on the type of infraction; however, the following outlines the general process.

• The Enforcement Officer assigned to your complaint will take action based on your wishes in concert with the evidence available. Insufficient evidence would result in no prosecution. In such instances, a warning may be issued.
• Your complaint along with all the information you provide will be kept on file and assigned to an Enforcement Officer, who will keep the complaint file open until the matter is resolved.
• During the course of an investigation, you may be asked to provide a written statement of what you observed. You may also be asked if you would be willing to testify in court. Your testimony would be essential if you want to have a charge laid where an Enforcement Officer has not personally witnessed the infraction. If you are not willing to provide a statement or testify in court, a charge will not be laid. In these cases, a warning to the offender(s) is a normal course of action.
• In some situations, if it has been determined that a bylaw has been violated, the subject is given the option of voluntary compliance. Should that not resolve the issue, the case may be presented to a court of law.

Complaint Follow-Up

• At the conclusion of an investigation, the Enforcement Officer will contact you to let you know what action was taken and the final outcome.