Cr Andrew Thaler was elected to the Snowy Monaro Regional Council last year. Photo: Claire Fenwicke.
Controversial Snowy Monaro councillor Andrew Thaler has been found to have repeatedly engaged in misconduct due to comments made online and will be suspended from office for three months.
He has threatened to take legal action over the decision and claimed: “This is not about suspending me … this is about sacking me.”
The NSW Office of Local Government (OLG) has ordered Cr Thaler be suspended from civic office for three months from Monday (13 May).
He was also ordered to apologise for his misconduct on his social media accounts and to several unnamed individuals.
Snowy Monaro Regional Council (SMRC) must then publish his apology in any way its general manager believes necessary to reach the highest number of the region’s residents.
In a decision by OLG deputy secretary Brett Whitworth, he said he was satisfied “all allegations have been substantiated” and that Cr Thaler had engaged in misconduct.
He found Cr Thaler repeatedly breached the council’s code of conduct between 5 and 14 March, 2025, due to the comments he made in videos and written posts on social media.
For instance, he found some comments were reasonably likely to have brought council officials into disrepute. He found other comments were reasonably considered to be improper or unethical, were intimidating or abusive, or were harassing, bullying or discriminatory.
Also, some comments were found to have been pressuring or threatening to council staff.
Mr Whitworth said that as Cr Thaler’s misconduct impacted the “targets” of his comments and brought SMRC into “disrepute”, he thought disciplinary action was warranted.
He also noted Cr Thaler’s “lack of remorse or contrition” and “lack of accountability” for his actions.
“Cr Thaler’s training should have given him insight into what is acceptable and what his obligations are under council’s Code of Conduct,” he said.
“In this matter, I hold the view that suspension from civic office is appropriate, despite the impact that the suspension may have on council constituents.”
Andrew Thaler has also run as a candidate in state and federal elections. Photo: Steve Cuff, Snowy Mountains Magazine.
A spokesperson for the OLG said Mr Whitworth had advised Cr Thaler of his decision after considering a departmental report and the councillor’s responses to the allegations against him.
“While he is suspended, Councillor Thaler will not be entitled to exercise any of the functions of civic office and will not be entitled to receive any fee or other remuneration available to councillors,” the spokesperson said.
Contacted by Region on Tuesday (6 May), Cr Thaler said he hadn’t known the suspension order had been published until he was informed by media.
He claimed the OLG had engaged in an “improper process”, “completely ignored” the comments he made for its investigation and said he did not believe Mr Whitworth had the power to make these findings.
“Of course I don’t agree with it,” he said when asked whether he agreed with the findings of misconduct.
“Simply, the OLG does not want me in council, telling the truth, fighting for transparency.”
Cr Thaler said he would likely take legal action against the decision and attempt to have it revoked.
“I do not accept the findings of a kangaroo court, which is a trial-by-media kangaroo court,” he said.
“At every step of the way, the media knew more about this than I did.”
SMRC’s chief executive officer Stephen Dunshea said he appreciated the OLG had taken action.
“This suspension notice will assist me in safeguarding the health and well-being of our staff and elected councillors,” he said.
“Respect and decency are not negotiable. These principles must be upheld by each of us as public servants – people who serve the public – no matter our position within the structure of government or public administration.
“Without respect and decency as the starting point, the position of local government within the community and in public life is put in jeopardy.”
In a separate process to these findings, Minister for Local Government Ron Hoenig has asked the OLG to prepare a report to determine whether Cr Thaler has complied with the Performance Improvement Order in place at SMRC.
The report into this matter has not yet been completed.
Cr Thaler ran as an independent candidate for Eden-Monaro in last weekend’s federal election.
He received 2238 first-preference votes or 2.27 per cent of the total votes for the seat, according to data on the Australian Electoral Commission’s website.
