Two Hilltops Councillors made comments about and to another during the August Ordinary Meeting for attending the Hilltops meeting via video link, accusing their fellow Councillor of attending another function in a different LGA.

Councillor Matthew Stadtmiller appeared at the August Hilltops meeting requesting to attend via video link. According to the motion to approve his appearance remotely it was said that Cr Stadtmiller wouldn't be attending the meeting in person due to carer duties.

Cr Stadtmiller was in an empty vehicle on the screen for parts of the meeting before he disappeared from the meeting altogether.

Cr Brian Ingram and Cr Tony Flanery took issue with this and suggested to Council he was attending a function being held by Yass Valley Council for candidates in its election, of which, Cr Stadtmiller is also running, alongside his candidacy in Hilltops.

Following on from the public forum, Cr Stadtmiller put forward a motion to move the matters that had been discussed by locals who had addressed Council be moved up in the meeting, Cr Ingram interjected.

"Madam Mayor, if I can," Cr Stadtmiller said.

"Just wondering how much longer we'll go on here, Madam Mayor, going down the page, or whether we can deal with some of the people who have turned up tonight, regarding the particular items, including probably, the piggery-"

"Is that so you could attend the Yass Valley Candidates night, Councillor?" Cr Ingram asked.

Cr Ingram's microphone was then silenced as Mayor Roles reprimanded him.

"I was just asking," Cr Ingram could be heard saying off the microphone.

Cr Ingram apologised to the Mayor, who accepted.

The motion to move the agenda items was then approved.

Later in the meeting, following Cr Stadtmiller's unannounced departure, Cr Flanery then questioned the reason that Cr Stadtmiller had given for not attending the meeting in person.

"Has Cr Stadtmiller departed?" Cr Flanery asked.

The General Manager responded that he had been advised by Cr Stadtmiller that he had left the meeting.

"He has to do his candidate profile for Yass Valley Council," Cr Flanery said.

Cr Flanery's asked for an explanation on what the rules around appearing via video link to the meetings are.

"Can I just get clarification on, do you have to give reasons for why you attend via Zoom?" Cr Flanery asked.

"Yes, that's been our practice," General Manager Anthony O'Reilly said.

Cr Flanery asked what are the reasons that can be given.

"The four reasons are carers duties, illness, attendance at another Council related activity, so that's a wide range, and the fourth thing is natural disaster," Mr O'Reilly said.

"And which category did Cr Stadtmiller give?" Cr Flanery asked.

"Carers leave," Mr O'Reilly responded.

"Carers leave and he was sitting in a car, we saw him sitting in a car without any people in the car?"

Mr O'Reilly said that 'we don't know where those people are,' before he was interrupted by Cr Ingram.

"Let's just move on," he said.

The meeting then voted to take a 10 minute break having been sitting in the meeting for almost three hours at that point.