An “agenda-forecasting” system kept from the eyes of Halifax regional councillors would see politically sensitive staff reports flagged and screened through the office of HRM’s senior bureaucrat.

But CAO Richard Butts says there’s nothing new about the system.

“The agenda-forecasting system has been in place a long time.… This is just the next evolution of it,” Butts told reporters at Halifax City Hall on Tuesday. “(It tries) to make certain that the reports that come forward to council are part of council’s agenda and directed by council to come forward.”

A document released by the alternative weekly The Coast reveals municipal staffers met last November to plan out the system.

The document says the aim of agenda forecasting is to project all staff reports for up to one year before they’re released, and to conduct a systematic review of all reports for their “political and operational sensitivity.” “No reports go forward without being screened through this process,” it reads.

It also says that the briefing notes given to the CAO and his deputy will not be made available to councillors or the public. In a section titled Communications/Roll Out, it’s unclear whether council would be made aware of the agenda- forecasting system at all.

But Butts said the released document was only a draft and doesn’t have much value.