Two public school trustees — one in Peel, the other Toronto — have been ousted from office after failing to file their election expenses on time, a first in recent history for both boards.

Harkirat Singh and David Smith were scrubbed from the websites of their respective boards by Monday afternoon after missing last Friday’s firm 2 p.m. deadline set out in the Municipal Elections Act.

At least one — Singh, a first-time trustee who represented two Brampton wards for the Peel board — is launching legal action to reclaim his seat. Smith told the Star he has spoken to his lawyer but would provide no details.

A legal bid will be costly, said municipal law expert John Mascarin, with a minimum $15,000 price tag, or more than half of Singh’s yearly $27,000 honorarium.

“I think it happens because a lot of them don’t realize the deadline is 2 p.m. — it’s an awkward kind of time, not like noon or the end of the business day,” said Mascarin, a partner at law firm Aird & Berlis.

“Most people leave it to the very end . . . and there may be all kinds of confusion.”

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Smith, who was removed from his seat on the Toronto District School Board on Monday, said via email he is following his lawyer’s instructions and might publicly comment Tuesday.

Both boards have 90 days to appoint or hold an election to replace the trustees. No decisions have been made.

In a written statement, Singh said he “became aware of this problem late Friday afternoon, and promptly retained legal counsel that same evening.

“We now anticipate that this matter will become the subject of a legal proceeding to the court, to seek relief from the consequences of this situation.”

A spokesperson for the City of Brampton said candidates are given written notice of upcoming deadline.

Under Section 80 of the Municipal Elections Act, a candidate who doesn’t file expense statements in time “forfeits any office to which he or she was elected and the office is deemed to be vacant” — and the ex-trustee is barred from running in the next municipal election.

Smith, an incumbent, won his ward in a tight race, garnering 139 votes more than Scott Harrison during last fall’s election after coming under fire for his attendance record at the board.

Smith was also cited in a trustee-expense audit for international long-distance and roaming charges on his board cellphone to and from Guyana, Trinidad and Suriname, some of them during Christmas and summer breaks.

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He has told the Star he has family in Guyana, and that “since most of my calls were related to (board) business, I was told all was cleared.”

Michael Barrett, head of the Ontario Public School Boards’ Association, said after the 2010 election a trustee in the Kawartha Pine Ridge board went through “a very time-consuming and lengthy process” to get an extension to file expenses before being reappointed.

“The law is quite clear and as a publicly elected officer one must abide by the regulations and as such are given ample opportunity to file,” said Barrett, who is also a trustee with the Durham public board.

“Every elected official must take the reporting requirements seriously.”

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