6 Amendments You May Vote On this November

You could be voting on some changes to some of the laws governing the city this November.

The six proposed changes are as major as adding term limits for elected officials and as minor as defining a word.

Officials spent part of Thursday’s commission meeting discussing how these proposed changes would appear to voters on the ballot in November.

You may have to decide on these amendments in November:

1) Add language that requires the vice mayor position be rotated among the commissioners on an annual basis (Charter, Section 3.05).

2) Revise a section would explain that a commissioner would have to forfeit his or her seat if convicted of a crime determined morally unacceptable. The revised version merely clarifies that the person would still be considered "convicted" if determined guilty either by plea or in a trial, regardless of whether adjudication is witheld (Charter, Section 3.06).

3) Require a four-fifths majority to appoint or remove the city clerk (Charter, Section 4.02).

4) (Charter, Section 5.03).

5) Reduce the time a commission may repeal an ordinance from 150 to 60 days (Charter, Section 5.10).

6) Require the commission to hold two regular meetings each month (as it currently does), but allowing for one of those monthly meetings to be canceled should it be deemed necessary (Charter, Section 3.08).

The City Charter Committee spent the winter months reviewing the charter and suggested the changes in a report to the commission early this year.

Law requires that the city charter be reviewed every five years. Any proposed changes must be put to a citizen vote. 

The public is encouraged to speak on the proposed amendments at the next regular meeting on May 17 at (6:30 p.m.).