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ARGUMENT DELETING ARTICLE IV THE CITY COUNCIL SECTION 409 STATEMENT OF POLICY
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Consider recommendation of the Charter Review Advisory Commission to delete Section 409 from the Charter and forwarding to the full Council for approval to place on the November 2016 General Election ballot.
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Charter Review Advisory Commission Recommendation
The Charter Review Advisory Commission recommends deleting Section 409 from the Charter. This section requires Council to adopt a written Statement of Policy for each City department which is under the administration of the City Manager. The policy must include broad goals, objectives and aspirations to be accomplished by that department. This section provides direction for the Council to review, and if necessary revise, the Statement of Policy if a department head position becomes vacant. Further, Section 409 requires the Council to submit questions for department head candidates regarding the Statement of Policy and the City Manager shall provide the candidates responses to the Council prior to making an appointment. Section 409 only directs Council to submit questions regarding the Statement of Policy and review candidate responses. However, it could be misinterpreted to imply that the Council is involved in hiring department heads even though this section provides no such authority and such authority would be inconsistent with other Charter sections.
This section is inconsistent with Section 408, which states that “neither the Council nor any of its members nor the Mayor shall interfere with the execution by the City Manager of his or her powers and duties, nor in any manner dictate the appointment or removal of any City officers or employees whom the City Manager is empowered to appoint.” It is also in direct conflict with Section 1202 which states that “the City Manager shall appoint all officers and employees of the City.” Additionally it imposes a cumbersome and time consuming process, requiring a minimum of two separate Council actions, which significantly delays the appointment process.
Staff Recommendation
Staff supports the deletion of Section 409 as recommended by the Charter Review Advisory Commission. Staff agrees that this section is in conflict with Sections 408 and 1202 which causes confusion. This section is overly prescriptive and delays the appointing process.
Attachment A - Argument in favor of deleting Section 409