[{"_1":2,"_87":-5,"_88":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6337521,"mediaKeyId","2272755-e62762610fd699a0a2a39b73edc7a46d","parentId",2272755,"title","Executive Committee punts ordinance change on alder appointments to March 11 for more study","audioSeconds",2978,"startMs",903000,"endMs",3881000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2272755-e62762610fd699a0a2a39b73edc7a46d&start=903&end=3881","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2272755-e62762610fd699a0a2a39b73edc7a46d/thumbnail_903000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6337521/Madison/Dane-County/Wisconsin/Executive-Committee-punts-ordinance-change-on-alder-appointments-to-March-11-for-more-study","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6337521-e8e82de8defa52887629dddd919ded69/orig.mp4?Expires=1771063860&Signature=BGwRAYoRS8ScxCjJtgqcB8KF7FJihiavk9Pibx1oIjUfejXIv23G8uQiy~Q-1J8c1Y3KqOlXkBa3ol-Bx0enWXMiaR-geFvf5Aae237kPA67bj5z5uevljNIIhbma2mrzaIMxbPLu1Pu22bAuSlyNbtQWZ7tscXxRzE5CZXSRps7qGDMNNbV7WIgD8qhNfL-VfRWhA2G2W7EZUWrThyfq~HSAnBimjjawccLx6vu~r2A9Y2G7ruTGf012bqQYrf0WcXMUWrOzzK7w7iWaZ6ovVZRDqAb3v7wvEl1wQY0bNVVV4FggufgaUeKZ25riC6Yketh8ZFHUffNh6WE5vDc7g__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","City of Madison, WI","date","2025-02-12T11:57:17Z","article","The Madison Common Council Executive Committee debated an ordinance amendment tied to staggered alder terms and ultimately voted to re-refer the matter to the Common Council Committee (CCC) for further work and discussion on March 11.

The ordinance under consideration would change terms for alder appointments to boards, commissions and committees (BCCs) in response to newly staggered council election cycles. Mayor-sponsored language would generally make alder BCC appointments run for one year or, if made midterm, expire the following April; an alternate proposed by Alder Tishler would maintain committee appointments that run to the end of each alder's elected term.

Attorney Haas summarized the two approaches: the mayor's version would require annual appointment cycles, which could allow more rotation among alders but impose a heavier annual workload on the mayor's office; the Tishler alternate aims to preserve continuity by letting committee service expire with the alder's term and by requiring that committees with more than one alder include an odd-numbered district and an even-numbered district alder.

Tishler, the sponsor of the alternate, said the change would give newly elected alders more stability. “When we commit to serving our constituents ... for a 2 year term, we rearrange our lives to best serve the public,” she said, arguing that alders should not have to worry about committee assignments changing midterm. The alternate also includes a mechanism to allow the full council to waive the odd/even requirement by a two-thirds vote if no alder from the required numbering is available.

Opponents argued the alternate would constrain the mayor's ability to make appointments and complicate scheduling. Vice President Duncan said the mayor should retain flexibility to appoint each year and that a requirement for annual reappointments would not in practice prevent the same alder from being reappointed. Alder Ugari questioned the administrative burden on the mayor's staff, saying the staggered terms will already increase the permutations the mayor must consider when matching alders to committees.

Several committee members asked for more information from the mayor's office about how staff currently manages BCC appointments and for examples from other municipalities that use staggered terms. The committee asked staff to return with that information.

On motions and formal action, the committee first took up a motion to place Alder Tishler's alternate “on file without prejudice.” That motion passed by recorded roll call. Later, the committee voted to recommend that the council re-refer the ordinance and related alternate to the Common Council Committee for further work on March 11; that referral passed by unanimous recorded consent.

Next steps identified by the committee included requesting input from the mayor's staff about the practical workload of annual appointments and asking staff to research how other similarly sized cities handle BCC appointments when council terms are staggered. The committee will take up the ordinance again after the additional information is returned.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Common Council Executive Committee: Meeting of February 11, 2025","oneSentenceSummary","The Common Council Executive Committee voted to send an ordinance that would change alder appointments to boards, commissions and committees back to the Common Council Committee for more study on March 11, after debating competing proposals about whether committee terms should be one year or should run to the end of each alder's term.","taxTitle","Madison, Dane County, Wisconsin","taxId",2852,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6337525,"Council president to monitor referrals after two items were routed to Executive Committee",174,457000,631000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2272755-e62762610fd699a0a2a39b73edc7a46d&start=457&end=631","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2272755-e62762610fd699a0a2a39b73edc7a46d/thumbnail_457000.jpg","/articles/6337525/Madison/Dane-County/Wisconsin/Council-president-to-monitor-referrals-after-two-items-were-routed-to-Executive-Committee","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6337525-e0abe5f386f1cdf488b04e0bc290e024/orig.mp4?Expires=1771063860&Signature=L-qzOrgmmA8VdA7xI4HCrbLtHxTKk12XinLaf6hj3Pm0RPZV~csBIMforpK4XlJe4M0w3FVxUoY5~jvBFKZnGnXUpkbdSnVl1rDQVDQ0GKsTs1SYp3sfkb~kINn7Y~y0O1WrfWr0-lsvd~OExEZKyw2X8c58jSCY5f09EAvtapGgIFN54TUO7aE1~JjcuGERkXLS1QUygxXT-O5q0dXdfeOzvDj7gNkCtQXZMkis4hk7gjUIDyOO1UPZIQ5bXp-IC4aJKxFNG~5mkp5SaImFGR9hn8juNS7iE07CQ40ffZB0aB24P-PHxBggHRC4bszFitJySJL8noRrJ7zBDj63ag__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Madison Common Council Executive Committee spent part of its February meeting reviewing how referrals are routed after two ordinances were sent to the committee and to other standing committees in the same council meeting.

Council President Figueroa Cole said the committee will ask staff to notify the council president anytime staff sends an item to the Common Council Executive Committee, so the president can watch the floor during the council meeting and, if necessary, call out and remove an unintended CCC referral.

The change is intended as a process safeguard. “Any time a staff wants to send something to CC, they should contact the president … so they can be on the lookout for that particular agenda item,” Figueroa Cole said. She described the step as an additional checklist the president will use while reviewing agendas.

Attorney Haas clarified limits on correcting past referrals. The attorney told the committee that if the council has already made a referral during a council meeting, the referral cannot be retroactively rescinded by the committee. “The ones that are already in the system, we cannot change those,” Haas said. That means the new safeguard applies only to future referrals, not to items already routed.

Committee members asked for simple, clear points of contact so the process is easy for staff and council leadership to follow. Alder McKinney raised a legal point during the discussion, noting that council advice from the city attorney during the earlier meeting had indicated a referral made by the full council could not be re-dispersed by the committee once acted upon on the floor.

Figueroa Cole said anyone on the floor may also call out an erroneous referral, but that putting initial responsibility on the president reduces the chance of an oversight when many speakers and motions are active. The committee did not take any formal vote on the procedural suggestion; members directed staff to implement the notification step and to continue monitoring referrals.

The committee did not amend any ordinance language during the discussion. Members agreed to use the new step immediately and to raise the topic again if problems persist.","The Madison Common Council Executive Committee discussed a new checklist step that will require staff to notify the council president whenever an item is routed to the committee, after two ordinances were mistakenly referred to both CCC and other committees in a recent meeting.","actionData","errors"]

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Executive Committee punts ordinance change on alder appointments to March 11 for more study

Council president to monitor referrals after two items were routed to Executive Committee