Board approves amended public‑safety standards, clarifies role of merit commission in discipline

The Board of Public Safety approved amendments to its standards on Aug. 21 that remove provisions superseded by the newly established merit system, update who will serve as the board secretary and clarify handling of disciplinary matters tied to the fire merit commission.

The presenter said the city has established a merit system for the fire department and that many provisions in the existing standards duplicate duties now carried out by the merit system; the amendments remove those duplicated sections. The presenter notified the board of a ministerial change naming a police department staff member rather than a member of the legal department as the board secretary and said other edits align the written standards with actual practice—for example, changing language about regular meetings to schedule one regular meeting per month rather than asserting that a meeting must be held every month.

On disciplinary procedure, the amended standards state that the fire merit commission handles disciplinary actions for the fire department. The presenter said the merit commission may request the board to undertake investigatory or adjudicatory tasks in particular cases, for example where a conflict exists; but the baseline expectation in the amended language is that the merit commission will carry out discipline under its rules.

The board voted to adopt the amended standards effective Aug. 21, 2025. A motion to approve the standards was moved and seconded and passed by voice vote.

The presenter said a clean, final version of the amended standards will be distributed to board members and relevant departments. The amendments also retain references to department rules and regulations within the standards so the board can more easily restore prior language if the merit system arrangement is later changed.