Charter limits on commissioner‑staff contact highlighted; city clerk explains process

Discussion at the April 3 Local Government Study Commission hearing focused in part on the role of the city manager and a charter provision that limits direct communications between individual commissioners and staff.

Mary Bateson asked whether commissioners were “not allowed to directly engage with the city staff,” and City Clerk Mike Moss responded that the current City Charter contains a provision that communications, “except for inquiries, are to go through the city manager.” He said the charter makes the city manager the city commission’s conduit to staff and that the rule’s purpose is to reduce politicization of day‑to‑day operations.

Several commenters and former staff said the prohibition has been interpreted in different ways and that it can complicate information gathering by commissioners. Ron Bray described one approach used previously: commissioners could contact staff directly if the staff informed the city manager afterward of the contact’s contents and context. “It allowed the commissioner to get that information directly from staff,” Bray said, adding that the arrangement required trust and clear notification afterward.

Commissioners and residents pressed the study commission to consider how the charter’s wording and the commission‑manager relationship affect accountability, oversight and information flow. The City Clerk and others noted some aspects are governed by state law; Moss also pointed out that state statute prescribes the appointment process when an elected official resigns and sets a 30‑day timeline for filling vacancies by commission appointment.

Ending: The study commission did not change any rules at the hearing; members said they will add communications between commissioners and staff, and charter provisions on the city manager’s role, to topics for further study and public education.