At a July 30 meeting, the Citizens Advisory Board voted unanimously to ask the City Council to clarify language in a draft ordinance so that subcommittee term limits mirror those of the Citizens Advisory Board.
The board’s recommendation came after members said a PowerPoint slide accompanying the ordinance appeared to state that subcommittees had “no term limit,” which board members said created confusion about whether community members who were not CAB members could serve indefinitely on subcommittees.
Tara Hahn, who presented the PowerPoint overview of the draft ordinance, said, “The new organization looks more like this,” as she described a structure in which three subcommittees (Senior Services, Human Services and the Arts) would sit under a single Citizens Advisory Board that reports to City Council. She told members the proposed CAB would include 12 neighborhood seats and 11 at-large seats and that subcommittees had been proposed with a minimum of three and a maximum of nine members.
Board members raised questions about term language. Eddie asked, “So you’re saying... they can serve 4 years and 8 years and 16 years?” referring to the PowerPoint line that read “no term limit for subcommittees.” Several members said the slide was nebulous and asked for clearer wording.
Tracy moved that the board recommend amending the PowerPoint language so “term limits for subcommittees will be the same as the CAB.” Victoria seconded the motion; the board voted unanimously in favor. Tracy said the amendment was to clarify the slide; Sarah (city staff) emphasized that “this is not the ordinance itself, and the ordinance is already in there,” and that the draft ordinance, as written, includes term-limit provisions tied to CAB membership.
Sarah also told the board that the ordinance had passed a first reading and that the second reading was scheduled for Sept. 11; she said there would be an opportunity for public comment at that City Council meeting. The board’s action was a recommendation to council to clarify the presentation language and did not itself change the ordinance text.
Why this matters: board members said clearer language is needed so applicants and the public understand whether service on subcommittees is limited by CAB membership terms and how staggered two- and four-year initial terms will operate.
The board’s recommendation will be transmitted to City Council for consideration at the ordinance’s second reading on Sept. 11.