Portsmouth council goes into closed session to discuss collective bargaining; ordinance draft to be revised after review

Portsmouth City Council entered a closed session July 22 to consult with legal counsel regarding collective bargaining and to discuss appointments to boards and commissions, following a public briefing on a draft collective bargaining ordinance. Deputy City Attorney Derek Challenger announced that a closed session would follow the public presentations to discuss the details of the collective bargaining agreement. City Manager Steven Carter gave a public overview of the origin and status of the city’s effort: he said the General Assembly made collective bargaining possible for localities in 2020; Portsmouth adopted a resolution authorizing engagement in September 2020 and passed an ordinance on Nov. 14, 2023. “Really, all this presentation is to do is to set the stage for us to start the discussion,” Carter said. Vice Mayor Moody moved and another council member seconded a motion “to go into a closed meeting, pursuant to Virginia code subsection section 2.2 dash 37 11 8 8 for the purpose of consultation with legal counsel employed or retained by the public body regarding specifically legal matters requiring the provision of legal advice to such counsel specifically regarding collective bargaining b pursuant to Virginia code subsection 2.2 dash 37 11 a, 1 for the purpose, discussing appointments to boards and commissions,” as read into the record. The clerk called the roll and the motion passed; council recessed into closed session. After the closed session, the council reconvened and the presiding officer read a public certification that only matters identified in the motion and lawfully exempted from the Virginia Freedom of Information Act were discussed. The clerk then recorded a second roll call noting the council’s vote to reconvene. City staff said the closed session would provide any information necessary to rework the draft ordinance; staff will return to the public meeting with a revised ordinance the council can reject or adopt. Carter said other Hampton Roads municipalities have largely been watching Portsmouth’s work on collective bargaining and waiting to see how Portsmouth proceeds. No ordinance amendment or final public action on the collective bargaining ordinance was adopted during the July 22 public session; the council took the matter into closed session as permitted by state law and directed staff to continue ordinance work and return with a revised draft for future public consideration.