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Commissioners review bylaws and nominating committee process ahead of May officer vote
Summary
Commission members discussed how the nominating committee is appointed, the timeline for presenting officer slates, and options for changing roll‑call order; staff and counsel outlined bylaw provisions including a 5‑day notice requirement for bylaw amendments.
Commissioners spent several agenda‑review minutes clarifying the planning commission’s nominating and officer election rules ahead of the May meeting when a slate for chair and vice chair will be presented.
Tasha Blakeney, commission counsel, and Amy Brooks, executive director, explained the bylaws: the chair is charged in April with appointing a three‑member nominating committee (none of whom may be incumbent officers). That nominating committee must present a slate of nominees for chair and vice chair at the regular Planning Commission meeting in May and, per the bylaws, nominations may also be made from the floor at that May meeting. Commissioners will then vote on the officers in June.
Tasha read the bylaw language on the record: the nominating committee “has to consist of 3 members of the planning commission, none of whom are incumbent officers themselves,” and “nominations for elected officers may be made from the floor.” She also recited the bylaw amendment rule: bylaws “may be amended, repealed, or suspended by the affirmative vote of not less than a majority of the entire membership of the planning commission provided no amendment or repeal shall be adopted until 5 days notice of the proposal has been provided to all members.”
Commissioners asked about whether the chair’s selections for the nominating committee could be changed by the body (staff confirmed the appointment is the chair’s responsibility), how the executive committee is formed (the chair appoints the executive committee in July; it includes the elected chair and vice chair plus three other commissioners), and whether roll‑call order is within the chair’s discretion. Counsel and staff said the bylaws give the chair broad discretion over meeting conduct, including simplified parliamentary rules, and that roll‑call order is not specified in the bylaws; a commissioner may pursue a bylaw amendment on five days’ notice if the body wishes to change that practice.
The exchange clarified timelines and options for nominations and confirmed that the slate presented in May can be accepted, rejected, or supplemented with floor nominations prior to the vote in June. No formal action on bylaws occurred during the agenda review.
