Council deadlocks on moving Office of Law under city manager; amendment fails 4–4

An amendment to relocate the Office of Law from the mayor’s office to the city manager’s office failed in a 4–4 roll call on June 2, after extended debate on procedure and governance.

Alderman Savage and other sponsors argued the change would “insulate the law office from political influence” and create a more neutral legal posture for the city’s departments. "Our city attorney should not be political," Savage said during debate, urging the council to move the office out from under the mayor.

Opponents including Mayor Buckley and several aldermen raised procedural and charter concerns. City attorney staff later provided a written opinion stating the charter and code would need to be addressed; Finance and city legal staff said a charter change would normally precede a budget and organizational shift. Several council members cautioned that moving the office as a budget amendment would not by itself alter charter language and could create an unclear chain of authority.

Nut graf: The amendment failed on a tie vote, leaving the Office of Law in its current reporting structure for now, and prompting proponents to say they will pursue a charter amendment if they wish to effect the change.

Why it mattered: The vote touched on basic governance questions — who the city attorney answers to and how legal advice gets distributed across elected and administrative offices. Several council members said the question should be addressed in the charter process so responsibilities and budget alignment are clear.

What was decided: Amendment 13 (reorganizing the Office of Law) was defeated by an evenly split 4–4 vote. The council agreed to revisit governance questions through the regular charter and code change process if members wish to pursue them.

Ending: The Office of Law remains aligned as it was at the start of the meeting; those seeking change were told the appropriate route is a charter amendment and follow‑on budget changes.