Ordinance committee advances municipal modernization changes, sends redraft to law department

Holyoke’s Ordinance Committee voted June 5 to advance an amended municipal modernization ordinance package and asked the law department to prepare the draft in legal form for the full City Council to review next week.

The committee’s discussion focused on whether to retain explicit references to the school department in the ordinance, the powers and scope of the proposed chief administrative and financial officer (CAFO), the creation and grade levels for several finance positions on Schedule A, and language to permit the council and the director of internal audit access to outside legal and auditing services. After discussion and suggested edits from the city solicitor and other members, the committee approved sending the amended draft to the solicitor’s office for formal legal language and scheduling.

Why it matters: The ordinance package would reorganize several finance functions, create a CAFO role intended to centralize certain financial activities, and adjust titles and salary grades for positions such as comptroller and treasurer-collector. Those changes affect how city and school finances operate together and could shape hiring and budget planning beginning July 1.

Key debate items and committee direction

School department references. Several councilors and city officials disagreed about removing references…