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Airport advisory board asks county to review voting-member rules to ease quorum confusion
Summary
Frank O'Connell told Kootenai County commissioners that the Airport Advisory Board is considering making all nine members voting members to remove uncertainty about whether alternates count toward a quorum; commissioners requested a legal opinion and will review bylaws.
Frank O'Connell, chairman of the Kootenai County Airport Advisory Board, told the Board of County Commissioners on Feb. 4 that the advisory board is asking the county to review its bylaws and consider making all nine advisory-board seats voting positions to reduce confusion about quorum rules.
O'Connell said the board last met in January, reelected him as chairman and elected Larry Hodel vice chairman. He told commissioners the advisory board currently has nine members: seven designated voting members and two alternates, and the group has discussed whether to make all nine voting members to simplify meeting conduct and quorum definition.
The advisory board discussed that the bylaws currently reflect seven voting members and two alternates, while county legal staff have advised that, for public-meeting purposes, alternates can be counted when determining a quorum. O'Connell said the advisory board suspended the discussion to allow county commissioners to review the matter and, if necessary, direct a formal bylaw change.
Commissioner comment on the floor requested the county's legal opinion be shared with the commissioners before any change. One commissioner said they were comfortable keeping seven voting members for consistency with other advisory boards but noted alternates exist so that someone knowledgeable can fill in when regular members cannot attend. Another commissioner said Idaho's public-meeting statutes make consistent definitions important and supported presenting a pattern for when changes should be made.
No formal motion or vote was recorded on the membership question at the Feb. 4 meeting. Commissioners said they would review the advisory board bylaws and the county's legal guidance and discuss the item again at the advisory board's next meeting, which O'Connell said he would attend.
The advisory board also discussed internal procedures and quorum thresholds during the meeting, but deferred any bylaw amendments to future action by the county.
