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Chair raises repeated quorum problems; suggests charter amendment to allow designees
Summary
President Steve Brandt expressed disappointment with recurring quorum shortages and suggested a charter amendment to permit elected members to designate designees for BET meetings when other duties conflict; commissioners acknowledged calendaring efforts and noted charter constraints.
President Steve Brandt used the meeting’s closing announcements to highlight repeated quorum problems for the Board of Estimate and Taxation and proposed exploring a charter amendment to allow elected members to designate designees when other duties prevent attendance.
Brandt said the board has had too many meetings without a full complement of members and recommended considering a charter change to permit at least elected members to designate a designee (for example the council president’s designee) when their other duties keep them away. He cited a specific scheduling conflict that left the board with a quorum for only about 20 minutes.
A commissioner acknowledged heavy effort to avoid calendar conflicts and noted that BET is by charter a regular meeting night. The chair asked the board to consider the issue at a later date; no formal referral, vote or timeline for a charter amendment was recorded in the transcript.
What happens next: The suggestion was discussed briefly as an announcement; no formal motion or referral to staff or counsel on charter language was recorded in the meeting minutes available in the transcript.
