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Resident urges council to drop charter item that would allow council removal of elected officials
Summary
During public comment, Susanna Noroff urged North Bend officials to remove a proposed charter change (item 9) that would let the council remove an elected councilor, saying removal should remain a voters’ power; staff confirmed Resolution 3377 would place charter amendments before voters and said Exhibit B with track changes will be posted for transparency.
Susanna Noroff spoke during the council’s public‑comment period and urged the city to remove proposal item 9 from a draft charter amendment package, saying the change would improperly give the council the power to remove an elected member. “It’s my personal opinion that the council’s authority should not include the ability to remove someone from an elected position,” Noroff said, adding that she had not seen the provision discussed in staff materials.
City staff reviewed Resolution 3377, described as the resolution calling for a measure election to amend the city charter. City staff said the charter committee produced recommendations and emphasized the council, as the elected governing body, has options to accept, reject or amend committee proposals before they go to voters. The city attorney said he would post an updated Exhibit B with visible track changes so voters can see exactly what language is proposed.
Mayor and staff described planned voter education steps: a utility mailer, website postings and social media outreach. Staff said they will prepare clear materials explaining changes and the ballot language; the ballot title, caption and summary included in the resolution will be the formal items filed for the election. Council members acknowledged the need to explain why prior votes did not adopt a higher fee (where applicable) or why changes are being resubmitted to voters.
No formal vote on the resolution occurred during the work session. The matter, including the updated Exhibit B, will proceed to the council agenda for the formal actions necessary to file the measure for the ballot. The timeline for voter materials and any council actions will be posted by staff before the ballot filing deadline.
