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Council discusses guidelines for conference attendance, scholarships and rotation
Summary
Councilors debated establishing loose guidelines for sending members to conferences, prioritizing first‑time attendees and advance planning; staff will apply for scholarships and council agreed to discuss registrations at future meetings.
Councilors spent a substantial portion of the meeting discussing whether and how to adopt guidance for council attendance at the upcoming League of Oregon Cities (LOC) conferences and similar events. The conversation covered transferability of conference registrations, priority for first‑time attendees or early‑term councilors, scholarship application processes and the budgetary limits for travel.
Several councilors favored loose guidelines rather than strict rules: consider giving new councilors opportunities to attend, avoid sending members in their final months in office, and discuss conference registration in advance at a council meeting rather than by first‑reply email. Staff said it will continue to apply for scholarships on behalf of councilors and encouraged councilors to indicate interest on the record when registrations come to council.
What happens next: council asked staff to place conference registrations on agendas for quick discussion so members can decide in advance; staff will pursue scholarships and give notice of available registrations.
