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Des Moines advisory board backs code changes to formalize committee roles and reporting
Summary
The Citizens Advisory Board discussed a draft ordinance clarifying committee roles, meeting procedures and reporting requirements and voted unanimously to ask council to change the term 'subcommittee' to 'committee' and to keep formal reporting and attendance expectations in the code.
The Des Moines Citizens Advisory Board spent the bulk of its March 25 meeting discussing a draft ordinance (2069) that would revise the municipal code governing advisory committees and the CAB’s structure, meeting procedures and reporting obligations.
City Manager Catherine Caffrey described the draft as an effort to "clarify roles" and ensure committee work is transparent and supported by staff. The draft adds a "Robert's Rules light" approach for motions and votes, attendance expectations (more than three absences in a year triggers referral to council), annual ethics training and a requirement that CAB meetings be conducted under the Open Meetings Act (posted agendas, recorded minutes and public notice), Caffrey said.
Board members debated how prescriptive the code should be about committee operations. Some committee members said informal subcommittee work had produced effective results — notably the Arts Committee’s band-selection work — and worried that added formality could slow timely decisions. Arts Committee members and other supporters said earlier years lacked clear process and that staff should sign formal contracts, not volunteers.
Jeff Cromp, an arts-committee member, described challenges around timing: to secure some acts, selection and contracting must start months in advance. Caffrey acknowledged earlier process gaps and said staff and council have provided direction on how to proceed.
By motion, the CAB voted to report to the city council that it prefers the label "Arts Committee," "Senior Services Committee" and "Human Services Committee" rather than the term "subcommittee." The board moved, seconded and the chair called the motion carried unanimously.
The ordinance is scheduled for a council first reading the following evening; Caffrey said council could modify the draft and that, if approved, the new code would take effect on adoption. Board members also asked staff to refine language about when committee recommendations must be reported to CAB and about reasonable exceptions for time-sensitive contracting.
