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City attorney proposes business-license board change to ease appointments
Summary
City Attorney Eric Bunderson proposed amending the business-license-board membership to allow two residents and one other member rather than the previous mix of a city employee and a business-interested party; he said the change would broaden the pool of qualified people and ease filling seats for occasional appeals.
City Attorney Eric Bunderson presented a proposed amendment to the city's business-license-board composition, saying the change would make it easier to staff the board and improve decisionmaking on license appeals.
"This first one is fixing what Brandon Hill called the, the Steve Lehman problem," Bunderson said, describing the amendment as a modest change to the business-license-board language. He explained the prior requirement (historically one city employee, one person with a substantial interest in a business license issued by the city, and one other person) can be difficult to staff and that the proposed language would allow two residents and one other person.
Bunderson said the business-license board hears appeals when the city denies business licenses and described the board as a pre-litigation venue where having the right mix of people is important. Council discussion focused on how appointments would still flow through the established process and noted the city has occasional need to fill these positions.
Why it matters: The change is procedural but affects the composition of an adjudicative board that reviews business-license appeals, which can alter who decides appeals and potentially influence outcomes. Staff emphasized the objective is broader choice rather than changing substantive review standards.
Next steps: The amendment was presented during the study meeting for discussion; staff indicated it would be brought forward for formal consideration in the regular agenda process.
