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Salem council approves emergency appropriations and reductions ordinances
Summary
The Salem City Council unanimously approved two emergency ordinances Dec. 2 — 251202‑69 (appropriations and transfers) and 251202‑70 (reductions and appropriations) — after suspending council rules to allow immediate passage; ordinances 67 and 71 were tabled for additional review.
Salem City Council on Dec. 2 unanimously passed two emergency budget measures, adopting ordinance 251202‑69 (an appropriation and transfer) and ordinance 251202‑70 (reductions and appropriations) after suspending council rules to allow all three readings and immediate passage.
The moves were made by Mr. Null, who twice asked the clerk to read the ordinances by title only and to suspend council rules; Mr. Stockman and Miss Bricker seconded those motions at different points in the meeting. The clerk called the roll on each measure; all council members present voted yes on both ordinances.
Why it matters: the two ordinances adjust the city’s appropriations and transfers and authorize reductions in budgeted items, and council invoked the emergency clause to enact the measures the same night rather than waiting for multiple readings. Councilors also tabled ordinances 67 and 71 to allow the law director to review last‑minute changes to the wage scale markup.
Council procedure and votes: After a motion to suspend council rules, the clerk recorded unanimous votes to allow the ordinances to receive all three readings and to proceed with passage under the emergency clause. For ordinance 251202‑69 Mr. Null moved for title‑only reading and passage with Mr. Stockman seconding; the roll call returned affirmative votes from Mrs. Bear, Miss Bricker, Mr. Harrington, Mr. Null, Mr. Stockman and Mr. Zellers. The same lineup voted to pass ordinance 251202‑70 when it was later brought forward and read.
What council said: Council members noted some confusion over agenda numbering earlier in the meeting; Mr. Null explained that some items had been tabled after committee review and that the finance committee will reconvene before the next regular meeting to revisit the wage ordinance and related budget questions.
Next steps: Mr. Null announced a finance committee meeting scheduled for Dec. 16 at 6 p.m. to review the wage ordinance and budget materials before the full council resumes consideration. The council then adjourned.
