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Draft includes charter language on mayor and vice-chair selection; council notes charter-change limits
Summary
Smythe inserted City of Newport charter language about the presiding officer (mayor) and vice-chair so the public could find selection procedures in the rules draft; members reminded the body that charter changes require a ballot and the rules cannot override the charter.
Councilor Smythe said she copied charter language (section 2‑5 and related sections) into the draft rules so the public would not need to search the charter to understand how the mayor and vice-chair are selected. She emphasized she made no changes to the charter text and that any change to mayoral selection would need to go to ballot.
The Chair and others agreed that including charter language for clarity was appropriate, but several members reiterated that the charter governs and cannot be altered by the council's rules alone. Smythe placed those charter sections in the draft because the question of who presides recurs frequently in public questions.
