Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Charter Amendments topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Council directs city attorney to prepare charter amendment ordinance for May ballot including pay and process changes
Summary
Council reviewed five proposed charter amendments and directed the city attorney to finalize ballot language for an ordinance on Feb. 3. Proposals discussed included raising council and mayor compensation, removing a mandatory comprehensive-plan requirement from the charter, allowing council members to opt into city group health insurance, changing recall petition notice requirements, and requiring unanimous council approval to authorize debt.
City Attorney Grady (introduced by the mayor during the item) reviewed proposed charter amendments the council had submitted individually. He said the purpose of the session was to continue review and provide direction so the city attorney could finalize ballot language for an ordinance to call a charter amendment election on May 2, 2026.
On proposed amendment No. 1, which would change council compensation from $400 to $600 and the mayor's from $500 to $700 per month, Grady confirmed language would read as shown on the ballot and that the council was giving direction to include it. "So I will bring an ordinance to you on February 3 that will have that language without the red marks," Grady said.
The council discussed and gave direction on the other proposals: removing the charter mandate for future comprehensive plans (council agreed to take the requirement out of the charter), permitting councilmembers to participate in the city's group health insurance on the same terms as full-time staff (staff estimated approximately $9,500 per council member annually if a member opts in), and amending recall petition procedures and the council's debt-authorization threshold (members discussed inserting the word "unanimous" to change the threshhold from 0.667 to unanimous).
Council members stressed that direction given on Jan. 6 was to prepare final ballot language and that voters would decide the measures on May 2. The council did not adopt any charter changes at the Jan. 6 meeting; rather, the city attorney will return with an ordinance for formal action on Feb. 3.
