Memorandum 18-091 Ordinance 18-38 Board and Commission Uniform Procedures

Memorandum 18-091

TO:                         MAYOR ZAK AND HOMER CITY COUNCIL

THROUGH:         KATIE KOESTER, CITY MANAGER

FROM:                  MELISSA JACOBSEN, MMC, CITY CLERK

DATE:                    AUGUST 7, 2018

SUBJECT:           ORDINANCE 18-38 UNIFORM PROCEDURES FOR BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS

In May I was fortunate to be able to attend the International Institute of Municipal Clerks Annual Conference and participate in a session on Boards and Commissions. It sparked some interest in reviewing current processes related to the City’s advisory bodies, addressing challenges related to recruiting new members, training, and consistency with the overall process for the groups.

Currently the boards and commissions have some rules established, but they aren’t consistent among the groups, for example the attendance requirements differ, and there isn’t clear instruction on the role of the staff member assigned to the groups. 

This new code language outlines a basic uniform process for boards and commissions, it outlines the roles and responsibilities of staff members assigned to the groups, and addresses annual board and commission training.

Each Board and Commission will continue to have their own bylaws specific to their roles and responsibilities.  Each group’s bylaws will have to be amended and approved by resolution after the adoption of this ordinance.

Next Steps

While working with the City Manager and City Attorney on Ordinance 18-38 we discussed:

• Changing term expirations for boards and commissions to fall on the same date (still maintaining the staggered three year term where two to three terms expire each year). The goal of this change is to allow an opportunity to open and better advertise a filing period for board and commission seats in an effort to reduce the number of vacancies, and increase the opportunity for more people to become involved.
• Moving board and commission sections and chapters so they are included under one heading.

Due to the complexity in making these particular changes, that will come forward in a future ordinance unless Council chooses to postpone Ordinance 18-38 to a date certain to bring back a substitute ordinance to incorporate all the changes at one time.