[Amended 1-9-2023 by Res. No. CA-23-01]
All legislative powers of the City shall be vested in a Council consisting of seven Councilpersons, five elected for the five wards of the City and two to serve at-large, who shall be elected to a four-year term as hereinafter provided. Newly elected Councilpersons shall take office on the first Monday in October following election. Each Councilperson holding office at the time this Charter becomes effective shall continue to hold office for the term for which he or she was elected or until their successor is elected and takes office under the provisions of this Charter.
[Amended 1-9-2023 by Res. No. CA-23-02]
Councilpersons shall have resided in the City for at least one year immediately preceding their election and shall have been qualified registered voters of the City for one (1) year. Councilpersons shall maintain a permanent residence in the City during their term of office. The minimum age for City Councilpersons shall be twenty-five years of age.
Each Councilperson shall receive an annual salary which shall be as specified from time to time by an ordinance passed by the Council in the regular course of its business; provided, however, that the salary specified at the time any Council takes office shall not be changed during the period for which that council was elected and further provided that such a salary ordinance be approved by the majority of the qualified voters of the municipality voting thereon at a regular or special municipal election. The ordinance making any change in the salary paid to the several Councilpersons, either by way of increase or decrease, shall be finally ordained prior to the municipal election for the members of the next succeeding Council and shall take effect only as to the members of the next succeeding Council.
The newly elected Council shall meet on the second Monday following its election for the purpose of organization, after which the Council shall meet regularly at such times as may be prescribed by its rules but not less frequently than once each month. Special meetings shall be called at the request of the Mayor or four or more Council members. All meetings of the Council shall be open to the public, and the rules of the Council shall provide that residents of the City shall have a reasonable opportunity to be heard at any meeting in regard to any municipal question. Nothing contained herein shall be construed to prevent any such body from holding an executive session from which the public is excluded but no ordinance, resolution, rule or regulation shall be finally adopted at such an executive session.
[Amended 10-19-2020 by Res. No. CA-21-05; 12-7-2020 by Res. No. CA-21-06]
The Council shall elect a President and Council President Pro Tem of the Council from among its members. The Council President shall act as Vice-Mayor in the absence of the Mayor, and the Council President Pro Tem shall act as Council President. The President, when acting as Vice-Mayor, shall have the same powers as those of the Mayor, in the absence of the Mayor, or if the Mayor is unavailable or incapacitated in any way. If the Vice Mayor (Council President), is unavailable, or incapacitated in any way, then the Council President Pro Tem shall serve in the capacity of Council President or Vice-Mayor.
Four members of the Council shall constitute a Quorum for the transaction of business. No ordinance shall be approved nor any other action taken without the favorable votes of a majority of the members of the Council present and voting.
The Council shall determine its own rules and order of business. It shall keep minutes of its proceedings and enter therein the yeas, nays, or abstentions upon final action of any question, resolution, or ordinance, or at any other time if required by any one member. The minutes shall be open to public inspection after adoption.
The office of the Mayor or a Councilperson shall become vacant upon his death, resignation, removal from office in any manner authorized by law or forfeiture of his office.
[Amended 11-9-2009 by Res. No. R-10-10; 1-9-2023 by Res. No. CA-23-03]
A vacancy in the office of Mayor or Councilperson shall be filled by a person who meets the qualifications set forth in §§ C-302, C-401 and C-609 of this Charter. In event of a vacancy in the office of the Mayor or Councilperson, it will be filled by appointment if less than fifteen months is remaining in the term. The Council shall publish an advertisement in a newspaper of general circulation in the City. The advertisement shall provide public notice of the vacancy and shall solicit qualified persons to submit, on or before a date specified in the notice, letters of interest for consideration to fill the vacancy. The notice also shall state that each letter of interest must be accompanied by the candidate’s resume and a petition as specified below. Concurrently with the publication of the advertisement the Council also shall mail a notice that contains information substantially similar to the published notice. The mailed notice shall be sent to all registered voters in the City, except that when the vacancy is to fill the position of Councilperson from one of the Councilmanic subdivisions specified in § C-609, notice shall be mailed only to the registered voters in that Councilmanic subdivision. Each candidate to fill a vacancy shall file the candidate’s letter of interest, resume and a petition that satisfies the requirements of § C-610 with the office of the City Clerk on or before the date specified in the notice. Following the date specified in the notice for the filing of applications to fill a vacancy, the Council shall conduct a public review of all qualified candidates who have submitted the required letters of interest, resumes and petitions. This public review may include a public hearing for public comment on the candidates. After the Council completes its public review, the Council may appoint some person qualified in accordance with § C-302 and § C-609. The Council also may reject all candidates and repeat the process established in this section until the Council appoints a qualified person to fill the vacancy. A vacancy shall be filled by the favorable votes of a majority of the remaining members of the Council and the results of such votes shall be recorded in the minutes of the Council. A person appointed to fill a vacancy shall serve until the next regularly scheduled election.
[Amended 12-7-2020 by Res. No. CA-21-06; 1-3-2023 by Res. No. CA-23-04]
The Mayor or a Council person shall forfeit his or her office if he/she (1) lacks at any time during his/her term of office any qualification for the office prescribed by this Charter or by law, (2) violates any express prohibition of this Charter, (3) is convicted of a felony or misdemeanor, (4) fails to attend three consecutive regular meetings of the Council or three committee meetings without being excused by the Council or the assigned committee, (5) engages in misconduct in office or (6) is removed from office through an impeachment process by first having a trial held by the elected officials or judiciary board comprised of the Governmental Affairs and Technology Committee. When a forfeiture occurs by the Mayor or a Council person, they shall not be reappointed or eligible to run for office in a special election to fill the vacancy for the remainder of the term. In the event the Mayor or Council person forfeits his or her office for reasons that were not criminal in nature, they shall have the ability to be a candidate in the next scheduled regular election.
[Amended 12-3-2012 by Res. No. R-13-12]
No ordinance shall be passed at the meeting at which it is introduced. At any regular or special meeting of the Council held not less than six or more than sixty days after the meeting at which an ordinance was introduced, it shall be passed, or passed as amended, or rejected, or its consideration deferred to some specified future date. In cases of emergency the provision that an ordinance may not be passed at the meeting at which it is introduced may be suspended by the affirmative votes of four members of the Council. Every ordinance, unless it be passed as an emergency ordinance, shall become effective at the expiration of twenty calendar days following approval by the Mayor or passage by the Council over his veto. A fair summary of each ordinance shall be published at least twice in a newspaper or newspapers having general circulation in the municipality following passage. An emergency ordinance shall become effective on the date specified in the ordinance, but no ordinance shall become effective until approved by the Mayor or passed over his veto by the Council.
To meet a public emergency affecting life, health, property or the public peace, the Council may adopt one or more emergency ordinances, but such ordinances may not levy taxes, grant, renew or extend a franchise, regulate the rate charged by any public utility for its services or authorize the borrowing of money except as provided in Article VIII. An emergency ordinance shall be introduced in the form and manner prescribed for ordinances generally, except that it shall be plainly designated as an emergency ordinance and shall contain, after the enacting clause, a declaration stating that an emergency exists and describing it in clear and specific terms. An emergency ordinance may be adopted with or without amendment or rejected at the meeting at which it is introduced, but the affirmative vote of at least five members shall be required for adoption. After its adoption the ordinance shall be published and printed as prescribed for other adopted ordinances. It shall become effective upon the adoption or at such time as it may specify. Every emergency ordinance shall automatically stand repealed as of the 61st day following the date on which it was adopted, but this shall not prevent re-enactment of the ordinance in the manner specified in this section if the emergency still exists. An emergency ordinance may also be repealed by adoption of a repealing ordinance in the same manner specified in this section for adoption of emergency ordinances.
All ordinances passed by the Council shall be promptly delivered to the Mayor for his approval or disapproval. If the Mayor approves any ordinance, he shall sign it. If the Mayor disapproves any ordinance, he shall not sign it. The Mayor shall return all ordinances to the City Clerk within six days after delivery to him (excluding the first day, including the last day, and excluding any Sunday) with his approval or disapproval. Any ordinance approved by the Mayor shall be law. Any ordinance disapproved by the Mayor shall be returned with a message stating the reasons for his disapproval. Any disapproved ordinance shall not become a law unless subsequently passed by a favorable vote from five members of the whole Council within thirty-five calendar days from the time of the return of the ordinance. If the Mayor fails to return any ordinance within six days of its delivery, it shall be deemed to be approved by the Mayor and shall become law in the same manner as an ordinance signed by him.
[Amended 12-7-2020 by Res. No. CA-21-06]
The Mayor, with Council consent, shall have the power to appoint and dissolve boards and commissions to act in an advisory capacity to the City Council as required by law or as the Council may deem necessary for the good government of the City. The Council may also establish mandatory fiscal and administrative procedures for such boards.