[Amended 10-21-1991; 2-24-1995; 11-18-2003; FCB 5-14-2009]
[Amended 9-9-2013]
A.
Except as provided for in this article, every person first employed
by the City of Springfield on or after March 17, 1995, shall, within
12 months of the start of employment, be a resident of the City of
Springfield and shall not cease to be a resident during his employment
by the City.
B.
For the purpose of this article, an employee shall be any person
receiving monies from the City or any City department subject to withholding
taxes by the state or federal government.
C.
Notwithstanding the provisions of this article, all employees employed
by the City of Springfield on March 17, 1995, shall be considered
to have fully complied with the residency provisions of this article.
Except as provided for in this article, all persons promoted
by the City on or after March 17, 1995, shall be or within one year
of such promotion become a resident of the City as defined herein.
Failure to do so shall be determined to be voluntary termination of
employment.
A.
Upon taking employment with the City, and annually on February 1
thereafter, every person subject to this article shall file with his
or her department head, or like officer, a certificate, signed under
the pains and penalties of perjury, stating his or her name and place
of residence. A copy of every such certificate shall be transmitted
by the department head or like officer to the Residency Compliance
Commission within five business days of filing.
B.
Upon receipt of a certificate indicating a place of residence not
within the City, or if no such certificate is filed, the department
head or like officer shall forthwith strike the name of the employee
from the payroll, that person shall cease to be employed by the City,
and the department head or like officer shall give notice of his or
her action to the City Clerk, who shall transmit the same to the City
Council, Mayor, and Collector/Treasurer. This subsection shall not
apply to employees exempted from the residency ordinance as provided
for in this article.
C.
No person so stricken from the payroll shall be reemployed by the
City for a period of one year following the cessation of his or her
employment.
D.
Every employee shall be furnished a copy of the residency ordinance
when hired and annually thereafter, but failure to receive a copy
shall not be held to excuse any violation.
A.
To the extent permissible by law, no collective bargaining agreement
hereafter entered into by the City of Springfield shall contain any
provision contrary to the provisions hereof, nor shall the absence
of any provision with respect to the residency of any person hired
after the date of such contract be deemed to prevent enforcement of
this article.
B.
To the extent permissible by Chapter 31 of the General Laws, every
examination held to establish a civil service list for employment
by the City of Springfield shall be restricted to the City of Springfield
residents. In the event this section shall be deemed to be in conflict
with a provision of any general or special law, the provisions of
that general or special law shall govern, and shall not defeat the
application of this article with respect to any position not governed
by that law.
A.
All persons appointed to membership on boards and commissions of
the City shall be residents of the City during the terms for which
they are appointed.
B.
This section shall not apply to persons appointed to advisory committees
or to committees established under federal or state grant-in-aid programs
except where otherwise specified.
[Amended 4-4-2016]
A.
The provisions of this chapter may be waived only in the manner described
herein. All requests for waiver shall be submitted in writing to the
Director of Labor Relations. The Director of Labor Relations shall
redact all personal information related to the individual requesting
the waiver, and forward the request to the Mayor and City Council.
With the request, the Director of Labor Relations shall provide details
about the job posting, including, but not limited to: the date the
job was posted, the date the posting was closed, the number of applicants
who applied, in said notice forwarded to the City Council, the Director
of Labor Relations shall redact all personal information, including
the name of the waiver and the number of Springfield residents who
applied. After the request is forwarded to the Mayor and the City
Council, the job posting will be opened for a second time for a period
not less than seven days. The posting will be publicly posted on the
City's website.
B.
If a candidate, who meets the minimum qualifications for the posted
position and who resides within the City of Springfield, does not
apply for the position, then the Mayor, in his sole discretion, may
grant the waiver. Any such waiver granted by the Mayor must be forwarded
directly to the City Council for purposes of notification. Nothing
in this section shall be deemed to invalidate waivers granted by the
Mayor or the Control Board prior to April 1, 2016, nor shall this
section restrict the Mayor to make reappointments to existing City
employees.
C.
A department head or deputy department head shall not be eligible
for a waiver of the residency requirement.
In construing this article, "residence" shall be the actual
principal residence of the individual, where he or she normally eats
and sleeps and maintains his or her normal personal household effects.
This article shall be deemed to affect both civil service and non-civil
service employees of the City.
A.
There shall be a Residency Compliance Commission ("Commission") comprising
seven Commissioners, five to be appointed by the Mayor of the City
of Springfield with one being a City union representative, and two
other members, one of whom shall be the City's affirmative action
officer and one of whom shall be the President of the City Council,
or such other Councilor designated from time to time by the Council
President.
B.
The purpose of the Commission shall be to investigate and make findings
relative to compliance with Springfield's residency ordinance.
C.
All Commissioners, with the exception of the Council President, shall
serve coterminous with the Mayor and any vacancies shall be filled
by the Mayor for the unexpired term. The Commission shall elect annually
a Commissioner as Chairperson. Commissioners shall serve without compensation
and shall be classified as special municipal employees for the purposes
of the State Ethics Law, General Laws Chapter 268A.
D.
The Commission shall have the power to investigate, conduct hearings,
administer oaths, take testimony of any person under oath and in connection
therewith to require the production for examination of any documents,
books, papers, or evidence relating to any other matter in question
or under investigation by the Commission. The Commission may appoint
from within or without its membership a hearing officer to conduct
particular hearings upon a majority vote of the Commission. The employees
who are the subject of a hearing shall be afforded notice and an opportunity
to provide testimony, witnesses, documents and to have counsel present.
E.
Should the Commission, after hearing, find that an employee who is
subject to the residency ordinance does not reside within the City
of Springfield, the Commission shall issue its findings to the employee's
department head, who shall recommend appropriate action to the Mayor
of the City of Springfield.
F.
Semiannually, the Commission shall provide a written report to the
Mayor, who shall file a copy with the City Council. This report shall
include all investigations and findings by the Commission with respect
to the residency ordinance.
A.
There shall be a Residency Compliance Unit ("Compliance Unit") within
the Personnel Department, which shall also have the power to conduct
investigations of City employees and officers where there is reason
to believe that an employee or officer may be in violation of the
residency ordinance. The Springfield Police Department shall serve
as investigators for both the Compliance Unit and Commission.
B.
The Compliance Unit shall ensure, pursuant to the residency ordinance, the filing of residency affidavits and submission of additional documentation to verify residency. It shall also serve as a vehicle whereby employees and the general public may report those who are believed to be in violation of the residency ordinance. Where questionable claims of residency exist, the Compliance Unit shall forward such to the Compliance Commission for further investigation as delineated in § 73-15 above.
For the purpose of this article, all positions or titles listed
in former Section 3.08.080 (November 11, 1991 and March 25, 1992)
shall be governed by this article, unless excluded by law or collective
bargaining agreements.