[HISTORY: Adopted by the Common Council of the City of Lancaster 8-15-2005 by Ord. No. 2005-06 as Ch. 2 of the 2005 Code. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Boards, commissions and committees — See Ch. 8.
Officers and employees — See Ch. 80.
A. 
First meeting of new Council. Following a regular municipal election in the City, the newly elected Council shall have its first meeting on the third Tuesday of April.
B. 
Regular meetings. The regular meetings of the Common Council shall be held at the Council Chambers of the City Hall on the third Monday of each month at 6:30 p.m. or at such other time as determined at the Organizational Meeting of the Council, except that when the day for holding any regular meeting shall fall on a City holiday, such meeting shall be held at the same time and place on the following day.
C. 
Special meetings. Special meetings of the Common Council may be called by the Mayor or President of the Council at such time as he/she may appoint, by written notice or e-mail thereof to each member delivered to him/her personally or left at his/her usual place of abode at least six hours before said meeting being called. Upon petition of four or more members of the Council, the Mayor, or in his/her absence the President of the Council, shall call a special meeting of the Council.
[Amended 11-17-2014 by Ord. No. 2014-05]
D. 
Meetings shall be public. All meetings of the Council shall be open and public, and all of its procedure shall be recorded by the Clerk/Treasurer or under his/her authorization in record books kept for that purpose.
E. 
Open meeting law requirements. Notice of every meeting of the Common Council and every board, commission and committee thereof shall be given to the public, to the news media who have filed a written request for such notice and to the official newspaper, or to a news medium likely to give notice in the area, at least 24 hours prior to commencement of the meeting. If such notice is impossible or impractical, shorter notice may be given for good cause shown, but in no case may notice be given less than two hours in advance of the meeting. Every public notice of a meeting shall contain the time, date, place and subject matter of the meeting. See § 19.84, Wis. Stats.
F. 
Adjournments. Any regular or special meeting may be adjourned by a majority of the members present.
G. 
Call to order. The Mayor or President of the Council (as the case may be) shall promptly call each meeting of the Council to order at the hour fixed for the holding of such meeting. If the Council President shall call the meeting, he or she shall announce whether he or she will be a voting member for that meeting. In case of the absence of the Mayor and President, the Clerk/Treasurer shall call the meeting to order and the Alderpersons present shall elect one of their number President pro tem.
H. 
Roll call and quorum. Before proceeding to business, the roll of the members of the Council shall be called and the names of those present and those absent shall be recorded in the proceedings of the Council. Six members shall constitute a quorum for transaction of business, but a lesser number can adjourn and shall have the power to compel the attendance of the absent members. The Mayor shall not be counted in determining whether a quorum is present.
I. 
Attendance; leave of absence. No member of the Council, the Clerk/Treasurer, Department of Public Works Director, Fire Chief, Chief of Police or police officer whose duty it shall be to attend shall absent himself from the meetings of the Council unless for illness, or other good cause, without first having obtained leave of absence.
[Amended 11-17-2014 by Ord. No. 2014-05]
J. 
Disturbance, how suppressed.
(1) 
Whenever any disturbance or disorderly conduct shall occur in the Council chambers, rooms or halls adjacent thereto, the Mayor or other presiding officer of the Council shall have power and authority by and with the aid of the Chief of Police or other police officer in attendance upon the meeting of the Council to cause the same to be cleared of all persons except members and officers of the Council.
(2) 
The Council may punish by forfeiture members or other persons present for disorderly behavior.
[Amended 11-17-2014 by Ord. No. 2014-05]
The order of business at Council meetings shall be as follows:
A. 
Call meeting to order.
B. 
Pledge of allegiance.
C. 
Roll call.
D. 
Public comment from citizens.
E. 
Consent agenda items.
F. 
Reports from committees, boards, or commissions.
G. 
Introduction of ordinances and resolutions.
H. 
Unfinished business.
I. 
Miscellaneous business.
J. 
Reports from City Administrator and department heads.
K. 
Mayor comments.
L. 
Council comments.
M. 
Adjournment.
A. 
Order and decorum. The Mayor or other presiding officer shall preserve order and decorum, decide all questions of order, and inform the Council, when necessary, on any point of order or practice. He may speak to points of order in preference to others.
B. 
Appealing decisions of chair. Any member shall have the right to appeal from the decision of a presiding officer. No appeal shall be debatable and the appeal shall be sustained by a majority vote of the members present exclusive of the presiding officer.
C. 
Reports of committees. The committee to whom a matter has been referred shall consider the same and submit a written report and recommendation thereon to the Council at its next regular meeting. If the matter referred is not disposed of by the committee, the Council shall fix a time within which the committee shall make a report of all matters still pending before the committee whenever requested to do so by any member of the Council.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Original § 2.03(4), Motions to be stated before debate, which immediately followed this subsection, was repealed 11-17-2014 by Ord. No. 2014-05.
D. 
Members who shall vote. Every member, when a question is put, shall vote unless the Council shall, for special cause, excuse her, but it shall not be in order for a member to be excused after the Council has commenced voting.
E. 
Tie vote; Mayor to vote. The Mayor shall not vote on the call of yeas and noes except in the case of a tie vote in the Council when he/she shall cast the deciding vote.
F. 
Vetoes; approval of ordinances by Mayor. All acts subject to the veto power of the Mayor shall be submitted to him/her by the Clerk/Treasurer and shall be in force upon his approval evidenced by his signature, or upon his failing to approve or disapprove within five days, which fact shall be certified on the document by the Clerk/Treasurer. If the Mayor disapproves, he/she shall file his/her objections with the Clerk/Treasurer, who shall present them to the Council at its next meeting. Three-fourths vote of all members of the Council shall then make the act effective, notwithstanding the objections of the Mayor.
G. 
Roll call vote. The roll call vote shall be used on all matters of importance, such as adoption of any matter levying or assessing taxes, appropriating or disbursing money, or creating any liability or charges against the City or any City fund, creating ordinances or any other legislative matter. A simple voice vote may be used for less important matters such as adopting the minutes, confirmation of appointments, adjournment, consent agenda, etc. However, any member of the Council may at any time ask and receive a roll call vote.
[Amended 11-17-2014 by Ord. No. 2014-05]
H. 
Motions in order during debate. When a question is under debate, no action shall be received except the following, which shall have precedence in the order stated:
(1) 
To adjourn.
(2) 
To lay on the table.
(3) 
Call for the previous questions.
(4) 
To postpone to a certain day.
(5) 
To commit to a select committee.
(6) 
To amend.
(7) 
To postpone indefinitely.
I. 
Motion to adjourn or lay on table. A motion to adjourn shall always be in order, and a motion to adjourn, to lay on the table and call for the previous questions shall be decided without debate.
J. 
Motion for reconsideration. It shall be in order for any member voting in the majority to move for a reconsideration of the vote on any question at the same or next succeeding meeting. A motion to reconsider being put and lost shall not be renewed.
K. 
Division of the question. Any member may call for a division of the question when the same can be separated into two or more distinct propositions.
L. 
Suspension of rules. These rules may be suspended temporarily by a three-fourths vote of the members present.
M. 
Robert's Rules of Order. At any time when a question arises which is not covered by the rules, Robert's Rules of Order, current edition, shall apply unless otherwise required by ordinance or statute.
Select or special committees may be provided for on motion or by resolution designating the number and object and, unless otherwise ordered, shall be appointed by the Mayor or other presiding officer of the Council.
See § 22-4, Emergency Government Committee, of this Municipal Code.
If and when necessary, such as in the area of personnel issues related to drug and alcohol policy violations or in all other matters where needed, the Common Council, as a body, shall act as a hearings panel in determining the merits of any issues brought before its attention.