There shall be nine members of the Beverly City Council, one
Councilor elected from each ward into which the City is divided and
three Council members elected at large. The Beverly City Council shall
exercise all of the legislative powers of the City. The term of office
for all City Councillors shall be for two years each, beginning on
the first Monday of January in the year following their election,
and until their successors have been qualified.
Any voter shall be eligible to hold the office of Councillor-at-Large. A Ward Councillor shall at the time of election be a voter of the ward from which elected; provided, however, if any Ward Councilor shall move his or her principal residence during the first 18 months of the term of office to another ward in the City, such office shall be deemed vacant and the balance of the unexpired term shall be filled in the manner provided in Section 2-11 of the Home Rule Charter. If such move occurs after the first 18 months of the term of office, such Councillor may continue to serve for the balance of the term for which elected. If a Councillor-at-Large or a Ward Councillor moves from the City during the term for which elected, such office shall immediately be deemed vacant and filled in the manner provided in Section 2-11 of the Charter.
A.
Council President.
(1)
After the oath of office has been administered to the City Councillors present, as provided in Section 8-11 of the Charter, the Councillors shall organize, with the member elected at large receiving the highest number of votes at the preceding biennial City election as President, as provided in Charter Section 2-2. The President shall be sworn by the City Clerk or, in the case of the absence of the City Clerk, by any person qualified to take oaths or affirmations.
(2)
The Council President shall preside at all meetings of the City Council,
regulate its proceedings, and shall decide all questions of order.
The Council President shall appoint all members of all committees
of the City Council, whether special or standing. The Council President
shall have the same powers to vote upon all measures coming before
the City Council as any other member of the City Council. The Council
President shall perform such other duties consistent with the office
as may be provided by Charter, by ordinance or by other vote of the
City Council.
B.
Council Vice President. As soon as practicable after the Councillors-elect
have been qualified, the members shall elect from among their members
a Vice President who shall act as President during the absence or
disability of the Council President. The powers of an Acting Council
President shall be limited to only those powers which are indispensably
essential to perform the duties of Acting Council President during
the absence or disability of the Council President.
Except as otherwise provided by law or by the Charter, all powers
of the City of Beverly shall be vested in the City Council, which
shall provide for their exercise and for the performance of all duties
and obligations imposed on the City by law.
If a vacancy in the office of City Councillor occurs, it shall be filled in the manner provided in Section 2-11 of the Home Rule Charter.
Except as otherwise provided by the laws of the commonwealth
or the Charter, the legislative powers of the City Council may be
exercised in a manner determined by the City Council.
A.
Ordinances.
(1)
Style of enactment. The enacting style of ordinances shall be "Be
it ordained by the City Council of the City of Beverly, as follows."
(2)
Recording. All ordinances shall be recorded by the City Clerk in
the order in which they are passed to be ordained, in a book which
shall be kept in the office of the City Clerk, subject to public inspection.
B.
Orders and resolves. Whenever the City Council expresses anything
by way of command, the form of expression shall be "Ordered"; and
when such Council expresses opinions, principles, facts or purposes,
the form shall be "Resolved."
A.
Established. There shall be three standing committees of the City
Council: a Standing Committee on Finance and Property, a Standing
Committee on Public Services; and a Standing Committee on Legal Affairs
and Ordinances.
B.
Appointment of members. Each of the three committees enumerated in Subsection A shall consist of three members of the City Council who shall be appointed by the President of the City Council to serve during the term for which elected. Each member of the City Council shall be appointed to one of the committees so established. In the event of the prolonged inability of any one member to attend meetings of a standing committee, the President of the City Council may appoint an alternate member to serve on the committee until the regular member can attend such meetings.
C.
Assignment of matters to standing committees. The President shall
refer all new business, communications, petitions and orders to the
standing committees as follows:
(1)
The Committee on Finance and Property shall review:[1]
(a)
Budget review and transfers, policy oversight and review, capital
improvement planning, and other matters relating to the Department
of Municipal Finance, the purchasing function, the Human Resources
Department, and management information systems.
(b)
Matters relating to trust funds, appropriations, transfers of
funds, authorization to spend funds, loans, options, pensions, salaries,
audits, taxes, revaluation, users' fees, betterment assessments, contracts,
acceptance of grants, overall operating budget review, utility petitions
and other matters affecting the finances of the City.
(c)
Every measure involving but not limited to an appropriation,
grant, salary, pension, loan, the levying of a tax, user charges,
the assessment of a betterment, the sale or lease of City property,
an option or contract, or any expenditure of money, unless the subject
matter has already been acted on by the Committee on Finance and Property,
which shall be referred to the Committee on Finance and Property before
it is presented to the full Council, whose duty it shall be to report
on its relation to the finances of the City, but no new provisions
shall be added to such measure by said Committee unless directly connected
with a financial feature of the measure as drafted. Any measure, upon
recommendation of another committee having jurisdiction of the same,
may be considered by the Committee on Finance and Property in advance
of the presentation thereof to the Council.
(d)
All budget transfers or appropriations shall, ordinarily, be
referred only to the Finance and Property Committee; provided, however,
if the Chairperson of the Committee on Public Service or the Chairperson
of the Committee on Legal Affairs requests that the item by jointly
referred, by notification to the Clerk's office, such requests shall
be honored.
(e)
Policy oversight and other matters related to the Economic and
Community Development Council, the Community Development Block Grant
Program, and the Building and Other Facilities, Planning and Construction
Committee.
(2)
The Committee on Public Services shall:
(a)
Have policy oversight and review, capital improvement programming,
and other matters relating to the Human Resources Department, the
Department of Community Services, including the public library, the
Recreation Department, Veterans Services, the Board of Health, cemetery
management and operations, the Beverly public schools, and the Beverly
Housing Authority.[2]
(b)
Have policy oversight and review of the Library Board of Trustees,
Parks and Recreation Commission, Board of Registrars of Voters, Beverly
Youth Activities Commission, Council on Aging, Cultural Council, Commission
on Disabilities, Airport Commission, Beverly Golf and Tennis Club,
Harbor Management Authority and other boards or commissions related
to public services.[3]
(c)
Review matters relating to the inter-relationship of the School
Committee, Beverly public schools, and other areas of City government;
intergovernmental relations; maintenance of public grounds; housing
services; elder services; children's services and services for persons
with special needs.
(e)
Have policy oversight and review and other matters related to
the Department of Public Services, including the Water and Sewer Division;
Engineering Department; Hazardous Waste Oversight Committee; Design
Review Board.
(f)
Matters relating to street acceptance, layout, relocation and
discontinuance of public ways.
(3)
The Committee on Legal Affairs shall:
(a)
Review and make recommendations regarding all claims and legal
settlements referred to the Council by the City Solicitor.
(b)
Have ongoing oversight and review of all ordinances in the City,
recommending changes as appropriate and drafting new ordinances and
amendments as necessary.
(c)
Review matters relating to the legal status of items previously
passed by another committee.
(d)
Have policy oversight and review of the City Clerk, Clerk of
the Council, Clerk of Committees and Rules of the Council.
(e)
Review matters relating to zone change petitions; sign permits;
lodging house and dormitory licenses; licensing of automobile dealers;
licensing of taxis, and all other licenses except those under the
jurisdiction of the Licensing Board.
(f)
Have policy oversight and review of the Department of Planning
and Development, Planning Board, Zoning Board of Appeals, Historic
Districts Commission, Conservation Commission, Law Department, and
Licensing Board.[5]
(g)
Review matters relating to the Zoning Map, comprehensive planning,
open space planning and maintenance of conservation land, ward and
precinct boundaries.
(h)
Review oversight of the ordinance review committees and the
Charter review committees as established by Charter, and matters relating
to Home Rule Charter petitions.
The three standing committees of the City Council shall investigate
and report to the City Council on all matters within their respective
jurisdictions which shall be referred to them by the City Council.
They may have charge of the expenditure of special appropriations
when so ordered by the City Council.
[Amended 6-27-2022 by Ord. No. 129[1]]
A.
The annual
salary for each member of the City Council shall be $14,000. The annual
salary for the President of the City Council shall be $15,000.
B.
On or before
October 31 of the first year of a two-year term, the City Council
shall meet for the purpose of reviewing the salaries of City Councilors.
[1]
Editor's Note: This ordinance also provided that such salaries
shall be effective 1-1-2024.
