The Mayor shall be elected by the qualified voters of the City,
and he shall hold his office for four years and until his successor
is elected and has qualified.
The Mayor shall be the chief executive officer of the City and
shall have such powers and perform such duties as may be required
of him or granted to him by statute or ordinance. He shall have supervision
over all of the officers and employees of the City, and shall have
the power and authority to inspect all books and records pertaining
to City affairs and kept by any officer or employee of the City, at
any reasonable time.
[Amended 8-13-2002 by Ord. No. 8-2002]
If the Mayor's absence from the City or a disability prevents
the Mayor from performing his duties, but does not create a vacancy
in the office, a Mayor Pro Tem shall be appointed and perform the
duties of the Mayor. The Mayor Pro Tem shall possess all rights and
powers of the Mayor, but shall retain his right to vote as an Alderman.
The Mayor Pro Tem shall be appointed from the Aldermen by the Mayor
with the advice and consent of the City Council. He shall retain the
office until his successor is appointed. Upon the Mayor's return to
the City or recovery from a disability, the Mayor Pro Tem shall cease
to act.
[Amended 8-13-2002 by Ord. No. 8-2002]
In the Mayor's temporary absence from a meeting, not resulting
from a disability or the Mayor's extended absence from the City, a
Chairman Pro Tem shall be appointed to act as the Chairman of the
meeting. The Chairman Pro Tem shall have only the powers of a presiding
officer and shall vote in his capacity as an Alderman. The Mayor Pro
Tem shall act as the Chairman Pro Tem. In the absence of the Mayor
Pro Tem at a meeting, the Chairman Pro Tem shall be appointed by the
City Council from among its members.
The Mayor shall supervise the conduct of all appointed officers
and employees and see that they faithfully and efficiently discharge
the duties of their respective offices; he shall inquire into all
reasonable complaints made against them and cause all their neglects
or violations of duties to be promptly corrected; and he shall from
time to time give the Council such information relative to the affairs
of the City as he may deem proper and recommend to its consideration
any measure he may deem expedient, tending to the well-being, security
and improvement of the City.
The Mayor may for good and sufficient reasons release any person
imprisoned for violation of any City ordinance. The Mayor shall cause
a proper record thereof to be made, and shall report such release
with the cause therefor to the City Council at its first session thereinafter.
The Mayor may by proclamation declare a civil emergency and
impose a curfew under the following conditions.
(A) Definitions.
As used in this section, the following terms shall have the meanings
indicated:
CIVIL EMERGENCY
(1)
A riot or unlawful assembly, characterized by the use of actual
force or violence or any threat or apparent threat to use force or
violence against persons or property if accompanied by immediate power
to execute by three or more persons acting together without authority
of law; or
(2)
Any natural disaster or man-made calamity, including flood,
conflagration, cyclone, tornado, earthquake or explosion within the
corporate limits of the City, resulting in the death or injury of
persons or the destruction of property to such an extent that extraordinary
measures must be taken to protect the public health, safety and welfare.
CURFEW
A prohibition against any person or persons walking, running,
loitering, standing or motoring upon any alley, street, highway, public
property or vacant premises within the corporate limits of the City,
excepting officials of any governmental unit and persons officially
designated to duty with reference to said civil emergency.
(B) Declaration or proclamation. Whenever a civil emergency as defined in Subsection
A of this section exists, the Mayor shall declare the existence by means of a written declaration (proclamation) signed by him under oath, which statement shall contain a finding that the standards herein set forth have been met, setting forth facts to substantiate said findings constituting the emergency, describing the nature of the emergency, and declaring that a state of emergency exists. Such statement shall be filed with the City Clerk as soon as practicable.
(C) General
curfew. After proclamation of a civil emergency by the Mayor, he may
order a general curfew applicable to such geographical areas of the
City, or to the City as a whole, as he deems advisable, and applicable
during such hours of the day or night as he deems necessary in the
interest of the public safety and welfare.
(D) Orders
in interest of public safety. After the proclamation of a civil emergency,
the Mayor may also, in the interest of public safety and welfare,
make any or all of the following orders:
(1) Order the closing of all retail liquor stores, including taverns
and private clubs or portions thereof wherein the consumption of intoxicating
liquor and beer is permitted.
(2) Order the discontinuance of the sale of alcoholic liquor by any wholesaler
or retailer.
(3) Order the discontinuance of selling, distributing or giving away
gasoline or other liquid flammable or combustible products in any
container other than a gasoline tank properly affixed to a motor vehicle.
(4) Order the discontinuance of selling, distributing, dispensing or
giving away of any firearms or ammunition of any character whatsoever.
(5) Order the blocking of streets or changing the direction and flow
of traffic.
(6) Such other orders as are imminently necessary for the protection
of life and property.
(E) Duration.
The proclamation herein authorized shall be effective for a period
of no longer than seven days or the adjournment of the first regular
or special meeting called by the City Council, whichever occurs first,
unless sooner terminated by a proclamation of the Mayor indicating
that the civil emergency no longer exists. The Mayor shall have the
power to reproclaim the existence of a civil emergency at the end
of each seven-day period during the time said civil emergency exists.
(F) Public
notice. Upon issuing the proclamation herein authorized, the Chief
of Police shall notify the news media situated within the City and
shall cause three copies of the proclamation declaring the existence
of the emergency to be posted at the following places within the City:
the City Hall, the police station, and the post office.
(G) Penalty.
Any person violating the provisions of this section or of an executive
order issued pursuant thereto shall be guilty of an offense against
the City, and shall be punishable by a fine not to exceed $750.
The compensation of elected officials, including the Mayor,
shall be fixed by ordinance at least 180 days before the beginning
of the terms of the elected official whose compensation is to be fixed.
In no case may the compensation be raised or lowered during a term
of office.
[Amended 9-14-2004 by Ord. No. 14-2004; 7-22-2014 by Ord. No. 8-2014]
The annual salary of the Mayor shall be increased to $12,000
effective upon the beginning of the term of office following the 2017
Consolidated Election.
If a vacancy occurs in the office of Mayor, the following rules
shall apply:
(A) If the unexpired term is 28 months or more in length, and the vacancy
occurs at least 130 days before the next consolidated election scheduled
under the general election law, the vacancy shall be filled at that
consolidated election.
(B) If the unexpired term is less than 28 months or until said election,
the City Council shall appoint one of its members to fill the vacancy
as Acting Mayor until a Mayor is elected and qualified. He shall be
called "Mayor."