Any proposed ordinance may be submitted to the Council for adoption,
and any ordinance or resolution passed by the Council may be submitted
to the people for repeal. In either event the ordinance or resolution
proposed to be adopted or repealed shall [be] set out in a written
or printed instrument which shall be filed with the person exercising
the duties of City Secretary, and at the time of filing such written
or printed instrument, and attached thereto, there shall be filed
a statement signed by not less than five (5) qualified voters of the
City of Lubbock, stating that they have proposed such ordinance or
resolution for adoption or repeal, as the case may be, before any
signatures are procured to the petitions hereinafter provided for.
Initiating committee; referring committee. In the event the ordinance or resolution is one proposed to be adopted,
such electors shall be regarded as the “initiating committee,”
and in the event it is desired to repeal an ordinance or resolution
already existing such electors shall be regarded as the “referring
committee.”
Petition required to submit ordinance. Before any such ordinance or resolution may be submitted to the
Council for adoption or repeal, it shall be necessary that a petition
signed by not less than twenty-five (25) per cent of the qualified
voters within the City of Lubbock, as determined by the number voting
at the last regular municipal election, shall be presented to the
Council, referring to such ordinance or resolution and requesting
its adoption or repeal, as the case may be. All such petitions circulated
for signatures shall be uniform in character and shall each have attached
to the same an exact written or printed copy of the proposed ordinance
or resolution sought to be adopted or repealed, and shall be filed
with the person discharging the duties of City Secretary within sixty
days from the filing of the statement hereinabove referred to.
Petition; signatures; affidavit. Each
signer of a petition shall sign his name in ink or indelible pencil,
in his own handwriting, and shall place on the same, following his
name, his street number or place of residence within the City and,
in addition, such other information as may be required by State law,
such as a printed name, voter registration number and date of signing.
The signatures to any such petition need not all be attached to the
same paper, but to each such paper there shall be attached an affidavit,
by the circulator thereof, stating the number of signers to such part
of the petition, and that each signature is genuine and that of the
person whose name it purports to be and that it was made in the presence
of the affiant.
Petition; proceedings after filing petition. When signatures have been obtained in the number above provided
for and the petition and statement have been filed with the person
exercising the duties of City Secretary, such officer shall submit
all papers pertaining to such ordinance by resolution, and its proposed
initiation or reference to the Council at its next regular meeting
and such officers shall mail to each of the members of such initiating
or referring committee a notice of the time of the next regular meeting
of the Council when such ordinance or resolution and its adoption
or repeal shall be considered, or a time then set by such Council
for its consideration, which hearing and consideration shall be open
to the public, and the public shall be permitted to present arguments
for or against such proposed ordinance or resolution.
Public hearing; final action on petition. After such presentation of the petition to them, and public hearing,
the Council shall, within thirty (30) days from the date of the submission
of such petition, take final action upon the same, by either adopting
or rejecting the ordinance thus initiated by petition, or by either
repealing or refusing to repeal the ordinance or resolution thus sought
to be referred, and in either event, the action of the Council shall
be noted in its minutes.
Submission to electors of ordinance or resolution. If the Council refuses to pass or to repeal the proposed ordinance
or resolution or passes the same in an amended form from that presented
in the petition, or repeals only a part of such ordinance or resolution,
instead of repealing the same in the manner set out in such petition
of reference, then in either event, such initiating committee, or
such referring committee, or a majority thereof, may require that
such ordinance or resolution, either in its original or amended form,
be submitted to a vote of the electors for adoption or repeal, as
the case may be.
Certificate of committee; filing with secretary. When an ordinance or resolution proposed by petition is to be submitted
to vote of the electors for adoption or repeal, after the Council
has acted upon the same, as provided for in the preceding paragraph,
then such initiating or referring committee, as the case may be, upon
a majority vote of such committee, shall certify its desire to have
the same submitted for adoption or repeal within twenty (20) days
after the Council shall have taken action on the same, and shall file
such certificate and statement with the person exercising the duties
of the City Secretary.
City secretary; duties; governing board; election. After receipt of such certificate and the certified copy of the
proposed ordinance or resolution, the person exercising the duties
of the City Secretary shall present such certificate and certified
copy of the proposed ordinance or resolution to the Council at its
next regular meeting. If any election is to be held at a date not
more than ninety (90) days nor less than ten (10) days after such
meeting of the Council, then such ordinance or resolution proposed
for adoption or repeal shall be submitted by the Council to a vote
of the electors at such election to be held, but if such election
is to be held within such time, the Council shall provide for submitting
such proposed ordinance or resolution, for adoption or rejection,
to the electors at a special election to be held not less than twenty
(20) nor more than forty (40) days thereafter.
Form of ballot. The form of ballot for
use in an election held for the adoption of any initiated ordinance
shall state the title of the ordinance and contain a succinct statement
of its nature and purpose and below such statement on separate lines,
there shall be printed the words: FOR THE ORDINANCE–AGAINST
THE ORDINANCE. If a majority of the electors voting in such election
shall vote in favor thereof, it shall thereupon become an ordinance
of the City when the result of such election shall have been declared.
Ballot; requisites; majority vote. The
form of ballot for use in an election held for the repeal of any referred
ordinance or resolution shall state the title of the ordinance or
resolution and contain a succinct statement of the nature and purpose
of the ordinance or resolution sought to be repealed, and below such
statement, in separate lines, there shall be printed the words: FOR
THE REPEAL OF THE ORDINANCE (OR RESOLUTION)–AGAINST THE REPEAL
OF THE ORDINANCE (OR RESOLUTION). If a majority of the electors voting
in such election shall vote in favor of the repeal of such ordinance
or resolution, then the same shall be considered repealed, when the
result of such election shall have been declared.
Election affecting franchise. Provided,
however, that nothing contained in this section shall affect the manner
of calling elections to determine whether or not franchises shall
be granted.
Election provided by State law. In the
event that a referendum is provided by State law upon some matter,
such as, but not limited to, the issuance of revenue bonds, such law
shall supersede the provisions of this Charter pertaining to initiative
and referendum and the Charter’s provisions shall not be effective.
(Amended 5/7/1988)
Any elective officer of the City shall be subject to recall
and removal from office by the qualified electors of the City, and
the procedure to effect such removal shall be as follows:
Petition for recall. A petition demanding
that the question of removing such officer or officers be submitted
to the electors, shall be filed with the person discharging the duties
of City Secretary. Such petition for the recall of any elective officer
or officers shall be signed by at least thirty percent (30%) of the
qualified voters of the officer’s elective District, to be determined
by the number of votes cast in the District at the last regular municipal
election; at least one-tenth (1/10) of those signing the petition
shall certify that at the election at which the officer or officers
was or were elected, they voted for the election of such officer or
officers proposed to be recalled. The district of the Mayor and Municipal
Judge, for the purpose of this section, shall be the City at large.
Recall petitions; distribution, etc. Petitions
for signatures for such recall shall be procured only from the person
exercising the duties of City Secretary, who shall keep a sufficient
number of such blank petitions on file for distribution, and prior
to the issuance of such petitions for signatures there shall be filed
with such person an affidavit by one or more qualified electors, stating
the name or names of the officer or officers sought to be removed.
Such officer issuing such petitions for removal to an elector shall
enter in a record to be kept the name of the elector to whom issued,
the date of such issuance and the number of such petitions issued,
and shall certify under the seal of his office on such petitions for
signatures, the name of the elector to whom issued and the date of
its issuance. No petition for signatures shall be accepted and taken
into consideration in determining the necessary percentage of voters
for removal unless it bears such certificate and be filed as herein
provided.
Signatures on petitions. Each signer
of a recall petition shall sign his name thereto in ink or indelible
pencil, and shall write thereon, after his name, his street number
or place of residence within the City and, in addition, such other
information as may be required by State law, such as a printed name,
voter registration number and date of signing. To each of said petitions
there shall be attached an affidavit, of the circulator thereof, stating
the number of signers to such part of the petition and that each signature
to the same is genuine, was made in his presence, and is that of the
person whose name it purports to be.
Filing recall petition. All papers comprising
a recall petition shall be returned and filed with the person exercising
the duties of City Secretary, within thirty (30) days after the filing
of the affidavit hereinbefore provided for. The person exercising
the duties of City Secretary, upon the return of such petition, shall
at once submit the same to the governing authority of the City, and
shall notify the officer or officers, sought to be recalled of such
action. If the official whose removal is sought does not resign within
five (5) days after such notice is given, the governing authority
of the City shall thereupon order and fix a day for holding a recall
election, the date of which election shall not be less than fifteen
(15) nor more than thirty (30) days from the time such petition was
presented to the governing authority of the City.
Form of recall ballot. The ballot of
such recall election shall conform to the following requirements,
with respect to each person whose removal is sought; the question
shall be submitted: “Shall (name of person) be removed from
the office (naming the office) by recall?” Immediately following
each of such questions there shall be printed on the ballots in separate
lines, in the order here set out, the words: For the recall of (naming
person); against the recall of (naming the person). Should a majority
of the votes cast at such recall election be for the recall of the
officer named on the ballot, he shall, regardless of any technical
defects in the recall petition, be deemed removed from office, but
should a majority of the votes cast at such recall election be against
the recall of the officer named on the ballot, such officer shall
continue in office of [sic] the remainder of his term, subject to
recall as before.
Limitation on recall. No recall petition
shall be filed against any officer of the City within six (6) months
after his election, nor within six (6) months after an election for
such officer’s recall.
County judge may order recall election. In case the governing authority of the City shall fail or refuse
to receive the recall petition, order such recall election or discharge
any other duties with reference to such recall, then the County Judge
of Lubbock County, Texas, shall discharge any of such duties herein
provided to be discharged by the governing authority of said City.
Result of election; vacancies. If, in
such recall election, there shall, as a result of such election, remain
only one of such elective officers who is not recalled, then such
officer not recalled shall discharge all of the duties incumbent upon
the governing authority of said City, for which a quorum of the Council
is not herein required, until the vacancy or vacancies created by
such recall election are filled by an election for that purpose, as
hereinafter provided for, but if in any proposed recall election it
is proposed and submitted to recall all elective officers then there
shall be placed on said ballot under the question of recall, the names
of candidates to fill the vacancies proposed to be created by such
election, but the names of such officers proposed to be recalled shall
not appear on the ballot as candidates.
Duties of officers not recalled. If at
any recall election it is not proposed and submitted to recall all
of the elective officers, but only one or more, fewer than all, and
such election shall result in favor of the recall of one or more of
such officers, proposed to be recalled, then it shall be the duty
of such officer or officers not recalled and constituting the governing
authority of the City, within five (5) days after such election is
held, to meet, canvass the returns, declare the results of the election
and on the same day order an election to fill such vacancy or vacancies,
which election shall be held not less than ten (10) nor more than
twenty (20) days after the same shall have been ordered.
(Amended 5/7/1988)