A. 
Initiative.
The qualified voters of the City shall have the right to propose ordinances to the Council. If the Council fails to adopt an ordinance so proposed without any change, the voters may adopt or reject it at a City election. This power shall not extend to the budget, capital programs or any ordinance relating to appropriation of money, levy of taxes or salaries of City officers or employees. Such initiative power may be used to enact a new ordinance, or repeal or amend sections of an existing ordinance.
B. 
Referendum.
The qualified voters of the City shall have the power to require reconsideration by the Council of any adopted ordinance. If the Council fails to repeal any ordinance so reconsidered, the voters may approve or reject it at a City election, provided that such power shall not extend to the budget, or capital program or any properly enacted emergency ordinance, ordinance relating to appropriation of money or levying of taxes or ordinance relating to the control of armed or violent insurrection, revolt, rebellion or riot.
C. 
Recall.
The qualified voters of the City shall have the power to recall any elected official on grounds of incompetency, noncompliance with this Charter, misconduct or malfeasance.
(Ordinance 01-850, sec. 3, adopted 2/27/01)
At least five qualified voters may begin initiative, referendum, or recall proceedings by filing with the City Secretary an affidavit stating they constitute the petitioners' committee. This committee will be responsible for coordinating the circulation of the petition and filing it in proper form; stating their names and addresses and specifying the address to which all notices to the committee are to be sent. The committee will set out in full the proposed initiative ordinance, the ordinance for reconsideration, or the particulars for recall. The City Secretary shall issue the appropriate petition blanks to the petitioners' committee not later than ten business days after the affidavit of the petitioners' committee is filed with the City Secretary. After the affidavit of the petitioners' committee is filed, the ordinance sought to be amended or repealed shall not be repealed, or amended or reenacted by the Council unless[:]
1. 
the action taken by the Council is that which the petition requests,
2. 
the petition has not been filed within the prescribed time limit,
3. 
there is a final determination of the insufficiency of the petition,
4. 
the petition is withdrawn by the petitioners' committee, or
5. 
one year has elapsed since Council or voter action has been taken on the petition[.]
(Ordinance 01-850, sec. 3, adopted 2/27/01; Ordinance 2017-1227, prop. 7, adopted 6/13/17)
A. 
Number of Signatures.
Initiative, referendum or recall petitions must be signed by currently registered voters of the City equal in number to at least twenty percent of the total number of voters registered to vote at the last regular municipal election.
B. 
Form and Content.
All papers of a petition shall be uniform in size and style and shall be assembled as one instrument for filing. To be certified, each signature shall have been personally signed by such voter in ink, shall be followed by the date signed, the address of the person signing and include the voter's date of birth or voter registration number as prescribed by the Texas Election Code. Petitions of initiative or referendum shall contain, or have attached thereto throughout their circulation, the full text of the ordinance proposed or sought to be reconsidered. A recall petition shall contain the identity of the elected official and a list of grounds.
C. 
Affidavit of Circulator.
When filed, each paper of a petition shall have attached to it an affidavit executed by the circulator thereof stating that
(1) 
he personally circulated the petition,
(2) 
the signature count of the petition,
(3) 
that all the signatures were affixed in his presence,
(4) 
the belief of the signatures to be genuine, and
(5) 
that each signer had an opportunity before signing to read the full text of the ordinance proposed, or sought to be reconsidered or the identity of the elected official and grounds.
D. 
Time for Filing Petitions.
Referendum petitions must be filed within sixty days after adoption by the Council of the ordinance sought to be reconsidered. Initiative and recall petitions must be filed within forty-five days after issuance of the appropriate petition blanks to the petitioners' committee. Additional time as specified in Section 9.04 E shall be allowed for amending petitions.
(Ordinance 01-850, sec. 3, adopted 2/27/01; Resolution 06-1832, sec. 13, adopted 3/9/06; Resolution 09-2137, prop. 21, adopted 5/15/09)
A. 
Certification.
Within fifteen working days after the petition is filed, the City Secretary shall complete a certificate as to the petition's sufficiency, specifying, if it is insufficient, the particulars wherein it is defective. Immediately upon completion of certification, a copy of the certificate shall be sent to the petitioners' committee by registered mail.
B. 
Sufficient Petition, Final Determination.
If the petition is certified sufficient, the City Secretary shall present the certificate to the Council within three working days. The certificate shall then be a final determination as to the sufficiency of the petition.
C. 
Insufficient Petition, Final Determination.
If a petition is certified insufficient, and the petitioners' committee does not elect to amend or request Council review under 9.04 D and E within the time required, the City Secretary shall present a certificate to the members of the Council within three working days, which shall be the final determination of the sufficiency of the petition.
D. 
Insufficient Petition, Amending.
A petition certified insufficient for lack of required number of signatures may be amended as allowed by state law.
E. 
Insufficient Petition, Appeal.
If a petition has been certified insufficient and the petitioners' committee does not file notice of intention to amend it as in Section 9.04 D, the committee may, within three working days after receiving the copy of such certificate, file a request that it be reviewed by the Council. The Council shall review the certificate at its next regular meeting following the filing of such request and approve or disapprove it. The Council's determination shall be final as to the sufficiency of the petition.
F. 
Court Review; New Petitioner.
A final determination as to the sufficiency of a petition shall be subject to review in the appropriate court of record. A final determination of insufficiency, even if sustained upon court review, shall not prejudice the filing of a new petition for the same purpose.
(Ordinance 01-850, sec. 3, adopted 2/27/01; Resolution 09-2137, prop. 22, adopted 5/15/09)
When a referendum petition is filed with the City Secretary, the ordinance sought to be reconsidered shall be suspended from taking effect. Such suspension shall terminate when one of the following occurs:
(1) 
there is a final determination of insufficiency of the petition, or
(2) 
the Petitioners' committee withdraws the petition, or
(3) 
the Council repeals the ordinance, or
(4) 
the vote of the people in a referendum election determines whether the ordinance sought to be repealed is repealed or is sustained and the election results are certified by the election officials.
All action previously taken under such ordinance or resolution shall be suspended and its legality or validity determined by the final disposition of the referendum petition.
(Ordinance 01-850, sec. 3, adopted 2/27/01)
A. 
Action by the Council.
The Council shall promptly consider the proposed initiative ordinance in the manner prescribed for enacting ordinances or reconsider the referred ordinance by voting its repeal. Within sixty days after the date the initiative or referendum petition has been finally determined sufficient, Council shall either
(1) 
adopt a proposed initiative ordinance without any change in substance;
(2) 
repeal a referred ordinance; or
(3) 
call an election on the proposed referred ordinance for the next legal election date.
In the case of recall, the Council shall, after the elected official has been given an opportunity to resign, order an election forthwith to determine whether such officer shall be recalled.
B. 
Submission to Voters.
Copies of the proposed or referred ordinance or recall grounds shall be made available at the polls and the office of the City Secretary for fifteen days immediately preceding the election and shall be posted at the regular posting places.
C. 
Withdrawal of Petitions.
An initiative or referendum petition may be withdrawn at any time prior to the day that Council calls the election by filing a request for withdrawal signed by at least four members of the petitioners' committee. Upon filing the request with the City Secretary, the petition shall have no further force or effect and all proceedings thereon shall be terminated.
D. 
Withdrawal of Recall.
A recall petition may be withdrawn at any time prior to the day that Council calls the election by filing a request for withdrawal signed by at least four members of the petitioners' committee or upon resignation of the named official. Upon filing the request with the City Secretary, the petition shall have no further force or effect and all proceedings thereon shall be terminated.
(Ordinance 01-850, sec. 3, adopted 2/27/01; Resolution 09-2137, prop. 23, adopted 5/15/09)
A. 
Initiative.
Ordinances shall be submitted by ballot title, which shall be prepared in all cases by the City Attorney. The ballot title may be different from the legal title of any such initiated or referred ordinance, and it shall be a clear, concise statement, without argument or prejudice, descriptive of the substance of such ordinance. Immediately below the ballot title shall be printed the following two statements, one above the other, in the order indicated:
"For adoption of the ordinance.
"Against adoption of the ordinance."
B. 
Referendum.
Ordinances being considered for repeal shall be submitted by ballot title, which shall be prepared in all cases by the City Attorney. The ballot title may be different from the legal title of any such initiated or referred ordinance, and it shall be a clear, concise statement, without argument or prejudice, descriptive of the substance of such ordinance. Immediately below the ballot title shall be printed the following two statements, one above the other, in the order indicated:
"For repeal of the ordinance.
"Against repeal of the ordinance."
C. 
Recall.
Ballots used at recall elections shall, with respect to each person whose removal is sought, submit the following question:
"Shall (name of the person) be removed from the office of (name of office) by recall?"
Immediately below each such question there shall be printed the following two statements, one above the other, in the order indicated:
"For the removal of __________ by recall.
"Against the removal of __________ by recall."
(Ordinance 01-850, sec. 3, adopted 2/27/01)
A. 
Initiative.
If the majority of the qualified electors voting on a proposed initiative ordinance vote in its favor, it shall be considered adopted upon certification of the election results and shall be treated in all respects in the same manner as ordinances of the same kind adopted by Council. If conflicting ordinances are approved at the same election, the one receiving the greatest number of affirmative votes shall prevail to the extent of such conflict.
B. 
Referendum.
If a majority of the qualified electors voting on a referred ordinance vote for its repeal, it shall be considered repealed upon certification of the election results.
C. 
Recall.
If a majority of the votes cast at a recall election shall be against removal of the elected official named on the ballot, he shall continue in office. If the majority of the votes cast at the election be for removal of the elected official named on the ballot, the Council shall immediately declare his office vacant, and such vacancy shall be filled in accordance with the provisions of this Charter for filling of vacancies. An elected official thus removed shall not be allowed to succeed himself.
(Ordinance 01-850, sec. 3, adopted 2/27/01)
A. 
Limitation of Council Repeal.
The Council may not repeal or amend the initiated ordinance for one year after the effective date, unless conflicting with state law, and then only by the unanimous vote of the entire Council.
B. 
Limitation of Recall.
No recall petition shall be filed against an elected official within three months after he takes office or three months prior to the expiration of his term, and no elected official shall be subjected to more than one recall election during a term of office.
The elected official whose removal is sought may, within five days after such recall petition has been presented to the Council, request that a public hearing be held to permit him to present facts pertinent to the charges specified in the recall petition. In this event, the Council shall order such public hearing to be held not less than five days nor more than fifteen days after receiving such request for a public hearing.
(Ordinance 01-850, sec. 3, adopted 2/27/01)
In case all of the requirements of this Charter shall have been met and the Council shall fail or refuse to receive the recall petition, or order such recall election, or discharge other duties imposed upon said Council by the provisions of this Charter with reference to such recall, then any qualified voter in the City may seek judicial action in the District Court of Denton County, Texas, to have any of the provisions of this chapter pertaining to recall carried out by the proper official.
(Ordinance 01-850, sec. 3, adopted 2/27/01)