The people of the City of Euless reserve the power of direct
legislation by initiative, and in the exercise of such power, may
propose any ordinance not in conflict with this Charter, the state
constitution, or the state laws, except an ordinance appropriating
money or authorizing the levy of taxes or an ordinance repealing an
ordinance appropriating money or levying taxes. Any initiated ordinance
may be submitted to the Council by a petition signed by qualified
voters of the City of Euless equal in number to at least three percent
(3%) of the number of registered voters who resided in the City of
Euless at the time of the last regular municipal election of the City.
(Amended, 5-6-95)
The people reserve the power to approve or reject at the polls
any legislation enacted by a Council which is subject to the initiative
process under this Charter, except an ordinance which is enacted for
the immediate preservation of the public peace, health or safety which
contains a statement of its urgency and which is adopted by the favorable
votes of the requisite number of Council Members required by this
Charter to enact emergency legislation. Prior to the effective date
of any ordinance which is subject to referendum, a petition signed
by qualified voters of the City, equal in number to at least three
percent (3%) of the number of registered voters who resided in the
City of Euless at the time of the last regular municipal election
of the City may be filed with the city secretary requesting that any
such ordinance be either repealed or submitted to a vote of the people.
When such a petition has been certified as sufficient by the city
secretary, the ordinance specified in the petition shall not go into
effect, or further action thereunder shall be suspended if it shall
have gone into effect, until and unless it is approved by the voters
as herein provided.
(Amended, 11-5-91; amended, 5-6-95)
Initiative petition papers shall contain the full text of the
proposed legislation in the form of an ordinance, including a descriptive
caption. The signatures to the initiative or referendum need not be
all appended to one paper, but each signer shall sign their name in
ink or indelible pencil and shall add thereto such other information
as may be required by law. One of the signers of each separate petition
shall make an affidavit that they and they only, personally circulated
such petition and that each signature appended thereto was made in
their presence and is the genuine signature of the person whose name
it purports to be, and further that no signature shall have been placed
thereon forty-five (45) days prior to the filing of such petition.
(Amended, 11-5-91)
Within ten (10) days after an initiative or referendum petition
is filed, the city secretary shall determine whether the same is signed
by the requisite number of qualified voters. The city secretary shall
declare void any petition paper which does not have an affidavit attached
thereto as required by section 3 of this article. In examining the
petitions, the city secretary shall write the letters “D.V.”
in red ink opposite the names of signers found not qualified to vote.
After completing examination of the petition, the city secretary shall
certify the results thereof to the Council at its next regular meeting,
stating the number of persons found on the petition who are qualified
to vote and the number of persons found on the petition who are not
qualified to vote. If the certificate of the city secretary shall
show an initiative or referendum petition to be insufficient, the
city secretary shall notify the person filing the petition, and it
may be amended within ten (10) days from the date of such notice by
filing a supplementary petition upon additional papers signed and
filed as provided for in the original petition. Within ten (10) days
after such amendment is filed, the city secretary shall examine the
amended petition and certify as to its sufficiency. If the amended
petition is found to be insufficient, the city secretary shall return
the petition to the person filing same, without prejudice to the filing
of a new petition for the same purpose; provided, however, that upon
finding the amended petition to be insufficient, no new petition covering
the same subject matter shall be filed until six (6) months shall
have elapsed from the date of filing of the original petition.
(Amended, 11-5-91)
When the Council receives an authorized initiative petition
certified by the city secretary to be sufficient, the Council shall
either:
(a) Pass the
initiated ordinance without amendment within thirty (30) days after
the date of the certification to the Council; or
(b) Submit said
initiated ordinance without amendment to a vote of the qualified voters
of the City at a regular or special election to be held within ninety
(90) days after the date of the certification to the Council, or on
such other date as may be provided by law; or
(c) At such
election, submit to a vote of the qualified voters of the City said
initiated ordinance without amendment, and an alternative ordinance
on the same subject proposed by the Council.
When the Council receives an authorized referendum petition
certified by the city secretary to be sufficient, the Council shall
reconsider the referred ordinance, and if upon such reconsideration
such ordinance is not repealed, it shall be submitted to the voters
at a regular or special election to be held not more than ninety (90)
days after the date of the certification to the Council, or on such
other date as may be provided by law. Special elections on initiated
or referred ordinances shall not be held more frequently than once
each six (6) months, and no ordinance on the same subject as an initiated
ordinance which has been defeated at any election may be initiated
by the voters within two (2) years from the date of such election.
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(Amended, 11-5-91)
The ballot used in voting upon an initiated or referred ordinance
shall state the caption of the ordinance and below the caption shall
set forth on separate lines the words, “For the Ordinance”
and “Against the Ordinance.”
An initiated ordinance and an alternative ordinance proposed
by the Council which are submitted at the same election shall be appropriately
identified as the initiated or referred ordinance and as the ordinance
proposed by the Council.
Any number of ordinances may be voted upon at the same election
in accordance with the provisions of this article. An ordinance submitted
and receiving an affirmative majority of the votes cast, shall thereupon
be effective as an ordinance of the City. An ordinance so adopted
may be repealed or amended at any time after the expiration of two
(2) years by a four-fifths (4/5) vote of the Council. A referred ordinance
which is not approved by a majority of the votes cast shall be deemed
thereupon repealed.
The people of the City reserve the power to recall the Mayor
or any member of the Council and may exercise such power by filing
with the city secretary a petition signed by qualified voters of the
City equal in number to at least three (3) per cent of the number
of registered voters at the time of the last regular municipal election
of the City demanding the removal of the Mayor or a Council Member.
The petition shall be signed and verified in the manner required for
an initiative petition, shall contain a general statement of the grounds
for which the removal is sought, and one of the signers of each petition
paper shall make an affidavit that the statements therein made are
true.
(Amended, 11-5-91; amended, 5-6-95)
Within fifteen (15) days after the date of the filing of the
papers constituting the recall petition, the person performing the
duties of city secretary shall present such petition to the Council.
The officer whose removal is sought may, after such recall petition
has been presented to the Council, request in writing to the Council
at next regular meeting that a public hearing be held to permit that
officer 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 (5) days nor more than fifteen
(15) days after receiving such request for a public hearing.
If the officer whose removal is sought does not resign, then
it shall become the duty of the Council to order an election and fix
a date for holding such recall election, the date of which election
shall not be less than forty-five (45) days from the date such petition
was presented to the Council, or from the date of the public hearing
if one was held.
(Amended, 11-5-91)
Ballots used at recall elections shall conform to the following
requirements:
(a) With respect
to each person whose removal is sought, the question shall be submitted “Shall
(Name of Council Member or Mayor) be removed from the office of Mayor
or from the City Council?”
(b) Immediately
below each such question there shall be printed the two (2) following
propositions, one above the other, in the order indicated:
“For the recall of (Name of Mayor or Council Member);”
“Against the recall of (Name of Mayor or Council Member).”
If a majority of the votes cast at a recall election shall be
against removal of the Mayor or Council Member named on the ballot,
he shall continue in office. If a majority of the votes cast at such
election be for the removal of the Mayor or Council Member named on
the ballot, the Council shall immediately declare the office vacant
and such vacancy shall be filled in accordance with the provisions
of this Charter for the filling of vacancies. A Mayor or Council Member
thus removed shall not be a candidate to succeed himself in an election
called to fill the vacancy thereby created.
(Amended, 11-5-91)
No recall petition shall be filed against any officer of the
City within three (3) months after his election, or within three (3)
months after an election for such officer’s recall.