(a) 
The City Council shall be composed of seven (7) members (six (6) Council members and a Mayor), who shall each serve, unless sooner removed or a vacancy occurs under the provisions of law and this charter, an elective term of three (3) years. Each Council member shall be elected to occupy a place on the Council, such places being numbered 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6. The Mayor's position on the Council shall be Place 7. The Mayor and Council members shall take office at the first regular meeting of the Council following the canvass of the ballots cast at the election and shall serve until their respective successors shall have been elected and qualified, except as otherwise provided herein.
(b) 
Six (6) members of the Council whose positions shall be Places 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 shall be elected from six (6) single-member districts established by ordinance and shall be elected by the qualified voters of their respective Council districts. The Mayor shall be elected by the qualified voters of the entire city and may reside anywhere within the city.
(c) 
All members of the Council and the Mayor shall be elected for three (3) year terms and shall serve not more than two (2) terms in succession and until their successors shall have been elected and qualified; and they shall be ineligible to succeed themselves for any additional successive term.
(d) 
Any candidate for office in a duly held municipal election receiving a majority of the votes cast for the office for which he or she is a candidate, shall be elected to such office. In the event no candidate receives a majority of the electoral vote, the Mayor shall, following the completion of the official count of the ballots cast at said first election, issue a call for a run-off election to be held not earlier than the 20th nor later than the 45th day following the official canvass, at which election the ballots shall contain the names of the two candidates receiving the highest number of votes in the first election.
(e) 
There shall be held in the City of Greenville on the first Saturday of May 1991, and every three (3) years thereafter, a city election for a Mayor (Place 7) a Council member representing District 5 (Place 5), and a Council member representing District 6 (Place 6). There shall be held in the City of Greenville on the first Saturday of May 1992, and every three (3) years thereafter, a city election for a Council member representing District 1, (Place 1), and a Council member representing District 2 (Place 2). There shall be held in the City of Greenville on the first Saturday of May 1993, and every three years thereafter, a city election for a Council member representing District 3 (Place 3), and a Council member representing District 4 (Place 4).
(f) 
Mayor: A vacancy in the office of the Mayor shall be filled by special election to be held on the earliest date allowed by law for the purpose of allowing the qualified voters of the city to elect a person to serve the remainder of the unexpired term unless the date of the next general election for the city council occurs first. Until the vacancy is filled in accordance with this section, the mayor pro tern shall perform the duties,[.]
(g) 
Councilmembers: Vacancies in the city council other than in the office of the mayor, where the same do not exceed one (1) at any time, shall be filled by appointment by majority vote of the remaining members of the city council by a person meeting the qualifications of this charter to serve the remainder of the unexpired term, unless the date of the next general election for the council occurs first. When there are two (2) or more vacancies at any one time, the vacancies shall be filled by special election to be held on the earliest date allowed by law for the purpose of allowing the qualified voters of the city to elect a person to serve the remainder of the unexpired term unless the date of the next general election for city council occurs first.
(Prop. No. 1, 1990; Prop. No. 7, 2000; Prop. No. 8, 2010; Prop. Nos. 1–2, 2013; Prop. B, 2023)
Each member of the City Council, in addition to other qualifications prescribed by law, shall be, at the date of his or her election, a qualified voter of the city, shall have resided for at least one (1) year next preceding the date he or she files for office within the State of Texas, and shall have also resided for at least six (6) months next preceding the date he or she files for office within the corporate limits of the City of Greenville. Each candidate, other than the mayoral candidate, must at the time of filing for office and during his or her term of office reside within the Council district which he or she represents. Each of the above qualifications must be verified by the City Secretary. Additionally, failure to continuously reside within the district from which a Council member is elected, other than a change resulting from realignment of Council district boundaries, shall result in immediate termination of office.
(Prop., May 5, 1990; Prop. No. 2, 2015)
Members of the City Council shall serve without pay or compensation; however, upon approval by the City Council, they shall be entitled to reimbursement of reasonable and necessary expenses incurred in the performance of their official duties. Reasonable and Necessary expenses include, but are not limited to: (1) expenses incurred at training seminars, (2) expenses associated with membership or participation in industry associations, and (3) expenses incurred for other types of professional development, undertaken by members of the City Council in connection with service.
(Prop. No. 3, 2015; Prop. B, 2018)
The Mayor shall preside at meetings of the Council and shall be recognized as head of the city government for all ceremonial purposes and by the governor for purposes of military law, but shall have no regular administrative duties. The Mayor shall be entitled to vote upon all matters considered by the Council, but he or she shall have no veto power. The Council shall elect a Mayor Pro Tem who shall act as Mayor during the absence or disability of the Mayor, and, if a vacancy should occur, shall become Mayor until the next regular election.
(Prop. No. 2, 2000)
Any member of the City Council, or board or commission member appointed by the City Council, shall forfeit his or her office if he or she:
1) 
fails to maintain the qualification for the office as required in this Charter or State law;
2) 
fails to attend three (3) consecutive or more than one-half (1/2) of the regular meetings without being excused by the City Council.
3) 
has been found by at least a five (5) person vote of the City Council to have willfully violated any express prohibition of this Charter; or
4) 
is convicted or pleads guilty or no contest to, a crime involving moral turpitude.
(Prop. No. 2, 2010)
All powers of the City of Greenville and the determination of all matters of policy shall be vested in the City Council. Except where in conflict with and otherwise expressly provided by this Charter the City Council shall have all powers authorized to be exercised by the City Council by Chapter 4 of Title 28, Vernon’s Annotated Civil Statutes, and acts amendatory thereof and supplementary thereto, now or hereafter enacted. Without limitation of the foregoing and among the other powers that may be exercised by the Council, the following are hereby enumerated for greater certainty:
(1) 
Appoint and remove the City Manager, City Secretary, City Attorney, and Municipal Judge.
(2) 
Adopt the budget of the City of Greenville.
(3) 
Authorize the issuance of bonds by a bond ordinance, except as such power is exercised by the Electric Utility Board.
(4) 
Inquire into the conduct of any office, department or agency of the City of Greenville and make investigations as to municipal affairs.
(5) 
Provide for a Planning and Zoning Commission, Board of Adjustment, and appoint the members of all such commissions and boards. The Planning and Zoning Commission shall have all powers and duties now or hereafter conferred and created by this Charter, by the city ordinance or by law.
(6) 
Delegate the plat approval authority to the Planning and Zoning Commission.
(7) 
Adopt and modify the official map of the City of Greenville.
(8) 
Adopt, modify, and carry out plans proposed by the Planning Commission.
(9) 
Regulate and license any person owning, operating or controlling any vehicle of any character used for the carrying of passengers for hire or the transportation of freight for hire on the public streets and alleys of the City of Greenville.
(10) 
Provide for the establishment and designation of fire limits and to prescribe the kind and character of buildings or structures or improvements to be erected therein, and to provide for the erection of fireproof buildings within certain limits, and to provide for the condemnation of dangerous structures or buildings or dilapidated buildings or buildings calculated to increase the fire hazard, and the manner of their removal or destruction.
(11) 
Create such administrative departments as are necessary to perform city functions and services.
(12) 
Waive the residency requirements in increments of 90 days when it is necessary to replace any City Official. The waiver of residency requirement is to allow for the appointment of an interim official who may not meet the residency requirements at time of appointment. However, once the non-interim Official is selected, the appointed City Official must meet all residency requirements required in the respective section of this Charter governing the office for which he or she fulfills.
(13) 
Appoint additional Legal Counsel, besides the City Attorney, to represent it for special assignments as deemed necessary by the City Council. This Legal Counsel shall serve at the will of, and shall report to the City Council. The City Council may request the City Attorney to provide assistance to or review opinions provided to the City by the appointed Legal Counsel.
(Prop. No. 3, 1992; Prop. No. 1, 2005; Prop. No. 1, 2010; Prop. Nos. 3–5, 2013; Prop. Nos. 4–5, 2015)
The Council shall appoint an officer of the City of Greenville who shall have the title of City Manager and who shall have the powers and perform the duties in this charter provided. No councilman shall receive such appointment during the term for which he or she shall have been elected, nor within one (1) year after the expiration of his or her term.
The salary of the City Manager shall be fixed by the City Council, and he or she shall hold office at its will. The City Manager may be removed from his or her individual position upon a majority vote of the City Council. If removed at any time after six (6) months from his or her appointment, he or she may demand written charges and a public hearing thereon before the City Council prior to the date on which his or her final removal shall take effect, but during such period the Council may suspend him or her from office. The action of the Council in suspending or removing the City Manager shall be final, it being the intention of this charter to vest all authority and fix all responsibility for such suspension or removal in the City Council. During the absence or disability of the City Manager, where no one has been designated to perform his or her duties under Section 38 hereof, and upon the suspension or removal of the City Manager, the Council shall designate some properly qualified person to perform the duties of the office of City Manager.
(Prop. Nos. 2, 16, 2000; Prop. No. 1, 2010; Prop. No. 6, 2013)
Neither the Council nor any of its members shall direct the appointment of any person to, or his or her removal from, office by the City Manager or by any of his or her subordinates. Except for the purpose of inquiry the Council and its members shall deal with the administrative service solely through the City Manager and neither the Council nor any member thereof shall give orders to any subordinates of the City Manager, either publicly or privately.
(Prop. No. 3, 1982; Prop. No. 2, 2000)
The City Manager, and such other officers of the City of Greenville as the City Council may invite, shall be entitled to take part in all discussions of the City Council relating to their respective offices, departments or agencies.
(Repealed by Prop. No. 3, 2000)
The City Council shall appoint an officer of the City of Greenville to serve as City Secretary. At the time of appointment, he or she need not be a resident of the City of Greenville, or the State of Texas; however, during his or her tenure of office he or she shall be a resident of Hunt County, or an adjoining county, with preference given to residents of the City of Greenville. The City Secretary shall give notice of Council meetings, shall keep a journal of Council proceedings, shall authenticate by his or her signature and record in full in a book kept and indexed for the purpose, all ordinances and resolutions, and shall perform such other duties as the City Council shall assign to him or her, and those elsewhere provided for in this charter and in state law. Any reference in this charter, in an ordinance of the city, or in other official documents to "City Clerk" shall be deemed a reference to "City Secretary."
The City Secretary may be removed from his or her individual position upon a majority vote of the City Council. If removed at any time after six (6) months from his or her appointment, he or she may demand written charges and a public hearing thereon, before the City Council prior to the date on which his or her final removal shall take effect, but during such period the Council may suspend him or her from office. The action of the Council in suspending or removing the City Official shall be final, it being the intention of this charter to vest all authority and fix all responsibility for such suspension or removal in the City Council.
(Prop. Nos. 2–3, 1984; Prop. No. 2, 2000; Prop. No. 7, 2013; Prop. C, 2018)
The Council shall appoint an Officer of the City of Greenville who shall serve as Municipal Judge. There shall be a magistrate of the municipal court known as the Municipal Judge who shall be appointed by the City Council to serve for a term of two (2) years. At the time of his or her appointment, he or she need not be a resident of the City of Greenville or the State of Texas, but during his or her tenure of office he or she shall be a resident of Hunt County, with preference given to residents of the City of Greenville.
The Municipal Judge may be removed from his or her individual position upon a majority vote of the City Council. If removed at any time after six (6) months from his or her appointment, he or she may demand written charges and a public hearing thereon, before the City Council prior to the date on which his or her final removal shall take effect, but during such period the Council may suspend him or her from office. The action of the Council in suspending or removing the City Official shall be final, it being the intention of this Charter to vest all authority and fix all responsibility for such suspension or removal in the City Council.
He or she may be removed by the City Council at any time for incompetency, misconduct, malfeasance, or disability. He or she shall receive such salary as may be fixed by the Council, but his or her salary shall not be reduced during a two (2) year term of office. In the event of the failure or inability of the Municipal Judge to act for any reason, the City Council may appoint a suitable and qualified person to act temporarily in the place and stead of the Municipal Judge and, in the event of a vacancy in such office, until a Municipal Judge is appointed to fill such vacancy.
(Prop. No. 5, 1992; Prop. No. 2, 2000; Prop. Nos. 1, 3, 2010; Prop. Nos. 8–10, 2013)
The Council shall appoint an Officer of the City of Greenville who shall serve as City Attorney. At the time of appointment, he or she need not be a resident of the City of Greenville, or the State of Texas; however, during his or her tenure of office he or she shall be a resident of Hunt County, Texas, or an adjoining county, with preference given to residents of the City of Greenville.
The City Attorney shall represent the City in all litigation and controversies and shall prosecute all cases brought before the municipal court. He or she shall draft, approve or file his, or her written opinion on the legality of every proposed ordinance before it is acted upon by the council, and may be requested to pass upon all documents, contracts and other legal instruments in which the city may have an interest.
He or she shall be the legal advisor of the City Manager, City Council, and of all boards, commissions, agencies, officers, and employees, with the exception of Economic Development Corporation, Greenville Board of Development, and Greenville Electric Utility System, their officers and their employees, with respect to any legal question involving official duties or any legal matter pertaining to the affairs of the City of Greenville. He or she shall perform such other duties as may be required by statute, Charter, ordinance, or request of the Council.
The City Attorney shall have power to appoint assistants or retain special counsel as deemed necessary subject to approval of the City Council, at such compensation as may be fixed by the Council. Such assistants or special counsel shall serve at the will of the City Council and under the supervision of the City Attorney.
The City Attorney may not research legal issues or perform any other functions in his or her official capacity in response to a request from a non-quorum group of elected officials, other than a duly-appointed committee of the council, unless notice of the request is provided in writing to the City Secretary, and then forwarded from the City Secretary to the entire Council.
The City Attorney may be removed from his or her individual position upon a majority vote of the City Council. If removed at any time after six (6) months from his or her initial appointment, he or she may demand written charges and a public hearing thereon, before the City Council prior to the date on which his or her final removal shall take effect, but during such period the Council may suspend him or her from office. The action of the Council in suspending or removing the City Official shall be final, it being the intention of this charter to vest all authority and fix all responsibility for such suspension or removal in the City.
(Prop. No. 3, 1984; Prop. No. 2, 2000; Prop. No. 4, 2010; Prop. Nos. 11–16, 2013; Prop. D, 2018)
The first official meeting of the new elected Council shall be the first regular meeting at which all newly elected Council members qualify and take the oath of office. Thereafter, the Council shall meet regularly at such times as may be prescribed by its rules or hereafter amended. All meetings of the Council shall be held in accordance with Section 551.002 of the Texas Government Code, as now or hereafter amended.
(Prop. No. 4, 1992; Prop. No. 17, 2000; Prop. No. 8, 2015)
At the first official meeting after all newly elected Council members have qualified and have taken the oath of office, the Council shall elect the Mayor Pro Tem.
(Prop. No. 17, 2000)
The Council shall be the judge of the election and qualifications of its members and for such purposes shall have power to subpoena witnesses and require the production of records, but the decision of the Council in any such case shall be subject to review by the courts.
The Council shall determine its own rules and order of business. It shall keep an indexed journal of its proceedings and the journal shall be open to the public inspection.
In addition to such acts of the Council as are required by statutes or by this charter to be by ordinance, every act of the Council establishing a fine or other penalty or providing for the expenditure of funds or for the contracting of indebtedness shall be by ordinance. The enacting clause of all ordinances shall be "Be It Ordained By The City Council Of The City Of Greenville."
Every ordinance shall be introduced in written or printed form and, upon passage, shall take effect at the time indicated therein; provided that any ordinance imposing a penalty, fine or forfeiture for a violation of its provisions shall become effective no less than ten (10) days after the date of its passage; subject to the provisions of Article X of this charter. The City Secretary shall give notice of the passage of every ordinance imposing a penalty, fine or forfeiture for a violation of the provisions thereof, by causing the description or title, including the penalty, of any such ordinance to be published in the official newspaper of the City of Greenville at least once within ten (10) days after the passage of said ordinance. He or she shall note on every ordinance, the caption of which is hereby required to be published, and on the record thereof, the fact that same has been published as required by the Charter, and the date of such publication, which shall be prima facie evidence of the legal publication and promulgation of such ordinance; provided, the provisions of this section shall not apply to the correction, amendment, revision and codification of the ordinances of the City of Greenville for publication in book or pamphlet form. Except as otherwise provided by Article XI of this charter, it shall not be necessary for the validity of any ordinance that it be read more than one (1) time by City Council or be considered at more than one (1) session of the City Council. Every ordinance shall be authenticated by the signature of the Mayor, and shall be systematically recorded and indexed in an ordinance book in a manner approved by the Council. It shall only be necessary to record the caption or title of ordinances in the minutes or journal of Council meetings. The City Council shall have the power to cause the ordinances of the City of Greenville to be corrected, amended, revised, coded and printed in code form as often as the Council deems advisable, and such printed code, when adopted by the Council, shall be in full force and effect without the necessity of publishing the same or any part thereof in a newspaper. Such printed code shall be admitted in evidence in all courts and places without further proof.
(Prop. No. 2, 1992; Prop. No. 2, 2000; Prop. No. 1, 2010; Prop. E, 2018)
The Council shall have power to inquire into the conduct of any office, department, agency, or officer of the City of Greenville and to make investigations as to municipal affairs, and for that purpose may subpoena witnesses, administer oaths, and compel the production of books, papers and other evidence. Failure to obey such subpoena or to produce books, papers or other evidence as ordered under the provisions of this section shall constitute a misdemeanor and shall be punishable by fine not to exceed two hundred dollars ($200.00).
(Prop. No. 4, 1984)
Not less than thirty (30) nor more than ninety (90) days prior to the end of each fiscal year the Council shall designate a qualified certified public accountant who, as of the end of the fiscal year, shall make an independent audit of accounts and other evidences of financial transactions of the city government and shall submit his report to the Council and to the City Manager. The original reports shall be kept among the permanent records of the city, a copy of which shall be accessible for inspection by the public at the City Hall, and additional copies shall be filed with the (1) City Secretary within the time required by law and (2) Greenville Public Library. Such accountant shall have no personal interest, direct or indirect, in the fiscal affairs of the city government or of any of its officers. He or she shall not maintain any accounts or records of the city business, but, within specifications approved by the Council, shall post-audit the books and documents kept by the Department of Finance and any separate or subordinate accounts kept by any other office, department or agency of the city government. Special audits shall be made when deemed necessary by the Council.
(Prop. No. 3, 1992; Prop. No. 2, 2000)
The City Council shall have the authority to establish and maintain a free public library within the City of Greenville and to cooperate with any person, firm, association or corporation under such terms as the City Council may prescribe for the establishment or maintenance of such free public library. For budget purposes, the library shall be considered as a department of the City of Greenville and the appropriations therefor shall comply with all the budgetary requirements as outlined in this charter and as may be prescribed from time to time by the City Council. Annual appropriations for the library will not be continuing, but will revert to the general fund in the same manner as the underspent appropriations of the other departments.
The City Council shall have authority to provide for rules and regulations for maintaining employees when injured and disabled while performing their duties, or it may provide for such plan of insurance as it deems proper. The City Council shall have authority to establish a pension and retirement system for any or all groups of officers and employees in the service of the City of Greenville. The cost of the system shall be determined actuarially on the basis of such mortality and service tables as the City Council shall approve. The provisions of the ordinance establishing such a pension and retirement system shall require periodic actuarial evaluations, which shall serve as the basis of any changes in the rates of contributions, and shall also provide for the maintenance at all times of adequate reserves to meet all accrued liabilities. Officers and employees appointed in the classified service shall be required to join the system as a condition of employment. The City Council shall have the authority, on behalf of the City of Greenville and its officers and employees, to join or participate in any district or statewide pension and retirement system which has been established by the legislature of the State of Texas.
When and if a pension and retirement system is established under the provisions of this section, the City Council shall also make provisions for its administration, either by the creation of a department of personnel, with a director and a personnel board, or otherwise, as it may see fit, with such power and duties and compensation as the City Council by ordinance may prescribe and delegate; and such administrative agent or agency shall also have charge of the collection, investment, payment and custody of funds of the pension and retirement system.
(Prop. No. 18, 2000)