A. 
Appointment and Qualifications.
The Council shall, upon approval of a majority of the full City Council, appoint a City Manager who shall be the chief administrative and executive officer of the City, and shall be responsible to the Council for the administration of the affairs of the City. The City Manager shall be chosen by the Council solely on the basis of executive and administrative training, experience, and ability. Within 90 days of his/her appointment as City Manager, the newly appointed City Manager shall be a resident of the City of Littlefield. No member of the Council shall, during the time for which he or she is elected, nor for one (1) year thereafter, be appointed City Manager. For the purposes of this Section 4.01, the term “full City Council” shall mean attendance of all sitting members of the City Council.
B. 
Term and Compensation.
Except as may be modified by an Employment Contract entered into between the City and the City Manager, the following provisions apply to the term and compensation of the City Manager: The City Manager shall be appointed for an indefinite term and receive compensation as may be fixed by the Council. The Council may by affirmative vote of a majority of the full City Council take action to remove the Manager from office. The action of the Council in removing the Manager shall be final; it being the intention of this Charter to vest all authority and fix all responsibility for such removal in the City Council.
C. 
Temporary Absence or Disability of City Manager.
The City Manager may, by letter filed with the City Secretary and subject to approval by the City Council, designate a qualified City administrative officer to be Acting City Manager during the temporary absence or disability of the Manager. If the City Manager fails to make such designation or if the Council chooses to revoke such designation, the Council may appoint an Acting City Manager to serve during such time. The Council may remove an Acting City Manager at any time.
D. 
Powers and, duties of the City Manager.
The City Manager shall be the chief executive officer of the city, responsible to the council for the management of all city affairs placed in the. manager’s charge by or under this Charter. The City Manager shall:
(1) 
Appoint and suspend or remove all city employees and appointive administrative officers provided for, by, or under this Charter, except as otherwise provided by law, this Charter or personnel rules adopted pursuant to this Charter. The City Manager may authorize any administrative officer subject to the City Manager’s direction and supervision to exercise these powers with respect to subordinates in that officer’s department, offices or agency;
(2) 
Direct and supervise the administration of all departments, offices, and agencies of the city, except as otherwise provided by this Charter or by law;
(3) 
Attend all City Council meetings, except, when excused by the Mayor or the Mayor Pro-Tem. The City Manager shall have the right to take part in discussion but shall not vote;
(4) 
See that all laws, provisions of this Charter, and acts of the City Council, subject to enforcement by the City Manager or by employees or officers subject to the City Manager’s direction and supervision, are faithfully executed;
(5) 
Prepare and submit the annual budget and capital program to the City Council and implement the final budget and capital program approved by the City Council to achieve the goals of the city;
(6) 
Submit to the City Council and make available to the public a complete report on the finances and administrative activities of the city as of the end of each fiscal year;
(7) 
Make such other reports as the City Council may require concerning the operations of the City;
(8) 
Keep the City Council fully advised as to the financial condition and future needs of the city;
(9) 
Make recommendations to the City Council concerning the affairs of the city and facilitate the work of the City Council in developing policy;
(10) 
Provide staff support services for the mayor and councilmembers; and
(11) 
Assist the council to develop long-term goals for the city and strategies to implement these goals;
(12) 
Encourage and provide staff support for regional and intergovernmental cooperation;
(13) 
Promote partnerships among council, staff, and citizens in developing public policy and building a sense of community;
(14) 
To execute, on behalf of the City, standard form documents, including but not limited to, deeds, releases of liens, rental agreements, easements, right-of-way agreements, joint use agreements, loan documents, and other similar documents, under the following conditions:
(a) 
The execution of the document is necessary to carry out a public works project; utilize, maintain or improve a City facility, street, right-of-way, easement, park or other City property, or to implement other City policies; provided that such project, program or policy has been approved by the City Council; and
(b) 
That all blanks are filled in on any document correctly and that such document is consistent with the objectives approved by the City Council; and
(15) 
Perform such other duties as are specified in this Charter or may be required by the City Council.
(Amnd. by Ordinance 94-1201 at an election held on January 21, 1995, sec. 1(R); Amnd. by Ordinance 2016-0128-1 at an election held on May 7, 2016, prop. 9)
The City Manager shall appoint, subject to approval by the City Council, a City Secretary for an indefinite term unless excused by the council for good cause, the City Secretary shall attend all meetings of the City Council and keep accurate minutes of its proceedings. The City Secretary shall preserve and keep in order all books, papers, documents, records, and files of the City Council and of the Executive Departments. The City Secretary shall keep a record of all commissions and licenses issued and shall countersign same. The City Secretary shall have custody of the seal of the City and shall perform such other duties as the City Manager shall assign or as elsewhere provided for in this charter or as required by law. The City Secretary may be removed from office by the City Manager, subject to approval by a majority of the City Council.
(Amnd. by Ordinance 94-1201 at an election held on January 21, 1995, sec. 1(S); Amnd. by Ordinance 2016-0128-1 at an election held on May 7, 2016, prop. 10)
There shall be established and maintained a department of police to preserve order within the city and to secure the residents of said city from violence and the property therein from injury or loss.
(a) 
Chief of police:
The chief of police shall be the chief administrative officer of the department of police. Such officer shall, with the approval of the city manager, appoint and remove the employees of said department and shall perform such duties as may be required of him by the city council. The chief of police shall be appointed by the city manager with the approval of a majority vote of the city council for a term at will. The chief of police may be terminated from his appointment by the city manager with approval of a majority vote of the city council, or the chief of police may be terminated from his appointment by a majority vote of the city council.
(Ordinance 94-1201, sec. 1(T), sec. 2 (amnd. 20), adopted 12/1/94; certified by Resolution 95-0126, adopted 1/26/95; Amnd. by Ordinance 94-1201 at an election held on January 21, 1995, sec. 1(T); Amnd. by Ordinance 2016-0128-1 at an election held on May 7, 2016, prop. 11)
Editor’s note–Former section 4.04 pertaining to the board of health and sanitation was repealed and deleted in its entirety by Ordinance 2016-0128-2 at an election held on May 7, 2016, prop. 12. Prior to the deletion this section derived from the following: 1987 Code and Ordinance 94-1201, sec. 1(U), adopted 12/1/94.
The City shall provide fire protection services to the residents of the City. The City shall provide such Fire Protection Services either by the establishment and maintenance of a Department of Fire or by contracting with another Fire Department, whether paid or volunteer.
(a) 
The Fire Chief shall be the Chief Administrative Office of the Department of Fire at all times when the City has established and is maintaining a Department of Fire. Such Officer shall, with the approval of the City Manager, appoint and remove the employees and volunteers of said department and shall perform such duties as may be required by him or by the City Council.
(Amnd. by Ordinance 94-1201 at an election held on January 21, 1995, sec. 1(V); Amnd. by Ordinance 2016-0128-1 at an election held on May 7, 2016, prop. 13)
The city council may abolish or consolidate such offices and departments as it may deem to be to the best interest of the city, and may divide the administration of any such departments as it may deem advisable; may create new departments, and may discontinue any offices or departments at its discretion, except those specifically established by this charter.