[1]
Editor's note—Ordinance 1800, adopted Dec. 8, 2008, repealed former Art. II, §§ 2-26—2-31, and enacted a new Art. II as set out herein. The former Art. II pertained to similar subject matter and derived from the 1965 Code, §§ 2-14—2-17; Ordinance 1296, adopted Mar. 29, 1993; Ordinance 1504, adopted July 8, 2002; Ordinance 1507, adopted July 22, 2002; Ordinance 1550, adopted June 14, 2004; and Ordinance 1619, adopted Jan. 9, 2006.
(a) 
In accordance with Article V of the Charter of the city, the following are the appointed officers of the city:
(1) 
City manager.
(2) 
Police chief.
(3) 
Fire chief.
(4) 
City attorney.
(5) 
Public works director.
(6) 
City secretary.
(7) 
Finance director.
(b) 
The following are city official positions not specifically listed in the Charter:
(1) 
City prosecutor.
(2) 
Assistant city manager.
(3) 
Community development director.
(c) 
The city manager shall have the authority to appoint and remove the city officers and officials listed hereinabove in subsection (a)(2) through (7) and subsection (b) with the approval of the city council. The city manager shall have the authority to immediately suspend with pay any city officer or official subject to review by the city council. The city manager shall have the authority to create additional city officer and official positions and enter into contracts for the engagement of city officers and officials with the approval of the city council. The city manager shall not be required to fill all of the city officer and official positions and more than one (1) of the city officer and official positions may be filled by the same person. The compensation for all city officers and officials shall be approved by the city council.
(Ordinance 1800 adopted 12/8/2008; Ordinance 1891 adopted 12/13/2010)
In accordance with Article VIII of the Charter of the city, the city manager, with the approval of the city council, may create or establish, abolish or consolidate as many departments as the city manager deems necessary for the best interest of the city. In addition to those departments which may be subsequently created, there shall be a police department under the general supervision of the police chief, a fire department under the general supervision of the fire chief, an administration and finance department with financial personnel under the general supervision of the finance director and all others under the general supervision of the city manager, a public works department under the general supervision of the public works director and a community development department under the general supervision of the community development director. For the purpose of brevity, the person who supervises a department (other than the police and fire departments) shall be referred to as the "director" of that department. If a person who supervises a department is referenced in this code by some title other than "director", the code shall be interpreted so that the reference will be to the "director" of that department.
(Ordinance 1800, sec. 2, adopted 12/8/2008)
(a) 
The City of Alamo Heights will provide for the indemnification and legal defense of the officers and employees of the city, including members of the city council, boards, commissions, committees and volunteers approved by the mayor or the city manager, as the case may be, against any cost, loss, or expense, including court costs and attorney's fees, arising out of any act or actions of such person undertaken in good faith during the discharge of that person's official duties and committed within the scope of such person's authority. Such indemnification and legal defense shall be provided to the extent allowed by state law and shall not be provided for knowing, willful or intentional violations of any statute or ordinance.
(b) 
A person claiming the right to be indemnified and receive a legal defense under the City Charter and this section shall promptly submit the claim against such person to the city manager who shall first make a determination that indemnity and representation of the person is in the public interest and is not merely in the private interest of the person, that the act was within the scope of the official duties of the person and that the act was not based on the knowing, willful or intentional violation of a statute or ordinance.
(c) 
If the city manager determines that the person is entitled to indemnity and legal defense by the city, the city manager shall arrange for an appropriate legal defense against such claim (1) by insurers of the city and its personnel, or (2) by the engagement by the city of qualified representatives who shall provide a vigorous defense to the claim. If the city manager determines that the person's act was merely in the private interest of the person and not in the public interest, or that the person was not acting in the scope of his official duties, or that the act was based on the knowing, willful or intentional violation of a statute or ordinance, so that indemnification and legal defense should not be provided by the city, the person may appeal such determination to the city council which shall determine entitlement to indemnification and legal defense.
(d) 
If the claim is against the mayor or a member of the city council, the determination of providing indemnification and legal defense shall be referred directly to the city council. The person complained of shall abstain from participation and voting on the determination by the city council, in which event the other city council members shall constitute a quorum. If the mayor and all city council members are complained of, the city attorney shall determine whether the city should provide indemnification and legal defense to the persons against whom the complaint was filed.
(e) 
Notwithstanding the foregoing, if an officer or employee of the city, including members of the city council, boards, commissions and committees, are charged in a complaint, information or indictment with a criminal offense, the City of Alamo Heights may reimburse the person for defense expenses, including attorney's fees, incurred in defending against the criminal charges if (1) the act was done in the bonafide performance of the person's official duties, (2) a public interest, rather than a private interest of the person, is served by the expenditure, and (3) the person is found not guilty after a trial or appeal, or the complaint, information or indictment is dismissed without a plea of guilty or nolo contendere being entered. Reimbursement for defense expenses in defending against criminal charges may not be paid if the person is found guilty of the charges. The city must defer its decision to pay the defense expenses until after final disposition of the charges.
(Ordinance 1848 adopted 11/9/2009)