Pursuant to the Charter, the legislative power of the City will be exercised by the Council.
[Amended 6-13-2023 by Ord. No. 2400-23]
The Council will organize annually at a date and time set by resolution within the first seven days of the month of July. At such organization meeting, it will elect a President of the Council from among its members. The business of the Council shall be conducted in accordance with the code and the Council's rules of procedure provided by ordinance, unless otherwise required by the Charter.
A. 
Term; absence. The President of the Council shall serve until the next organization meeting following his election and until the election and qualification of his successor. In the absence of the President of the Council, the Council shall elect a temporary presiding officer, who shall have all the functions, powers and duties of the President during his absence.
B. 
Duties. The President of the Council shall preside at its meeting. He shall preserve order and decorum at all meetings of the Council. He shall state every question coming before the Council, announce the decisions of the Council and decide all questions of order subject to appeal to the Council. He may vote on all questions, his name being called last. He shall appoint all special committees of the Council and shall sign all ordinances and resolutions adopted by the Council during his presence.
[Amended 3-18-1976 by Ord. No. 327-76; 12-21-1976 by Ord. No. 357-76]
As required by the Charter, the City Clerk shall serve as Clerk of the Council. He shall keep a journal of its proceedings and record of minutes of every meeting and shall have such other functions, powers and duties as are provided by the code.
[Added 5-22-2012 by Ord. No. 1905-12]
In accordance with the Open Public Meetings Act, N.J.S.A. 10:4-1 et seq., the City Council opens every public meeting for comments from the public. However, in accordance with N.J.S.A. 10:4-12, "nothing in this Act shall be construed to limit the discretion of a public body to permit, prohibit or regulate the active participation at any meeting." Therefore, the City Council will not entertain any comments from persons who communicate obscene material, make statements which are considered bias intimidation in which any person attempts to intimidate any individual or group because of race, color, religion, handicap, sexual orientation or ethnicity or makes personally offensive or abusive, defamatory or profane comments, comments intending to harass or speak any offensive or abusive language. The person who makes such statements will relinquish their allotted five minutes for public discussion.
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Editor's Note: Former § 5-8 (original Subsection 2-2.4a), Counsel to the Council, added 4-17-1975 by Ord. No. 294-75, was deleted 7-11-1985 by Ord. No. 865-85.
There shall be no standing committee of the Council other than the Committee of the Whole. The President of the Council shall be the presiding officer of the Committee of the Whole, and the rules of proceedings in the Council shall be observed in the Committee of the Whole as far as the same may be applicable.
[Amended 7-11-1985 by Ord. No. 865-85; 10-9-1997 by Ord. No. 1417-97; 11-23-2001 by Ord. No. 1524-01; 6-13-2023 by Ord. No. 2400-23]
The regular meetings of the Council will be held on the first and third week of each month at 7:00 p.m. in the City Council Chambers. The Council may, by resolution, cancel one or more of the regular meetings.
As provided by the Charter, the Mayor may and, upon written request of a majority of the members of the Council specifying a purpose, shall call a special meeting of the Council. In the call he shall designate the purpose of the special meeting and no other business shall be considered at such meeting. The call for a special meeting shall be filed with the City Clerk during regular business hours, and the Clerk shall forthwith serve notice thereof upon each Councilman by leaving a copy of the call at his place of residence and by telephone communication, if possible, at such place as the Councilman may previously in writing designate. Except in case of a public emergency, the call for a special meeting shall be filed with the Clerk at least 48 hours before the time for which the meeting is called. The Clerk shall also forthwith release copies of the call to the press and post at least one copy in a prominent place near the entrance to the Clerk's office.
Regular and special meetings of the Council shall be held either in City Hall or in a public school building as determined by the Council by resolution adopted prior to the meeting, except that a meeting may be adjourned from one place to another whenever Council determines that the convenience of the citizens present would be served by such move.
[Amended 7-11-1985 by Ord. No. 865-85]
All meetings of the Council shall be open to the public. The Council may also hold work sessions at which no official action may be taken.
A. 
On the Monday preceding each regular meeting of the Council, the Clerk shall prepare, with the approval of the President, the agenda for the ensuing regular meeting. Such agenda shall include all matters proposed by any member of Council not later than the preceding work session and such other matters as the President may determine, together with all matters required by the standing order of business. The Clerk shall forthwith deliver a copy of the agenda to each Councilman at his place of residence and at such place as the Councilman may previously, in writing, designate. The Clerk shall also forthwith release copies of the agenda to the press and post at least one copy in a prominent place near the entrance to the Clerk's office.
B. 
At any regular meeting of the Council, no matter which is not on the agenda of that meeting as previously published shall be considered, except upon unanimous consent of the Councilmen present.
A. 
A majority of the whole number of members of the Council shall constitute a quorum.
B. 
No ordinance may be finally adopted by the Council without the affirmative vote of a majority of the members of the Council or such greater number as may be required by the Charter (e.g., the local bond law), and no resolution may be finally adopted by the Council without the affirmative vote of a majority of those present or such greater number as may be required by the Charter (e.g., local budget law, local public contracts law, etc.).
The Mayor may attend meetings of the Council and may take part in discussions of the Council but shall have no vote, except in the case of a tie on the question of filling a vacancy in the Council, in which case he may cast the deciding vote.
[Added 3-18-1976 by Ord. No. 329-76; amended 7-11-1985 by Ord. No. 865-85]
All directors are required to attend all meetings of the City Council, regular sessions and work sessions.
A. 
Preparation. Ordinances and resolutions shall be prepared by the City Attorney upon direction of the Council or the Mayor. Prior to introduction, each proposed ordinance or resolution requiring or permitting administrative action may be submitted to the Business Administrator and the department head concerned, each of whom shall submit to the Council an opinion as to the administrative implications of the proposed ordinance or resolution.
B. 
Introduction; limitation; procedure. An ordinance or resolution may be introduced by any member of the Council. Each ordinance and resolution shall be limited to a single object, which shall be expressed in its title. After the first reading of an ordinance, it shall be referred to the Committee of the Whole. Each resolution shall also be referred to the Committee of the Whole upon its introduction unless the Council shall provide for its immediate passage.
C. 
Procedure; mayoral participation. All ordinances shall be introduced, read, heard and enacted in the manner provided by general law. Each ordinance passed by the Council shall be promptly delivered by the Clerk to the Mayor. Each ordinance shall be returned by the Mayor to the Clerk after the Mayor has affixed his signature thereto or after the expiration of 10 days from the date of its delivery to the Mayor in any event.
D. 
Time effective; exceptions. No ordinance other than the local budget ordinance shall take effect less than 20 days after its final passage by Council and approval by the mayor, where such approval is required, unless the Council shall adopt a resolution declaring an emergency and at least 2/3 of the Councilmen vote in favor of such resolution.
A. 
The Council will reconsider any ordinance returned by the Mayor without his approval, pursuant to the Charter. Such reconsideration of the ordinance or any item or part thereof from which the Mayor is constrained to withhold his approval shall be at the next meeting of Council which occurs not less than three nor more than 30 days following the return of the ordinance by the Mayor.
B. 
Whenever an ordinance has been reconsidered by the Council following a veto by the Mayor, the Clerk shall append to such ordinance a certification of the action of the Council upon such reconsideration in substantially the following form:
"I HEREBY CERTIFY that the above ordinance, adopted by the Council on the .... day of ........, 19..., was delivered to the Mayor on the .... day of .........., 19..., and was returned to me on the ..... day of ........., together with the Mayor's statement of the reasons for which he was constrained to withhold his approval of such ordinance, item or part thereof. On reconsideration thereon on the ....... day of ........ (the Council duly resolved by the affirmative vote of five of its members to enact such ordinance, item or part thereof notwithstanding the Mayor's veto) or (the Mayor's veto was sustained.)"
Clerk
Dated:
Whenever an ordinance shall take effect without the Mayor's signature by reason of his failure to return it to the Council by filing it with the Clerk within 10 days after it has been presented to him, the Clerk shall append to such ordinance, as engrossed, a certificate in substantially the following form:
"I HEREBY CERTIFY that the above ordinance was adopted by the Council on the ....... day of .........., 19...., and was presented to the Mayor duly certified on the ....... day of ......., and upon his failure to sign it or to return and file it with the Clerk within 10 days thereafter, the said ordinance took effect in like manner as if the Mayor had signed it."
Clerk
Dated:
A. 
Form. Appointments submitted by the Mayor for consideration of the Council shall be in the following form: "I hereby nominate and, upon consent of the Council, appoint (name of individual) for the office of (title of office) for the term and with tenure provided by law."
B. 
Nominations. Nominations submitted by the Mayor will be considered in the Committee of the Whole and may be reported to the Council at a regular meeting. Any member of the Council may move confirmation of a nomination. The motion shall be in the following form: "The Mayor having advised with the Council with respect thereto and having nominated (name of nominee) for appointment to the office of (title of office), the Council does hereby consent to such appointment."
C. 
Appointments by Council.
(1) 
With respect to appointments to be made by the Council, any member of the Council may nominate as many candidates as there are offices to be filled. The Council will consider such nominations in the Committee of the Whole, which will report to a regular meeting of the Council.
(2) 
Where there is a single office to be filled, the sense of the Council on the appointment shall be taken as to each nominee, and the nominee receiving the vote of a majority of those voting on the question (except where a greater number is required by law) shall be deemed appointed.
(3) 
Where there is more than one office to be filled, such as on a board, commission or authority, the same procedure shall be followed with respect to each office separately until the total number of appointments to be made has been completed. In the discretion of the Chair, a group of nominations may be considered at once where there is no apparent division in the Council as to the nominees included in the group.
As authorized by the Charter, the Council may:
A. 
Require any municipal officer, in its discretion, to prepare and submit sworn statements regarding his official duties in the performance thereof, and it may also investigate the conduct of any department, office or agency of the municipal government.
B. 
Remove any municipal officer, other than the Mayor or a member of Council, for cause, upon notice and an opportunity to be heard.
The Clerk shall record all ordinances and resolutions adopted by the Council, and at the close of each year, with the advice and assistance of the City Attorney, shall bind, compile or codify all the ordinances and resolutions, or true copies thereof, of the City which then remain in force and effect. He shall also properly index the record books, compilation or codification or ordinances and resolutions.[1]
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Editor's Note: Original Sections 2.19, concerning appointment of certain officers and employees, added 11-6-1975 by Ord. No. 317-75, and 2.20, concerning a Board of Alcoholic Beverage Control, added 11-6-1975 by Ord. No. 317-75, which immediately followed this section, were deleted 7-11-1985 by Ord. No. 865-85.