[HISTORY: Adopted by the Common Council of
the City of St. Francis as Ch. 2 of the 1981 Code. Amendments noted
where applicable.]
The Common Council shall consist of the Mayor
and two Aldermen from each aldermanic district, who shall be elected
for four-year terms.
A.
Regular meetings. Regular meetings of the Common Council
shall be held on the first and third Tuesdays of each calendar month
at 7:00 p.m. Any regular meeting falling on a legal holiday shall
be held on the next following secular day at the same hour and place.
All meetings of the Council, including special and adjourned meetings,
shall be held in the City Hall.
B.
Special meetings. The Mayor may call a special meeting
by written notice to each member delivered to him personally or left
at his usual abode at least six hours before the meeting. Special
meetings may be held without such notice when all members of the Common
Council are present or consent in writing to the holding of such meeting,
such written consent to be filed with the Clerk prior to the beginning
of the meeting. Any special meeting attended by all the Aldermen shall
be a regular meeting for the transaction of any business that may
come before such meeting.
C.
Adjournments. The Council may, by a majority vote
of those present, but not fewer than three affirmative votes, adjourn
from time to time to a specific date and hour.
D.
Meetings to be public. All meetings of the Common
Council and subunits thereof shall be open to the public as provided
in Subchapter IV of Ch. 19, §§ 19.81 to 19.89, Wis.
Stats. Public notice of all such meetings shall be given as provided
in § 19.84, Wis. Stats.
A.
Designated. The Mayor shall preside. In the absence
of the Mayor, the President of the Council shall preside. In the absence
of both the Mayor and the President, the Clerk shall call the meeting
to order and preside until the Aldermen present elect one of their
number President Pro Tem for that meeting.
B.
Duties. The presiding officer shall preserve order
and decorum, decide all questions of order and conduct the proceedings
of the meeting in accordance with the parliamentary rules contained
in Robert's Rules of Order, Newly Revised, unless otherwise provided
by statute or by these rules.
C.
Appeals from decisions. Any member may appeal from
a decision of the presiding officer. An appeal shall be sustained
by a two-thirds vote of the Council.
Whenever it is necessary, by statute or vacancy,
to elect a President of the Common Council it shall be done by secret
ballot, without nomination, by majority vote of the Aldermen. If after
25 ballots there is no Alderman who has achieved a majority vote,
the vote on the 25th ballot shall be tallied and any Alderman with
a plurality of the votes cast shall be elected Council President.
If there is a tie on the 25th ballot, balloting shall continue. At
any subsequent ballot, if one Alderman receives a plurality of the
votes cast he shall be elected Council President. If after 50 ballots
there is no Alderman who has achieved a plurality of the votes cast,
the 50th ballot shall be tallied. The City Clerk shall write the names
of the Aldermen who have tied with the greatest number of votes on
the 50th ballot and place them in a container. The City Clerk shall
then have someone other than the Clerk or Alderman select a name from
the container, and that Alderman shall be elected Council President.
A.
Roll call; procedure when quorum not in attendance.
As soon as the Common Council is called to order, the City Clerk shall
proceed to call the names of the members by district, noting who is
present and who is absent, and record the same in the proceedings
of the Common Council. If there is not a quorum present, the fact
shall be entered in the minutes and the Common Council may adjourn,
or the Mayor or, in his absence, City Clerk may issue a process to
any police officer commanding him forthwith to summon the absentees.
[Amended 7-1-2008 by Ord. No. 1259]
B.
Quorum. Two-thirds of the Aldermen shall constitute
a quorum. The Mayor shall not be counted in computing a quorum.
[Amended 12-18-2012 by Ord. No. 1333]
A.
The business
of the Council shall be conducted under the agenda system.
B.
The City Administrator shall have responsibilities concerning the preparation of Council agendas and order of business as provided in § 105-12B(4) of this Code.
C.
Unless otherwise
approved by the City Administrator, requests from City officers and
employees to the City Clerk and City Administrator for matters to
be included as part of the agenda of any regularly scheduled Common
Council meeting shall be made by noon on the Wednesday preceding such
regular meeting. Supporting documents and/or information related to
such requests shall be submitted by City officers and employees to
the City Clerk by the end of business on the Thursday preceding such
regularly scheduled meeting. The agenda and related packet for regularly
scheduled meetings of the Common Council shall generally be available
to the Mayor, Common Council and department heads no later than 6:00
p.m. on the Friday preceding a regularly scheduled Council meeting.
In the absence of the City Clerk, the Deputy
City Clerk shall act as the City Clerk Pro Tem.
The deliberations of the Common Council shall
be conducted in the following manner:
A.
When two or more members simultaneously seek recognition,
the presiding officer shall name the member who is to speak first.
B.
No motion shall be discussed or acted upon until it
has been seconded unless the rules permit one Alderman to initiate
action. No motion shall be withdrawn without the consent of the person
making the same and the person seconding it.
C.
When a question is under discussion, no action shall
be in order except the following motions, which shall have precedence
in the order listed:
D.
Any member desiring to terminate debate may move the
previous question, in which event the presiding officer shall announce
the question as "Shall the main question now be put?" If a majority
of the members present vote in the affirmative, the main question
shall be taken without further debate, its effect being to put an
end to all debate and bring the Council to a direct vote, first upon
any pending amendments and then upon the main question.
E.
Any Alderman may demand an aye and nay vote on any
matter and such vote shall be entered in the proceedings. Every member
shall vote when a question is put unless the Council by a majority
vote of those present excuses him for special cause. A majority vote
of all members of the Council in favor of any proposed ordinance,
resolution or appointment shall be necessary for passage or approval
unless a larger number is required by statute. Except as otherwise
provided by these rules, a majority vote of those present shall prevail
in other cases.
F.
A motion to adjourn shall always be in order, and
a motion to adjourn or to lay on the table and a call for the previous
question shall be decided without debate.
Any member voting with the majority may move
for a reconsideration of the vote on any question at that meeting
or at the next succeeding regular meeting. A motion to reconsider
being put and lost shall not be renewed. An Alderman may not change
his vote on any question after the result has been announced.
Whenever any disturbance or disorderly conduct
occurs in any meeting of the Council, the presiding officer may cause
the room to be cleared of all persons guilty of such disorderly conduct
except the Aldermen. If any Alderman is guilty of disorderly conduct,
the presiding officer may order the police to take him into custody
for the time being or until the meeting adjourns. Such member may
appeal from such order to the Council as in other cases.
A.
Action of Council levying taxes, appropriating funds
or creating City liability. Except upon the unanimous consent of all
members present, no resolution or measure assessing or levying taxes,
appropriating or disbursing money or creating any liability or charge
against the City or any funds thereof shall be adopted without first
having been referred to a committee and the report thereon of such
committee having been made to the Council, unless the resolution is
one that carries into effect the action of the Council upon a committee
report. All other resolutions may be adopted at the same meeting at
which they are introduced; provided, however, that action upon any
resolution shall be deferred until the next meeting of the Council
upon the request of 1/5 of the Aldermen present.
B.
Purchases. No real property shall be purchased for
a consideration of more than $100 by or under the authority of the
Council until an appraisal thereof has been made by qualified and
disinterested persons.
[Amended 4-20-2010 by Ord. No. 1285]
The following committees shall be appointed by the Mayor, subject
to the approval of a majority of the members of the Common Council,
at the first regular meeting in May of an election year. A member
shall serve as appointed, unless excused by a simple majority of the
Common Council. Each committee will consist of three Aldermen and
will elect its own Chairperson.
A.
Finance Committee. This committee shall have jurisdiction over the
following City functions: finances, claims, public grounds and buildings,
and related problems.
B.
License and Permit Committee. This committee shall have jurisdiction
over the issuing of licenses and permits and related problems.
C.
Legislative Committee. This committee shall have jurisdiction over
the following City functions: rules, laws, ordinances, county and
state legislation and related problems.
D.
Labor Bargaining Committee. This committee shall consult directly
with the Common Council and shall do all bargaining and negotiating
as to wages, salary, benefits, terms and conditions of employment,
whether with organized or nonorganized employees, officers, department
heads, supervisory employees and professional or technical personnel,
elected or appointed, except the Mayor and Council, and deal with
matters pertaining to bargaining units and all matters under § 111.70,
Wis. Stats.
[Amended 4-17-2012 by Ord. No. 1318]
A.
Publication. All general ordinances of the City and
all regulations imposing a penalty shall be published in the official
paper of the City once and shall be immediately recorded, with the
affidavit of publication, by the City Clerk in a book kept for that
purpose. A printed copy of such ordinance or resolution in any book,
pamphlet or newspaper and published or purporting to be published
therein by direction of the Common Council shall be prima facie proof
of due passage, publication and recording thereof.
B.
Effective date. Unless otherwise provided, all ordinances
shall take effect and be in force from and after passage and publication,
and published copies thereof shall have appended the date of first
publication.
These rules shall not be rescinded or amended
unless the proposed amendment or motion to rescind has laid over from
a regular meeting, and then it shall require a vote of 2/3 of all
the members of the Council.
These rules or any part thereof may be temporarily
suspended in connection with any matter under consideration by a recorded
vote of 2/3 of the members present.
