Loading...
2007 Recommendations • ROUND ROCK, TEXAS PURPOSE.PASSION.PROSPERITY. June 26, 2007 Mayor Nyle Maxwell Mayor Pro-tem Alan McGraw Councilmember Rufus Honeycutt Councilmember Joe Clifford Councilmember Carlos Salinas- Councilmember Scott Rhode Councilmember Kris Whitfield Re: Official Report of the 2007 Round Rock Charter Review Commission Dear Mayor Maxwell and Councilmembers: As Chairman of the 2007 Charter Review Commission,I am pleased to provide you with a report of our findings and recommendations for proposed amendments. The official report of the Commission is enclosed herein; it summarizes the recommended amendments and includes a"redlined"version of the amendments. On behalf of each member of the Commission, I would like to express our appreciation for allowing us to serve our community. It was both an honor and an educational experience. 4iffinc , Mayor uf, Chairman Nyle MaxwellReview Commission Mayor Pro-tem Alan McGraw On behalf of the Commission Members: Councilmembers Robert L.Bennett,Vice-Chairman Rufus Honeycutt Ron Buffam Joe Clifford Mark Fritz Carlos T.Salinas Judy McLeod Scott Rhode Kris Whitfield Craig Morgan Karla W. Sartin City Manager •lames R.Nuse,P.E. City Attorney Stephan L.Sheets CITY OF ROUND ROCK ADMIMTRATm DEPT., 221 East Main Street• Round Rock, Texas 78664 Phone 512.218.5401 -Fax 512.218.7097•www.roundrocktexas.gov 2007 Round Rock Charter Review Commission's • Official Report on its Findings and Proposed Charter Amendments Presented to the Mayor and Council This report is being presented to the Mayor and Council pursuant to Section 13.12 of the Round Rock Home Rule Charter. The 2007 Round Rock Charter Review Commission("Commission")held five(5) meetings during which the Commission members discussed with staff and among themselves various issues and concerns with the present Charter.At each meeting an opportunity was given to citizens to address the Commission. The Commission met and made the following recommendations for amendments to the Charter. Recommendation No. 1 To amend Sec. 3.08(c)and to add a new Sec. 3.17 to provide for assistant(s)to the Mayor and Council appointed by the City Manager and to be directed and supervised by the City Manager, • Mayor and Council. Recommendation No. 2 To amend Sec. 3.13, Sec. 7.06, Sec. 8.03, Sec., 8.10, Sec. 14.02 and Sec. 14.12 to replace the official newspaper with the official website for the publishing of certain items. A"redlined"version of the two recommendations is attached hereto as Exhibit"A.". Dated this 26 day of June,2007. Respectfully submitted, 2007ud k Ch r Review Commission By-Sit-eve , its Chainan On behalf of the Commission Members: Robert L. Bennett,Jr.,Vice-Chairman Ron Buffum • Mark Fritz Judy McLeod Craig Morgan Karla W. Sartin • RECOMIVILNATION N0. 1: ADD PROVISIONS FOR CLERICAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANTS FOR THE MAYOR AND COUNCIL pAp • SECTION 3.08PROHIBITIONS (a) Holding Other Office: Except where authorized by law,no Mayor or Council member shall hold any other City office or City employment during his or her term as Mayor or Council member and no former Mayor or Council member shall hold any compensated appointive City office or City employment until one year after the expiration of his or her term as Mayor or Council member. (b) Appointments and Removals: Neither the City Council nor any of its members shall in any manner dictate the appointment or removal of any City administrative officers or employees whom the City Manager or any of his or her subordinates are empowered to appoint,but the City Council may express its views and fully and freely discuss with the City Manager anything pertaining to appointment and removal of such officers and employees. (c) Interference with Administration: Except for the purpose of inquiries and investigations under Section 3.16,the City Council or its members shall deal with City officers and employees who are subject to the direction and supervision of the City Manager solely through the City Manager, and neither the City Council nor its members shall give orders to any such officer or employee, either publicly or privately, except as otherwise provided in this Charter. This subsection shall not prohibit the Mayor and Council fromig'ving direction and supervision to the assistant(s) appointed pursuant to Section 3.17. (Charter amendment approved by voters January 20, 1996) SECTION 3.17ASSISTANT(S)FOR THE MAYOR AND COUNCIL The Mayor and Council,along with the City Manager,shall have the power to direct and supervise one or more assistant(s) appointed by the City Manager to provide clerical and administrative support services to the Mayor and Council. The aforesaid assistant(s)shall deal with other City officers and employees solely through the City Manager, and shall not give orders to any such officer or employee, either publicly or privately. • RECOMMENDATION NO. 2: CHANGE OFFICIAL NEWSPAPER TO • OFFICIAL WEBSITE • SECTION 3.13 ORDINANCES IN GENERAL Ordinances and resolutions shall be introduced in the City Council only in written or printed form. Ordinances making appropriations shall be confined to the subject of appropriations. Any ordinance which levies a fine or penalty and those dealing with budget and/or tax, franchises,public utilities or the setting of their rates,shall be read at two regular meetings followed by publication in full or by caption in • for five(5) consecutive days on the official web site of the City before the same shall become effective. All other ordinances shall not be finally passed until they have been read on two separate days not less than twelve(12)hours apart; provided however if an ordinance has been introduced at a regular meeting of the City Council,the requirements for reading on two separate days may be dispensed with by an affirmative vote of all the City Council members present. Any ordinance introduced pursuant to Section 9.01 (e) (2)may be adopted and finally passed at the meeting at which it is introduced. The final reading of each ordinance shall be read in full unless written or printed copy thereof shall have been furnished to each member of the City Council prior to such meeting. The enacting clause of all ordinances shall be: `Be it ordained by the City Council of the City of Round Rock, Texas." (Charter amendment approved by voters January 20, 1996) • SECTION 7.06ACTION ON PETITIONS (a) Action by City Council. Within sixty(60) days after the date the initiative or referendum petition has been finally determined sufficient,the City Council shall: (1) adopt a proposed initiative ordinance without any change in substance; or (2) repeal a referred ordinance; or (3) call an election on the proposed or referred ordinance as specified in Section 7.06(b). (b) Submission to Voters. The election on a proposed or referred ordinance shall be held on the next available uniform election date as required by state law. Said called election may coincide with a regular City election should such City election fall within the specified period. Special elections on initiated or referred ordinances shall not be held more frequently than once each six(6)months, and no ordinance substantially the same as an initiated ordinance which has been defeated or on substantially the same as a referred ordinance which has been approved at any election may be initiated by the voters within two(2)years from the date of such election. Copies of the proposed or referred ordinance shall be made • available at the polls. _. (c) Publication of Proposed and Referred Ordinance. The person performing the duties of City Secretary shall publish at least onee i ^feial newsp .,f,.on the official web site of the City the proposed or referred ordinance within not less than fifteen(15) days ofrp for to the election, and shall give such other notices and do such other things relative to such election as are required in general municipal elections or by the ordinance calling said election. (d) Withdrawal of Petition. An initiative or referendum petition may be withdrawn at any time prior to the time the petition has been determined to be sufficient b filing with the Ci Secreta a request p Y g City Secretary q for withdrawal signed by at least eighty percent(80%)of the members of the petitioners' committee.Upon filing of such request,the petition shall have no further force or effect. and all proceedings thereon shall be terminated. (Charter amendment approved by voters January 20, 1996;May 6, 2000) • SECTION 8.03ANNUAL BUDGET (a) Content. The budget shall provide a complete financial plan of all City funds and activities and, except as required by law or this Charter,shall be in such form as the City Manager deems desirable or the City Council may require. A budget message explaining the budget both in fiscal terms and in terms of the work programs shall be submitted with the budget. It shall outline the proposed financial policies of the City for the ensuing fiscal year, describe the important features of the budget, indicate any major changes,from the current year in financial policies, expenditures,and revenues,with reasons for such changes. It shall also summarize the City's debt position and include such other material as the City Manager deems desirable. The budget shall begin with a clear general summary of its contents and shall show in detail all estimated income, indicating the proposed property tax levy, and all proposed expenditures, including debt service,for the ensuing fiscal year.The proposed budget expenditures shall not exceed the total of estimated income. The budget shall be so arranged as to show comparative figures for actual and estimated income and expenditures of the current fiscal year and actual income and expenditures of the preceding fiscal year, compared to the estimate for the budgeted year. It shall include in separate sections: (1) an itemized estimate of the expense of conducting each department, division,and office; • (2) reasons for proposed increases or decreases of such items of expenditure compared with the current fiscal year; (3) a separate schedule for each department, indicating tasks to be accomplished by the department during the year, and additional desirable tasks to be accomplished, if possible; (4) a statement of the total probable income of the City from taxes for the period covered by the estimate; (5) tax levies,rates,and collections for the preceding five years; (6) an itemization of all anticipated revenue from sources other than the tax levy; (7) the amount required for interest on the City's debts,for sinking fund and for maturing serial bonds; (8) the total amount of outstanding City debts, with a schedule of maturities on bond issue; (9) anticipated net surplus or deficit for the ensuing fiscal year of each utility owned or operated by the City and the proposed method of its disposition(subsidiary budgets for each such utility giving detailed income and expenditure information shall be attached as appendices to the budget); • • (10) a Capital Improvement Program,which may be revised and extended each year to indicate capital improvements pending or in process of construction or acquisition, and shall include the following items: i. a summary of proposed programs; ii. a list of all capital improvements which are proposed to be undertaken during the five(5)fiscal years next ensuing,with appropriate supporting information as to the necessity for such improvements; iii. cost estimates,method of financing and recommended time schedules for each such improvement; and iv. the estimated annual cost of operating and maintaining the facilities to be constructed or acquired; and (11) such other information as may be required by the City Council. (b) Submission. On or before the first day of August of each year,the City Manager shall submit to the City Council a proposed budget and an accompanying message. The City Council shall review the proposed budget and revise same as deemed appropriate prior to general circulation for public hearing. (c) Public Notice and Hearing. The City Council shall post in the City Hall and publish mon the official newspaper--web site a general summary of the proposed budget and a notice stating: (1) the times and places where copies of the message and budget are available for inspection by the public; and (2) the time and place,not less than two(2)weeks after such publication,for a public hearing on the budget. (d) Amendment Before Adoption. After the hearing,the City Council may adopt the budget with or without amendment.In amending the budget, it may add or increase programs or amounts and may delete or decrease any programs or amounts, except expenditures required by law or for debt service or for estimated cash deficit,provided that no amendment to the budget shall increase the authorized expenditures to an amount greater than the total of estimated income plus funds available from prior years. (e) Adoption. The budget shall be finally adopted not later than the final day of the last month of the • fiscal year.Adoption of the budget shall constitute a levy of the property tax therein proposed. Should the City Council take no final action on or prior to such day the budget, as submitted,together with its proposed tax levy, shall be deemed to have been finally • adopted by the City Council.No budget shall be adopted or appropriations made unless the total of estimated revenues, income and funds available shall be equal to or in excess of such budget or appropriations,except as otherwise provided in this Article. (Charter amendment approved by voters January 20, 1996) • • SECTION 8.10INDEPENDENT AUDIT At the close of each fiscal year,and at such other times as it may be deemed necessary,the Council shall cause an independent audit to be made of all accounts of the City by a certified public accountant.The certified public accountant so selected shall have no personal interest,directly or indirectly,in the financial affairs of the City or any of its officers.Upon completion of the audit,a copy of the audited annual financial report shall be placed in the public library and placed on file in the City Secretary's office as public record.A notice shall be published in on the official newspaper web site when the aforesaid copies of the audited annual financial report are available to the public. (Charter amendment approved by voters January 20, 1996;May 15,2004 • • SECTION 14.02 OFFICIAL NEWSPAPERWEB SITE The City Couneil shall eefAfara annually with,and by resolution designate, geneml eir-sulation in the Gity as the offisial newspaper-thereof-, and to eentinue as sueh until another is designated,shall maintain an official web site on the Internet and shall cause to be published = thereon all ordinances,notices and other matter required by this Charter,or by the ordinances of the Cityg by the . nst;tut:,,.. and/e--laws of the state of Texas to be..ubligo4 (Charter amendment approved by voters January 20, 1996) (Section renumbered pursuant to Ordinance No. G-04-06-24-16B1) • • SECTION 14.12 CHARTER REVIEW COMMISSION The City Council shall appoint at its first regular meeting of 1979 and not later than every fourth year thereafter, a Charter Review Commission of seven(7)citizens of the City. (a) The duties of the Charter Review Commission are as follows: (1) inquire into the operation of the City Government under the Charter provisions and determine whether any such provisions require revision. To this end public hearings may be held; and the Commission shall have the power to compel the attendance of any officer or employee of the City and require the submission of any of the City records which it may deem necessary to the conduct of such hearing; (2) propose any recommendations it may deem desirable to insure compliance with the provisions of the Charter by the several departments of the City government; (3) propose, if it deems desirable, amendments to this Charter to improve the effective application of the Charter to current conditions; and (4) report its finding and present its proposed amendments, if any, to the City Council. (b) Action by the City Council. SI The City Council shall receive and have published-iu on the official newspapef web site of the City any report presented by the Charter Review Commission, shall consider any recommendations made, and if any amendments be presented as of such report,may order such amendment or amendments to be submitted to the voters of the City in the manner provided by Tex.Loc. Gov't Code Ann., Chapter 9, as amended. (c) Term of Office. The term of office of such Charter Review Commission shall be six(6)months, or sooner if a report is presented to the City Council prior to said term of office. If during such six (6)month term no report is presented to the City Council,then all records of the proceedings of such Commission shall be filed with the person performing the duties of the City Secretary and shall become a public record. (Charter amendment approved by voters November 6, 1979;January 20, 1996) (Section renumbered pursuant to Ordinance No. G- 04-06-24-16B1) s