03-30-2015 MinutesMINUTES
REGULAR MEETING
March 30, 2015
A Meeting was held by the Schertz Charter Review Commission of the City of Schertz,
Texas, on March 30, 2015, at 6:00 p.m., in the Hal Baldwin Municipal Complex
Administration Conference Room, 1400 Schertz Parkway, Building #2, Schertz, Texas. The
following members present to -wit:
Mark Davis Chair Michael Dahle — Vice Chair
Member Bert Crawford
Member Jana Volitis
Member Regina Agee
Staff Present:
City Attorney Charles Zech
City Secretary Brenda Dennis
City Manager John Kessel
Guests Present:
Mr. Robert Brockman, 1000 Elbel Road, Schertz Texas.
Maggie Titterington, Schertz Chamber President and Schertz Resident
Call to Order
The meeting was called to order at 6:05 p.m. Chair Davis welcomed everyone and opened
the discussion up to any residents. No discussion from attending residents.
1. Minutes — Consideration and /or action approving the minutes of March 13, 2015.
Chair Davis recognized Vice Chair Dahle who moved, seconded by Commission
Member Crawford to approve the March 13, 2015 minutes as written. The vote was
unanimous, motion passed.
2. Review, discussion and possible approval of proposed revisions to sections 6.06,
7.09, 7.10, 9.01, 9.02, and 9.03 based on the March 13, 2015 meeting discussions.
Section 7.09 Lapse of Appropriations. & Section 7.10 Director of Finance.
The commission discussed the status of the pending revisions to both of these
sections and noted that the City Staff is still working on proposed updates. After
discussion, Council Member Crawford moved, seconded by Council Member Volitis
to table further consideration on these sections until our next meeting. The vote was
unanimous, motion passed. (OPEN ITEMS)
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Section 9.01 City Elections.
by appheable State laws. if this . . . .proved by the votefs in the eleetion-af
November- 6, 2012, the teirims df—.111 me—b— of the City Gotmeil seizving folleY�4ng
eleetion date in November- 2013 and as to their- sueeesser-s an eaeh odd-
on eaeh e Pui:nbefed yeaf the afte
Gualified uotefs. All eitize-fis qualified by the CensfittAien and genefal laws of the
State te vote in the City and whe satisfy the fequir-emeftts fer- r-egisifa4ieft pfesefibed
by 1a7w shall be qualified voters of the City within the meaning of this Ghai4er-.
shall be een"eted by the eleetion atAhefifies established by law. Fef the eeft"et of
desifable, eefisistefft with the law, and Ns GhaAef.
pefmit4ed by appheable State law.
(a) The regular City election shall be held annually on the uniform election date
in November, or at such other times as may be authorized or specified by
State Law, at which time officers will be elected to fill those offices which
become vacant that year.
(b) The City Council shall fix the place for holding such election.
(c) The City Council may, by ordinance or resolution, order a special election, fix
the date and place for holding same, and provide all means for holding such
special election.
Chair Davis recognized Vice Chair Dahle who moved, seconded by Commission
Member Agee to approve the revisions as presented. The vote was unanimous,
motion passed.
Section 9.02 Candidates.
(a) Any person having the qualifications set forth for- Getffieilff°ff'g°r under
Section 4.02 of this Charter shall have the right to file an application to have
his or her name placed on the official ballot as a candidate for any one elective
office. stieh zcs- a cyo" G ci eil iEHflb °r DZ ZCe One, c viic•l iemb c Dr
acc
> in vffifiiig, shall ,
addfess, > date ef bifth, eand da4e ef fesideney, shall be
3 -30 -2015 minutes Page - 2 -
In PMW
1. Any such application shall be in writing, signed by such candidate, and
filed with the City Secretary in accordance with the Texas Elections Code
and this Charter.
2. An application file in accordance herewith shall entitle such applicant a
place on the official ballot.
(b) A candidate of the City Council shall specify the place number or position the
candidate is seeking.
(c) A filing fee of five dollars, or such other amount as may hereafter be set by
the City Council, must be paid to the City Secretary by each candidate upon
presentation of his or her application. The filing fee shall be waived if the candidate
states in writing that payment thereof will constitute a financial hardship.
Members discussed leaving the word "under" in the first sentence of section (a).
Chair Davis recognized Commission Member Crawford who moved, seconded by
Commission Member Volitis to approve as presented, with the retention of the word
"under" in the first sentence. The vote was unanimous, motion passed.
Section 9.03 Determination of Election Results.
Ma-yer-, Geuneihnember- Plaee One, ete., whe shall h&�,e r-eeeived the most votes
eaehffiee- east in sueh eleetio�ll be deelar-ed eleeted. In the event no candidate
for an elective office receives a majority of the votes cast for that place in the general
or special election. a run -off election shall be held between the two (2) candidates
who received the greater number of votes. In the event a tie vote makes it impossible
to determine the winning candidate or candidates, resolution of such tie shall be
decided as provided in the Texas Election Code.
Chair Davis recognized Vice Chair Dahle who moved, seconded by Commission
Member Agee to accept the revised wording for Section 9.03 as presented. The vote
was unanimous, motion passed.
3 -30 -2015 minutes Page - 3 -
3. Review City of Schertz Charter Articles X, XI, and XII and consider any
recommendation for amendments thereto.
The commission reviewed Article X, Initiative, Referendum and Recall
The commission reviewed Section 10.01 General Authority.
Chair Davis recognized Vice Chair Dahle who moved, seconded by Commission
Member Agee to approve existing section as written. The vote was unanimous,
motion passed.
The commission reviewed Section 10.02 Commencement of Proceedings;
Petitioners; Affidavit.
Chair Davis recognized Commission Member Agee who moved, seconded by Vice
Chair Dahle to approve existing section as written. The vote was unanimous,
motion passed.
The commission reviewed Section 10.03 Petitions.
After discussion of this section, the commission opted to leave this section open and
defer review and possible action to the next scheduled meeting, pending the
submission of draft wording from the City Attorney. The commission requested to
see a draft proposal with regard to changing the section on "number of signatures" to
a format the would be based on the number of registered voters vice how many voted
in the previous election and proposals to change the percentage from 50 percent of
those who voted to ranges from 15% to 20% of overall registered voters when
petitioning for Initiatives, Referendums or Recalls.
Chair Davis recognized Commission Member Crawford who moved, seconded by
Commission Member Volitis to table consideration until the next meeting. The vote
was unanimous, motion passed. (OPEN ITEM)
The commission reviewed Section 10.04 Procedure After Filing.
Chair Davis recognized Vice Chair Dahle who moved, seconded by Commission
Member Agee to approve existing section as written. The vote was unanimous,
motion passed.
The commission reviewed Section 10.05 Referendum Petitions; Suspension of
Effect of Ordinance
Chair Davis recognized Commission Member Volitis who moved, seconded by
Commission Member Crawford to approve existing section as written. The vote was
unanimous, motion passed.
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The commission reviewed Section 10.06 Action on Petitions
Chair Davis recognized Vice Chair Dahle who moved, seconded by Commission
Member Volitis to approve existing section as written. The vote was unanimous,
motion passed.
The commission reviewed Section 10.07 Results of Election
Chair Davis recognized Commission Member Crawford who moved, seconded by
Commission Member Volitis to approve existing section as written. The vote was
unanimous, motion passed.
The commission reviewed Section 10.08 Limitation on Recall
Chair Davis recognized Vice Chair Dahle who moved, seconded by Commission
Member Agee to approve existing section as written. The vote was unanimous,
motion passed.
Additional discussion on Section 10
After discussion of this section 10 in general, the commission requested the City
Attorney to present draft wording for consideration that would add guidance in the
city charter outlining procedures for the council to follow with respect to repealing
vote approved initiatives and referendums and / or actions regarding failed initiatives
or referendums. Chair Davis recognized Vice Chair Dahle who moved, seconded by
Commission Member Agee to table this process until review of proposals from the
City Attorney. The vote was unanimous, motion passed. {OPEN ITEM}
The commission reviewed Article XI, Public Utilities
The commission discussed Article XI in its entirety. Information presented by the
City Attorney indicated that virtually this entire Article is not necessary, as the city's
authority over public utilities is based on state law. Chair Davis recognized
Commission Member Agee who moved, seconded by Commission Member Crawford
to recommend deletion of Article XI, Public Utilities in its entirety. The vote was
unanimous, motion passed.
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The commission reviewed Article XII, General Provisions
The commission reviewed Section 12.01 Personal Financial Interest.
After discussion of this section, the commission opted to leave this section open and
defer review and possible action to the next scheduled meeting, pending the
submission of draft wording from the City Attorney. The commission requested to
see a draft proposal based on previous discussions held when addressing City Council
member qualifications.
Chair Davis recognized Vice Chair Dahle who moved, seconded by Commission
Member Crawford to table consideration until the next meeting. The vote was
unanimous, motion passed. (OPEN ITEM)
The commission reviewed Section 12.02 Prohibitions.
After discussion of this section, the commission recommended deletion of this
section. Discussion centered on concerns regarding the wording of many areas in this
section, specifically;
- items (1) and (2) are or should be covered in the city's HR policies
- item (3) is covered under criminal law
- items (4) and (5) potentially violate individual protections under the 1"
Amendment, and portions regarding employee activity on the job should be addressed
in HR policy
- item (6) is covered under Texas state law.
Chair Davis recognized Commission Member Agee who moved, seconded by Vice
Chair Dahle to recommend deletion of Section 12.02. The vote was unanimous,
motion passed.
The commission reviewed Section 12.03 Liability for Personal Injuries or Death
Chair Davis recognized Commission Member Agee who moved, seconded by Vice
Chair Dahle to recommend deletion of this section. The vote was unanimous,
motion passed.
The commission reviewed Section 12.04 Charter Amendment
Chair Davis recognized Commission Member Agee who moved, seconded by
Commission Member Crawford to approve existing section as written. The vote was
unanimous, motion passed.
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The commission reviewed Section 12.05 Charter Review Commission
The commission discussed the size of the Charter Review Commission and the time
allotted to the commission for conducting their review and submission to the city
council.
Chair Davis recognized Commission Member Volitis who moved, seconded by
Commission Member Crawford to recommend increasing the size of the Charter
Review Commission to `Seven" members. The vote was unanimous, motion
passed.
Chair Davis recognized Commission Member Agee who moved, seconded by Vice
Chair Dahle to recommend changing the second paragraph regarding the "term" of
the Charter Review Commission as follows;
"The term of office of the Charter Review Commission shall be 180 days after the
date of their first meetinz, which shall be held within 45 days of appointment of the
Commission, and, if during this term no report is presented to the City Council, then
all records of the proceedings of the Commission shall be filed with the City Manager
and the Charter Review Commission shall be dismissed."
The vote was unanimous, motion passed.
The commission reviewed Section 12.06 Separability
Chair Davis recognized Commission Member Crawford who moved, seconded by
Vice Chair Dahle to approve existing section as written. The vote was unanimous,
motion passed.
The commission reviewed Section 12.07 State Law
Chair Davis recognized Commission Member Crawford who moved, seconded by
Vice Chair Dahle to approve existing section as written. The vote was unanimous,
motion passed.
The commission reviewed Section 12.08 Headings
Chair Davis recognized Vice Chair Dahle who moved, seconded by Commission
Member Volitis to approve existing section as written. The vote was unanimous,
motion passed.
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4. As necessary discuss planned review of the City of Schertz Charter for next
scheduled meeting.
Members discussed that the next meeting that was scheduled for 6 April 2015 will be
cancelled, allowing additional time for the City Staff to provide recommendations for
Sections 7.09. and 7.10 and the City Attorney to provide recommendations and draft
language for Sections 10.03, 12.01 and new draft language for Article 10 regarding
policy for voter initiatives and referendums.
The next meeting of the Charter Review Commission will be on April 15, 2015 at
6:00 p.m., during which the Commission will review the above open areas and
conduct discussion in general on the City Charter.
Adjournment
As there was no further business, a motion was made by Commission Member Crawford,
seconded by Commission Member Volitis to adjourn the March 30, 2015 meeting at 8:50
p.m. The vote was unanimous, motion passed.
Chair Mark Davis
ATTEST:
Brenda Dennis, City Secretary
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