Ordinance & Legal Review Committee

APPROVED MINUTES CITY OF BELLEVILLE ORDINANCE & LEGAL REVIEW COMMITTEE 14 JANUARY 2014 6:00 PM CITY COUNCIL CHAMBERS 1. Call to Order Chairman Musgrove called the meeting to order at 6:00 PM 2. Chairmen to Announce Evacuation Procedure It was explained to all present that in the event of a fire or other emergency all present are to calmly leave the room and gather in the Southwest Quadrant of the Public Square in front of the St. Clair County Courthouse and wait for the all clear message. In the case of a Tornado or other disastrous condition all present should head directly to the basement of this building using the steps in the hall or garage entrance. 3. Members Present: Alderman Melinda Hult Alderman Ken Kinsella Alderman Trent Galetti Alderman Jim Davidson Alderman James Musgrove (Chairman) Mayor Mark Eckert The Mayor is a voting member of the committee. 4. Guests Present: Garrett Hoerner, Belleville City Attorney Alderman Bob White Michael Hagberg Joy Schreiber Jacqueline Lee (News Democrat) To start the meeting the guests are allowed to present their comments to the committee. However, Michael Hagberg and Joy Schreiber did not arrive until 6:10 PM, and were not available to speak. The others did not offer to make a comment. 5. Approval of the previous Meeting Minutes Chairman Musgrove asked for a motion to approve the Minutes of the Ordinance & Legal Review Committee Meeting held on 16 December 2013, at 5:00 PM. Alderman Ken Kinsella made the motion to approve the Minutes, and Alderman Jim Davidson seconded the motion. There was no discussion, all members present voted Aye. The Minutes were approved. 6. Chairman to address old business, new business, reports and comments 7. Action Item: Page 1 of 5  APPROVED Action Item 7 (A) Consider clarification of the power of the moderator during City Council Meetings. This was TABLED at a previous Ordinance Committee Meeting. Garrett Horner, Belleville City Attorney, said the council members, by virtue of rules in the City Ordinance, the Council has adopted Roberts Rules of Order, and Roberts Rules of Order contemplates that the moderator is generally not substantively involved in the deliberations. In Attorney Hoerner’s observations of the conduct of the meetings this Council has had, he said they are like many other governmental bodies, more informal. In this instance, the issue that you run into is, if you don’t have the moderator participate at all, and the moderator is your mayor and chief executive officer, sometimes the question elicits participation in the deliberation. That is the catch 22 that you are in if you want to be more formal. Every time you ask a question, it is going to require a substantive answer during deliberation, then somebody has to give up the chair. Alderman Melinda Hult asked if she could ask the department heads questions during Council Meetings, or is she locked into going to the moderator and let him repeat the question. Mayor Eckert answered that he will usually call on the department head if it is not an easy quick answer. He said some nights she comes here with a long list of questions and the next night tells him he should not take over answering questions. The Mayor continued and said he thought dealing with department heads should be done in committee meetings rather than Council Meetings. Also, he mentioned that the Aldermen can call the Department Heads on the phone to get answers to questions. Sometimes, based on the timing of the subject of the question, he may have more current information than the department head. He said he tries to be fair about giving everybody their turn about questions. He said Belleville is different than some of the surrounding cities in that he functions as the City Manager and the City Mayor. The Mayor said that he has spoken up sometimes, about some items, because what had been said was false or hear say statements and he had to correct the facts t for everyone. Alderman Jim Davidson asked Alderman Hult to explain what she meant about using words of persuasion only in Committee Meetings and not in Council Meetings. Alderman Davidson said that many aldermen can’t be present in some Committee Meetings and would miss hearing information that could be important and influential. Alderman Davidson said he did not understand what Alderman Hult was asking for. He said he welcomes any information that can help him make a decision on a subject regardless of the source. Alderman Ken Kinsella said that if the moderator made a statement that is misleading or that you disagree with, all the Aldermen have the right to say they disagree with it. Where he thinks there would be a problem is if the moderator would not allow the Alderman to talk. If you have a chance to rebut what the moderator says, and the moderator is not keeping you from doing that, I think it is a good discussion. Alderman Davidson asked Alderman Hult what she wants the committee to do. Alderman Hult said she feels like there is separation of powers. She feels like we are pushing it when we allow too much influence from one source. Alderman Davidson said she was talking about restricting information. Mayor Eckert then spoke and explained that our form of government permits the Mayor to be a voting member of the council and each committee. He is given the task of breaking a tie vote by the members of the Council or Committee. He must be able to speak on all subjects. Alderman Davidson said he did come to the defense of the Mayor several times but thinks since we have discussed CIVILITY as a group, we have stopped or reduced the bad name calling. Alderman Trent Galetti then asked if we had change discussion subjects because CIVILITY is the subject of discussion Item 7 (B). Chairman Musgrove answered no, we have not changed subjects. Page 2 of 5  APPROVED At this point, Alderman Hult said we have no Ordinance changes, or anything, to make for Subject Item 7 (A). She said she feels everyone has shared their opinion on the subject and does not think we are going to take any action on this item. Chairman Musgrove stated we will close Item 7 (A) and move on. The item is not tabled, it will just be CLOSED. Action Item 7 (B) Consider CIVILITY RULES for Alderman and Public speakers during Council Meetings which was TABLED at a previous Ordinance Committee Meeting. Based on discussions from previous meetings on the subject of CIVILITY, City Attorney, Garrett Hoerner created a DRAFT of an Amendment to Ordinance 2-2-1 RULES OF COUNCIL. (See Attachment (1) to these minutes for a copy of the proposed amendment to Ordinance 2-2-1). Copies of the proposed amendment were provided to each member of the Ordinance and Legal Review Committee. Since the amendment was new to all present, Alderman Melinda Hult suggested that we TABLE this subject so that the amendment can be reviewed by all members of the committee and all members of the City council before any vote is taken. Alderman Ken Kinsella agreed with the suggestion but said he would at least discuss some parts of the amendment at this time. The City Attorney, Garrett Horner gave each committee member a copy of the Draft of the amendment and proceeded to explain the changes. He has done some legal research on the subject and included some rules from the Open Meetings Act. He suggested that we print these rules with the Agenda for each month which will be posted on the Web site for all to read. He said he changed the amount of time for Public comments from 2 to 3 minutes because most of the time 2 minutes is not enough and he found some case law that actually said 3 minutes is a permissible restriction. He stated that, if it is practical, the speaker could avoid repetitive comments by merely stating he agrees with a previous persons comments. This subject produced several comments about bringing this subject to the attention of the public present. Mayor Eckert said, if we have a lot of people to speak, the moderator should make a point to explain this to the people present. Attorney Hoerner explained that he expanded the list of prohibited conduct during public participation. Alderman Jim Davidson said he would like the wording changed to say any Alderman can interrupt bad conduct by calling “Point of Order”, followed by the moderator striking the Gavel. Alderman Hult asked if these rules apply only to the City Council. Mayor Eckert said he believes we should include in this ordinance that these rules apply to all city meetings including the Zoning Board Meetings and we should provide a copy of the changed DRAFT to all Council Aldermen. Attorney Hoerner said we will have to make these changes in the appropriate sections of the Ordinance Book to include all City Committees. Alderman Ken Kinsella made a motion to TABLE this Ordinance until the next Ordinance meeting to allow time to review the changes. Alderman Trent Galetti seconded the motion. All members present voted Aye. The motion to table is approved. Agenda Item 7 (C) Consider the Belleville Ordinance on trespassing by Gideon Bible distributor which was discussed at length and TABLED at a previous Ordinance Committee Meeting. Alderman Trent Galetti said that his understanding of this item is, we had people from both sides, the school, the children’s parents and the man who was distributing the bibles, come in and we talked about the situation. Alderman Galetti is not aware of any further action specifically Page 3 of 5  APPROVED addressing this problem. The man distributing the bibles displayed a letter referencing a case before the Supreme Court that he claims allows him freedom to distribute, provided he is on a public sidewalk. It appears the children, in order to go from one class to another, must exit the school, walk down the public sidewalk and to re-enter the school building. The first meeting ended with the members of the Ordinance and Legal Review committee voting to table the subject until a future meeting. Since the first meeting on this subject, City Attorney Garrett Hoerner has done some research and found a State statute under trespass, that talks about criminal trespass to a safe school zone. It does not state a specific length like 250 feet, but it does prohibit someone from being in a safe school zone when they are not there for lawful business. Attorney Horner further stated we have the option to delete the section for the City Ordinance and replace it with the State Statue. Mayor Eckert said we are due to update the Cities Ordinance Book and could wait until that time make changes. Attorney Hoerner said he has not heard from the school or the parents about this topic and Mayor Eckert said he has not heard from either side of the argument. Alderman Hult asked if we need to do anything on this topic. City Attorney Hoerner said it has been determined that Police Chief Clay’s response, to not issue a citation, was correct and that no further action is needed at this time. Due to no action by either party in the dispute the subject is CLOSED. Action NOTE: Alderman Trent Galetti had to leave the meeting at 6:51 PM but we will still have a quorum present to continue the meeting. Action Item 7 (D) Discuss a recommendation to issue a REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL for recodification of City Ordinances. Chairman Musgrove said that the Request For Proposal (RFP) is to get a price to update our Ordinance Book and review what other added features each company has to offer. Mayor Eckert said that City Attorney, Garrett Hoerner has already prepared an RFP that we can use. Alderman Ken Kinsella asked what we can expect with recodification. Attorney Hoerner said the first thing they will do is a comprehensive review, then they will compare the book against a standard set of ordinances they feel we should have. It will be better organized and up to date as far as changes and evolution of the law. It will come with software that makes it more easily searchable. Alderman Hult asked if the RFP will provide prices for the basic book and separate prices for special sections we may pick and choose from such as laws for historical districts and maintenance programs. Mayor Eckert also said he wants to request a quote on Zoning Ordinance updates. Attorney Hoerner answered he was sure they would provide quotes on special items. Next was the question on how long this will take. Mayor Eckert said we will ask for a time line in the RFP but he would guess it could take 6 to 9 months. Next, Mayor Eckert said this is going to require the time and cooperation of City employees to provide local information and other details. Alderman Jim Davidson made the motion to direct staff to prepare a Request For Proposal for recodification of the Belleville Ordinance Book, including any additional services offered. Motion seconded by Alderman Melinda Hult, all members present voted Aye, motion passed. Action Item 7 (E) Discuss a recommendation for PARLIMENTARY PROCEDURE TRAINING . Page 4 of 5  APPROVED Mayor Mark Eckert opened the discussion by saying we have the City Attorney, Garrett Hoerner present at all Council meetings and Assistant City Attorney, Brian Flynn present at all Zoning Meetings who can guide us to ensure proper procedures are followed. However, since Mayor Eckert is now a vice president of the Illinois Municipal League he will find out what training they have available for parliamentary training. Alderman Ken Kinsella said he thought that since we do have an attorney present at each meeting we are getting parliamentary training that is tailored toward the council. Alderman Jim Davidson said he is in favor of having training and he knows that the IML does offer training. He thinks we should investigate what is available. Alderman Melinda Hult said we are gathering information and we are not making a decision now. This subject is OPEN TO INVESTIGATION and will be REVIEWED at a future meeting. Action Item 7 (F) Consider an Ordinance amending Chapter 3, (City Administration) by adding Section 3.38 concerning compliance with the Illinois Freedom of Information Act City Attorney, Garrett Hoerner explained that this Ordinance addition that he prepared is the result of discussions he and the Mayor had with the City Clerk regarding the process for responding to FOIA requests, time line and things of that nature. It clarifies the process and makes tracking the FOIAs easier. He used both the statute and a model ordinance from the Illinois Municipal League to codify both what was being done and some improvements. He said basically, what we are doing is accomplishing two things. We are assigning the statutory responsibilities from the Freedom of Information Act to the appropriate representative of the City and secondly, creating an internal process by which we ensure a timely response. Also, Attorney Hoerner reviewed a proposed contract for the City Clerk, Dallas Cook, to procure some software that he identified that will assist in processing the FOIA requests. Attorney Hoerner agreed, purchasing the software, would be a good idea. This was followed by a group discussion on how FOIAs have been handled in the past and how this Ordinance and the new software will make the process better. Alderman Ken Kinsella made the motion to send this Ordinance to the City Council for approval. Motion was seconded by Alderman Melinda Hult. This motion calls for a Roll Call vote as follows: Alderman Melinda Hult, Aye, Alderman Ken Kinsella, Aye, Alderman Jim Davidson, Aye, Alderman James Musgrove, Aye, Mayor Mark Eckert, Aye. The motion was approved. It should be noted that Alderman Trent Galetti left the meeting earlier and could not vote. 8. Miscellaneous -- Any business, discussion, or comments from the committee Action Item 8 (A) Discuss changes to the Ordinance on treatment of animals to add more control of pet owners who do not treat animals properly, such as leaving them outside when the weather is too cold. Mayor Eckert said we should do more research on what laws we have available to address these issues. City Attorney, Garrett Hoerner said he would check on any other Criminal Codes we could use. This subject will be CARRIED FORWARD for discussion at the next meeting. 9. Adjourn Meeting. Chairman Musgrove asked for motion to adjourn. Motion made by Alderman Ken Kinsella, second by Alderman Jim Davidson, all present voted Aye, motion passed, meeting adjourned at 7:40 PM. See Attachment 1 to Minutes, A Draft of Ordinance Concerning FOIA Compliance Page 5 of 5