Charter Revision Commission Meetings

Minutes Charter Revision Commission Meeting Wednesday, January 8, 2020 at 3:30 PM Carnegie Town Hall, 235 West 10th St., Sioux Falls, SD 57104 1. Call To Order Commission Members Present: Anne Hajek, Pauline Poletes, Justin Smith, Robert Thimjon, Carl Zylstra Commission Members Absent: None Commission Chair Justin Smith called the meeting to order at 3:30 p.m. 2. Approval of Minutes A. December 11, 2019 A motion was made by Commission Member Poletes and seconded by Commission Member Hajek to approve the minutes. Voice vote to approve. 5 Yes: Hajek, Poletes, Smith, Thimjon, Zylstra; 0 No: (None). Motion Passed. 3. New Business A. Charter Revision Commission – Draft Ballot and Summary Report By Stacy Kooistra – City Attorney Kooistra reviewed the summary report, which is included below. The draft ballot with the two proposed amendments and City Attorney's Explanation was also presented to the Commission. Since June, 2019, the Sioux Falls Charter Revision Commission (“Commission”) has conducted a series of seven public meetings to assist them in preparing a report of proposed revisions to the City’s Charter. The Commission is prepared to deliver the proposed revisions to City election authorities for placement on the upcoming April 14, 2020 ballot. During the course of the public meetings, the Commission reviewed and discussed each section of the City Charter. The agenda for each public meeting alerted the public as to which particular sections would be discussed for that meeting. Each of the public meetings was televised on CityLink and archived for public access. The Commission invited guests to explain the workings of the Charter provisions under review. Current Charter sections were also compared to other versions of the Model City Charter as promulgated by the National Civic League, from which the City Charter is based. The historical significance of various sections was also discussed. Possible Charter revision proposals were discussed with City departments, City Council members, Commission members, and citizens. After extensive review and discussion, the Commission  affirmatively voted to advance two proposed measures which, following delivery and filing with the City Council and City Clerk, will be presented to the public for further consideration and, ultimately, to be voted on by City voters. The first proposal would add an eligibility requirement to Section 2.02(b) of the City Charter requiring candidates for district-specific Council seats to be a resident of the District for a period of six months immediately prior to the election. The second proposal would ensure that the requirements set forth in Section 8.01(d) of the City Charter regarding voter initiation of proposed Charter amendments are, at all times, at least as stringent as those set forth in the State Constitution. This would satisfy State law, which requires that the requirements of City Charter and ordinance be at least as stringent as those imposed by State law. Each of these proposed revisions will be presented in the form of Charter Amendments to city voters for their consideration in the upcoming City election. City voters have previously approved revisions to the City Charter in 1996, 2000, 2004, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014 and 2016. The City’s Charter is the broad governing document for the conduct of local municipal government in Sioux Falls. Smith asked for public input. There was none. A motion was made by Commission Member Thimjon and seconded by Commission Member Poletes to approve the Charter Revision Commission Summary Report and Ballot Language. Voice vote to approve. 5 Yes: Hajek, Poletes, Smith, Thimjon, Zylstra; 0 No: (None). Motion Passed. 4. Public Input There was none. 5. Open Discussion Smith thanked all of the members for their work over the past year as well as their assistance to him as the Chair. He thanked Pauline Poletes and Bob Thimjon in particular for their service to the City as members of the Commission. Poletes' and Thimjon's terms of appointment each expire this year. Smith also thanked staff for their efforts to facilitate meetings of the Commission. Thimjon thanked Smith for his service as the Chair and his ability to keep meetings focused on items under consideration. Smith asked the Commission if there are any items previously reviewed that they would like to address following the election. There were none. Carl Zylstra expressed his appreciation for the knowledge Poletes and Thimjon shared with the Commission. Knowing that new members will be appointed after their term ends, Zylstra asked if there would be an additional meeting to orient new members once they are appointed. Smith noted that the Commission  typically would not meet again until 2021, however, if the Commission chooses to meet earlier then a meeting can be called. The next meeting of the Commission is scheduled for Monday, February 3, at 3 p.m. in Carnegie Town Hall. Smith noted that the purpose of the meeting is to approve the minutes from the current meeting. No other business is expected to be covered. Smith will present the final Summary Report and ballot to the City Council at the Council's scheduled meeting of February 3, 2020, at 7 p.m. 6. Adjournment A motion was made by Commission Member Thimjon and seconded by Commission Member Poletes to adjourn at 3:46 p.m. Voice vote to adjourn. 5 Yes: Hajek, Poletes, Smith, Thimjon, Zylstra; 0 No: (None). Motion Passed. Thomas M. Greco, City Clerk Future Charter Revision Commission Meeting(s): February 3, 2020 3 p.m. at Carnegie Town Hall