(a)
Composition - There shall be a City Council of nine members which shall exercise the legislative powers of the City. Three of these members, to be known as "Councillors-at-Large," shall be nominated and elected by and from the voters at large. Six of these members, to be known as "Ward Councillors," shall be nominated and elected by and from the voters of each ward, one such Ward Councillor to be elected from each of the six wards into which the City is divided, in accordance with Section 7-5.
(b)
Term of office - The term of office for all City Councillors shall
be for two years each, beginning on the first Monday of January in
the year following their election, and until their successors have
been qualified.
(c)
Eligibility - Any voter shall be eligible to hold the office of Councillor-at-Large. A Ward Councillor shall at the time of election be a voter of the ward from which elected; provided, however, if any Ward Councillor shall during the first 18 months of the term of office remove to another ward in the City, such office shall be deemed vacant and the balance of the unexpired term shall be filled in the manner provided in Section 2-11. If such removal occurs after the first 18 months of the term of office, such Councillor may continue to serve for the balance of the term for which elected. If a Councillor-at-Large or a Ward Councillor removes from the City during the term for which elected, such office shall immediately be deemed vacant and filled in the manner provided in Section 2-11.
(a)
Election and term - The candidate for Councillor-at-Large receiving
at the biennial City election the largest number of votes for the
office shall serve as Council President during the ensuing term of
office.
(b)
Powers and duties - The Council President shall preside at all meetings
of the City Council, regulate its proceedings and shall decide all
questions of order. The Council President shall appoint all members
of all committees of the City Council, whether special or standing.
The Council President shall have the same powers to vote upon all
measures coming before the City Council as any other member of the
City Council. The Council President shall perform such other duties
consistent with the office as may be provided by Charter, by ordinance
or by other vote of the City Council.
(c)
Council Vice-President - As soon as practicable after the councillors-elect
have been qualified following each biennial election, the members
of the City Council shall elect from among its members a Vice President
who shall act as President during the absence or disability of the
Council President. The powers of an Acting Council President shall
be limited to only those powers which are indispensably essential
to perform the duties of Acting Council President during the absence
or disability of the Council President.
No member of the City Council shall hold any other City office
or City employment for which a salary or other emolument is payable
from the City treasury. No former member of the City Council shall
hold any compensated appointed City office or City employment until
one year following the date on which such former member's service
on the City Council has terminated.
(a)
Salary - The City Council may, by ordinance, provide an annual salary
for its members. No ordinance increasing such salary shall be effective,
however, unless it shall have been adopted during the first 12 months
of a term of office and it provides that such salary is to take effect
with the organization of the City government following the next biennial
election.
(b)
Expenses - Subject to appropriation, the Council members shall be
entitled to reimbursement of their actual and necessary expenses in
the performance of their duties.
Except as otherwise provided by general law or by this Charter,
all powers of the City shall be vested in the City Council which shall
provide for their exercise and for the performance of all duties and
obligations imposed upon the City by law.
(a)
Exercise of powers - Except as otherwise provided by general law
or by this Charter, the legislative powers of the City Council may
be exercised in a manner determined by it.
(b)
Quorum - The presence of five members shall constitute a quorum for
the transaction of business, but a smaller number may meet and adjourn
from time to time. Except as otherwise provided by general law or
by this Charter, the affirmative vote of five members shall be required
to adopt any ordinance or appropriation order.
(c)
Rules of procedure - The City
Council shall from time to time adopt rules regulating its procedures,
which shall be in addition to the following:
(i)
Regular meetings of the City Council shall be held at a time and
place fixed by ordinance.
(ii)
Special meetings of the City Council shall be held at the call
of the Council President, or, on the call of any three or more members,
by written notice delivered in hand or to the place of residence of
each member and which contains a listing of the items to be acted
upon. Except in case of an emergency, of which the Council President
shall be judge, such notice shall be delivered at least 48 hours in
advance of the time set for such meeting. A copy of the notice to
members shall, forthwith, be posted upon the City bulletin board.
(iii)
All sessions of the City Council, and of every committee or
subcommittee thereof, shall at all times be open to the public and
to the press, unless another provision is made by law.
(iv)
A full, accurate, up-to-date account of the proceedings of the
City Council and of every committee and subcommittee thereof shall
be kept, which account shall include a record of each vote taken,
and which shall be made available with reasonable promptness following
each meeting.
(a)
In general - The City Council may make investigations into the affairs
of the City and into the conduct and performance of any City agency
and for this purpose may subpoena witnesses, administer oaths and
require the production of evidence.
(b)
City officers, members of City agencies, employees - The City Council
or any committee or subcommittee thereof may require any City officer,
member of a City agency or City employee to appear before it to give
such information as the City Council may require in relation to the
municipal services, functions, powers, or duties which are within
the scope of responsibility of such person and within the jurisdiction
of the City Council.
(c)
Mayor - The City Council may require the Mayor to provide specific
information to it on any matter within the jurisdiction of the City
Council. The City Council may require the Mayor to appear before it,
in person, to respond to written questions made available to the Mayor
at the time the request to attend is made to the Mayor to provide
specific information on the conduct of any aspect of the business
of the City. The Mayor may bring to such meeting any assistant, department
head or other City officer or employee the Mayor may deem necessary
to assist in responding to the questions posed by the City Council.
(d)
Notice - The City Council shall give not less than five days' notice
to any person it may require to appear before it under the provisions
of this section. The notice shall include specific questions on which
the City Council seeks information and no person called to appear
before the City Council under this section shall be required to respond
to any question not relevant or related to those presented in advance
and in writing. Notice shall be by delivery in hand, or by registered
or certified mail to the last known place of residence of any such
person.
(a)
Budget/Management Analyst - The City Council shall elect a Budget/Management
Analyst to serve for a term of three years and until a successor is
chosen and qualified. The Budget/Management Analyst shall perform
a legislative oversight and a post-audit function and shall not be
involved in the day-to-day administrative detail of the financial
operations of the City. The Budget/Management Analyst shall have free
access to all books, accounts, bills and vouchers of the City and
shall continuously review and examine the same. The Budget/Management
Analyst shall make periodic reports thereon to the City Council, with
such frequency as the City Council by ordinance, by rule or by other
vote may direct, but not less frequently than quarterly. All officials
of the City shall cooperate with the Budget/Management Analyst in
the performance of this oversight function. The Budget/Management
Analyst shall have such other powers and duties as may be provided
by Charter, by ordinance or by other vote of the City Council.
(b)
City Clerk - The City Council shall elect a City Clerk to serve for
a term of two years and until a successor is chosen and qualified.
The City Clerk shall have the powers and duties relating to the keeping
of records and vital statistics, the regulation and conduct of elections
and the issuance of licenses as are provided to city clerks by general
laws and such additional powers and duties as may be provided by general
laws, by Charter, by ordinance or by other vote of the City Council.
(c)
Clerk of the Council - The City Council shall elect a Clerk of the
Council, who may be the City Clerk, to serve for a term of two years
and until a successor is chosen and qualified. The Clerk of the Council
shall give notice of its meetings to its members and to the public,
keep the journal of its proceedings and perform such other duties
as may be provided by ordinance or by other vote of the City Council.
(d)
Salaries/Compensation - The officers appointed or elected by the
City Council shall receive such salaries or other compensation as
may from time to time be provided for such office, by ordinance.
(a)
Emergency ordinances - No ordinance shall be passed finally on the
date it is introduced, except in case of emergency involving the health
or safety of the people or their property.
No ordinance shall be regarded as an emergency ordinance unless
the emergency is defined and declared in a preamble to such ordinance,
separately voted upon and receiving the affirmative vote of six or
more members of the City Council.
Emergency ordinances shall stand repealed on the 61st day following
their adoption, unless an earlier date is specified in the measure,
or unless a second emergency measure adopted in conformity with this
section is passed extending it, or unless a measure passed in conformity
with the procedures for measures generally has been passed extending
it.
(b)
Measures, in general - The City Council may pass a measure through
all of its stages at any one meeting, except proposed ordinances,
appropriation orders and loan authorizations, provided that no member
of the City Council shall object; but, if any single member objects,
a vote on the measure shall be postponed to the next meeting of the
City Council.
On the first occasion that the question of adopting any measure is put to the City Council, except an emergency measure as defined in Section 2-9(a), if a single member objects to the taking of a vote, the vote shall be postponed until the next meeting of the City Council, regular or special. If, when the matter is next taken up for a vote, three or more members object to the taking of the vote, the matter shall be further postponed for not less than an additional five days. This procedure shall not be used more than once for any measure, notwithstanding any amendments made to the original measure.
(c)
Publication - Every proposed ordinance, appropriation order or loan authorization [except emergency ordinances as provided in Section 2-9(a)], shall be published once in full in a local newspaper, and in any additional manner as may be provided by ordinance, at least 10 days before its final passage. After final passage, it shall be posted on the City bulletin board and otherwise published as may be required by ordinance; provided, however, that whenever a proposed ordinance or codification of ordinances or other measure would exceed in length more than 10 column inches of ordinary newspaper notice print, then, in lieu of publication in a local newspaper, the same may be published and made available at the office of the City Clerk in booklet or pamphlet form, and, if so published and available at least 10 days before its final passage, shall be deemed sufficient notice. Whenever the City Council provides for publication in a booklet or pamphlet in lieu of the newspaper publication, it shall, at least 10 days before final passage, publish in a local newspaper a general summary of the proposed ordinance, or ordinances, and a notice stating the times and places at which copies of the booklet or pamphlet may be obtained by the public.
(d)
Council reconsideration - The Clerk of the City Council shall hold
every measure adopted by the City Council for a period of 24 hours,
Sundays and legal holidays excepted, and if during said time notice
of an intent to file a motion to reconsider the matter is filed with
the Clerk of the Council by a member entitled to make such a motion,
the measure shall be returned to the City Council for further action.
If no such statement of intent is filed with the Clerk of the Council
during such period, the Clerk shall, at the expiration of the said
twenty-four-hour period, forthwith present the matter to the Mayor.
The Mayor shall submit to the City Council the name of each
person the Mayor desires to appoint to any City office, as a department
head or as a member of a multiple-member body, but not including any
position which is subject to the civil service law. The City Council
shall refer each such name as is submitted to it to a standing committee
of the City Council which shall investigate each such candidate for
appointment and may make a report, with recommendations, to the full
City Council not less than seven days nor more than 21 days following
such referral. The committee may require any person whose name has
been referred to it to appear before the committee, or before the
City Council, to give such information relevant to such appointment
as the committee, or the City Council, may require.
Appointments made by the Mayor shall become effective on the 30th day following the date on which notice of the proposed appointment was filed with the Clerk of the Council, unless the City Council shall within the said 30 days vote to reject such appointment, or unless the City Council has sooner voted to affirm the appointment. Rejection by the City Council shall require a two-thirds vote of the full Council, except that an appointment to a multiple-member body may be rejected by a majority vote of the full Council. The question on rejection of any appointment made by the Mayor shall not be subject to the procedure of Charter objection provided in Section 2-9(b) of this Charter.
(a)
Councillor-at-Large - If a vacancy shall occur in the office of Councillor-at-Large
during the first 18 months of the term for which Councillors are elected,
the vacancy shall be filled in descending order of votes received
by the candidate for the office of Councillor-at-Large at the preceding
City election who received the largest number of votes without being
elected, provided such person remains eligible and willing to serve
and provided such person received votes at least equal to 30% of the
vote total received by the person receiving the largest number of
votes for the office of Councillor-at-Large at the said election.
The City Clerk shall certify such candidate to the office of Councillor-at-Large
to serve for the balance of the then unexpired term.
If a vacancy shall occur in the office of Councillor-at-Large
during the last six months of the term for which Councillors-at-Large
are elected, such vacancy shall be filled by the person at the biennial
City election who receives the highest number of votes for the office
of Councillor-at-Large and who is not then serving as a Councillor-at-Large.
Such person shall forthwith be certified and shall serve for the last
two months of the concluding term in addition to the term for which
such person was elected.
(b)
Ward Councillor - If a vacancy shall occur in the office of Ward Councillor, it shall be filled in the same manner as provided in section 2-11(a) for the office of Councillor-at-Large except that the list shall be of the candidates for the office of Ward Councillor in the ward in which the vacancy occurs; provided, however, if there be no candidate on such list who remains eligible and willing to serve, the next highest ranking candidate from among the candidates for election to the Council at large who is a resident of the ward in which the vacancy exists shall be certified and shall serve until the next regular election, provided such candidate remains a resident of the ward, is willing to serve as a Ward Councillor and received votes in the ward at least equal to 30% of the vote total received by the person receiving the largest number of votes for the office of Ward Councillor at the said election. If the vacancy shall occur by reason of an incumbent Ward Councillor filling a vacancy in the office of Councillor-at-Large, as provided in the penultimate sentence of (a) above, such vacancy shall be filled by the person at the biennial City election who receives the highest number of votes for the office of Ward Councillor from that ward. Such person shall forthwith be certified and shall serve for the last two months of the concluding term in addition to the term for which such person was elected. The City Clerk shall certify such candidate to the office of Ward Councillor to serve for the balance of the then unexpired term.
(c)
Filling of vacancies by City Council - Whenever a vacancy shall occur in the office of Councillor-at-Large or in that of Ward Councillor and there is no available candidate to fill such vacancy in the manner provided in Section 2-11(a) or (b), the vacancy shall be filled by the remaining members of the City Council. Persons elected to fill a vacancy by the City Council shall serve only until the next regular election, at which time the vacancy shall be filled by the voters and the person chosen to fill such vacancy shall forthwith be sworn and shall serve for the remainder of the unexpired term in addition to the term for which elected. Persons serving as City Councillors under this section shall not be entitled to have the words "candidate for re-election" printed against their names on the election ballot.
