Voters will decide charter revisions
BY GLORIA JENNINGS

Nine proposed charter revisions will be considered by Rusk voters in May 2008. Members of the Rusk City Council are expected to call the election at their October regular meeting. The proposals will be presented to the them at that time by a charter review committee, chaired by Forrest Phifer. The committee met Sept. 11 to finalize recommendations to the council.

All proposals except one corrected wording and spelling errors in the current city charter. The other proposal, if approved, will take the voting right away from the mayor. Voters gave the mayor this right at a special election on May 4, 1996.

Eight of the proposals were unanimously approved Tuesday evening by the committee. The remaining proposal to take the mayor's voting right away was approved by a vote of 4-1. Voting for the proposal were Mike Crysup, Jerry Jordan, Maxine Session and Glenda Johnson. Voting against was Mr. Phifer.

The proposals as they will appear on the ballot are:

Proposed Charter Amendment 1, Article II §2: "At the head of each department there shall be a director who shall be appointed by the city manager and confirmed by a majority vote of the city council, and who may be removed by the city manager, except the city attorney, city clerk, and the judge of the municipal court. Such director shall have supervision and control over his/her respective departments. Two or more departments may be headed by the same individual, and the city manager may head one or more departments. In the event of a vacancy at the head of a department, the city manager shall appoint an acting director of such department who shall serve until such vacancy is filled, except for the city attorney, city clerk and the judge of the municipal court. The city attorney, city clerk and the judge of the municipal court shall be appointed by the mayor, with confirmation by the city council, and may be removed from office only by a majority vote of the city council. One or more alternate municipal court Judge(s) may be appointed and removed in the same manner as the judge of the municipal court, and shall be authorized to act as the judge of the municipal court in the absence or disability of the presiding municipal court judge."

Proposed Charter Amendment 2, Article II, §2: "Unless otherwise noted within this charter, all appointive officers and employees shall be for an indefinite period, but any appointive officer or employee may be removed or discharged at any time by the city manager, except for members of boards, commissions and committees appointed under Article 2 of this charter, and those appointed officers set forth in Section 1 of this article. All salaries and wages for appointive officers of the city, unless herein otherwise provided, shall be fixed by the city council acting as a committee of the whole. The terms of office for the city attorney and city clerk shall be one year. The term of office for the judge of the municipal court shall be for one year in the event of a non court-of-record, and not less than the minimum allowed by law in the event of a court-of record."

Proposed Charter Amendment #3, Article II, §5: "The city manager and such officers and employees of the city government as the city council may require bond in such amount as may be approved by the city council. In the event a bond is required by the city council, any such premiums of such bonds shall be paid by the City of Rusk. Every officer and department head of the city shall take the oath of office required by the Constitution and Laws of the State of Texas as prescribed for county officials."

Proposed Charter Amendment #4, Article III, §1: "The Mayor of the City of Rusk shall be recognized as the head of the city government for all ceremonial purposes, and by the Governor of the State of Texas for the purpose of military law, and shall preside over the meetings of the city council and perform such other duties consistent with the office as may be imposed upon him/her by this charter and ordinances and resolutions passed in pursuance hereof. He/she may participate in the discussion of all matters coming before the city council and shall be entitled to cast a vote only in order to break a tie vote of the city council."

Proposed Charter Amendment # 5, Article III, §2: "Except as otherwise provided in this charter, all powers of the City of Rusk shall be vested in the city council consisting of a mayor and at least five councilmembers to be elected in a manner hereinafter provided, and to be known as the "City Council of the City of Rusk." The members of the City Council shall receive for their services an amount as set up by the city council, and the terms of the members except as hereinafter provided, shall be for two years.

No person shall be eligible as a candidate for the city council unless he/she is eighteen years or older on the commencement of the term to be elected, a qualified voter, a citizen of the United States of America and a resident citizen of this state for a minimum period of 12 months immediately prior to the date of election. The candidates of Mayor and City Council must be a resident of the City of Rusk, must have resided within the City of Rusk for a minimum period of six months immediately prior to the date of the election, and must continuously reside within the City of Rusk during his/her term of office.

A mayor or city council member or candidate shall have no outstanding debts or past due obligations to the city. All powers of the city and the determination of all matters of policy shall be vested in the city council, limited only by this charter and the Constitutions and laws of the State of Texas and the United States of America."

Proposed Charter Amendment #6, Article III, §7: "A majority of the members of the city council shall constitute a quorum and a majority of affirmative votes shall be required to pass any order of business. The city council shall otherwise determine its own rules and order of business. It shall keep a journal of its proceedings, which shall be open to public inspection in accordance with the Constitution and Laws of the State of Texas and the United States of America."

Proposed Charter Amendment # 7, Article V, §3: "There is hereby established the finance department. The city manager shall be the director of the financial department, or designate a finance director. The department will have custody of all city funds and monies, certify as to the correctness of all contracts and orders, verify all claims to the city council by warrants drawn on the city, which shall be signed by the mayor and countersigned by the city clerk or his/her alternate as may be appointed by the city council, keep a set of accounts adequate to reflect the financial status of all departments and offices daily, prepare for the city council a monthly statement showing the financial condition of each department and city agency in relation to the current budget, and perform such other duties as the city council may require by ordinance. Any expenditure of city funds within the amount authorized by the duly accepted city budget shall need no further approval, except any expenditure of city funds exceeding the maximum amount allowed by the Constitution or laws of the State of Texas, whether budgeted or not, shall require the approval of the city council before any such expenditure may be made."

Proposed Charter Amendment # 8, Article X, § 6: "In case of grave public necessity, emergency expenditures to meet unusual and unforeseen conditions which could not, by reasonable diligent thought and attention, have been included in the original budget may from time to time be authorized by the affirmative vote of the majority of the city council as amendments or supplements to the original budget. Such supplement and amendment shall be filed with the original budget."

Proposed Charter Amendment # 9, Article XXII, §1: "All records and accounts of every office, department or agency of the city shall be open to inspection by any citizen, any representative of a citizen's organization or any representative of the press at any reasonable time and under reasonable regulations by the city council in accordance with the Constitution and Laws of the State of Texas and the United States of America."

Committee members attending the meeting were Mr. Phifer, Mr. Crysup, Mr. Jordan, Ms. Johnson and Mrs. Session. Absent were Bobby Thrash and Jack White.