HomeMy WebLinkAbout770750.tiff RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS JM11 4,1 14r
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WELD COUNTY HOME RULE CHARTER GnEELer. coLo.
AMENDMENT STUDY COMMITTEE
September 21, 1977
PRE-MEETING: A meeting of the Study Committee Members was held prior to
convening the regular meeting for the purpose of setting up procedures
to follow for the discussion with the original Charter Commission Members.
The Weld County Home Rule Charter Amendment Study Committee met in regular
session in the First Floor Assembly Room of the Weld County Centennial Center,
Greeley, Colorado, on Wednesday, September 21, 1977, at the hour of 7:00 P.M.
ROLL CALL: The meeting was called to ,order by Chairman, Gordon Lacy, and
on roll call, the following members were present, constituting a quorum of
the members thereof:
Gordon Lacy, Chairman Blair Macy
Verdie Peddycord, Vice-Chairman Helen Norton
William Butler Wayne Brown
Dick Boettcher John Kunzman
Absent: Barbara Sloan
ALSO PRESENT: County Attorney, Thomas O. David, Assistant County Attorney,
P. Kay Norton, Seventeen Members of the original Home Rule Charter Commission,
Members of the Press, Weld County Citizens, and Secretaries Sandy Moorhouse
and Cathy Carter.
MINUTES APPROVED: A motion was made and seconded to approve the minutes of
the August 17th meeting. On roll call, the motion passed with one abstention,
that being John Kunzman.
The Chairman welcomed and introduced the members of the original Charter
Commission present upon invitation. Mr. Lacy stated that certain areas of
the Charter were being tested and decided in the courts, not by the Study
Committee, and requested those areas not be discussion topics at this meeting.
Article VI, Elective Officer$,Section 6-4, Term of Office
The Chairman selected this section as the first area of discussion and asked
for comments from those present.
John Weigand asked what the Study Committee recommended regarding the term
of office section. Chairman Lacy explained that although some members thought
the limitations on the terms of office were unnecessary, the Committee as a
whole had not reached any conclusions and were seeking input from those present.
Bill Southard stated he believed the intent of the Charter Commission members
was to assure the citizens that one person would not be able to establish a
permanent position as a County Commissioner. They wanted to avoid the possibility
of kingdoms being built. He stated the rotation of the coordinator positions
was set up for the same reason.
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Article III, Powers and Duties, Section 3-8 (b) Ordinances
George Brooks stated this section was included so areas of county government could
be brought closer to the people and would be more responsive to the citizens.
Regarding the ordinance vs. resolution problem, he said the more sensitive and
important decisions' . -made by the Board of County Commissioners should have
an avenue for citizen imput before formal action isa taken by the Commissioners.
The ordinance procedure sets up a way of receiving citizen comments through
the publication of proposed ordinances.
Mrs. Peddycord asked if the original members of the Charter Commission had
considered putting a monetary limit on the use of resolutions and/or ordinances.
Mr. Brooks responded that a discussion was held on the matter but an amount
could not be arrived at, therefore, the section was left as it appears in the
Charter.
Chairman Lacy asked for comments on the use of the ordinance process for
contracts. Ed Lesh asked how many times the ordinance procedure had been
used and if it had proven burdensome. Mr. Lacy said it had been used approximately
13 times but the problems occurred with the publication costs. Mr. Lesh asked
if benefits were derived by the use of the ordinance procedure. Wayne Brown
replied that in his opinion benefits were definitely derived but others on
the Study Committee disagreed with him. Dick Boettcher said the County Attorney
thought the process was impractical when dealing with contracts. Mr. David
then stated it did prove impractical to spend $75 on publication costs for a
$25 contract. He said if the Board of Commissioners had followed the Charter
to the letter, they would have passed 800-1000 ordinances already this year,
instead of 13.
Article V, Department of Law, Section 5-2, Qualifications
Gordon Lacy asked for comments on this section and specifically on the 5 year
experience requirement. Ralph Waldo explained the original Charter Commission
followed requirements set up for the District Attorney and judges in the
State of Colorado when drafting this section and considered them reasonable
to use when hiring a County Attorney. He stated Colorado has different laws
than other states and the County Attorney should be familiar with Colorado
statutes so he is prepared to act for the Board as soon as he is hired.
Glenn Billings stated the Board experienced interpretation difficulties
in the hiring procedures. He explained that as now stated the County
Attorney would have to have 5 years experience practicing Colorado law
and would had to have practiced in the Attorney General's office. He
suggested the Committee make minor wording changes in this section to make
it clearer. Mr. Billings also recommended the amendments on the ballot
be put on individually so the voters could decide on them separately
and not as one item. Glen Anderson expressed the opinion that the County
Attorney should represent the Board adequately and the 5 year experience
qualification was important.
Article XIV, Finance and Budget, Section 14-7, Limitations on Annual Tax Levy
Mr. Waldo explained that the members of the original Charter Commission
studied the growth of county government thoroughly during the process of
writing the Charter. Many of the members were concerned with the percentage
of growth and the increase in the budget and believed this section would
be a method of limiting the Board of Commissioners on increases. He stated
he thought this one section did the most to get the Charter passed.
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Article XIII, County Council
This section of the Home Rule Charter was discussed at length by the
people at the meeting. It was the general consensus of the original
Charter Commission members that the County Council was a needed arm
of county government and had been performing its duties as intended
by the Charter. Walter.Bain stated that all forms of government have
a check and balance system. The County Council serves this function
in Weld County government. Wayne Brown asked what the Charter Commission's
intent was in the formation of the Charter, supervisory or advisory.
George Brooks replied neither. Mr. Brooks said the Charter Commission
members bent over backwards so the County Council would in no way usurp
the authority or responsibility of the Board of County Commissioners.
Many of the members expressed concern because they did not feel the
Charter had been given a chance or been fully implemented. Norman Brown
said he did not think the County Council concept had been tried long
enough for a determination on the value/contribution to county government.
He also said the continuous use of the same auditor by the county and
the replacement of officers were other reasons for the creation of the
Council.
Article IV, Departments of County Government, Section 4-2, Finance,
Central Purchasing and Personnel
Mr. Waldo said the intent intefif-ZUTTEls section was to make the Board of County
Commissioners the policy making body of county government not the administrators.
The Commission members believed that the department heads could administer
their own departments. Dick Boettcher asked if the Charter Commission
members wanted to create a county manager position. Mr. Waldo said they
did not but they wanted a well qualified person to serve as County Finance
Officer.
Other Areas of Discussion
Nancy Clark stated she. did not believe the County Council was the answer
or the cause of all of county government's problems. She said a county
manager form of government would be superior to what Weld County now has.
There was a discussion on the county manager concept with most members
of the Charter Commission opposing the idea. George Brooks said. it
would necessitate a thorough revision of the Charter at this point.
Ed Lesh stated in his opinion the County Attorney's office had exceeded
the intent of the Charter Commission members when they wrote the Charter.
By being accessible to all county departments,the County Attorney's office
has increased their workload, thereby, also increasing their budget and
staff. He said in some :cases he believes they have exceeded their authority.
Ron Stevenson, a private citizen, stated to the Study Committee that
the County Council was given the authority to issue opinions on county
government. He said until a court decides differently he believes the
Charter should be followed.
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Chairman Lacy thanked the members of the original Charter Commission
for their comments and recommendations. He said the Study Committee
may contact them in the future for further discussion of certain
sections' of the Charter.
There being no further business to discuss, Gordon Lacy noted that the
next meeting would be on October 19, 1977 at 7:00 P.M. in the Third
Floor Meeting Room of the Centennial Center. He also stated that after
the October meeting, the Study Committee would be having at least two _
meetings per month. The meetinguwas adjourned at 9:20 P.M.
APPROVED:
WELD COUNTY HOME RULE CHARTER
AMENDMENT STUDY/--III rI HE
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