Richardson likely to vote on 50 amendments to city charter in May

What’s new

The two new propositions came as a result of recent council conversations, Nemer said. One proposal was to add clarifying language specifying that a resigning member of City Council may not vote on the appointment of their replacement member, which council approved for the ballot without discussion.

The second was the addition of a resign-to-run provision, requiring the automatic resignation of any council member or mayor who announces their candidacy for any other elective public office.

Nemer presented two options for this provision:

• A prospective amendment, which would only apply to members who announce their candidacy after the charter goes into effect
• A retroactive amendment, which would apply to any existing member who announced their candidacy prior to the election

Mayor Amir Omar said the amendment had “nothing to do” with any particular person, but that council was now in a position of having to decide what to do in these situations.

What they’re saying

Barrios said he supported adding the resign-to-run provision to the ballot, as many cities already have one, and that he would prefer the prospective option.

“The voters of this city elected me to serve until I could no longer serve,” Barrios said. “[The retroactive option] feels like something that is being used as a tool to circumvent what the voters want. ... I would support putting this on a ballot, but I feel that it’s a really nasty, targeted way to go about it.”

Members of city boards and commissions are already required to immediately step down from their roles if they announce a run for City Council, council member Jennifer Justice said, so it would be fair to apply the same standard to council members.

“The will of the voters was that you serve out your term, and that you not run for another office,” Justice said. “I’m in favor of it being retrospective.”

Omar said the “spirit of doing” a resign-to-run provision would be to apply it retroactively. However, he said the provision should not require a resignation if council members announce a run for mayor or for another council seat.

The specifics

Nemer said 10 of the propositions council recommended last year would be substantive amendments to the city charter, including:

• Increase council compensation to $150 per meeting, and then $200 per meeting in 2030
• Establish procedures for adjudicating a charge of misconduct for charter violations
• Add one-year district residency requirement for council members
• Define grounds for recall petition
• Add one-year residency requirement for board and commission members
• Reduce percentage of voters required to file an initiative or referendum petition from 10% to 8%
• Require insurance coverage for city officials and employees to protect the city from loss caused by a city official or employee
• Add section for continuity of government in case of disasters
• Add section requiring code of ethics and biennial review

What’s next

Council directed city staff to draft a resolution that will include previously approved propositions, the clarifying language on resigning members’ voting rights and the retroactive resignation amendment for council members running for a noncouncil office.

City staff will present the resolution to Council on Feb. 9, when council will vote to call the election for both the charter amendments and the proposed bond. The election will take place May 2.

Editor's note: This story has been updated to reflect that council compensation would increase to $150 per meeting if the charter amendment is adopted.