The big picture
City Attorney Andy Segovia briefed council on Aug. 1 about the six potential charter changes, which resulted from a series of meetings of a Charter Review Commission. When council meets again Aug. 8, members will decide whether to schedule a Nov. 5 election, and which proposed amendments should make the ballot, if not all of them.
The city has until a state deadline of Aug. 19 to add a special election to the Nov. 5 ballot, which already has elections for president, Congressional and legislative seats, and some Bexar County positions.
The proposed amendments are:
- A) Add a definition of “conflicts of interest” and remove term limits for Ethics Review Board members. The same amendment requires sufficient funding for the ERB so it can properly perform. Additionally, ERB would be authorized to accept or decline complaints that have been resolved by an entity other than the ERB
- B) Revise charter language to address outdated and superseded provisions.
- C) Authorize City Council to set the full terms of the city manager’s employment, including tenure and compensation.
- D) Allow city employees to participate in local political activity consistent with state and federal law while protecting employees against political retribution. Additionally, employees are prohibited from taking part in local political activities for city leaders.
- E) Set annual compensation for City Council members and the mayor at $58,000 and $73,000, respectively, with future yearly adjustments correlated to the San Antonio area median income. The local median household income is $58,829, according to the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey.
- F) Extend the terms of all elected City Council members, including the mayor, from two to four years, and change term limits from four full terms to two full terms. City officials said this item would preserve the potential of incumbent council members serving at least eight straight years.
Each council member spoke out Aug. 1 on all of the proposed amendments. While some members praised the CRC’s efforts and generally backed half or most proposed amendments, some expressed concerns about raising the pay or extending terms of elected leaders. Other council members said they worried about nixing term limits on the ERB and that the city managerial proposal may not go far enough.
When it comes to term limits, some council members wondered whether the city should transition from electing a mayor and all 10 council members every two years to at least staggered terms, where five or six elected leaders would be chosen one year and the rest chosen the next year.
District 9 Ccouncil member John Courage said when he was elected to council in 2017, he was one of seven then-council newcomers.
“It seems to me that we would be better off retaining consistency of membership,” Courage said.
Possibly raising pay for the mayor and council members was an often-discussed issue for the CRC.
District 10 council member Marc Whyte said he understands elected officials put in many hours of work to serve their constituents. However, he added it is difficult to mull a raise for elected leaders while many local residents struggle with their own finances.
“I believe it would be inappropriate for us in the City Council to grant ourselves a raise, even for future councils, at this at this point in time,” Whyte said.
District 8 council member Manny Pelaez said everyone may not agree with the specifics or rationale for each charter amendment proposed by the CRC, but the proposals represent the charter commission’s best efforts and that voters deserve to have their say at the polls.
“I think for the most part we hit the mark, but there’s room for improvement,” Pelaez said.
Some council members attempted to propose new charter amendments on the spot, such as revising how a city attorney is selected, but Mayor Ron Nirenberg warned against such efforts given that CRC members spent much time developing recommendations for council.
“This is not open season [on] the city charter,” Nirenberg said.
Nirenberg acknowledged that some discussions have centered around other suggested changes to the city charter and governance processes, but, for now, council should focus on the proposals recommended by the CRC.
"Obviously there are a number of other ideas, but the presentation that you just heard from [Andy Segovia] was our best effort to assemble all of that feedback,” Nirenberg said. “The reality is, in order for us to call an election, we've got to find the sweet spot that everyone was comfortable with."
