by SEAN KIMMONS
Possible changes to Kyle’s city charter, which could have gone to public vote in a special election on Nov. 2, were put on hold during an emergency city council meeting Monday.
The proposed amendments include a pay increase for the mayor and councilmembers, $350 and $250 total per month, respectively. Another amendment would allow the council to fire the city manager with only four votes, instead of the current five votes. Other amendments would put term limits on city boards and commissions and lay the groundwork for a debt management policy.
But because the Charter Review Commission has not yet conducted public hearings on the proposed amendments, among other reasons, Mayor Lucy Johnson called for the meeting’s adjournment at its onset effectively killing the possibility an election this year. The deadline to call an election for Nov. 2 was midnight Monday.
“After reviewing the contents of the council packet, along with reviewing our city charter, I believe my initial decision to hold this meeting was wrong,” Johnson said. “...I am uncomfortable approving an ordinance that would order the election for amendments that I myself would reject. But more importantly I feel I cannot as mayor move forward with an election until the Charter Review Commission has held proper public hearings as required in the charter and presents us with a comprehensive review of the charter and objective recommendations.”
Ron Barrera, the commission’s chairman, said on Tuesday that his panel did not know that the city charter requires public hearings on proposed amendments to the charter, which functions as something akin to the municipal government’s constitution.
The commission met every Wednesday from June to mid-August to discuss the amendments but wasn’t informed of the rules for them to be placed on the November election ballot until recently, he said.
“We were trying to get everything done so we could have it for the November election, which would have a larger voter turn-out,” Barrera said. “We thought we had enough time.”
Johnson told councilmembers Monday that she didn’t feel right moving forward with the election. She suggested that the council meet again in a month to provide guidance to the commission.
“In addition to the lack of public hearings, my own review of the proposed amendments has led me to believe the commission has not been totally comprehensive in their study of the current charter,” she said. “I also believe some of the recommendations are reactionary in nature and would not serve our city well over the long term.”
