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Hi everyone. Thanks for joining us
today. We're getting folks moved over

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from the waiting room into the webinar.
Um, we appreciate you taking the time

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out of your day.
Um, this is a smaller form of Well, I

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shouldn't say smaller form of
government, but not as many communities

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have this form of government. So, we're
going to have a smaller group today. Um,

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so hopefully that gives us plenty of
time to answer all of your questions.

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Um, and if we have extra time, we can
always wrap up early. So, we appreciate

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you taking the time. Um, I'm Molly
Wheeler. I'm one of the deputy directors

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at the League. I'm joined today by our
legal director, Jared Tingey, who's

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going to be chatting about, um, how to
lead together through different forms of

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government. This is our third and final
webinar in this series. Um, it is for

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the council manager form of government.
So, if you are in a form of government

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that is either a five-member council,
six-member council, or the mayor

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council,
um, know that you're welcome to stay,

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but this isn't your form of government,
and so what you learn, um, isn't going

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to apply to you.
Um, some of the best practices are the

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same, but, uh, just just be aware of
that. Um, as per usual, we're going to

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record this webinar. We're going to
share the slides. So, if you have any

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questions, um, feel free to let us know.
And actually, if you have any questions,

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um, I'll also pop the link in the chat,
but feel free to ask them anonymously. I

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know sometimes, um, it's a little
complicated in some communities of

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different kind of power dynamics or
tensions that people are working

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through, and so,
um, you are welcome to enter your

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questions in the chat or the Q&A box.
Just know that your name will be

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attached to that. Um, if you'd like to
ask a question without your name being

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attached to that, please feel free to
use this link, and I will share that

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link in the chat with everyone as well.
Um, so with that, Jared, I'm going to

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hand it over to you.

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» Thank you, Molly. Can you hear me?
>> Yes, sir.

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» Okay, thank you.
Okay, well, thank you for being here and

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thank you Molly for that introduction.
Um

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You are all unique
because for the vast majority of folks,

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they are in different forms of
government and the form of government

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that you are in
is

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is a remnant
of what has happened

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prior to in 2008. So,
uh congratulations. So, today we are

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going to talk a little bit about
the key takeaways that I want you to

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take away from this presentation are one
we are all a work in progress.

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Um we can always do better. We can
always lead better. Um and it always is

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better if we can look at ourselves and
say, "How can I improve?"

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instead of they need to improve.
The second is just because you can

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doesn't mean you should.
Um

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as with as with everything in life. Um
and this is one thing that uh

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you may have the authority to do certain
things, but that doesn't always mean

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that that's the best way to do it.
The third is effective communication is

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the key to strong relationships
and those strong relationships are the

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key to effective leadership.
If there is strong communication, strong

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relationships, almost any problem,
almost any conflict can be overcome.

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And it may take a lot of work. It may
take a lot of uh

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humility
and a lot of leadership

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uh of trying to work with individuals
that are so extremely difficult

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sometimes and that there is conflict.
Conflict is a part of life and uh and

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especially in local governments. So, uh
with that, we're going to talk just

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briefly. I'm not going to go into uh all
of that all all that uh

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is there, but uh
related to the council-manager form of

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government. But, one thing um I
[clears throat] will say is that the

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city manager
is uh takes control and has the

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administrative and executive authority
uh and unlike other forms of government

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where the mayor or the council has that
administrative and executive authority,

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this is the city manager. They are the
CEO

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um while the legislative authority uh
remains with the council members and the

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council, which the mayor is a part of.
The council can either be a five-member

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council or a seven-member council.
And the council uh must uh

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in order to hire a city manager, must
approve that city manager with a

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two-thirds vote. And to dis- dismiss
them with a majority vote.

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Um
for the most part, mayor is a ceremonial

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function and uh they still are the chair
and still have a vote uh on the council,

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but uh overall, it is uh
it is more so a ceremonial function.

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The city manager really takes care of
most of the administrative and executive

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functions. So, what are the top five
most common conflicts?

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Um
and I should say this that let me

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[clears throat] go back to this slide.
Um

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there are two uh two things. One is
there is the statutory council manager

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form of government. And there is, say in
a five and six member council, you may

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have a council manager. And even in a in
a mayor council form of government, you

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may have a city administrator.
Um, or otherwise called a city manager.

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So,
this form of government is actually a

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different form and a different setup.
The city manager is actually part of

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that statutory
uh, form of government as opposed to

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just being hired via an ordinance uh,
setting up that position. This is

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different. Um, although I should say
that for the most part, uh, there are a

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lot of similarities between a council
manager and when there is a

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a man city manager in a five and six
member council form, which means it's

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very flexible.
Um, the top five most common conflicts

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we'll go through and and starting at
number one is the authority to set the

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council agenda.
Typically, um,

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the best way I have seen uh, councils do
this is either to have two council

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members or a council member and the
chair, which would be the mayor, um,

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have something be put on the agenda.
Typically, the conflict is that a

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council member wants something on the
agenda

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and the mayor or the the chair uh, does
not want to put that on the agenda. And

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so, it really hamstrings the council of
being able to uh, move forward with

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policy decisions.
Um and so the best way I've seen is in

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your rules and uh policies for the
council to put uh how that is going to

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work within your council.
How is How are agenda items put on the

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agenda? And how many council members
have to

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uh
uh agree to put it on.

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Um some have council chairs and then uh
vice chairs.

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Um
but

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generally speaking, it's usually
surrounding one of those ways, uh but it

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must be put in your rules and uh
procedures for the council.

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The second conflict is the authority to
appoint or dismiss.

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Now,
in a council-manager form of government,

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I should say that overarching
uh across all of these conflicts,

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when it's between a council member
or the mayor and the city manager, the

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city manager,
generally speaking,

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is uh must be careful
on following the guidelines and uh of

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the entire city council, not just one or
two

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uh
members of the council, but what does

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the whole council want uh
as it relates to the policy or even the

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administrative part? Because again,
the city manager can be removed by the

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city council. So, all of these conflicts
have this overarching or overriding uh

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tone behind them to say, "Look, if the
city manager is not doing exactly what

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the city council is looking for them to
do, there is a risk of that being a

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conflict between the city manager and
the council." Um and so, the authority

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to appoint or dismiss, typically that uh
still runs with the council.

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Um it is flexible, however. It depends
really on to what level of authority uh

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the council gives to the city manager.
Now, the city manager is the CEO. They

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do have the authority to take care of
executive functions.

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Again, going back though,
to ensure that the city manager is doing

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what the majority of the council is
wanting,

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they typically take everything to the
council.

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Um
it it does go both ways. I've I know

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that there are some cities in this form
of government that have

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um
have decided to give the city manager

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that authority cart blanche and say,
"You can appoint and dismiss."

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But typically,
it's usually always with the advice and

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consent of the council.
Um

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with the with the authority to direct
staff, city staff, generally speaking,

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the best uh working, the most effective
uh cities with this form of government,

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you will find will give the city manager
that authority to direct staff city

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staff. And without any sort of uh
strings or without any sort of

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because there is trust there. And so,
this is something that the city manager,

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as well as the city council, can try to
establish is that there is trust between

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uh those two individuals, two two the
council and the city manager.

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Um
>> [clears throat]

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» So, generally speaking,
um

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when it comes to the authority to direct
staff, it's usually lies with the city

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manager, but again, it comes back down
to what is the city council wanting

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um and it it typically comes back down
to the city staff. Now, be aware though

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uh that again,

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a one member of the council cannot make
decisions

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uh
and policy direction and administrative

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decisions
in and of themselves

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to
um to guide the city. It is a majority

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of the city council.
Um and so, be aware of that that

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I've seen at some points a a city
council say,

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"Hey, you you know what? Or or I'm
sorry, a city council member say,

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"Staff, you need to do this." And that
puts the staff in a really awkward

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position.
Do I uh go and ask my city manager who

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has the authority? Should I because this
the the council member's asking me to do

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something?
Um and change uh a certain policy,

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should I do it?
Again, coming back,

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the city council
has the authority to decide what the

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policy is. And
although to a large degree, this form of

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government gives that executive power to
the city manager.

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There's always that overriding concern
of am I doing what city

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uh
majority of the city council have asked

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me to do.
Uh the fourth is the authority to

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develop and adopt a budget.
This is typically presented uh either by

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the city manager or a budget officer
that's hired by

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uh
by the city to uh to run the budget, to

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do the budget and the finances.
And with the help of the city manager

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they develop a budget and present that
to the city council. Obviously the city

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council still has the authority to say
this is what our budget will be

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and to change or modify that, but that
is the uh generally the the the

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mechanism and the way of which a budget
is uh adopted and passed.

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The fifth is the authority to enter into
contracts for the city.

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I've seen it both ways. Some sometimes
cities in this form of government will

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allow the city manager to
sign and enter into contracts that are

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below a certain dollar amount.
Um other city councils have said we want

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to see every contract.
Um and even for those that uh give the

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authority, give that that authority to
the city manager

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typically the city manager still takes
those contracts to the city council for

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consideration.
But it all depends on on really how

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those how you would like those uh that
process to work within your city.

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Um
here are the top five really most

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unhelpful responses.
Um airing your dirty laundry in a public

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forum. If a city council member
has a

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is having challenges with either a city
manager or the mayor or another city

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council member
or staff.

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City council
uh meeting is not the place to

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uh have that
fight, to have that conversation.

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Can there and will be will there be
conflict? Will there be challenging the

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ideas? Yes. But it doesn't become
personal against the individual. It

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becomes an attack on the idea.
We'll talk a little bit about that in in

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a moment.
Uh the second is officially censuring

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the elected official.
I can't unless there is some criminal

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unethical
action.

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I have not found any benefit of
officially censuring

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a city council member
uh for

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for doing um or acting the way that
they're acting.

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Now,
is the chair responsible for making sure

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the meetings
uh are orderly? Yes.

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But those mechanisms can typically be
pointed out and written down in a

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rules and procedures of the council
such that it is defined of this is what

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um
this is what will lead to the

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uh expelling of a city council member
from the meeting. This is what a- and

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writing that out and having that down.
It's really all about the process.

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Again, the communication. If everyone is
on the same page, then

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there isn't this surprise that this
behavior is going to be treated this

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way.
Uh the third is discussing the conflict

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with others just for the sole reason to
gain allies.

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This is not the same as discussing the
actual idea

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and
trying to persuade others about that

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idea.
But if the sole reason that you or

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others are going to
other individuals is to gang up or to

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um

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to gather allies
uh against that individual for their

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personality or for their just as that
individual, that's not helpful.

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Um focusing on the actual ideas and
policy is what will be helpful.

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Uh the fourth is believing and acting as
though your behavior or political

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position is 100% defensible and
justified.

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It's not,
but even if it is,

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uh and even if you believe it is, there
there are back to one of the key

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takeaways,
there is always room for improvement.

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Uh we all have things that we can
change.

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And
and so recognizing that

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and moving forward in effective
communication can lead to a uh

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a well-run smooth city. That doesn't
mean that there won't be conflict.

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There's always conflict. In fact, I
would say conflict is very good uh

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because it can vet out ideas that are
not uh practical or not the direction

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that the city should be taking.
But, it's how it's done. And the

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behavior uh
that it's done in that makes a

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difference.
The fifth is mistaking policy difference

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for character flaws.
Again, um I should say

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focusing on the policy is what matters
most, not on Everyone has character

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flaws.
Um and if you don't think that,

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that's a character flaw.
Uh

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and so, everyone has room for
improvement. So, those are probably the

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five most unhelpful responses I've seen.
And um and that leads us really into the

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the top five practical solutions. And
I'll give this over to Molly to discuss

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uh to discuss those solutions.
>> Thanks, Jared. And thanks, everyone. Um

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as a reminder, you're welcome to enter
your questions either into the Qualtrics

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link that we have in the chat um to ask
an anonymous question or if you're

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comfortable asking the question with
your name, um you're welcome to use the

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chat or the Q&A function for that. Um
so, a couple of things that we wanted to

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walk through. We've been working over
the last year with um Professor Danya

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Redmore, who's now up at Utah State. And
she does a lot of work on negotiation

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and conflict and really helping people
build a practical skill set to navigate

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conflict. I think a lot of times we see
different um initiatives and

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uh
kind of goals um

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around disagree better or the dignity
index or um you know, reaching across

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the aisle, but we don't necessarily
always get the practical tools to do

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that. And so, we've really worked with
Danya over the last year to help build a

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curriculum that helps people build the
skill set they need to navigate conflict

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and negotiate effectively. Um it'll be
in a future slide, but after annual this

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year, we're going to have a like a 3/4
day training with Donya at Murray City

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Hall that we encourage folks to sign up
for. You can either sign up for it as an

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addition to your annual registration or
um, if you're not able to attend annual,

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you can just attend that as a solo
event. Um, it's always been a really

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successful thing and folks have really
enjoyed it. So, we would encourage you

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to check that out. Um, so first, I think
it's really important as we are seeing

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more and more uh
kind of folks reaching out to us talking

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about how they are navigating different
types of conflict in their

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municipalities and how they can go about
it. I think one of the most important

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things to keep in mind is that conflict
just is.

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Um, it's not good, it's not bad. I think
a lot of us are raised um, to be pretty

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conflict averse. I know that conflict
makes me pretty anxious. I'm pretty

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conflict averse.
But, I think it's worth remembering that

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conflict is really normal. Um, and
conflict [clears throat] is normal even

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within ourselves. Um, right? You might
wake up and wonder uh if you should

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sleep in or go to the gym. That is
conflict, right? And that is within

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yourself and something that you are
actively navigating.

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Um, and I think when you are in a
community and you're a municipal leader,

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it's really natural for people to have
that level of concern, right? Because

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people just want what's best for their
community and those can be different

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visions at times.
Um, and so I think it's worth

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remembering that we don't need to
eliminate conflict, we just need to

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figure out how to navigate it
effectively. And we don't necessarily

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need to always be in agreement, but we
just need to figure out how we can

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navigate disagreement to move forward.
So, the second thing with that is to

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really make sure that you are listening
actively and seeking to understand

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folks. Um, I think a lot of times when
we get into conflict, it's very easy to

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make assumptions about what folks are
thinking and why.

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Um, so really try to listen to folks
that you are disagreeing with and

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do so to understand them, not to
formulate your response or your

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rebuttal.
Um, don't assume that you know what

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they're going to say. Don't assume that
you know why they're going to say it. I

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think a lot of times you can do well if
you slow down, ask questions, um, and

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specifically open-ended questions.
Things like, "Tell me more about your

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concern. What are you most worried
about? What would a good outcome look

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like for you?
What am I missing?"

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And then try as you can to reflect back
what you've heard, right? So, if I'm

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understanding you correctly, then this
is what you're trying to communicate.

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And you don't have to agree with someone
to make them feel heard. And I think

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that you see this often times if you're
on council or working for a city, right?

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There are times that someone may come in
for public comment and the city or town

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is going to go a different direction but
then what they are asking for, but the

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process of making them feel heard and
respected goes a long way. Um, so we

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encourage you to do that with one
another as well.

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The third is to really making sure that
you are regulated,

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um, in both your body and your mind. I
think we live in a very disregulating

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time with our phones and the news being
what it is, there's always um, you know,

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a lot of stimulus out there and it is
very easy for us to get pretty activated

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00:24:37,240 --> 00:24:44,120
and conflict activates us. And when you
are activated in conflict, you're not

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00:24:42,480 --> 00:24:50,240
really using your higher thinking,
you're definitely more in your lizard

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brain. And so, notice as best you can
when you are getting defensive,

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frustrated, angry, anxious. Um, and it's
fine to take some time and calm down or

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really get a level. Um, we encourage you
not to respond at your highest level of

301
00:25:03,680 --> 00:25:10,520
emotion. Take a breath, slow down.
Be careful with your texts and emails,

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00:25:08,320 --> 00:25:15,840
especially since those can be records or
frequently records. Um, that can be

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00:25:13,400 --> 00:25:21,200
accessed later. And just remember that
usually regulating yourself is the first

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00:25:18,080 --> 00:25:25,200
step towards de-escalating a situation.
Um, the fourth is something that I think

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00:25:22,920 --> 00:25:29,400
is really helpful for us to consider.
Um, and that's to differentiate your

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position from your interest. And what
does that mean? So, a position is what

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you want, but an interest is why you
want it. And I think often times in

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public policy, and in life in general,
we talk about things in the realm of

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00:25:42,040 --> 00:25:50,600
positions. So, I do or don't want to
approve of this, um,

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00:25:48,160 --> 00:25:56,080
housing development, commercial use,
mixed-use rezone, what have you, right?

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00:25:53,400 --> 00:25:59,920
We talk about the thing itself, and
whether or not we support or oppose it,

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00:25:57,680 --> 00:26:04,440
but we rarely get to the underlying
issue of why, right? Are we concerned

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00:26:02,640 --> 00:26:08,680
about traffic? Are we concerned about
infrastructure?

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00:26:05,800 --> 00:26:12,960
Are we concerned that we're losing jobs,
and that this could be a really good

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00:26:10,080 --> 00:26:17,880
economic motor for our community?
Um, so don't get stuck arguing over

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00:26:15,600 --> 00:26:22,600
positions with folks. Really try to chat
with them and understand what is

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00:26:20,440 --> 00:26:27,520
underneath it. And I think a helpful
exercise can be for yourself and others

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00:26:24,840 --> 00:26:31,560
to to keep asking why. So, if you do or
don't support, you know, we'll say you

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00:26:29,160 --> 00:26:35,760
are opposed to
a mixed-use rezone. Why are you opposed

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00:26:34,120 --> 00:26:38,680
to that? And maybe you get another
answer, right? Of like, well, I'm

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concerned about traffic in the area.
Okay, why are you concerned about

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00:26:39,960 --> 00:26:45,320
traffic in the area? Are you concerned
about safety, right? Is it, well, my

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00:26:43,200 --> 00:26:50,120
kids walk on that road to go to school.
And so, really maybe the issue isn't

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00:26:48,040 --> 00:26:53,480
that it's a mixed-use development, maybe
it's that you're worried that it's going

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00:26:51,280 --> 00:26:57,360
to bring more traffic to the area and
make the roads less safe. And that's a

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different problem to solve than just
objectively saying yes or no to a

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development from the beginning. It gives
you more interesting problems to solve

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00:27:03,960 --> 00:27:10,480
and solvable problems more than just a
yes no um across the board on a lot of

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00:27:09,120 --> 00:27:15,200
those things. It lets you be a pretty
collaborative negotiator.

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Um and then the final one is that
process matters. And I think that this

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is something that we are seeing again
and again um across different forms of

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00:27:21,880 --> 00:27:27,360
government. In Utah, as we've been
chatting about, we have multiple forms

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of government. And so the way that
something works in your community based

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00:27:29,760 --> 00:27:35,560
on the way statute has established your
form of government isn't necessarily how

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00:27:34,000 --> 00:27:39,880
it's going to work in a different form
of government. And even even though,

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00:27:37,840 --> 00:27:43,640
right, we have council manager for this
form of government,

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00:27:41,400 --> 00:27:47,920
the ordinances and resolutions you pass
as your community will change what your

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00:27:45,520 --> 00:27:51,440
processes look like. And so if you don't
have good processes, you should

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00:27:49,560 --> 00:27:56,360
establish them. You should make sure
everyone knows them. And recognize that

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how you go about making decisions is
just as important as the decisions you

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00:27:58,000 --> 00:28:04,600
make often. And so making sure that
people feel heard, understand the

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00:28:03,000 --> 00:28:08,480
process that you're going to follow so
that even if you they don't get their

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00:28:05,960 --> 00:28:13,360
way, they understand why and how that
decision was made. Um and be really

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00:28:11,080 --> 00:28:17,080
clear about how people can participate.
When are things a council decision? When

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00:28:15,480 --> 00:28:22,720
are things a mayor's decision? When are
things a city manager's decision or

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00:28:18,800 --> 00:28:28,400
staff? Um the more processes that you
can have and making it clear what

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00:28:25,520 --> 00:28:31,840
individuals lanes are and are not, the
more you're going to be able to cut down

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00:28:29,880 --> 00:28:36,200
on conflict just because that general
confusion of who has what job isn't

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00:28:35,120 --> 00:28:41,320
there.
Um so those are kind of our big

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00:28:38,440 --> 00:28:47,000
takeaways. Um again, credit to Professor
Tanya Moyle. We definitely encourage you

351
00:28:43,520 --> 00:28:53,000
to come check out her training um at the
end of October, Uh but with that Jared,

352
00:28:50,240 --> 00:28:56,520
I will hand it back to you and again
encourage folks to submit questions

353
00:28:54,760 --> 00:28:59,680
either in the chat or
through that Qualtrics link. And I will

354
00:28:58,320 --> 00:29:02,760
say as of right now we don't have any
questions, which is

355
00:29:01,440 --> 00:29:05,840
fine,
but if you do have questions, please

356
00:29:04,440 --> 00:29:09,720
please let us know so we can make sure
we take the most advantage of this time.

357
00:29:12,120 --> 00:29:19,040
And I saw someone raise their hand. We
can't since we're in a webinar, we can't

358
00:29:16,840 --> 00:29:25,480
have you speak, but
Council Member Burrell, if you can enter

359
00:29:21,320 --> 00:29:30,200
your comment into the chat or through
that QR code, we can make sure that we

360
00:29:30,240 --> 00:29:33,760
cover what you want to discuss.

361
00:29:42,480 --> 00:29:49,120
Excellent. I'll flag again after looking
at our participant list.

362
00:29:46,520 --> 00:29:54,040
We have a handful of folks who are from
the council manager form of government.

363
00:29:51,040 --> 00:29:58,800
We also have a lot of folks who are
have are from forms of government that

364
00:29:56,080 --> 00:30:02,200
have managers or have
chief administrative officers, but

365
00:30:00,160 --> 00:30:06,600
aren't necessarily this form of
government. So keep in mind there's only

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00:30:04,680 --> 00:30:11,280
a handful of communities that follow
this form of government. It's Brian

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00:30:09,360 --> 00:30:15,920
Head, Cottonwood Heights, Holiday, Orem,
and West Valley. This is that

368
00:30:13,560 --> 00:30:21,400
grandfathered form of government. So you
may not have this even if you do have a

369
00:30:18,800 --> 00:30:26,480
five-member council and a city manager,
and we can make sure we get you the

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00:30:22,840 --> 00:30:26,480
resources for that as well.

371
00:30:33,680 --> 00:30:39,560
All right, I'm not seeing any questions
come in or anything from the chat.

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00:30:37,560 --> 00:30:42,480
Council Member Burrell, I want to make
sure we cover your

373
00:30:41,640 --> 00:30:47,200
uh
question if you have one. So, I'll we'll

374
00:30:44,600 --> 00:30:51,840
hang on for a moment um if that comes in
and if not, we're happy to touch base

375
00:30:48,840 --> 00:30:56,120
with you offline as well.
So, we'll just give it another moment or

376
00:30:53,120 --> 00:30:56,120
two to see what comes in.

377
00:30:57,960 --> 00:31:03,600
And as a reminder, I know we were just
discussing on the conflict competence

378
00:31:02,520 --> 00:31:07,880
workshop that we're going to do with
Donya. Um also encourage you all to sign

379
00:31:06,240 --> 00:31:12,680
up for annual. This is the last time
we'll be in Salt Lake for a while as the

380
00:31:09,600 --> 00:31:17,000
Salt Palace gets ready uh to shut down
temporarily for renovations ahead of the

381
00:31:14,600 --> 00:31:21,720
Olympics. So, definitely encourage you
to join us for that. I'll drop the link

382
00:31:19,000 --> 00:31:25,160
in the chat for anyone um who still
needs to sign up.

383
00:31:23,600 --> 00:31:30,400
Uh we've been working really hard on the
programming. Um our keynote speaker is

384
00:31:27,880 --> 00:31:35,520
going to be uh Frank Abagnale from Catch
Me If You Can, the guy uh the former

385
00:31:33,160 --> 00:31:41,440
fraudster turned um
fraud prevention expert for the FBI. So,

386
00:31:38,400 --> 00:31:46,120
that should be a good time as well. Um
here we go. Council member Burrell, um

387
00:31:43,640 --> 00:31:52,360
can you give an example of how a council
creates a policy to change from a city

388
00:31:49,240 --> 00:31:57,680
manager um appointing an all citizen
committee assignment? So, Jared, kind of

389
00:31:54,640 --> 00:32:02,160
how do you how could the council go
about changing

390
00:31:59,640 --> 00:32:07,880
the um
that kind of domain within the city

391
00:32:04,640 --> 00:32:07,880
manager's authority?

392
00:32:13,760 --> 00:32:17,160
And you're muted, Jared.

393
00:32:28,560 --> 00:32:36,400
Um
Jared, I'm requesting to unmute you, but

394
00:32:32,240 --> 00:32:36,400
I think you need to select it.

395
00:32:45,600 --> 00:32:52,120
» And maybe we can stop screen sharing if
that makes things

396
00:32:49,480 --> 00:32:52,120
easier.

397
00:33:02,520 --> 00:33:07,360
And if not, Councilmember Bro, we might
just have to follow up with you offline.

398
00:33:06,320 --> 00:33:09,840
» Oh, there we go. Okay.
>> There we go. Never mind.

399
00:33:09,120 --> 00:33:13,720
We can hear you, Joe.
>> Okay.

400
00:33:11,080 --> 00:33:16,040
I'm I'm sorry. I don't have access to
what the question was. Molly, would you

401
00:33:15,400 --> 00:33:23,360
mind
>> Yeah, absolutely. So, um the question

402
00:33:19,520 --> 00:33:27,680
was about how you amend or adjust the
city manager's authority within this

403
00:33:25,640 --> 00:33:33,040
form of government. So, one of the
examples was right now, if the city

404
00:33:30,400 --> 00:33:37,560
manager has the authority to appoint all
the citizen committee assignments, is

405
00:33:35,280 --> 00:33:41,440
there a way to
pass ordinance or resolution to make it

406
00:33:39,440 --> 00:33:48,520
so that the council could have more
discretion um as to who that is.

407
00:33:44,840 --> 00:33:53,960
» Yeah, it would just be uh like uh
like was said, just passing an ordinance

408
00:33:51,360 --> 00:33:58,520
and uh getting it on the agenda and
passing an ordinance.

409
00:33:55,520 --> 00:34:04,280
And uh that really controls. I think
that one of the um the things that city

410
00:34:01,520 --> 00:34:08,639
managers do have to have at the back of
their minds is that things

411
00:34:06,600 --> 00:34:15,480
uh if they're not done according to what
the city council is looking to to uh

412
00:34:12,560 --> 00:34:19,720
to run as their policy, then
uh they may they may face some some

413
00:34:18,600 --> 00:34:23,679
challenges [clears throat]
uh

414
00:34:20,639 --> 00:34:27,520
up to and including um the city moving
on from that city manager.

415
00:34:25,720 --> 00:34:30,240
Um and that's just the reality of this
form of government.

416
00:34:29,840 --> 00:34:33,200
Um
>> Mhm.

417
00:34:31,560 --> 00:34:37,399
And I think the next question goes along
a little bit with that as well.

418
00:34:35,440 --> 00:34:41,600
Best practices for kind of advice and
consent from the council

419
00:34:39,720 --> 00:34:45,520
and how you can create more transparency
with that.

420
00:34:44,200 --> 00:34:48,818
» Yeah,
when when you are appointing or

421
00:34:47,320 --> 00:34:51,480
dismissing
>> [clears throat]

422
00:34:49,760 --> 00:34:55,760
» I've seen
I've seen

423
00:34:52,919 --> 00:34:55,760
see if I can

424
00:34:59,200 --> 00:35:03,720
Am I still there?
>> You're still here.

425
00:35:01,720 --> 00:35:06,280
» Okay, I'm sorry. I'm having technical
difficulties all over here.

426
00:35:04,920 --> 00:35:11,400
» All good. We're doing this from the road
today, so we're making the most of it.

427
00:35:09,040 --> 00:35:15,720
» Yes, apologies.
So

428
00:35:12,680 --> 00:35:18,720
I would say that that it really comes
down to

429
00:35:18,960 --> 00:35:23,320
if the city wants to

430
00:35:23,800 --> 00:35:31,000
I would recommend having an ordinance
that says that it comes to the city

431
00:35:28,520 --> 00:35:37,840
council for advice and consent.
Advice and consent really means that

432
00:35:34,080 --> 00:35:42,200
they are taking the city manager's
suggestion

433
00:35:39,520 --> 00:35:50,200
and either saying yes or no.
That's really what it comes down to.

434
00:35:44,640 --> 00:35:55,760
And so if there is someone that does not
if the council does not like

435
00:35:53,000 --> 00:36:01,240
an appointment
they can then say, you know what, we're

436
00:35:58,080 --> 00:36:06,480
not we don't want to appoint them to
this and then the city manager will have

437
00:36:03,760 --> 00:36:10,240
to come back with another name.
Someone else.

438
00:36:07,840 --> 00:36:15,960
And they can then decide
the city council do we want to accept

439
00:36:12,680 --> 00:36:15,960
this individual or not?

440
00:36:16,120 --> 00:36:25,320
And sometimes
the city council has just given the city

441
00:36:22,520 --> 00:36:28,520
manager the authority to make certain
appointments.

442
00:36:26,760 --> 00:36:32,560
Um
and have that ability and that

443
00:36:30,400 --> 00:36:37,960
flexibility. So,
it it all comes down to to to a great

444
00:36:35,720 --> 00:36:41,120
degree what your city
council's looking to

445
00:36:40,160 --> 00:36:46,680
um
run as their policy.

446
00:36:43,840 --> 00:36:50,160
» Excellent. Excellent. Um what about are
is it um

447
00:36:48,280 --> 00:36:53,520
requirements that the city manager lives
within the city? Can you speak to that a

448
00:36:51,680 --> 00:36:57,520
little bit?
>> Uh it is not uh required. That would be

449
00:36:56,080 --> 00:37:00,680
a city policy.
>> Okay. Excellent.

450
00:36:58,600 --> 00:37:04,720
» may be.
>> Um perfect. I'm going to give it just a

451
00:37:02,440 --> 00:37:08,920
couple more questions or moments to see
if another question comes in, but

452
00:37:07,160 --> 00:37:12,880
otherwise,
um

453
00:37:11,200 --> 00:37:16,520
yeah, and then uh just do you have any
feedback on

454
00:37:14,560 --> 00:37:21,840
um
I guess kind of again like standardizing

455
00:37:18,080 --> 00:37:26,560
processes so that um
maybe council members can provide

456
00:37:23,680 --> 00:37:30,040
feedback to the city manager it appears
in the council agenda. So, maybe kind of

457
00:37:28,560 --> 00:37:33,200
more
um

458
00:37:30,520 --> 00:37:38,160
» I highly highly recommend
that there be a communication. Again, it

459
00:37:36,960 --> 00:37:42,840
goes back to that effective
communication. And if that's set out in

460
00:37:40,240 --> 00:37:45,320
rule that if anything is on the agenda,
it must be

461
00:37:44,360 --> 00:37:49,120
uh
you know, you can set it up however

462
00:37:47,000 --> 00:37:52,760
you'd like, vetted through
uh at least two members of the council

463
00:37:50,760 --> 00:37:59,440
or three members of the council. It
really um the city council

464
00:37:56,120 --> 00:38:05,480
as they describe and rule what they
would like to see on the agenda,

465
00:38:01,720 --> 00:38:09,760
they really have that ability to say,
"We want

466
00:38:06,960 --> 00:38:15,240
we want to have discussions before
it's in

467
00:38:12,360 --> 00:38:19,720
in city council meeting." Now,
to be clear, that doesn't mean that city

468
00:38:17,480 --> 00:38:23,480
council meets outside of an open and
public meeting.

469
00:38:21,400 --> 00:38:29,600
What that means is that there are
discussions with the city manager about

470
00:38:26,360 --> 00:38:34,720
specific um
about specific

471
00:38:31,360 --> 00:38:39,840
issues that uh will be heard in the city
council meeting. So, it really depends

472
00:38:36,520 --> 00:38:44,000
on how your city sets it up. And I would
highly recommend that anything that goes

473
00:38:42,320 --> 00:38:47,960
on the agenda
be

474
00:38:45,760 --> 00:38:51,640
you can discuss it in a work session.
You can discuss it outside of the

475
00:38:49,720 --> 00:38:56,880
meeting so long as a quorum is not
present and the intent is not to avoid

476
00:38:54,600 --> 00:38:59,520
or skirt the open and public meetings
act.

477
00:38:58,040 --> 00:39:02,840
Um
highly recommend that.

478
00:39:02,080 --> 00:39:08,640
Fine.
>> Perfect. Um it looks like that has

479
00:39:06,400 --> 00:39:12,640
covered all of our questions.
Um so, with that I think we'll go ahead

480
00:39:10,360 --> 00:39:16,440
and wrap this up a little early today.
Um thank you all so much for taking the

481
00:39:14,440 --> 00:39:19,400
time to join us.
Um again, uh if this was your form of

482
00:39:18,440 --> 00:39:23,520
government, we hope you found it
helpful. If this wasn't your form of

483
00:39:21,240 --> 00:39:27,320
government, um we uh hope you also found
it helpful. A lot of the key takeaways

484
00:39:25,000 --> 00:39:30,800
are the same. Um although the authority
looks different. So, um we can get you

485
00:39:29,280 --> 00:39:36,080
the resources to those forms of
government and um

486
00:39:33,400 --> 00:39:39,960
Jared runs our legal Q&A and you can
find that on our website. So, if you

487
00:39:37,360 --> 00:39:44,320
have questions about your form of
government, um navigating some of these

488
00:39:42,440 --> 00:39:49,400
policies and procedures, or just other
kind of general legal Q&A type

489
00:39:46,920 --> 00:39:52,600
questions, um we encourage you to uh
submit those to Jared so we can try to

490
00:39:50,800 --> 00:39:55,640
help you out.
Thanks for joining us, everyone.