[0:00] Hello and welcome back to another
segment of how we govern here in Rock
[0:04] Springs and today I'm joined by
Councilman Zotti. Welcome. Hello. Thanks
[0:07] for having me. And we're going to talk
about the role and duties of our city
[0:12] council today. Yes, sir. Great.
So may I start off with Yes, sir. Well,
[0:16] as council our main
functions are we serve as a legislative
[0:21] body for the city. Which means we make
policy decisions,
[0:25] pass laws or ordinances as well as
resolutions. Resolutions are different
[0:30] from ordinances in that they are used to
express opinion,
[0:35] intent or decision. Uh
used to address certain specific
[0:40] policies. Uh we then also are in charge
of budget. So we set and review,
[0:46] negotiate the budget and pass the budget
and then monitor the city's finances
[0:52] throughout the year.
>> [snorts]
[0:53] » Um we also have an administrative
oversight in that we do approve
[0:59] appointments for various councils,
committees, um
[1:02] outside agencies and that or things that
we may be have liaisons for the council.
[1:07] Uh
I guess first and foremost we are
[1:10] represent representatives of our ward.
Um each councilman represents a specific
[1:16] ward that they live in.
That ward is in charge of they're the
[1:21] ones who vote for their specific city
councilor. That doesn't mean that as a
[1:26] city councilor I'm beholden to only that
ward. My job is for the city as a whole
[1:33] and to represent and the citizens of
Rock Springs
[1:37] as best as we can. Um
as a whole rather than just by a ward.
[1:45] Kind of gist of kind of what we do as
far as council. Well, I can't imagine a
[1:49] more qualified person to speak to this.
Yeah,
[1:53] I guess so.
Been for a while. How many years have
[1:56] you served our city? I was first voted
on in 2004
[2:02] after my
3 years into my first term I did have to
[2:05] resign because I moved out of the ward
and then that following election I was
[2:09] elected again.
So it's been almost 22
[2:13] years right now. That's a lot of
service.
[2:15] » It's a lot of time and I think
look back it doesn't seem like it's been
[2:19] that long cuz it's I have enjoyed it. Um
there have been some rocky times in that
[2:23] like you know getting anything you do
but
[2:26] um it's something I really have enjoyed
doing and being part of the community
[2:30] that I grew up in. Well and that's I
think why all of us do this and right is
[2:34] to give back to our community and it's
something that
[2:37] » [snorts]
>> I don't know that everybody sees you
[2:41] know when things are working really well
we will have robust discussion about
[2:47] topics on the agenda
uh and then we vote and move forward. Uh
[2:51] we're not always going to be in lockstep
on everything right? That's why there
[2:55] are nine elected folks overseeing city
government uh is to allow for all those
[3:00] opinions and contacts with the public uh
to be represented. Exactly. And and and
[3:05] as as far as duties of council that I
kind of
[3:09] forgot it but it's
it is our job to really fully understand
[3:14] what we're being asked to do
to vote on.
[3:18] Um it's the responsibility of a council
member to really investigate
[3:23] what is up on the agenda and what we're
voting for because every ordinance every
[3:27] resolution does affect the community in
some way.
[3:31] And if we're not doing our job and
looking at both sides of the issue um
[3:36] things can go pretty haywire pretty
quick. So it is really incumbent on
[3:41] those in the public to elect the people
who they know are going to put forth the
[3:45] effort to understand the issues.
Um that is one thing that I've learned
[3:50] the most important lesson is both sides
of the story. There are two sides to
[3:54] every story and you really need to vet
that out before making a decision.
[3:58] Absolutely. I think you'd probably agree
with me that the least important opinion
[4:04] in our duties is our own.
Pretty much. Yes.
[4:07] » Yeah. You know, we have to use our good
judgment, obviously.
[4:10] » Correct. But we're not there to impose
our wants and beliefs on the community.
[4:15] We're there to represent the community's
wants and beliefs. Uh which is sometimes
[4:21] is sometimes difficult. I mean, there
are certainly things we've done that you
[4:25] know, I personally was not thrilled
about. Oh, yeah. But it isn't our role
[4:30] to
do what we want. It's our role to serve
[4:34] the community and and do what the
community is looking for. Correct. And
[4:38] in some things that are hard is if you
there's decisions that need to be made
[4:42] that are out there
and you get polls that are usually on
[4:46] Facebook and things like that where it
may indicate things should go one way
[4:50] that this is what the public wants. What
you need to understand is there's a lot
[4:54] more to that story and as a council
member, I may
[4:58] vote against that poll simply because I
know either the financial position of
[5:04] the city or the various laws and
ordinances or state statutes that apply
[5:08] that limit us to do some of the things
that are wanted to be done, but that is
[5:12] my job and I'm elected to represent the
city as best as I can. Absolutely.
[5:17] Leadership is often about making
difficult decisions because they're the
[5:22] right ones. Yes. Uh and it it is not
just about what's popular.
[5:27] Um and there are sometimes
So, part of why we're doing all these
[5:31] videos is to try to help the public have
a better understanding of how their city
[5:35] government works. Mhm. For so that they
won't feel so disconnected when those
[5:39] kinds of things happen cuz they
absolutely need to understand
[5:45] as much as we do
to really be able to give us that
[5:48] feedback.
>> Yes. And if they're frustrated because
[5:51] we're voting against say a Facebook poll
>> Mhm. because we're following a state
[5:56] statute, we sure as heck better make
sure that we're explaining that to the
[5:59] public like, "Hey, we hear you, but the
law says this."
[6:02] » Yes. Communication's key in any of those
circumstances. Definitely.
[6:06] » Very good. Well, is there anything else
you'd like to add, sir? I think I'm good
[6:10] for now. Nothing I can think of.
>> you, Councilman Zotti, for joining us on
[6:13] How We Govern.
>> Rock Springs. Great. Thank you.