2014-04-28 Reg Part 1 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Ms. Carr stated that in reality over 90 percent of the votes taken by this Council are unanimous votes and one of the major issues throughout this campaign was whether or not the budget had a surplus or a deficit. Ms. Carr stated that the City Manager had represented the budget only as the surplus operating budget. The fact was that all members of Council voted for the proposed budget, which was represented as a surplus and a deficit budget that contained items to be paid for by use of the reserves to the tune of over three and a half million dollars, so one cannot differentiate between the two since the vote was for the total package. She stated that over the past years Council has voted on multiple budgets and frequently voted unanimously to approve budget amendments. Ms. Carr stated that in her opinion this issue of ROAR’s contained a pretty powerful endorsement, especially for resident’s who know nothing about the budget; who supported it; who did not, and why. Arguably, this article, which was written by one of the most influential people in this City, implied which candidates would be best for the City and was paid for by tax dollars without any attribution. Once again, there was no paid for statement contained within the article or the newsletter. Ms. Carr stated that the Charter is very clear on the involvement of employees in municipal elections and the use of taxpayer money to support political candidates. Section 60 of the Charter reads in part, “No appointed salaried officer or employee of the City shall make any contribution, direct or indirect, to any candidate for Council or Mayor of the City. Nothing in this section shall prohibit an individual from exercising the right as a citizen to express his or her opinion to vote.” Ms. Carr requested that the City Clerk attach a copy of this section of the Charter to the minutes. Ms. Carr stated that if Mr. Walker wants to tell his friends or neighbors who he believes will be the best candidate, more power to him. But endorsements by employees are expressly forbidden by the City’s Charter, except where allowed for by state or federal statute. Ms. Carr stated that when Mr. Walker puts on his City Manager’s hat, uses taxpayer money and the City’s distribution channels to endorse candidates, he is acting in violation of Section 60 of the Charter. Based on her recollection, as well as the recollection of others, this type of action has never been taken by any administration. Ms. Carr stated that even though Mr. Walker may claim that this was not an endorsement, in her opinion any reasonable person reading this article would believe that it was. And in fact, voters were the ones who had brought this to her attention. She stated that some residents had even written letters directly to the City Manager expressing their concerns and displeasure, but to date have received no response. Ms. Carr stated that the City Manager is an employee of City Council and therefore it is their responsibility to oversee his actions. She then asked her colleagues if this body was going to turn its eyes away once again and abdicate the responsibility of ensuring that its employees behave in an ethical and legal manner. She stated that past history would cause her to believe that those members of Council who were the beneficiaries of this advocacy will not give this issue the time of day, even though they should. But as the City moves through this process Ms. Carr suggested that all members of Council ask themselves the following questions. (1). Would it be fair for the press to call this Council hypocritical if in fact it has first responders who are being penalized for their political activity when they are exercising their legal rights, while at the same time the City Manager gets a pass when he specifically violates the Charter, and (2), who is supervising the City Manager when Council continues to give him a pass for his actions. Ms. Carr concluded by stating that it is clear that the City Manager was involved in political activity and Council should not choose to sit on their hands and ignore the City’s Charter. She stated that this Council, as well as members of the community has asked for healing, and so the final question this body should be asking is where do we as a Council go from here. Mr. Crow asked Ms. Forster when she first became aware of the campaign materials that included the firefighters. Ms. Forster stated that she first became aware on Wednesday, th March 26. Mr. Crow asked Ms. Forster who had brought the material to her attention. Ms. 4