RESOLUTION NO. 7138
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF LAWRENCE, KANSAS, ESTABLISHING THE ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON THE CITY COMMISSION VACANCY TO REVIEW AND TO EVALUATE APPLICATIONS OF CANDIDATES AND TO FORWARD TO THE CITY COMMISSION A LIST OF NAMES AS FINALISTS TO FILL THE VACANT CITY COMISSION POSITION.
WHEREAS, pursuant to City of Lawrence, Kan., Code § 1-201 (Jan. 1, 2015), as amended, the City Commission, as the Governing Body of the City of Lawrence, Kansas, "shall consist of five (5) Commissioners."
WHEREAS, on August 12, 2015, then Mayor Jeremy Farmer tendered to the City Commission his resignation from the City Commission.
WHEREAS, at a special public meeting, convened August 14, 2015, the City Commission accepted the resignation of former Mayor Farmer.
WHEREAS, that resignation created a vacancy on the City Commission, which vacancy, pursuant to City of Lawrence, Kan., Code § 1-201 (Jan. 1, 2015), as amended, "shall be filled by the election of a successor by a majority vote of the remaining Commissioners."
WHEREAS, the City Commission deems it in the best interest of the community to establish an advisory committee to assist it in reviewing and evaluating applications, applying criteria established by the City Commission, and to forward to the City Commission a list of names as finalists to fill the vacant City Commission position.
WHEREAS, the City Commission hereby establishes the Advisory Committee on the City Commission Vacancy and charges it with the duties set forth herein.
NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE GOVERNING BODY OF THE CITY OF LAWRENCE, KANSAS:
SECTION 1: THE ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON THE CITY COMMISSION VACANCY; ESTABLISHMENT; MEMBERSHIP; CHAIR; STAFF LIAISON
(a) The City Commission hereby establishes the Advisory Committee on the City Commission Vacancy ("Advisory Committee") to review and evaluate applications of candidates, applying criteria established by the City Commission, and to forward to the City Commission a list of not more than six (6) names as finalists to fill the vacant City Commission position. The Advisory Committee shall consist of twelve (12) persons.
(b) The Advisory Committee shall consist of the following twelve (12) persons:
(i) Tom Christie
(ii) Dennis Constance
(iii) Michelle Fales
(iv) Joe Harkins
(v) Boog Highberger (Dennis)
(vi) Joanne Hurst
(vii) Shirley Martin-Smith
(viii) Brenda Nunez
(ix) Mark Preut
(x) Dustin Rimmey
(xi) Njeri Shomari
(xii) Melinda Toumi
If, for any reason, any member of the Advisory Committee cannot complete his or her term or fulfill the duties of the position, then that position on the Advisory Committee shall be deemed vacant and the membership of the Advisory Committee shall be reduced by one.
(c) The Mayor shall appoint a Chair of the Advisory Committee, who shall conduct and be in charge of all meetings. The Chair shall be responsible for convening the first meeting of the Advisory Committee on Thursday, September 3, 2015, at 6:30 p.m. in the City Commission Room.
(d) The City Attorney, or her designee, shall serve as City liaison to the Advisory Committee.
SECTION 2: SAME; MEETINGS. All meetings of the Advisory Committee shall be subject to, and shall be governed by, the Kansas Open Meetings Act of 1984, codified as amended at K.S.A. 75-4317 et seq.
SECTION 3: SAME; DUTIES.
(a) Selecting Semi-finalists. Applications for the vacant position of City Commissioner are due in the City Clerk's Office on or before 5:00 p.m., September 9, 2015. On Thursday, September 17, 2015, at 6:30 p.m., in the City Commission Room, the Advisory Committee shall conduct a public meeting to review each application and, applying the criteria established by the City Commission, to elect by written ballot not more than twelve (12) semi-finalists to fill the vacant City Commission position. Any application that is incomplete or that discloses that the applicant does not meet the minimum qualifications for the position, as set forth at City of Lawrence, Kan., Code § 1-201.1 (Jan. 1, 2015), shall not be considered
.
(i) Voting Procedure. After reviewing each application, each member of the Advisory Committee shall, on a written ballot, vote for no more than twelve candidates and shall rank his or her selections from first through twelfth. Each candidate ranked first shall receive twelve (12) points, each candidate ranked second shall receive eleven (11) points, etc. The City liaison shall tabulate the votes and the twelve (12) candidates receiving the most points shall be selected as semi-finalists to fill the vacant City Commission position. In the event of a tie for the twelfth position, the Advisory Committee shall conduct a run-off election, with each member of the Advisory Committee casting one vote. The candidate receiving the most votes shall be the twelfth semi-finalist.
(b) Selecting Finalists. On Thursday, September 24, 2015, at 6:30 p.m. in the City Commission Room, the Advisory Committee shall conduct a public forum during which each semi-finalist will be permitted to make a brief opening statement and, as time permits, to answer any questions posed by the Advisory Committee. Following the public forum, the Advisory Committee shall elect by written ballot not more than six (6) finalists whose names will be forwarded to the City Commission for consideration to fill the vacant City Commission position.
(i) Voting Procedure. Each member of the committee shall, on a written ballot, vote for no more than six finalists and shall rank his or her selections from first through sixth. Each candidate ranked first shall receive twelve (12) points, each candidate ranked second shall receive eight (8) points, each candidate ranked third shall receive six (6) points, each candidate ranked fourth shall receive four (4) points, each candidate ranked fifth shall receive two (2) points, and each candidate ranked sixth shall receive one (1) point. The City liaison shall tabulate the votes and the six (6) candidates receiving the most points shall be selected as finalists and their names shall be forwarded to the City Commission. In the event of a tie for the sixth position, the Advisory Committee shall conduct a run-off election, with each member of the Advisory Committee casting one vote. The candidate receiving the most votes shall be the sixth finalist.
SECTION 4. SAME; DISSOLUTION. Upon forwarding to the City Commission the list of names as finalists for the vacant City Commission position, the Advisory Committee shall have discharged its duties and shall be deemed dissolved.
SECTION 5. ACTION BY THE CITY COMMISSION.
(a) At a public meeting convened Tuesday, September 29, 2015, at 5:45 p.m. in the City Commission Room, the City Commission shall formally receive from the Advisory Committee the list of finalists to fill the vacant City Commission position. At that time, any City Commissioner may add to the list any qualified candidate who was not elected as a finalist by the Advisory Committee. The City Commission shall then select the candidates who will be interviewed and considered to fill the vacant City Commission position at the October 1, 2015, public forum.
(b) On October 1, 2015, at 5:45 p.m. in the City Commission Room, the City Commission shall convene a special public meeting for the purpose of conducting a public forum. All persons selected by the City Commission at its September 29, 2015, special meeting for consideration to fill the vacant City Commission position shall be permitted to make a brief opening statement. The City Commission shall then interview the candidates. Each Commissioner shall be permitted to pose one question to each candidate. Those questions shall be the same for each candidate and the questions shall be made available to the candidates in advance of the public forum. Thereafter, the City Commission will deliberate and narrow the field to one or two candidates.
(c) At its regular public meeting on October 6, 2015, at 5:45 p.m. in the City Commission Room, the City Commission shall nominate and elect, by a majority vote of the four seated City Commissioners, a candidate to fill the vacant City Commission position. Thereafter, the new City Commissioner shall take the oath of office and be seated on the City Commission.
SECTION 6. RESERVATION OF RIGHTS. In the event of an unforeseen change of circumstances or an emergency, the City Commission reserves the right to alter or change any of the above-stated procedures in order to expeditiously, fairly, and in compliance with the law, appoint a successor to the vacant position.
ADOPTED by the Governing Body of the City of Lawrence, Kansas, this 25th day of August, 2015.
APPROVED:
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Mike Amyx
Mayor
ATTEST:
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Diane Bucia
City Clerk