All is over but the decisions.
After more than 60 public meetings and forums concerning proposed changes to the city’s charter, Tuesday night’s public hearing on the issue marked the final leg of the process before election time. But now the work begins.
The City Council now must decide which of the 19 proposals will be forwarded to a public vote in November. That process starts June 17, when the council will discuss which proposals to select for possible adoption. A call for pro and con campaigners will then go out June 26. Which proposals the council forwards to a public vote will be formally decided on July 15, with the resolution language going to the Auditor’s Office on Aug. 5. The vote would then take place Nov. 4.
Citizens groups are already preparing to launch a signature campaign for ones not likely to get a council nod. Tops among the recommendations that were proposed by the city’s Charter Review Committee that will likely go that route is the change of government from the current council-mayor-manager system to one that would more closely mirror the federal, three-branch system, with a separate mayor’s department, a Chief Administrative Officer and a seven-member council.
This governmental shift has its notable supporters as well as its notable opponents. In the camp championing the change are former mayor and former Charter Review Committee Chairman Bill Baarsma and “Sonics Guy” Kristopher Brannon, who is also a Democratic precinct committee officer for District 27. They say the change would provide more direct oversight by voters of the direction of the city and streamline the process of crafting and forwarding a vision of the city and its resources.
The opposition includes former mayor Harold Moss, the League of Women Voters, the Tacoma-Pierce County Chamber and a minority of the Charter Review Committee. They say the change is not needed, could potentially cost more in added staff and hamper the voice of voters who currently elect a majority of the council; their district councilmember, the mayor and three at-large council members on the nine-member council.
Another change to the charter under council review, proposed by the council itself, include changes to term limits from the 10-year cap to three consecutive, three-year terms as a council member and another three terms as mayor. Public financing of council campaigns under specific disclosure rules is also under consideration.
Charter Review recommendations also on the slate include: shifting the number of council members from nine to seven, with the mayor shifting to a separate department and the removal of one at-large position. Administrative changes to reflect state law that are already part of the city code but have not been formally changed in the charter are also under consideration.
Recommendations not forwarded for a public vote by the council could be championed by citizen groups to gather petition signatures to force the issue. The group would have to gather about 3,200 signatures to put the recommendation on the ballot since state law sets the number as 10 percent of the last mayoral election.