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TO: Mayor Irvin and the City Council
FROM: The Rules, Administration, and Procedures Committee
DATE: June 19, 2019
SUBJECT:
Access to Preliminary Standing Committee Meeting Materials
PURPOSE:
To provide that all members of the Council may have access to standing committee preliminary meeting packets and materials on the same basis as the members of the standing committees.
BACKGROUND:
At least since the City began using the Granicus Legistar agenda management software several years ago (Legistar), preliminary standing committee meeting materials have only been accessible to members of each standing committee. Only after a standing committee reports an item to the Committee of the Whole (COW), does the item and its back-up materials become available to the remainder of the Council and to the public.
The Ordinance that created the Special Committee on Revisions to the City Code expressly provided that preliminary meeting materials available to the special committee would also be made available to the full Council at the same time. Similarly, the Ordinance that reorganized the City Council's committees last month also contained language vesting each committee chairperson with the discretion to allow aldermen who are not members of his or her standing committee to have access to materials available to committee members.
DISCUSSION:
In adopting the new committee system last month, the Council increased the number and size of the standing committees and required each alderman to serve on at least two standing committee - a significant departure from the previous practice. In doing so, the Council increased the exposure of each alderman to more areas of City government. The Committee feels that, however well-intended, the existing practice of limiting access to preliminary standing committee materials to committee members prior to COW runs contrary to this new approach. Allowing greater access to these materials will allow aldermen to more intelligent...
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