(A) The Joint City/County Unification Charter Study Committee shall hold a minimum of six public hearings, at least three in the city of Albuquerque and three in the unincorporated area; the sole purpose of the public hearings shall be ascertaining the major needs and concerns of city and county residents before considering any specific action or making any final judgments. These hearings shall be held at differing geographic locations around the community.
(B) The Joint City/County Unification Charter Study Committee shall collect and catalogue information from other communities which have attempted some form of unification or consolidation. If members of the Committee wish to conduct visits to communities which have faced problems similar to those faced by Albuquerque and Bernalillo County, such visits may occur at government expense upon approval of funds for the travel by the City Council and/or County Commission.
(C) Upon completing the initial hearings, the Joint City/County Unification Charter Study Committee shall consider both the pros and cons of the formation of a combined City/County metropolitan government. These deliberations should include, but not be limited to the following:
(1) A sensitive exploration and cataloging of citizen concerns in the areas of quality of life, zoning, land use, delivery of services taxation and fiscal impacts of unification;
(2) A sensitive exploration and cataloging of city and county employee concerns, such as salary and benefits, supervision policies, and issues involving the transition to consolidated government; and
(3) A cataloging of all the various local governmental entities and their functions which exist within or impact upon governmental functions of the city of Albuquerque and Bernalillo County.
(D) In addition, the Joint City/County Unification Charter Study Committee shall thoroughly explore and make recommendations on how a transition towards unified metropolitan government might be made with minimum disruption to citizens, employees and elected officials. The Committee's inquiry in this regard should include, but not be limited to, consideration of the following:
(1) How unification can occur selectively and gradually;
(2) How a board or committee could coordinate and smooth the transition process;
(3) What other regionalization efforts might be considered;
(4) What statutory changes might be necessary to effectuate a unified metropolitan government, given the existence of various statutory mandated offices within local governmental structure;
(5) Which governmental departments or services might receive first priority in a possible unification; and
(6) Which functions of local government might best be left unchanged by unification.
(E) The Joint City/County Unification Charter Study Committee shall attempt to formulate a unification plan which allows for and encourages diversity in lifestyles with particular attention to the possibility of allowing different zoning service, and fee levels for different geographic areas within the entire area to be served by the unified metropolitan government. The Committee shall also examine unification options which provide flexibility for services to be improved as the needs of incorporated and unincorporated area citizens change and grow.
(F) The Joint City/County Unification Charter Study Committee shall draft a charter for a combined City/County metropolitan government, considering the input from citizens at the public hearings and the pros and cons identified in the subsequent Committee deliberations. The proposed charter shall be delivered to the Albuquerque City Council and the Bernalillo County Commission for placement on the ballot along with the question of unification. The Committee may include recommendations regarding whether to place the proposed charter and question of unification on the ballot.
(Res. 89-1991, approved 6-13-91)