(a) The Board of Public Affairs shall consist of five members to be elected from the City at large for overlapping terms of four years. Members of the Board shall be electors of the City. Persons serving as members of the Board at the time this revised Charter becomes effective shall continue in office for their existing term of office and until their successors are elected or appointed as provided under the revised Charter. The Mayor shall be an ex-officio member of the Board of Public Affairs, entitled to attend all meetings of the Board and to participate in the discussions and deliberations of the Board, but shall have no vote on the Board.
(Amended 11-4-97.)
(b) The Board of Public Affairs shall have the control and supervision over the operations and personnel of the electric and water utilities, including paying and setting the wage of each of its personnel, and such other functions and duties assigned to it by the Council, subject to the provisions of Section 6.10 of this Charter.
(c) No public utility facility, used for the provision of a utility service, shall be sold, without the approval of such sale, by a majority vote of the electors of the City.
(d) The Board of Public Affairs shall submit its itemized budget requests to the Mayor for inclusion in the proposed budget submitted to the Council for its consideration. Once the Council has appropriated funds for the use of the Board of Public Affairs, the Board need not secure further approval for its expenditures by the Council so long as the funds are expended for the purposes appropriated; provided that the Council shall retain the power to increase, reduce and transfer appropriations made for the use and purposes of the Board, with the approval of the Board.
(e) The Board of Public Affairs shall appoint a Director of Utilities of the electric and water utilities. He shall serve at the pleasure of the Board which pays him, sets his wage, and the term of his office. He shall act as the executive head of the electric and water utilities and shall perform such other functions and duties as directed by the Board.
(f) The office of a member of the Board shall become vacant upon his death, resignation or removal from office. A vacancy in the Board shall be filled for the remainder of the unexpired term at the next regular municipal election following not less than sixty (60) days upon the occurrence of the vacancy, but the Board by a majority vote of all its remaining members shall appoint a qualified person to fill the vacancy until the person elected to serve the remainder of the unexpired term takes office. If the Board shall fail to fill the vacancy of the interim period as provided herein above within thirty days following the occurrence of the vacancy, its power to fill the vacancy shall lapse and the Mayor shall fill the vacancy during the interim period of appointment.
(g) The Board may remove a member of the Board and declare his office to be vacant upon finding the accused member guilty of any of the following causes by a two-thirds vote of the members of the Board, excluding the accused member:
(1) Willful or repeated violation of the provision of this Charter.
(2) Failure to attend three consecutive regular meetings of the Board without being excused by the Board. Board may excuse absences of its members at any time, whether before or after the absence.
(3) Misfeasance, malfeasance and nonfeasance in office.
(4) Failure of a member to resign when he no longer maintains his main residency within the municipal limits of the City of Bryan.
(Passed by voters 5-8-84.)