(A) The position of City Administrative Officer (CAO) for the city is hereby established as a fu11-time position initially for a period of two years, subject to extension by motion and order. The City Administrative Officer (CAO) shall serve at the pleasure of the Mayor subject to the provisions of any employment contract, shall be the Administrative officer for the city, and shall act as agent for the Mayor in the day-to-day administration, operation, and management of the city government and its affairs, being responsible therefore and answerable to the Mayor and to the Council in the proper performance of such duties.
(B) The routine duties of the CAO shall include those duties and responsibilities set forth in KRS 83A.090, as articulated herein, and as otherwise provided as follows:
(1) To plan, organize, facilitate, and maintain supervision over the day-to-day administration of the city.
(2) To attend and participate at all Council meetings, and further, to attend and advise the meetings of established Council committees when directed to do so by the Mayor or committee chairperson.
(3) To make recommendations to the City Council and its committees when requested, advising the Mayor and the Council and its committees of the financial condition of the city and of other city business with which he or she is working and of which he or she is knowledgeable, keeping them abreast of any new business establishment coming to his/her attention as well as any business that might be contemplating moving their establishment from the city that should be considered by the Council and its committees.
(4) To expedite the directives, ordinances, and policies in place and ensuing from Council meetings and to ensure that they are complied with and executed.
(5) Under direction of the Mayor, prepare and administer operating and capital improvement budgets and other reports as required by the Council and its committees and to supervise the same.
(6) To perform various public relations duties, acknowledging and accepting telephone calls and office contact and visits from city residents pertaining to sundry city situations and matters, resolving them when possible by invoking the ordinances and policies of the city, or otherwise, referring them to Council; and generally acting as the public relations officer of the city.
(7) To assist the City Attorney in drafting ordinances, resolutions, contracts and other legal documents by gathering, selecting, and supplying pertinent data, facts, records, and other material as may be needed and available in city or other governmental files.
(8) To maintain liaison with various federal, state, and local agencies, including the news media, and to act as liaison as well between the city departments, offices, and the City Council.
(9) To assist in developing planning and zoning regulations, if instructed by Council, and perform the function of Zoning Administrator, if applicable, in matters within his/her competence, and in the administration of any city zoning ordinances and regulations; and to serve as the City Alcoholic Beverage Administrator.
(10) To actively undertake in concert with the City Clerk- Treasurer/Tax Collector that the minutes of the City Council shall be prepared properly and recorded; to undertake and ensure the orderly filing and safekeeping of all resolutions, contracts, and other documents of the city required by their nature and law to be preserved.
(11) To assist the Clerk-Treasurer/Tax Collector in the publication of ordinances when enacted and the preparation and advertising of bids required by Council; to assist the Clerk- Treasurer/ Tax Collector in codifying all ordinances, certifying them to other agencies or officers when required; and to regularly and routinely review the accuracy and sufficiency of city ordinances and the city code, bringing inadequacies to the Council’s attention when noted.
(12) To undertake the preparation and handling of such portion of the official correspondence of the city, as directed by the Mayor or Council.
(13) To exercise general oversight and supervision of all employees of the city, subject to the ultimate authority of the Mayor or Council.
(14) To ultimately receive employee grievances and to counsel employees in their employment problems, in accordance with and to handle said ultimate problems, all in accordance with the personnel policy and after the chain of authority has been exhausted within the department; he or she shall also have a duty to facilitate a hearing before the Mayor and/or Council with respect to an employee’s grievance against the CAO himself; to review, recommend changes in, and keep the personnel policy current.
(15) To undertake the performance of such other administrative and personnel work as may be required and designated by the Mayor or City Council from time to time, with or without ordinance.
(16) To advise the executive authority of the city in policy formulation on overall problems of the city.
(17) To advise the executive authority of the city in the appointment of subordinate personnel; to hire and terminate personnel if such authority is extended by the Mayor.
(18) To have continuing direct relationships with operating department heads on implementation and administration of programs.
(19) To supervise the accurate preparation, retention, and maintenance of payroll and operating records.
(20) To supervise and oversee city purchasing procedures, and to act as purchasing agent when designated by the Council on such terms as it may prescribe.
(21) To work with department heads in the planning for and recommend the purchase of supplies and equipment for the city; to insure that accurate inventory records are maintained and insure that proper equipment maintenance and record thereof is maintained.
(22) To attend meetings of various organizations, boards, or bodies affecting the city, especially at the request of the Mayor.
(23) To review an make recommendations with respect to the city personnel policy and its contents, and to serve as the Personnel Administrator when requested or named by the Mayor, except that he or she shall not have the ultimate authority to hire, fire, or discipline.
(24) To develop economic development activities to encourage the retention and attraction of business to and within the city, including pursuing assistance from and cooperation with other governmental units, including seeking and processing applications and documentation for grants and claims of any and all kinds that may be beneficial to the city.
(25) To generally supervise and oversee the financial affairs of the city, including expenditures, revenues, investment, insurance and risk management, including such related matters as expansion of the city through annexation, and to provide a written report to Council not less frequently than monthly.
(26) To perform such other duties and assume such other responsibilities as may be assigned to him or her from time to time by the Mayor and Council.
(C) The CAO shall have no duties, responsibilities, or authority that properly relate or belong strictly to any function reserved to the city officers. It is the clear intention of this section to not in any way diminish the authority of the Mayor, statutory or otherwise, as provided for by ordinance or regulation or rule otherwise, or likewise of any Councilmember; and the Mayor shall remain the Chief Executive and Administrative Officer of the city, all subject to delegation by him or her to the CAO. The function of the position of the CAO shall be, at all times, to assist the Mayor in the efficient and effective daily administration of the city government. Further, the CAO shall consult with the City Clerk- Treasurer/Tax Collector on all matters within the auspices of the City Clerk-Treasurer/Tax Collector, who shall give the CAO the benefit of any information within his or her possession or control deemed necessary to fulfill the function and duties of the CAO.
(D) The CAO is authorized, whenever necessary, to make purchases on behalf of the city in amounts up to and not exceeding $1,000 per purchase and not exceeding $2,500 total for any one month, but in any event not more than $1,000 from any one supplier, without the prior approval of the City Council of said individual purchase or purchases. A report of the purchase shall be made at the next regular Council meeting.
(E) The CAO qualifications:
(1) The CAO shall possess any combination of education, training, and abilities necessary to perform effectively the duties of the office.
(2) The CAO shall possess extensive knowledge of the principles and practices of contemporary public administration with the ability to implement and carry out the policies and programs of the city.
(3) The CAO shall be or become a resident of Pendleton County, within 90 days of embarking upon any second year of employment, unless specifically waived by subsequent order of the Council.
(F) The position of CAO shall be filled by appointment of the Mayor or Mayor Pro Tem, upon the advice and consent of the City Council after proper advertising. Upon selection by the Mayor with Council’s approval of the CAO the Mayor or Mayor Pro Tem shall enter into a contract for the position providing for terms of employment and duties as outlined by this section, and for the salary budgeted and appropriated from time to time by the City Council. Said Officer shall have, in addition to salary, such fringe benefits as may be provided for by said contract or the city personnel policy. Notwithstanding the terms of any contract the CAO may be terminated at the will of the Mayor, provided the same is for articulable and good cause, such as; inefficiency, excess absenteeism, insubordination, or dishonesty.
(G) The CAO shall take the oath of office as set forth in Section 228 of the Constitution of the Commonwealth of Kentucky. The CAO shall post bond in the sum of $5,000 with the City Clerk- Treasurer/Tax Collector to guarantee and insure the faithful performance of his or her duties as such. The premium for such bond shall be paid from the general funds of the city.
(Ord. 39.01, passed 11-17-97)