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All the signature papers shall be filed in the office of the City Administrator as one instrument. Within five days after the filing of the petition, the City Administrator shall ascertain by examination the number of registered voters whose signatures are appended thereto and whether this number is at least fifty. If he finds the petition insufficient or irregular, he shall at once notify one or more of the committee of sponsors of that fact, certifying the reasons for his findings. The committee shall then be given 30 days in which to file additional signature papers and to correct the petition in all other particulars. If at the end of that period the petition is found to be still insufficient or irregular, the Administrator shall file it in his office and shall notify each member of the committee of that fact. The final finding of the insufficiency or irregularity of a petition shall not prejudice the filing of a new petition for the same purpose, nor shall it prevent the Council from referring the ordinance to the registered voters at the next regular or any special election at its option.
When the petition is found to be sufficient, the City Administrator shall so certify to the Council at its next meeting, stating the number of petitioners and the percentage of the total number of voters which they constitute, and the Council shall at once read the ordinance and refer it to an appropriate committee, which may be a committee of the whole. The Council shall thereupon provide for public hearings upon the ordinance, after the holding of which the ordinance shall be finally acted upon by the Council not later than 65 days after the date upon which it was submitted to the Council by the City Administrator. If the Council fails to pass the proposed ordinance, or passes it in a form different from that set forth in the petition and unsatisfactory to the petitioners, the proposed ordinance shall be submitted by the Council to the vote of the registered voters at the next election; but if the number of signers of the petition is at least 200, the Council shall call a special election upon the measure. Such special elections shall be held not less than 30 nor more than 45 days from the date of final action on the ordinance by the Council or after the expiration of 65 days from the date of submissions to the Council when there has been no final action; but if a regular election is to occur within three months, the Council may submit the ordinance at that election. If the Council passes the proposed ordinance with amendments and at least
four-fifths of the committee of petitioners does not express their dissatisfaction with such amended form by a statement filed with the City Administrator within 10 days of the adoption thereof by the Council, the ordinance need not be submitted to the registered voters.
The ballots used when voting upon any such proposed ordinance shall state the substance of the ordinance and shall give the voters the opportunity to vote either “yes” or “no” on the question of adoption. If a majority of the registered voters voting on any such ordinance vote in favor of it, it shall thereupon become an ordinance of the City. Any number of proposed ordinances may be voted upon at the same election but the voter shall be allowed to vote for or against each separately. In case of inconsistency between two initiated ordinances approved at one election, the one approved by the higher percentage of registered voters voting on the question shall prevail to the extent of the inconsistency.
If prior to the date when an ordinance takes effect a petition is signed by at least 100 qualified registered voters of the City, if filed with the City Administrator requesting that any such ordinance be repealed or be submitted to a vote of the registered voters, the ordinance shall thereby be prevented from going into operation. The Council shall thereupon reconsider the ordinance at it's next regular meeting, and either repeal it or by aye and no vote reaffirm it's adherence to the ordinance as passed. In the latter case the Council shall immediately order a special election to be held thereon, or submit the ordinance at the next election, pending which the ordinance shall remain suspended. If a majority of the registered voters voting thereon is opposed to the ordinance, it shall not become effective; but if a majority of the registered voters voting thereon favors the ordinance, it shall go into effect immediately or on the date therein specified.
The requirements laid down in Sections 6.03 and 6.04 above as to the formation of committees for the initiation of ordinances and as to the form of petitions and signature papers shall apply to the
referendum as far as possible, but with such verbal changes as may be necessary. A referendum petition shall read as follows:
Referendum Petition
proposing the repeal of an ordinance to (stating the purpose of the ordinance), a copy of which ordinance is hereto attached. The proposed repeal is sponsored by the following committee of registered voters:
Name: Address:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
The undersigned petitioners understanding the nature of the ordinance hereto attached and believing it to be detrimental to the welfare of the City, petition the Council for it's submission to a vote of the registered voters for their approval or disapproval.
Name: Address:
1.
2.
3.
Any five registered voters may form themselves into a committee for the purpose of bringing about the recall of any elected officer of the City. The committee shall certify to the City Administrator the name of the officer whose removal is sought, a statement of the grounds for removal in not more than 250 words and their intention to bring about his recall. A copy of this certificate shall be attached to each signature paper and no signature paper shall be put into circulation previous to such certification.
The petition for the recall of any official shall consist of a certificate identical with that filed with the City Administrator together with all the signature papers and affidavits thereto attached. All the signatures need not be on one signature paper, but the circulator of every paper shall make an affidavit that each signature appended to the paper is the genuine signature of the person whose name it purports to be. Each signature paper shall be in substantially the following form:
Recall Petition
proposing the recall of from his office as which recall is sought for the reasons set forth in the attached certificate. This movement is sponsored by the following committee of registered voters:
Name: Address:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
The undersigned registered voters understanding the nature of the charges against the officer herein sought to be recalled, desire the holding of a recall election for that purpose.
Name: Address:
1.
2.
3.
At the end of the list of signatures shall be appended the affidavit of the circulator.
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