Hereafter, and until further order of the council, the rules and order of business of the mayor and city council shall be as follows: (1977 Code)
(A) Order Of Business:
1. Roll call;
2. Establishment of quorum;
3. Approval of agenda (though it is not recommended, in exigent circumstances, new business items may be added to the agenda at the meeting and can be discussed, but cannot be acted on);
4. Approval of minutes;
5. Reports of standing committees;
6. Approval of consent agenda (if applicable);
7. Warrants/bills;
8. Petitions;
9. Communications;
10. Appointments;
11. Bids;
12. Monthly reports;
13. Unfinished business;
14. New business;
15. Citizens' comments (3 minutes per speaker and no more than 15 minutes as an item);
16. Council members' comments;
17. Motion for executive session (when applicable);
18. Adjournment. (Ord. 1850, 9-12-2006)
(B) Rules Of Procedure:
1. The mayor shall take the chair at the hour to which the council shall have adjourned, and call the members to order. If a quorum be present, he shall cause the minutes of the last meeting to be read, unless a majority present at the meeting vote to dispense with the reading of said minutes. A majority of all the members elected to the office of mayor and to the city council shall constitute a quorum.
2. The mayor shall preserve order and decorum, may speak only to points of order and in preference to any member and decide questions of order subject to an appeal to the mayor and council members by any two (2) members, on which appeal no member may speak more than once, unless by leave of the mayor and council members.
3. Every question or motion, when seconded, shall be stated by the mayor distinctly before it is open for debate. When a question is put, if the mayor is in doubt or a division is called for by any member, the council shall decide. The mayor may call any member to perform the duties of the chair; but such substitution shall not extend beyond an adjournment.
4. Every member, previous to his speaking, shall arise from his seat and address the chair, and say, "Mr. Mayor", and shall not proceed with his remarks until named and recognized by the chair.
5. If any member is speaking, or otherwise transgresses the rules of the mayor and council, the mayor shall, or any member may, call him to order, and the member called to order shall immediately sit down, unless permitted to explain and the council, if appealed to, shall decide without debate. If the decision be in favor of the member called to order, he shall be at liberty to proceed. If against him and the case required it, he shall be liable to the censure of the council.
6. No person shall speak more than twice on the same question, unless permitted by the council, and no member of the council shall leave his seat to speak to any other member of the council or any other person in the hall without first obtaining permission of the mayor.
7. Every member, when a question is taken, shall vote unless excused by the mayor and council, unless he be directly interested in the question, in which event no member shall vote, and every motion shall be reduced to writing if the mayor or any member desires it.
8. After a report is made or a motion stated by the mayor, it shall be deemed as in possession of the mayor and city council, but it may be amended or laid on the table, or withdrawn at any time before the question is taken.
9. When a question is under debate, no motion shall be received but to adjourn, lay on the table the previous question, postpone to a certain day, to commit, to amend, or postpone indefinitely; which several motions shall have precedence in the order in which they are arranged. A motion to adjourn shall always be in order and decided without debate.
10. A motion for the previous question to lay the question on the table, or commit it until it is decided, shall preclude all amendment and debate on the main question and a motion to postpone a question indefinitely or to adjourn to a certain day shall, until it is decided, preclude all amendments to the main question.
11. The "previous question" shall be as follows: "Shall the main question now be put?" (1977 Code; amd. Ord. 1850, 9-12-2006)
12. In voting on all ordinances and on all resolutions or motions creating liabilities or for expenditure of funds, the "ayes" and "nays" of each member must be taken and recorded in the minutes of the council. A concurrence of a majority of all the members elected to the office of mayor and the city council shall be necessary to the passage of any ordinance, resolution or motion. All other council matters may be taken and recorded by a simple voice vote. Any council member may move that a matter otherwise authorized to be recorded by voice vote be voted on by "ayes" and "nays" either before or after consideration of the matter. (Ord. 1920, 8-11-2009)
13. Every ordinance shall be numbered when introduced, and published when ordered by the mayor and city council.
14. When an ordinance is introduced, it shall be read and laid over until the next regular meeting, unless the rules are suspended. If the rules are suspended, it shall be read the second time, by title only, and put upon its passage, and at any regular meeting of the mayor and city council thereafter said ordinance may be read a third time by title only and put upon its passage.
15. When any standing or special committee shall be appointed, the clerk shall deliver the names of the committee members to the chairman of the same on the day of and after their appointment, and the chairman shall call them together and when a quorum of the committee is present, it shall transact such business as may come before it.
16. All standing and select committees to whom any matter is referred shall report there in writing at the next regular meeting, giving facts and their opinions thereof, and said report shall be signed by a majority of said committee, permitting also a minority report.
17. Any report of a committee to the mayor and city council shall be deferred for final action thereon until the next regular meeting of the same after the report is made upon request of any two (2) council members present.
18. When a motion contains several distinct propositions, any member may call for a division of the question, so as to take the vote on each proposition separately.
19. All petitions addressed to the mayor and city council shall be in writing and filed with the clerk at least ten (10) days before being presented to the mayor and city council at a regular or special meeting, and no action shall be taken on said petition until the next regular meeting, or any meeting thereafter following the date the aforesaid petition is filed. All petitions shall be accompanied by an affidavit, acknowledged by a notary public, by the person or persons circulating said petitions and stating that the signatures on the petition are the true and genuine signatures signing same and that they were signed by said petitioners in the presence of the circulator.
20. In all cases where a resolution or motion shall be entered on the minutes of the mayor and city council, the name of the member moving the same shall be entered on the minutes.
21. All reports made by committees, and all resolutions adopted by the mayor and city council shall be held and preserved by the clerk. (1977 Code; amd. Ord. 1850, 9-12-2006)
22. On taking the "ayes" and "nays" on any question, the names of the members shall be called, and the senior member's name shall be called first. Each member shall answer to his name which shall be entered on the proceedings.
23. When the mayor and city council are in session, or when a member is speaking or the clerk is reading any paper to the mayor and city council, no member shall enter into a private conversation, or in any way disturb the proceedings of the mayor and council.
24. No chairman of a standing or select committee shall contract any liability against the city until a majority of the committee have recommended such expenditure, and have so reported to the mayor and city council.
25. All the new business introduced at any meeting shall be referred to the appropriate committee, and laid over until the next regular meeting. (Ord. 2169, 5-24-2016)
26. (a) Standing Committees: The following standing committees shall be annually appointed by the mayor, by and with the consent and approval of the city council:
(1) Finance committee.
(2) Water/sewer/refuse/streets and alley committee.
(3) Building and public property/health and safety committee.
(4) Hotel/motel committee.
(5) Contracts and lease/collective bargaining committee.
(6) Personnel committee.
(7) Tax Increment Financing (TIF) committee.
(8) Ordinance/Public Relations committee. (Ord. 2200, 4-25-2017)
(b) Special Committees: The mayor may also appoint special committees to aid in the handling of problems that can be disposed of in a relatively short time. Members of special committees shall be appointed by the mayor by and with the consent and approval of the city council and serve until the committees submit its report or until the problem that led to the committee formation is resolved.
(c) Citizens' Advisory Committee: The mayor may appoint a citizens' advisory committee for community development which shall consist of three (3) or more members of which at least two-thirds (2/3) are residents of the city. The membership shall be representative of the community and include those that are interested in community development.
(1) The committee shall report to the mayor and the standing committee to which it shall be assigned.
(2) The overall purpose of the committee shall be to act as a focal point of citizen participation and to provide support for public and private efforts in carrying out community improvement programs.
(3) The members of the committee shall be appointed by the mayor with the advice and consent of the council to a term not to exceed one year.
27. No application for abatement or revision of any fine shall be allowed except by a two-thirds (2/3) vote of members elected.
28. The "ayes" and "nays" shall be taken upon the passage of all resolutions or propositions to create any liability against the city or the expenditure or appropriation of any money, and in all other cases at the request of any member, and shall be entered upon the minutes of its proceedings, and a concurrence of a majority of all the members present at the meeting shall be necessary for the passage of any such resolution or proposition; and all city officers shall bring in their reports in writing.
29. No motion for reconsideration of any ordinance or other matter shall be entertained by the chair unless made before adjournment of the mayor and council at the meeting it is acted on and then only when the same number of members are present and the motion made by a member having voted with the majority.
30. No person, other than the mayor or a member of the council, shall be permitted to speak on any subject at a meeting of said council unless called upon by the mayor, or unless such person shall have first received permission of the council to be heard, stating the subject upon which he desires to be heard and the clerk shall get his name and address.
31. The above rules of procedure and order of business shall be adhered to invariably by the mayor and council unless the same shall be temporarily suspended by a two-thirds (2/3) vote of all members elected to the office of mayor and to the council.
32. The rules of parliamentary practice comprised in "Robert's Rules of Order" shall govern the council in all cases in which they are applicable and in which they are not inconsistent with the standing rules and orders of the council. (Ord. 2169, 5-24-2016)