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Resolution No. 13-04 CITY OF TIGARD, OREGON TIGARD CITY COUNCIL RESOLUTION NO. 13- (-)q A RESOLUTION AMENDING TI IE COUNCIL GROUNDRULES AND SUPERSEDING RESOLUTION NO.12-35 J AS A rr,e,-,de d Creel 4�e,,c�� WHEREAS, the Council Groundrules were reviewed and updated on August 28, 2012,with the adoption of Resolution No. 12-35;and WHEREAS, newly elected officials and mid-term elected officials agreed to review the groundrules during a special council meeting held January 10, 2013;and WHEREAS,the City Council discussed the groundrules at its January 10,2013,special meeting and determined updating and reformatting of the groundrules was desired. NOW,THEREFORE,BE IT RESOLVED by the Tigard City Council that: SECTION 1: Council Groundrules as outlined in Exhibit A represent the agreement of the Mayor and City Councilors. SECTION 2: This resolution is effective immediately upon passage. PASSED: This day l� of .0 013. Ma -City of Tigard A T: City Recorder-City of Tigard RESOLUTION NO. 13- Page 1 Exhibit A— Resolution No. 13-W On January 10, 2013, the Tigard City Council met to discuss the Council Groundrules established by Resolution No. 12-35. The council agreed it preferred the draft re-formatted version of the groundrules; the reformatted version is listed in the document below. During its discussion on January 10, the council members agreed to some additional modifications to the reformatted groundrules. These modifications are shown in the red text edit marks and language changes or additions. Tigard City Council Groundrules The Tigard City Council hereby adopts the following rules for government of its members and proceedings. (Tigard City Charter, Chapter IV, Section 13). These rules will be reviewed and signed off on by each councilor annually. 1. Mandates are not discretionary. Any council or councilor who fails to abide by these is at risk of serious trouble and/or dysfunction. 2. Processes and Procedures are the rules the council sets to manage its own business. 3. Mutual Expectations reflect agreements and understandings among councilors to behave in certain ways. Once agreements are made, councilors who do not abide by them are likely to be mistrusted by their colleagues. 4. General Guidelines for Effective,Respectful Councils are basic rules of courtesy and respect that should guide any Council...or any other group for that matter. 1. Mandates ■ In no case should councilors direct the work of staff without prior approval of the department head or city manager. ■ Council members will not contact a board member to lobby on behalf of an individual, business or developer. Council members may contact the board member in order to clarify a position taken by the board. Council members may respond to inquiries from board members. Communications should be for information only. ■ Board members do not report to individual council members. Individual councilors have no authority to remove board members. ■ Be aware of the public nature of written notes, calendars,voicemail messages,and e-mail. All written or recorded materials including notes,voicemail, text messages and e-mail created as part of one's official capacity will be treated as potentially "public" communication. 1Page ■ Respect the professional duties of city staff. Council members should refrain from disrupting staff from the conduct of their jobs;participating in administrative functions including directing staff assignments;attending staff meetings unless requested by staff;and impairing the ability of staff to implement policy decisions. ■ Reject gifts, services or other special considerations. ■ Councilors are encouraged to disclose potential conflicts of interest and excuse themselves from participating in decisions when an immediate family's or their own financial interests may be affected by the council's action. If in doubt, councilors are encouraged to discuss the matter with the city attorney. ■ Protect confidential information concerning litigation,personnel,property,or other affairs of the City. ■ Use public resources,such as staff time,equipment,supplies or facilities, only for city-related business. ■ A council member may be censured by the other council members for misconduct, nonperformance of duty or failure to obey the laws of the federal, state, or local government. 2. Processes and Procedures Ending Time for Council Meetings ■ The chair or other members if the chair fails to remember may call for a point of order at or around 9 p.m. to review remaining agenda items. The council may reset or reschedule items, which it feels may not be reached prior to the regular time of adjournment. ■ The council's goal is to adjourn prior to 9:30 p.m. unless extended by majority consent of council members present. If not continued by majority consent, the meeting shall be adjourned to the next scheduled meeting or the meeting shall be continued to another regular or special meeting at another date and time. "Citizen Communication" ■ The "Citizen Communication"portion of the agenda is a regular feature on the council business meetings. To manage the agendas to allow council time to consider the remaining agenda items scheduled for the business meeting,this agenda item will be allotted a maximum of 20 minutes. This item will be placed near the beginning of the council agenda to give citizens a chance to introduce a topic to the City Council. are not an the eatmeil ftgeadft for that meefifir.The mayor or the council president (if the mayor is absent) may ask speakers to keep their remarks to about two to five minutes. If a large number of speakers have signed up,the mayor might ask speakers to keep their comments closer to two minutes. ■ At the conclusion of the Citizen Communication period,the mayor, a council member or staff member will comment what,if any, follow-up action will be taken to respond to each issue. At the beginning of Citizen Communication at the next business meeting, staff will update the council and community on the review of the issue(s), the action taken to address the issue, and a statement of what additional action is planned. Council may decide to refer an issue to staff and/or schedule the topic for a later council meeting. 2Page Budget Decisions ■ Budget cuts or increases are policy decisions. Budgets will not be cut"piece meal" or"across the board,"but rather should be made in service or program areas,giving staff full opportunity to provide data clearly defining the anticipated impact of the action. Council Liaisons ■ Council liaison assignments are determined by consensus of City Council. The goal is to have assignments evenly divided between council members. When making assignments consideration should be given to continuity and the background,experience and expertise of individual councilors. Should two or more Council members seek appointment to a position,preference of the longest serving Council member may be a consideration. ■ The role of the council liaison is to periodically attend board meetings,listen to the board discussion, set context for the board regarding council decisions/goals/policies and city priorities, answer questions and carry concerns and information back to the full council. Council liaisons may attend board meetings more frequently if attendance is requested by the board. Councilors should make their role clear to the board when attending a meeting as a council liaison. ■ Council liaisons are not to direct the business or decision-making process of the board and do not vote of matters before the board. ■ Council liaisons do not initiate,propose or advocate for their personal position on a matter before the board. ■ Council liaisons at times may advocate council actions on behalf of their assigned board. Great care must be taken to avoid the appearance of unfairness, conflict of interest or circumstances where such possibilities may exist (e.g.,planning Commission quasi-judicial matters). City Council Compensation Section 2.44.020 of the Tigard Municipal Code provides for compensation for attendance at Council meetings and meetings for an intergovernmental board, committee or agency. The amount of the compensation for Council members may be reviewed and set annually by resolution of the City Council as part of the budget cycle. As part of the annual review, Council may elect to enter into an agreement with the Mayor or one City Councilor to assume additional responsibilities for additional compensation. The additional duties shall relate to representing the city on regional, state or federal issues and committees or task forces. The responsibilities and compensation shall be set by agreement between the Mayor or Councilor and the Council members. (Mayor Cook will serve as provided in Resolution No. 10-36: "The annual stipend for the Mayor shall be no more than $42,000. It is the expectation of the City Council that the assignments given to the Mayor, over and above usual and customary assignments... (Described in Section 6 of Res. 10-36...will require an average of twenty (20) hours each week during business hours.") 31 Page 3. Mutual Expectations NOTE., These are elosest to the usual eetteept of " Communication among Councilors ■ Information received by a council member that affects the council should be shared with the whole council. The city manager is to decide on"gray areas,"but too much information is preferable to too little. ■ Councilors and the city manager agree to report and discuss any contact that might affect labor relations with the entire council in Executive Session. ■ No surprises or ambushes. ■ Bounce ideas off each other by phone or informal conversation, always mindful not to form a quorum. ■ Share substantive information that is relevant to a matter under consideration from sources outside the public decision-making process with my fellow council members and staff. ■ It is the council's job to govern itself. If a discussion is going overly long or if a discussion becomes heated or tense,a council member may consider calling for a point of order to suggest taking a break or deferring the discussion to a future meeting. ■ The presiding officer should invite each councilor to express his or her opinion. Communication with Staff ■ Councilors are encouraged to avoid substantive contact with staff below the department head to avoid possible disruption of work, confusion on priorities and limited scope of responses. ■ City manager shares information equally with councilors. Communication with Boards and Commissions ■ Council members may attend any board meeting,which is open to any member of the public. However, council members should be sensitive to the way their participation could be viewed as unfairly affecting the process Communication with Other Public Agencies ■ Council members will be clear about representing the city or personal interests. If a council member appears before another governmental agency or organization to give a statement on an issue, the council member must clearly state whether the statement reflects personal opinion or is the official position of the city. ■ If a council member is representing the city on a board, committee or public meeting, that council member will consistently support and advocate the city's official position on an issue and cannot foster or further a personal viewpoint that is inconsistent with the official city position. 41 Page Communication on Behalf of the City or the Council ■ Do not provide the official response to communications directed to the full council. The city manager or mayor will coordinate the response on behalf of the city. It is appropriate for councilors to acknowledge receipt of communication and thank the sender. ■ It is the policy of the council that if councilors are contacted regarding labor relations during labor negotiations or conflict resolution proceedings, then councilors have no comment. ■ Communication that represents the city's position on an issue should come through city hall and be provided by the city manager. Direct submittals or inquiries to the council or individual councilors should be referred to the city manager, or councilors may ask the city manager to look into an issue. ■ Make no promises on behalf of the council in unofficial settings. Council members will frequently be asked to explain a council action or to give their opinion about an issue as they meet and talk with citizens. It is appropriate to give a brief overview. Overt or implicit promises of specific action or promises that city staff will take a specific action are to be avoided. uneilors Use of Electronic Communications Devices During Council Meetings ■ Councilors shall not use electronic communication devices to review or access information regarding matters not in consideration before the council during a council meeting. Councilors shall not access the internet but may access council packet information and personal review annotations* concerning any matter pending before the council during a council meeting. Councilors are to keep their focus on the proceedings. " seefi eta above.) 5 1 P a g e 4. General Guidelines for Effective,Respectful Councils ■ Recognize that you are seen as a councilor at all times, no matter how you see yourself at any particular time. Thus,councilors are always treated by administration as council members. ■ Whenever you put anything in writing, assume that everyone in the city is looking over your shoulder. ■ If a communication is directed to an individual councilor,you may choose to respond as an individual or refer to the city manager. ■ Councilors are encouraged to maintain open communications with the city manager, both as a group and individually. ■ Councilors are encouraged to take issues to the city manager first,giving as much information as possible to ensure a thorough response. ■ In the absence of the city manager,councilors are encouraged to contact the assistant city manager. In the absence of both the city manager and the assistant city manager, councilors are encouraged to contact the department head,realizing that the department head will discuss any such inquiries with the city manager. ■ Communicate clearly, directly and respectfully. Focus on problems and solutions, not people. ■ Our goal is mutual confidence and respect with staff. Compliment staff members when they make good presentations. Be friendly. Attend staff occasions when you can. ■ Be courteous. ■ Honestly share concerns and opinions with each other. ■ Don't blurt it out on TV. ■ If you hold back in a meeting, follow up later with fellow councilors or the city Manager. ■ Spend some casual time together. ■ Practice civility,professionalism and decorum in discussions and debate. Difficult questions, tough challenges to a particular point of view,and criticism of ideas and information are legitimate elements of democratic governance. This does not allow,however, council members to make belligerent,personal, slanderous, threatening,abusive, or disparaging comments. ■ Avoid personal comments that are intended to, or could reasonably be construed to, offend other members or citizens. If a council member is offended by the conduct or remarks of another member, the offended member is encouraged to address the matter early with the offending member. ■ Continue respectful behavior in private. The same level of respect and consideration of differing points of view deemed appropriate for public discussion should be maintained in private conversations. ■ Even private conversations can have a public presence. Council members should be aware that they are the focus of the public's attention. Even casual conversation about city business, other public officials or staff may draw attention and be repeated. ■ Understand proper political involvement. Council members, as private citizens,may support political candidates or issues but such activities must be done separate from their role as a council member. 6Page ■ Be welcoming to speakers and treat them with respect by giving them full attention demonstrated by eye contact and active listening.avoid interrupting them with questions or comments. For many citizens,speaking in front of the council is a new and difficult experience. ■ Council members should commit full attention to the speaker. Comments,questions,and non- verbal expressions should be appropriate,respectful and professional. ■ Be honest with fellow council members,the public and others. ■ Credit others'contributions to moving our community's interests forward. ■ Make independent,objective,fair and impartial judgments by avoiding relationships and transactions that give the appearance of compromising objectivity,independence,and honesty. ■ Review materials provided in advance of the meeting. ■ Make every effort to attend meetings. ■ Be prepared to make difficult decisions when necessary. ■ Contribute to a strong organization that exemplifies transparency. ■ Make decisions after prudent consideration of their financial impact, taking into account the long-term financial needs of the city. ■ Promote meaningful public involvement in decision-making processes. ■ Treat council members,board members,staff and the public with patience,courtesy and civility, even when we disagree on what is best for the community. ■ Conduct myself in a courteous and respectful manner at all times. ■ Encourage participation of all persons and groups. 7Page