CHANGES TO CITY CHARTER PROPOSED; GROUP WANTS MAYOR TO BE ELECTED BY COUNCIL

CAPE GIRARDEAU -- After a decade of home-rule city government, a group that spearheaded the campaign to draft the city charter in 1980 has suggested the document be amended.

The most notable of the three amendments proposed by the Cape Girardeau County League of Women Voters is that the city's mayor be elected by the City Council rather than by the public at large.

Prior to the adoption of the city charter in 1981, the elected councilmen appointed the mayor from among themselves.

But the charter provides for at-large mayoral elections, which league members and city councilmen have said leads to the perception that the mayor has more authority than councilmen. The charter states the mayor has the same authority as councilmen.

In a letter sent this week to the City Council, the league stated that the amendment "should bring better communication and cooperation among members of the council and would avoid any misconception by the public on the role of the mayor."

The league's "position statement," adopted earlier this month, also asserted that the mayor should have a "minimum of administrative duties."

"In a form of government administered by a paid professional (city manager), successful city government may be best accomplished by the mayor of the city being elected by the council from its members," the league stated.

At its Monday meeting, the City Council will consider the league's proposed amendments and its recommendation to hold a special election to select a charter commission. The commission would review the proposals.

Other amendments recommended by the league include:

The length of council terms should be shortened from four to three years. Annual elections should be held to provide staggered terms "to assure continuity" on the council. Council elections now are held on even-numbered years only.

Employees of the city should not be required to resign to become a candidate for the City Council, but should be required to resign if elected, to avoid a conflict of interest.

This amendment is in response to last year's City Council elections when Doug Richards, director of public safety at Southeast Missouri State University and an unpaid commissioned city police officer, was told he had to resign his commission before running for council.

Richards was elected in the April 1990 municipal election.

Despite the amendment proposals, the League of Women Voters said it supports home-rule charter. Home-rule city government allows the city flexibility in dealing with governmental concerns because the city doesn't have to wait for legislative action pertaining to third-class cities like Cape Girardeau.

"The league believes this charter offers flexibility not possible under statutes and an opportunity to tailor the government structure to the particular needs of this community," the position paper said.

"After re-studying the charter as adopted, the league supports the (amendments) to further the principle of representative and responsible government."

One item of debate has been whether at-large council elections should be abandoned in favor of ward or zone representation. The league recommended that the city continue its at-large elections.

The league also affirmed the council-city manager structure of city government and endorsed keeping the council at seven members.

"The paid professional, who is generally referred to as a city manager, should have specific duties and scope of powers which should be defined in the charter," the paper said. "The paid professional should be able to hire and fire department heads, but there should be provisions for a hearing and review process.

"The accountability of the paid professional to the council and the procedures for a removal process should be outlined in the charter."

The league also encouraged citizen participation in city government and said the citizens' "right to know" should be supported by required full disclosure of all pending items of business before the council, citizen advisory boards and commissions.

"It is believed that the governmental process should be as open and as accessible to the citizens as possible," the statement said.

"Public hearings should be adequately announced and publicized with special attention given to the adoption of the city budget and the call for bids for the purchase of equipment and services required by the city.

"There should be provisions stated in the charter that the council shall not have the authority to pass an ordinance without official prior publication in full and that no ordinance shall be introduced and passed without a reasonable passage of time between the first and final readings of that ordinance."

Should the council choose to adopt the recommendations, a charter commission would be appointed and the issue would be placed before voters.