Council passes charter

Last night, the Pensacola City Council, in a special Committee of the Whole session, passed the Charter Review Commission’s proposed charter document with minor revisions. The document will now proceed to a vote at Council’s regular meeting on September 10; if passed there, the ordinance creating a referendum on the charter would be read and voted on at the September 24 and October 8 meetings, after which it would proceed to public referendum.

The changes Council made last night were generally minor details or technical changes. There was extensive discussion of the proposed “Chief Administrator” position. Currently configured to be appointed by and serve at the pleasure of the mayor, there were those on Council, as well as Council’s consultant, Ms. Crotty, and members of the public, who felt that the City Administrator’s appointment should require Council approval. Public input was sharply divided, as was the Council, who eventually voted by a 5-4 vote to keep the City Administrator position as is.

Some of the minor changes Council did make:

• Clarified that ordinances Council may pass to increase their salaries or the salary of the mayor would not take effect until after the next election
• The timeframe in which Council must fill vacancies was increased from 10 to 30 days
• Clarified that the City Clerk will be the individual who determines whether or not candidates for City elected office are qualified
• Redistricting commission expanded from 5 to 7 members, and partisanship element removed

After going through the charter and making the various changes, Council approved the charter by a 9-0 vote.