07-13-2006 Charter Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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Memorandum From: Paulette Warren, Chair, Lino Lakes Charter Commission To: City of Lino Lakes Charter Commissioners Date: June 23, 2006 Ref: Proposed Charter Amendment, Process Update In our July 13 meeting we will be determining whether we wish to accept, reject or revise the charter amendment brought to us at the last meeting with regard to whether sitting Council members may also participate as Charter Commission members. Your subcommittee of Mike Trehus, Cori Duffy and Caroline Dahl has been studying this issue and will make their recommendation at the meeting. In order to understand the "next steps" to be taken, it's also helpful to understand the process we are undertaking. I have been in communication with the City attorney, as requested by our Commission, in order to more readily understand the options open to us. Please refer to and read the letter of May 12 from Barry Sullivan. Subsequent to receiving this letter, I have summarized our options below. Mr. Sullivan has reviewed this summary and indicated that it is accurate. Therefore, I present it to you in addition to his letter. Please be certain to review both before our meeting. Regarding the proposed amendment which was drafted in response to the citizen petition obtained by Robert Benning: 1. We have the obligation to either accept the amendment as written, reject it, or make a recommendation for revision. 2. If we fail to take timely action, the City Council can vote to place the proposed amendment on the ballot as is. Failure on our part to take action of any kind will be treated as a rejection of the proposed amendment. The vote by the Council to place the proposed amendment on the ballot need not be unanimous to pass. A simple majority is all that is necessary. 3. The Council, on our recommendation, could instead choose to approve the amendment as is without going to ballot. To do this, the Charter Commission would first submit our approval of the proposed amendment to the council and also include a recommendation to the Council to follow the process outlined in