CHAPTER 31: CITY COUNCIL; MAYOR Section Council Membership 31.01 Composition 31.02 Member qualifications 31.03 Powers 31.04 Vacancy Mayor 31.15 Mayor; powers 31.16 Mayor pro tempore Council Meetings 31.30 Meetings; notice 31.31 Rules of procedure; quorum; open to public; minutes 31.32 Appearing before Council Ordinances 31.45 Publication of ordinances 31.46 Code of ordinances COUNCIL MEMBERSHIP § 31.01 COMPOSITION. The City Council shall consist of a Mayor and five Council members. (Prior Code, § 2-51) § 31.02 MEMBER QUALIFICATIONS. The Council members shall be citizens of the U.S., qualified voters of this state, and reside within the ward from which they seek election in the city. They shall each be a bona fide owner of real estate within the corporate limits of the city and shall not be in arrears in the payment of any taxes or other liability due the city. A member of the Council who ceases to possess any of the qualifications specified above or is convicted of a felony while in office shall immediately forfeit his or her office. (Prior Code, § 2-52) Statutory reference: Similar provisions, see Tex. Loc. Gov’t Code, §§ 22.032 and 22.041 § 31.03 POWERS. (A) The City Council shall have power to pass, publish, amend, or repeal all ordinances, rules, and police regulations, not contrary to the State Constitution, for the good government, peace, and order of the city and the trade and commerce thereof, that may be necessary or proper to carry into effect the powers vested by Tex. Loc. Gov’t Code, §§ 9.001 et seq., in the corporation, the city government, or in any department or office thereof; to enforce the observance of all rules, ordinances, and police regulations; and to punish violations thereof. No fine or penalty shall be adopted to exceed $200. (B) All powers and authorities which are not expressly or explicitly conferred on or possessed by the city officers, shall be vested in and exercised by the City Council; provided, however, that the Council shall have no power to exercise those powers which are expressly conferred upon other city officers by the Charter. (Prior Code, § 2-53) § 31.04 VACANCY. In the event of a vacancy or vacancies from any cause in the office of Mayor or Council member, the vacancy or vacancies will be filled by the remaining members of the City Council electing a person qualified to serve until the next general election. (Prior Code, § 2-61) MAYOR § 31.15 MAYOR; POWERS. The Mayor shall: (A) Be the chief executive officer of the city; (B) Be vigilant and active at all times in causing the laws and ordinances for the government of the city to be duly executed and put in force; (C) Have power, whenever in his or her judgment the good of the city shall require it, to summon meetings of the Council; (D) Preside over all regular and called meetings of the City Council; (E) Communicate, from time to time, to the Council all information and recommend all measures as may tend to the improvement of the finances, police, health, security, cleanliness, comfort, ornament, and good government of the city; (F) Have power to administer oaths of office; (G) Have other powers as may from time to time be conferred upon him or her by the City Council. (H) Sign all contracts and conveyances made and entered into by the city and all bonds issued under the provisions of the Charter; (I) Be the official representative of the city by the courts for purposes of serving civil process, by the Governor for the purpose of enforcing military law, and all ceremonial purposes; and (J) In time of danger or emergency, the Mayor may, with the consent of the Council, take command of the police and govern the city by proclamation and maintain order and enforce all laws. (Prior Code, § 2-54) § 31.16 MAYOR PRO TEMPORE. (A) At the first meeting of the Council after the general city election, or as soon thereafter as practicable, one of the Council members shall be elected Mayor pro tempore. (B) The Mayor pro tempore shall hold office for one year. (C) The Mayor pro tempore shall preside over all meetings of the Council during the absence of the Mayor, and when both the Mayor and Mayor pro tempore are absent, the members present (if a quorum) may call another member to preside. (D) Nothing contained in this section shall be construed to prohibit the same person from serving more than one consecutive one-year term as Mayor pro tempore. (Prior Code, § 2-55) Statutory reference: Mayor pro tempore, see Tex. Loc. Gov’t Code, § 22.037 COUNCIL MEETINGS § 31.30 MEETINGS; NOTICE. There shall be regular public meetings of the City Council at times and places as shall from time to time be established by the City Council. Regular meetings of the City Council shall be held at least once each calendar month. Special meetings may be called at any time by the Mayor, on his or her own motion, or on the application of three Council members. Notice of special meetings shall be given to each member of the Council, the City Manager, the City Secretary, and the City Attorney. This notice shall be given by the City Manager, the City Secretary, or an officer designated by the Mayor. The notice to Council members shall be in writing. (Prior Code, § 2-56) Statutory reference: Meetings, see Tex. Loc. Gov’t Code, §§ 22.033, 22.038, 22.043, and 51.072 § 31.31 RULES OF PROCEDURE; QUORUM; OPEN TO PUBLIC; MINUTES. (A) The City Council shall determine its own rules of procedure and order of business and may compel the attendance of its members. Four members of the City Council shall constitute a quorum to do business and a majority of the vote of those present is necessary to act on business. In order to adopt any ordinance or resolution, the affirmative vote of at least four of those attending any meeting in which a quorum is present is necessary. (B) All meetings of the City Council shall be open to the public, and minutes of all proceedings shall be kept, to which any citizen may have access at all reasonable times and which shall constitute one of the archives of the city. The vote upon the passage of all ordinances and resolutions shall be taken by ayes and nays and entered upon the minutes, and every ordinance or resolution upon its final passage shall be recorded in a book kept for that purpose and shall be authenticated by the signature of the presiding officer and the City Secretary. (C) At the first meeting of the Council following the annual municipal election, the Council shall adopt their rules of procedure. (Prior Code, § 2-57) (Am. Ord. passed 8-14-1990) § 31.32 APPEARING BEFORE COUNCIL. (A) Except in cases of emergencies or as provided below, any person wishing to appear before the City Council shall notify the City Secretary, or in his or her absence, the City Manager, in writing at least 168 hours prior to the date of the next scheduled meeting, giving the name of the person to appear and providing detailed information pertinent to the subject to be discussed. (B) Any person speaking before the Council in accordance with division (A) above shall be authorized not more than ten minutes. The Mayor shall have the option, if this matter has been discussed before and the speaker is not presenting new or pertinent information, to limit that address to not more than three minutes. (C) Thirty minutes prior to the start of each Council meeting, the City Secretary will be available so any parties who wish to speak to the Council, but who have not complied with division (A) above, may do so. The first five people to sign the roster as provided by the City Secretary shall have the right to speak. Their appearance shall be for not more than three minutes, and unless the topic they discuss is already on the agenda, no action may be had upon that topic. (D) Any exceptions to division (A) of this section shall be determined by a vote of the Council members as set forth in § 31.31(A) of this code. (Prior Code, § 2-58) ORDINANCES § 31.45 PUBLICATION OF ORDINANCES. Except as otherwise provided by law, the City Secretary shall give notice of the enactment of every ordinance imposing any penalty, fine, or forfeiture for any violation of any of its provisions and of every other ordinance required by law to be published by causing the ordinance, or its caption and penalty, to be published at least one time within ten days after passage thereof in an official newspaper of the city. (Prior Code, § 2-59) Statutory reference: Publication of ordinances, see Tex. Loc. Gov’t Code, §§ 51.072 and 52.011 § 31.46 CODE OF ORDINANCES. The City Council shall have the power to cause all general ordinances of the city to be compiled and printed in code form. When adopted by the City Council, the printed code of general ordinances contemplated by this section shall be in full force and effect without the necessity of the code, or any part thereof, being published in any newspaper. The caption, description clause, and other formal parts of the ordinances of the city may be omitted without affecting the validity of those ordinances when they are published as a code. Every general ordinance enacted subsequent to the codification shall be enacted as an amendment to the code. (Prior Code, § 2-60) Statutory reference: Code of ordinances, see Tex. Loc. Gov’t Code, §§ 53.001 - 53.006 |