By Adam Swift
The city council is requesting that appointees to various boards and commissions appear before it prior to confirmation.
At Monday night’s meeting, the council took up a motion made by District 7 Councilor Manuel Teshe that a new rule be added to the body’s rules and regulations requiring board and commission appointees to appear before the council.
After some discussion among the council, Teshe agreed to change the requirement to a request in the language.
“At the last meeting, I proposed an order to make it a requirement for each person who is appointed by the city manager to the boards and commissions to make a brief appearance before the council just to introduce themselves and say their name and why they want to join,” said Teshe. “I think it would be beneficial not only for us to be able to see the person and their face, but also for the public, since the meetings are televised.”
Teshe noted that the council had just approved three appointments, and that he only knew one of the three appointees.
“I think the city manager does a very good job at vetting them and making sure they have a good resume, so I have no trouble with that,” said Teshe. “It’s just for the sake of meeting the people who are on the commissions. It would be a very good step toward transparency of our government.”
Several councilors said they had concerns with making the appearance before the council a requirement.
“My only concern with this, having served on a board for many years myself, was a little bit about a time commitment,” said District 5 Councilor Lisa Santagate. “These are all volunteers, so we are asking them to spend another night coming in as a volunteer.”
Councillor-at-Large Leo Robinson said that the reason that appointments have always gone to two readings at council meetings is so that councilors can reach out to the appointees between meetings if they have any questions. He added that in the past, former Councilor John O’Brien had requested that the appointees come before the council so the council could meet them.
District 1 Councilor Todd Taylor said he agreed with the sentiment of the order, but that it could turn into a large time commitment if the council spent meetings questioning every board and commission member that comes before it.
Teshe said he did not have a problem changing the language in his motion from a requirement to a request. “This is not for them to come in and be questioned by the council, my intention is for them to come in and show their face; let’s all be friends,” said Teshe.