City Charter Update
The 1996 change to the Tallahassee City charter mandated that the City Commission periodically appoint a Charter Review Committee to make recommendations for any amendments to the City Charter deemed appropriate and necessary. A second Charter review committee (CRC) was appointed in January 2009.
In March of 2009, the Chamber presented 3 recommendations for the Charter Review Committee:
1) Functional consolidation of city and county Growth Management which would result in better urban planning and environmental protection that will benefit businesses and residents in our community.
2) Establishment of an independent committee to review the City’s Land Development Code and provide formal reports and recommendations to the City Commission to achieve consistency within the county.
3) Development of alternative governance structure for Public Authorities to improve functioning of key areas vital to our region’s growth and economic development, specifically regional transit and airport authorities.
The Charter Review Committee met several times last spring and developed a Final Report and Recommendation to the City Commission on April 13, 2009. At a workshop on January 13, 2010, the City Commission discussed the CRC’s recommendations and scheduled the required public hearing for February 24. At the public hearing the City Commission voted to take no action until the Leon County Charter review process is completed and finalized.
County Charter Update
The Leon County Charter, which was adopted by the citizens of Leon County in November 2002, required the Board to establish the first Charter Review Committee in November 2009. The Citizen Charter Review Committee is charged with reviewing the County Charter and proposing any amendments or revisions for placement on the general election ballot in November 2010.
Chamber President Sue Dick was appointed to the Charter Review Committee last fall. Since November, the committee has received input on ways to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of County government through the charter.
The first 2 public hearings on proposed amendments to the Leon County Charter were held on February 18 and March 4. At the final public hearing scheduled for March 18, the committee will vote on each proposed amendment to be forwarded to the Leon County Board of County Commissioners.
The committee is considering making a recommendation on the following amendments:
Tourist Development Council Structure
Countywide Environmental Standards
Employment Policy of the County Administrator
Non-interference Policy
Petition Threshold/Petition Prohibition
Citizen Charter Review Committee
Clerk Auditor
Citizen Utility Advisory Board
Limitation on Campaign Contributions
