Agenda Item Title:
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Council Chair Nicholl recommends that the Council take public comment on the Sandy Water Quality Incident, and seek direction from the public specifically on two policy questions:
1. Should the City Council convene an investigation into the incident?
2. If so, how shall the committee be structured? For example, should the committee consist of Council Members, citizens, or a combination? What should the scope of the investigation include or not include (i.e. the specific chain of events, the City's management of the incident, public communications, the overall safety of the water quality system, etc.), what type of expertise should be represented on the committee?
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Presenter:
Council Chair Nicholl
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Description/Background:
At the time of this writing, the Mayor Bradburn and his staff planned to convene a Water Quality Town Hall on Monday, February 19 at 7 PM in the theater at Mt. Jordan Middle School. While this is may provide opportunity for residents to share feedback to the Administration, as the City's legislative body the City Council is prohibited from discussing City business outside of meeting noticed consistent with the Utah Open and Public Meetings Act. This agenda item is therefore being amended into the City Council's February 19, 2019 meeting so that citizens may share their thoughts with the Council as a whole, and to allow the Council to lawfully discuss and take action if appropriate.
Under state law and the Sandy City Municipal Code the Mayor is the chief executive, financial, and administrative officer of the City. As the legislative arm of local government the City Council has no operational authority over City departments, but has responsibility for the municipal code, land use, and budgetary adoption and oversight. Among other powers, Utah state law (UCA 10-3b-203) allows the City Council to, appoint a committee of council members or citizens to conduct an investigation into:
- An officer, department, or agency of the municipality; or
- Any other matter relating to the welfare of the municipality; and
The Council may delegate to an appointed committee powers of inquiry that the council considers necessary. Under UCA 10-3-610:
"The governing body of each municipality may require the attendance of any person to give testimony or produce records, documents or things for inspection, copying or examination necessary or useful for the governance of the municipality. The governing body may by ordinance establish its own procedures for issuing subpoenas to require attendance and production under this section or ita may issue subpoenas in its own name in the same manner as is provided in the Utah Rules of Civil Procedure."
Council Chair Nicholl recommends that the Council take public comment on the Sandy Water Quality Incident, and seek direction from the public specifically on two policy questions
1. Should the City Council convene an investigation into the incident?
2. If so, how shall the committee be structured? For example, should the committee consists of Council Members, citizens, or a combination? What should the scope of the investigation include or not include (i.e. the specific chain of events, the City's management of the incident, public communications, the overall safety of the water quality system, etc.), what type of expertise should be represented on the committee?
Fiscal Impact:
Should the Council proceed with an investigatory committee there will likely be administrative costs.
Further action to be taken:
Council to discuss and take action as appropriate in response to public comment.
Recommended Action and/or Suggested Motion:
Recommendation