HomeMy WebLinkAbout1999-101ORDINANCE NO ( ? — /O /
AN ORDINANCE AMENDING ORDINANCE NO 99-057 ORDERING AN ELECTION TO
BE HELD ON MAY 1, 1999 AND ORDINANCE NO 99-086, FOR THE PURPOSES OF
SUBMITTING TO THE REGISTERED VOTERS OF DENTON, TEXAS AMENDMENTS TO
THE DENTON CITY CHARTER, BY AMENDING AMENDMENT NO 2 AND
AMENDMENT NO 5 TO ADD SOME ADDITIONAL STATUTORY REFERENCES, BY
AMENDING AMENDMENT NO 23 TO EXPAND THE NUMBER OF PUBLIC UTILITIES
BOARD MEMBERS AND TO MAKE IT SUBJECT TO THE OPEN MEETINGS ACT, TO
AMEND AMENDMENT NO 25 TO ADD ADDITIONAL WORDING, TO AMEND
PROPOSITION NOS 2 AND 4 TO CORRECT STATUTORY AND SECTION
REFERENCES, TO AMEND PROPOSITION NOS 5, AND 7 TO ELIMINATE
REDUNDANT AND UNNECESSARY PHRASES, TO AMEND PROPOSITION NOS 8
AND 14 TO CHANGE WORD REFERENCES, TO AMEND PROPOSITION NO 11 TO
DIVIDE IT INTO THREE SEPARATE PROPOSITIONS AND TO RENUMBER THE
REMAINING PROPOSITIONS ACCORDINGLY, PROVIDING A SEVERABILITY
CLAUSE, PROVIDING A SAVINGS CLAUSE, PROVIDING AN OPEN MEETINGS
CLAUSE, AND PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE
WHEREAS, the City Attorney has found it necessary to make non -substantial technical
changes to Amendment Nos 2, 5, 25, Proposition Nos 2, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 11, and 14 of Ordinance
No 99-057 calling a City Charter Election to correct statutory, section, and other references in
order to simplify and correct the language of the ordinance and ballot, to change Amendment
No 23 to expand the Public Utilities Board and to make it subject to the Open Meetings Act, and
to divide Proposition No 11 into three separate propositions, expanding the total number of
propositions from 14 to 17, and
WHEREAS, the City Council deems it in the public interest to amend the Ordinance to
make these changes, NOW, THEREFORE,
THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF DENTON HEREBY ORDAINS
SECTION I That Section I, Amendment No 2 of Ordinance No 99-057, passed by the
City Council on February 16, 1999, is hereby amended to add an additional statutory reference
so that Amendment No 2 hereby now reads as follows
AMENDMENT NO 2
That Article I of the Charter shall be amended by amending Section 105 "Powers of the
city" so that the same shall hereafter read as follows
Sec. 105. Powers of the city.
The City of Denton shall have and may exercise all the powers granted to cities by the
Constitution or laws of Texas including specifically those powers made available to cities of
more than five thousand (5,000) inhabitants by what is known as the Home Rule Amendment to
the Constitution of Texas (Article XI, Section 5 and the Home Rule Enabling Act (Chapter 13,
T.A.. 28 of the D.... sed Gwil a.......,._ _o the State _o T..-...,,f imc Vernon's Texas Codes
Annotated, Texas Local Government Code Section 5 004, Chapter 9, Chapter 26, and
Subchapter E of Chapter 51), as these laws now read or may hereafter be amended The City
may acquire property within or without its corporate limits for any municipal purpose, may
cooperate with the government of Texas or any agency thereof, or with the federal government
or any agency thereof, or with the government of any county, city, or political subdivision to
accomplish any lawful purpose for the advancement of the health, morals, safety, convenience,
or welfare of the city or its inhabitants, may sell, lease, mortgage, hold, manage, and control such
property as its interest may require, provided the City shall not sell, convey, lease, mortgage, or
otherwise alienate the entire assets of any public utility system or any portion thereof essential to
continued effective utility service without the prior approval by a majority of the qualified voters
of the City who vote at an election held for this purpose, and may exercise the power of eminent
domain when necessary or desirable to carry out any of the powers conferred upon it by this
Charter or the Constitution or laws of Texas The enumeration of particular powers in this
Charter shall not be held or deemed to be exclusive, but in addition to the powers enumerated
herein, implied thereby or appropriate to the exercise thereof, the City shall have and may
exercise all other powers which under the Constitution and general laws of this state it would be
competent for this Charter to specifically enumerate
SECTION II, That Section I, Amendment No 5 of Ordinance No 99-057, passed by the
City Council on February 16, 1999, is hereby amended to correct the statutory reference in
subsection 4 of Section 2 02 "Qualifications" so the same shall hereafter read as follows
AMENDMENT NO.5
That Article II of the Charter shall be amended by amending Section 2 02 Qualifications"
so that the same shall hereafter read as follows
Sec 2.02. Qualifications
by law
(a) Each member of the Council, in addition to having the other qualifications prescribed
(1) Shall be a qualified vetere€registered to vote in the City,
(2) Shall have resided for at least one year next preceding his or her election within the
corps ate limits of Denton and, if running within c single membe, geographic district
as sei forth in Section 2 01, in the district in which elected,
,
(4) (3) Shall not hold any other public office of emolument,
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(4) Shall have and maintain the eligibility requirements for municipal officers set forth in
Section 141 001 of the Texas Election Code, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes Annotated
hereinafter referred to as "Election Code" as it may now read or hereafter be
amended
(5)
,
supplies, or
eqaipmen4-, and
- - -::
(b) If a member of the Council shall, after being elected, cease to possess any of these
qualifications or eligibility requirements, or shall hold another office of emolument, or enter a
plea of guilty to a felony, or be convicted of a felony he or she shall immediately forfeit lus or
her office
SECTION III That Section I, Amendment No 23 of Ordinance No 99-057, passed by
the City Council on February 16, 1999, is hereby amended so that the same shall hereafter read
as follows
AMENDMENT NO.23
That Article XII of the Charter shall be amended by amending Section 12 07 "The public
utilities board" so that the same shall hereafter read as follows
Sec 12 07. The public utilities board
(a) There is hereby created a public utilities board to be composed of €i*e (5) seven (7)
members, or as many members as there are councilmembers, whichever is greater, appointed by
the Council for four-year terms and until their respective successors have been appointed and
qualified, previded that the members of the fiFst beffd appointed tmdef dma pmvisiefl shall at
their. or-gaffieft4lenal ffleatifig dFaw fer. tefflis as fellews, Otte (1) shall Elfaw a ene yeaf ten", site
Members of the board may be removed by the Council only for cause and only after charges
have been filed and published and the member has been given a reasonable opportunity to defend
himself in an open public hearing before the Ccancil Vacan ies shall be filled for any
unexpiri,d term in the same manner as provided for regular appointments
(b) The city manager and director of utilities shall be ex officio members of the board
They sh ill attend all meetings of the board and shall have the right to discuss any matter that is
under consideration by the board but shall have no vote
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(c) Members of the public utilities board shall have the same qualifications as are
required by membership on the City Council
(d) At its organizational meeting, and annually thereafter as soon as the newly appointed
member (or members) has qualified, the board shall select from its own membership a chairman,
vice-chairman, and secretary Any three (3) of the regularly appointed members shall constitute
a quorum The board shall determine its own rules and order of business The board shall meet
at least once each month, all meetings shall be ewe conducted in accordance with
the Texas Open Meetings Act, chapter 551 of the Texas Government Code, as it may now read or
hereafter be amended and all other applicable laws and a permanent record of proceedings
maintained
SECTION IV That Section I, Amendment No 25 of Ordinance No 99-057, passed by
the City Council on February 16, 1999, is hereby amended to add the phrase "or real property"
so the same shall hereafter read as follows
AMENDMENT NO.25
That Article XIV of the Charter shall be amended by amending Section 14 04 "Personal
interest' so that the same shall hereafter read as follows
See. 14.04. Personal interest.
ifidiFeet, in my eelivaef with the > or. be e
land,matenals,
supplies OF sefvfees, e3wept e" behalf of the CRY -as
Anyofficer
or employee having a substantial interest in a business entity or real property, as those terms are
defined in chapter 171 of the Texas Local Government Code as it now reads or may hereafter be
amended, shall comply with chapter 171 and, if necessary, shall abstain from voting on a matter
involving the business entity or real property and file an affidavit setting forth the substantial
interest in the matter to be voted upon
SECTION V That Section II, Proposition No 2 of Ordinance No 99-057, passed by the
City Council on February 16, 1999, is hereby amended by amending Proposition No 2 disposal
of utilities and to add the phrase "and to correct statutory references" so that the same ehall
hereafter read as follows
PROPOSITION NO 2 — Disposal of Utilities Shall Section 105 of Article I of the City Charter
and Section 12 04 of Article XJI of the City Charter be amended to provide that the City mpy not
sell, lease, mortgage, or otherwise alienate the ent,re assets of any utility system or any essential
portion thereof without the approval of a majoiity of all the qualified voters voting at an election
held for that purpose and to correct statutory references9
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SECTION VI That Section II, Proposition No 4 of Ordinance No 99-057, passed by
the City Council on February 16, 1999, is hereby amended to change the reference to Section
108 to Section 107 so that the same shall hereafter read as follows
PROPOSITION NO 4 — Gender Neutral Shall Article I of the City Charter be amended by
adding a new Section 107 so that the Charter becomes gender neutral by extending all references
in the Charter to the masculine gender to apply also to females and where applicable to firms,
partnerships, and corporations?
SECTION VII. That Section H, Proposition No 5 of Ordinance No 99-057, passed by
the City Council on February 16, 1999, is hereby amended to eliminate unnecessary and
redundant phrases so that the same shall hereafter read as follows
PROPOSITION NO 5 — Municipal Elections Shall Article II and Article III of the City Charter
be amended by amending Section 2 02 requiring each member of the Council to be a registered
voter and have the minimum eligibility requirements for a municipal officer set forth in the state
law, reside for one year prior to the election in a single member district for which the person is
running, to eliminate the requirements that a councilmember not be in debt to the City, not be
interested in the emoluments of any contract or transaction with the City, and not be an officer or
director of a public service corporation, and to require forfeiture of the office upon ceasing to
possess these qualifications or upon conviction of a felony, by amending Sections 2 04 and 3 01
to require municipal elections to be held on uniform election dates in accordance with applicable
laws, by amending Sections 3 02, and 3 04 to acknowledge awareness of nepotism laws in the
petition to nominate a candidate for councilmember, changing the required number of signatures
on the petition, and to require canvassing and the holding of a runoff election in compliance with
applicable laws?
SECTION VIII. That Section II, Proposition No 7 of Ordinance No 99-057, passed by
the City Council on February 16, 1999, is hereby amended to remove the redundant last phrase
so that the same shall hereafter read as follows
PROPOSITION NO 7 — Taxation Shall Section 7 01 of Article VII of the City Charter be
amended to provide the City's power to tax shall be consistent with the Tax Code and to delete
Sections 7 02, 7 03, and 7 04 regarding the payment, collection, levying, seizure, and sale of
property for delinquent taxes, delinquency penalties, and establishment of tax liens, and to
renumber the remaining sections, so that these matters will be governed by the Tax Code and
other applicable laws?
SECTION IX That Section II Proposition No 8 of Ordinance No 99-057, passed by
the City Council on February 16, 1999, is hereby amended to change the word in the next to last
line "officers" to "offices" so that the same shall hereafter read as follows
PROPOSITION NO 8 — Budget "hall Article VIII of the City Charter be amended by
amending Sections 8 04 and 8 05 to provide for a public hearing on the budget after the 151h day
the proposed budget is filed with the City Secretary but before taxes are levied, to provide for
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notice to be published in accordance with applicable laws, to provide for adoption of the budget
after the public hearing, allowing the proposed budget to take effect if the Council takes no
action before the end of the fiscal year, allowing Council to make changes in the budget, and
amending Section 8 07 to authorize transfer of certain unencumbered funds within and between
offices, departments, agencies, and organizational units during the fiscal year?
SECTION X. That Section Il, Proposition No 9 of Ordinance No 99-057, passed by the
City Council on February 16, 1999, is hereby amended to change the phrase "$1 million" in the
next to last line to "one million dollars" so that the same shall hereafter read as follows
PROPOSITION NO 9 — Bonds Shall Sections 9 01 and 9 02 of Article IX of the City Charter
be amended to require general obligation bond debt of the City to be increased only by consent
of the majority of the qualified voters of the City voting in an election for that purpose, and to
eliminate the requirement for a revenue bond issue in excess of one million dollars to be
approved by a non -binding referendum election?
SECTION X That Section II, Proposition No 11 of Ordinance No 99-057, passed by
the City Council on February 16, 1999, is hereby amended to divide this proposition into three
separate propositions, Propositions No 11, 12, and 14 so that the same shall hereafter read as
follows
PROPOSITION NO 11 — Deletion of Board of Adjustment. Shall Article X, Section 10 07 of
the City Charter be amended by deleting the Board of Adjustment from the City Charter and
requiring that the City Council, by ordinance, establish a Board of Adjustment consisting of at
least seven members having the qualifications, powers, duties, and terms established by the City
Council, and providing that the current Board of Adjustment shall continue to function under
these provisions of the Charter until the ordinance creating the Board of Adjustment is effective9
PROPOSITION NO 12 — Deletion of Parks and Recreation Board Shall Article XI, Section
1102 of the City Charter be amended by deleting the Parks and Recreation Board from the City
Charter and requiring that the City Council, by ordinance, establish a board to advise the Council
on parks and recreation matters consisting of at least seven members having the qualifications,
powers, duties, and terms established by the City Council, and providing that the current Parks
and Recreation Board shall continue to function under these provisions of the Charter until the
ordinance creating the Board is effective9
PROPOSITION NO 14 — Expansion of Public Utilities Board Shall Article XII, Section 12 07
of the City Charter be amended by expanding the Public Utilities Board from five to seven
rr.embers or as many members as there are councilmembers whichever is I reater, and requiring
iul meetings of .he Board to be held in accordance with the Texas Open Meetings Act and all
other applicable laws9
SECTIMT XI. That Section II, Proposition No 14 of Ordinance N i 99-057, passed by
the City Council on February 16, 1999, is hereby amended to add the phrase "or real property"
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and make changes consistent therewith and to insert the word "of' after "Article XIV" and to
insert the word "Local" after the word "Texas" so that the same shall hereafter read as follows
PROPOSITION NO 14 — Conflict of Interest Shall Section 14 04 of Article XIV of the City
Charter be amended by eliminating the current conflict of interest requirements and substituting
the requirement that any officer or employee having a substantial interest in a business entity or
real property, as those terms are defined by chapter 171 of the Texas Local Government Code,
shall comply with chapter 171 and, if necessary, shall abstain from voting on a matter on which
the person has a substantial interest and file an affidavit setting forth the substantial interest in
the matter to be voted upon
SECTION XII That Section II of Ordinance No 99-057, passed by the City Council on
February 16, 1999, is hereby amended by renumbenng Proposition No 12 — New Utilities to
Proposition No 13 — New Utilities, Proposition No 13 — Franchise Fees to Proposition No 15 —
Franchise Fees, Proposition No 14 — Conflict of Interest to Proposition No 16 — Conflict of
Interest, and Proposition No 15 — Statutory Reference to Proposition No 17 — Statutory
Reference to expand the total number of propositions from 15 to 17
SECTION XIII That save and except as amended hereby, all the sections, subsections,
paragraphs, sentences, clauses, and phrases of Ordinance No 99-057 shall remain in full force
and effect This ordinance also amends and replaces Ordinance No 99-086, passed by the City
Council on March 23, 1999
SECTION XIV That if any section, subsection, paragraph, sentence, clause, phrase or
word in this ordinance, or application thereof to any person or circumstances is held invalid by
any court of competent jurisdiction, such holding shall not affect the validity of the remaining
portions of this ordinance, and the City Council of the City of Denton, Texas hereby declares it
would have enacted such remaining portions despite any such invalidity
SECTION XV That the City Council has found and determined that the meeting at
which this ordinance is considered is open to the public and that notice thereof was given in
accordance with provisions of the Texas open meetings law, TEX GOWT CODE ch 551, as
amended, and that a quorum of the City Council was present
SECTION XVI That this ordinance shall become effective immediately upon its
passage and approval
PASSED AND APPROVED this the p77 ' day of '1999
JACI I ER, MAYOR
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ATTEST
JENNIFER WALTERS, CITY SECRETARY
BY
APPROVED AS TO LEGAL FORM
HERBERT L PROUTY, CITY ATTORNEY
M.
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