RESOLUTION NO. 010507

Establishing the City Councils intent to discuss and debate the proposed change from the existing Council-Manager form of government to a strong Mayor form of government in Kansas City and convey its collective position to the Charter Review Commission.

WHEREAS, the citizens of Kansas City, Missouri, adopted the Kansas City Charter on February 24, 1925, thereby establishing a Council/Manager form of professional government in Kansas City; and

WHEREAS, Kansas City, Missouri, has enjoyed a reputation for quality, professional management characterized by L.P. Cookingham; and

WHEREAS, the Charter provides that the city manager shall be chosen solely on the basis of his executive and administrative qualifications, that the city manager shall appoint all directors of departmentsand all other officers, and that these appointments shall be made on the basis of executive and administrative ability and of the training and experience of such appointees for the work which they are to administer. Further, the Charter states Neither the Council nor any of its committees or members shall have authority to control the appointment or removal of any person to or from office or employment by the city manager or any of his subordinates, thus effectively removing any political influence over the hiring and firing of professional city staff; and

WHEREAS, the Charter states that the city manager shall serve at the pleasure of the council, thus giving the City Council the authority to hire and fire the city manager, if the city manager is not responsive to the City Councils priorities; and

WHEREAS, FOCUS Kansas City recognizes that Kansas City has a long and deeply rooted tradition of professional city management, and it is our belief that the Council/Manager form has served the city well and is the legal structure most likely to facilitate FOCUS implementation; and

WHEREAS, a Charter Review Commission has been appointed by the Mayor to review the current Charter and recommend amendments to the City Council and ultimately to the voters of Kansas City for approval; and

WHEREAS, it has been proposed by the Mayor to the Charter Review Commission that it recommend a strong Mayor form of government for Kansas City; and

WHEREAS, the form of government, strong Mayor or Council-Manager, is the threshold issue facing the Charter Review Commission and will impact every other recommendation of that body; and

WHEREAS, the City Council collectively should give direction to the Commission in a timely manner on this threshold issue; and

WHEREAS, establishing a new form of government for Kansas City, Missouri, is the most important policy decision that an elected body can make; and

WHEREAS, it is the role of the elected members of the City Council to proactively set the policy for the City of Kansas City, Missouri, and not to simply react to the recommendations of an appointed board; NOW, THEREFORE,

BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF KANSAS CITY:

That the City Council of Kansas City, Missouri, will discuss and debate this important issue of fundamentally changing the form of government in Kansas City from Council-Manager to strong Mayor and will convey its collective position on this issue to the Charter Review Commission.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this discussion by the Committee of the Whole will take place on April 12, 2001, at the time reserved for the Council Priority session.

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