ATTACHMENT 3
Excerpt from Council’s Procedures Manual, Revised September 1999
F. Nominations and Appointment Procedures.
1.a. Nominations and Appointment Process. (Resolution 85-R‑29) (Amended by Resolution 89‑1‑23/R‑9.)
In January of each year, the Town Clerk shall notify the Council and all Chairs of boards and commissions of those members of boards and commissions whose terms expire June 30. The Town Clerk shall advertise vacancies from January through March in a newspaper of general circulation within the community and such other means as may be deemed effective, including, but not limited to, mailings to community organizations, public service announcements, and letters of invitation to citizens who have expressed interest throughout the year.
Beginning in March, the Town Clerk shall distribute to the respective boards and commissions the applications that have been received to date from eligible citizens wishing to serve. The Town Clerk will not forward applications to boards and commissions if the applicant’s eligibility has not been determined. Upon verification of an applicant’s eligibility the Town Clerk shall forward the application to the board or commission for consideration.
The Council requests that the boards and commissions review all applications and recommend candidates to the Council for each vacancy, unless the board or commission declines to do so. The board or commission's recommendation shall be submitted in writing to the Town Clerk no later than April 25. If a board or commission elects not to recommend applicants, it is requested that the board or commission notify the Town Clerk of this decision in writing by April 25. Notwithstanding recommendations from boards and commissions, the Town Clerk shall forward the names and applications of all eligible persons interested in appointment for the vacancy on a board or commission and the board or commission recommendations to the Council for its consideration. The Council may choose to not consider appointments without a recommendation from the board or commission.
Applications received after the Monday prior to the Council’s regular business meeting at which nominations or appointments are scheduled shall be held until another vacancy occurs, thus allowing the Town Clerk to verify the applicant’s eligibility and the board or commission to make a recommendation.
All applicants for the board or commission shall be nominated by a resolution on the Consent Agenda. At the next regular meeting following nominations, the Council may make additional nominations and make appointments, provided that the applications of the nominees and recommendation of the board or commission have been distributed to the Council in the agenda packet for the meeting at which the appointments are scheduled. If possible, Council Members are to mark and sign their ballots prior to the meeting, and forward them to the Town Clerk at any time prior to the start of the meeting. The Town Clerk will announce the results of the balloting at the appropriate time during the Council’s meeting. If vacancies remain (applicants did not receive 5 or more votes), the Council may immediately hold further rounds of balloting to fill the vacancies, or may postpone filling these vacancies until the next regular meeting.
Beginning with the first regular meeting in May, and through the second regular meeting in June (four consecutive regular meetings of the Council), the Council may consider appointments to three or more boards and commissions per meeting.
b. Term Expirations.
All board and commission terms shall expire on June 30. However, members of boards and commissions may serve until their successors have been appointed.
c. Consecutive Terms.
No one shall serve on an advisory board or commission for more than two consecutive full terms. Following a one-year absence, an individual is eligible to serve again on the same board or commission. The Council may reappoint an individual to a board or commission for an additional one-year term following two consecutive terms, by resolution for the purpose of completing ongoing projects.
All members of standing boards or commissions must be sworn in by the Town Clerk or her designee prior to voting on matters before the board.
e. Ethics Guidelines.
All advisory board and commission members and applicants shall agree to comply with the following ethics guidelines adopted by the Council on March 1, 1999:
Ethics Guidelines for Town Advisory Boards and Commissions
Members of advisory boards and commissions shall not discuss, advocate, or vote on any matter in which they have a conflict of interest or an interest which reasonably might appear to be in conflict with the concept of fairness in dealing with public business. A conflict of interest or a potential conflict occurs if a member has a separate, private, or monetary interest, either direct or indirect, in any issue or transaction under consideration. Any member who violates this provision may be subject to removal from the board or commission.
If the advisory board or commission member believes he/she has a conflict of interest then that member should ask the advisory board or commission to be recused from voting. The advisory board or commission should then vote on the question on whether or not to excuse the member making the request. In cases where the individual member or the advisory board or commission establishes a conflict of interest, then the advisory board or commission member shall remove themselves from the voting area.
Any advisory board or commission member may seek the counsel of the Town Attorney on questions regarding the interpretation of these ethics guidelines or other conflict of interest matters. The interpretation may include a recommendation on whether or not the advisory board or commission member should excuse himself/herself from voting. The advisory board or commission member may request the Town Attorney respond in writing.
f. Resignations.
Resignations shall be submitted in writing to the chair of the board or commission, who shall forward the original written resignation to the Town Clerk for Council notification.
g. Residence of Appointees.
(1) The Council's appointees to the following boards and commissions shall reside within the Town limits of Chapel Hill:
Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Board*
Board of Adjustment**
Community Design Commission
Greenways Commission
Historic District Commission
Housing and Community Development Advisory Board***
Human Services Advisory Board
Library Board of Trustees**
Orange Water and Sewer Authority**
Parks and Recreation Commission**
Personnel Appeals Committee
Planning Board**
Transportation Board
* Note the Town Council appoints two (2) representatives from the Town of Carrboro and one (1) representative from Orange County to this board. The University appoints one (1) representative of its bicycle management.
** Note that the Orange County Commissioners also make appointments to these boards.
*** See exception for Carrboro residents on page 27.
**** Note that up to 40 percent (not more than six) may come from persons outside of Chapel Hill.
(2) Ad hoc committees and task forces:
Appointees to ad hoc committees and task forces including but not limited to those listed below will generally be Town residents, but may include residents of surrounding areas.
In considering appointments to any board, committee or task force where the membership is not otherwise restricted by law or ordinance, the Council may appoint non-residents, not to exceed 40% of membership, to an ad hoc committee or task force by following the Council's normal procedure for voting on appointments.
h. Dual Membership.
An incumbent on a standing board, as listed in F.1.g.(1), Residence of Appointees, shall not be considered for appointment to another standing board unless he or she resigns before filing an application, or is in the last six months of a term. Members of a standing board are eligible for appointment to an ad hoc committee or task force concurrent with their service on a standing board. Individuals may serve on multiple ad hoc committees or task forces concurrently.
i. Application File.
The Town Clerk shall keep applications on file through two spring appointment cycles. Applicants are encouraged to indicate on their applications if they wish to have their applications on file for a shorter period.
j. Applicants' Preference for Boards.
Applicants are strongly encouraged to apply for one board, but may apply for more than one if their preferences are ranked.
k. Full Term for Appointments to Vacancies Due to Resignations.
When a vacancy occurs before the scheduled end of a term, the person appointed to such vacancy shall serve a three-year term (four years for a seat on the Library Board of Trustees) plus any additional months necessary to have such term expire on June 30 if the vacancy occurs after January 1 but prior to June 30. For vacancies occurring before January 1 but after June 30, the three-year term shall continue from the previous July 1.
l. Leave of Absence.
Leaves of absence from boards shall be approved by the Council and shall not exceed five months. No interim appointments will be made.
m. Information on Composition of Membership.
At the meeting when board recommendations and applications are submitted to the Council, the Town Clerk shall give the Council a report on the race and gender composition of each board and commission. In addition, the application for membership on Town boards and commissions shall include a request for the applicant's occupation and avocation. The application form shall also include a statement encouraging interested applicants to visit a meeting of the board or commission they are interested in serving on.
n. Final Action.
Appointment: The Council shall consider and make appointments in an open meeting.
o. Voting.
The practice of the Council has been to vote by ballot when making appointments to boards and commissions. North Carolina Statute states the following regarding ballot voting: "If a public body decides to vote by written ballot, each member of the body so voting shall sign his or her ballot; and the minutes of the public body shall show the vote of each member voting. The ballots shall be available for public inspection in the office of the Town Clerk or secretary to the public body immediately following the meeting at which the vote took place and until the minutes of that meeting are approved, at which time the ballots may be destroyed."