HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOUNCIL - AGENDA ITEM - 07/05/2022 - SECOND READING OF ORDINANCE NO. 080, 2022, SUBMITT Agenda Item 15
Item # 15 Page 1
AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY July 5, 2022
City Council
STAFF
Anissa Hollingshead, City Clerk
Rita Knoll, Chief Deputy City Clerk
Carrie Daggett, City Attorney
SUBJECT
Second Reading of Ordinance No. 080, 2022, Submitting to a Vote of the Registered Electors of the City of
Fort Collins a Proposed Amendment to the City Charter Concerning the Use of a Ranked Voting Method to
Elect Future Mayors and Councilmembers of the City of Fort Collins.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
This Ordinance, adopted on First Reading on June 21, 2022 by a vote of 6-1 (Nay: Peel), submits a City-
initiated Charter Amendment to the registered electors of the City at the November 8, 2022 special election.
This Charter amendment proposes to amend various provisions of the Charter to require the use of a ranked
voting method beginning in 2025.
STAFF RECOMMENDATION
If Council desires to present voters with the determination of whether to shift to using ranked-choice voting to
elect future Mayors and Councilmembers, staff recommends adoption of the Ordinance on Second Reading.
ATTACHMENTS
1. First Reading Agenda Item Summary, June 21, 2022 (w/o attachments) (PDF)
2. Ordinance No. 080, 2022 (PDF)
AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY June 21, 2022
City Council
STAFF
Anissa Hollingshead, City Clerk
Rita Knoll, Chief Deputy City Clerk
Carrie Daggett, City Attorney
SUBJECT
Items Relating to a City-Initiated Charter Amendment Relating to the Conduct of City Elections to Use a
Ranked Voting Method.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Amendments were made to Section 7. Certification of election results – paragraph (a) of the Ordinance.
A.Possible Public Hearing and Motion(s) Regarding Protest(s) of Ballot Language.
B.First Reading of Ordinance No. 080, 2022, Submitting to a Vote of the Registered Electors of the City of Fort
Collins a Proposed Amendment to the City Charter Concerning the Use of a Ranked Voting Method to Elect
Future Mayors and Councilmembers of the City of Fort Collins.
The purpose of this item is to submit a City-initiated Charter Amendment to the registered electors of the City at
the November 8, 2022 special election. This Charter amendment proposes to amend various provisions of the
Charter to require the use of a ranked voting method beginning in 2025.
Any protest of the proposed ballot language must be received no later than Tuesday, June 21, 2022, at noon.
Protest(s) shall be heard, considered, and resolved by the Council prior to adoption of the related Ordinance. If
protests are received, copies will be included in Council's "Read Before the Meeting" packet.
STAFF RECOMMENDATION
If Council desires to present voters with the determination of whether to shift to using ranked-choice voting to
elect future Mayors and Councilmembers, staff recommends adoption of the Ordinance on First Reading.
BACKGROUND / DISCUSSION
At the March 22, 2022 Work Session, Council discussed two potential Charter Amendments relating to the
conduct of municipal elections. These Charter Amendments have also been considered by the Council’s Election
Code Committee (ECC) at meetings in 2021 and 2022, and that committee has recommended bringing both
amendments forward to the full Council for consideration.
The first proposed amendment makes changes to the City Charter necessary to allow for the use of ranked-
choice voting in elections for City Councilmembers and Mayor. If adopted, this Ordinance will submit this
amendment to voters at the November 8, 2022 Special Election.
There are multiple sections of the Charter which would require changes as part of this amendment in order to
implement RCV, including:
ATTACHMENT 1
COPY
Agenda Item 20
Item # 20 Page 2
Amending Article VIII. Elections
• In Section 1, Adding potential applicability of coordinated municipal elections.
• In Section 7:
o Shifting the requirement to certify the election from by the 10th day after the election to a date to be
specified by ordinance.
o Adding provisions relating to how the highest number of votes for a particular office is determined
relevant to the use of a ranked voting method.
o Establishing the use of ranked voting methods for municipal elections beginning in 2025.
Amending Article IX. Recall
• Adding a reference to ranked voting requirements to recall provisions.
CITY FINANCIAL IMPACTS
The financial impacts of adopting this ordinance include the cost of conducting a coordinated special election
with Larimer County on the question. Special elections are not budgeted and typically are paid for with prior year
reserves.
If this measure is ultimately approved by the voters, there would be additional costs in administering elections.
The amount of these costs is difficult to predict and would differ depending upon whether the election was
conducted by the City Clerk’s Office or as a coordinated election with Larimer County.
In a City-run municipal election, most election expenses would remain relatively stable with the addition of RCV.
The handful of expenses most likely to see impacts include:
• Vote Tabulation Equipment – The City does not own its own tabulation equipment. It is also not constrained
to using its existing vendor and can explore other options that may offer some cost efficiencies or additional
opportunities for partnership. At this stage, quotes have been obtained from the current vendor being used
for adding RCV capabilities. The estimate provided includes overall cost increases from recent years
regardless of whether RCV is used. The specific module for RCV would add $35,000 to rental costs in each
election.
• Staffing Costs – Implementing RCV will likely mean increased staffing costs primarily for temporary staff
including election judges. Estimating the level of increase is speculative without a more complete picture of
the circumstances of implementation, including available internal resources to support efforts. It is
reasonable to assume at least some impact in this category. Utilizing equipment capable of fully tabulating
RCV ballots would decrease the level of potential increase, but not eliminate it entirely.
• Voter Education – In every election, the City engages in a level of voter outreach and education. This is an
area for potential growth regardless of voting methodology to better address the goals of Council around
supporting voter participation. In recent election years, approximately $10,000 per municipal election has
been invested in this realm. Specific to RCV, the need for more comprehensive voter education does exist
and would rightly call for an increased investment to help voters become familiar with what to expect when
casting their ballots. Done by the City and with a longer term ramp up to implementation over more than the
course of a year, this expense could be managed well to maximize the use of any funds allocated for this
purpose.
With the timing of implementation under consideration for 2025, it is likely possible to offset some of these
additional costs at least in part through the development of partnerships with neutral civic-oriented entities
including the pursuit of grant funds. Adequate time would be available to explore these options to minimize the
additional costs if elections continue to be administered by the City.
In a coordinated election, Larimer County has indicated all costs directly associated with RCV will be passed on
to only those jurisdictions utilizing RCV on a ballot. At this point, there are no other jurisdictions in Larimer County
indicating an interest in implementing RCV, so all RCV-related costs would be passed on to Fort Collins. This COPY
Agenda Item 20
Item # 20 Page 3
would be in addition to the share of all expenses that would be allocated to the City as occurs in any coordinated
election. The cost sharing provisions are set by the County with a basis in state statute and apply to all
jurisdictions participating in coordinated elections. The arrangement incentivizes the entity conducting the
election – in this case the county – to ensure all necessary resources are dedicated to elections to ensure a
successful event without the ability of coordinating jurisdictions to be part of those decisions, or aware of what
the costs will be until the election event is underway. RCV-specific costs are most likely to include:
• Equipment Firmware and Licensing for the RCV Module – Costs for this are being negotiated by the
Secretary of State on behalf of counties across the state with the vendor. Costs may be tiered by population
and are not likely to be known until sometime in 2023.
• Voter Education – The state statute permitting the use of RCV in coordinated municipal elections requires
an agreement between a municipality and the coordinating county specifically including a voter education
plan and coordinating its execution and costs.
• Staffing Costs – It is likely the County will increase staffing levels to administer an election event with RCV
to ensure it has adequate capacity to ensure successful administration of new processes.
PUBLIC OUTREACH
Targeted outreach was not conducted for this proposed Charter amendment. However, meetings of the Elections
Code Committee where this amendment was discussed were open to the public, and several members of the
community regularly attended and provided input. In addition, the Council discussed this proposed amendment
at its March 22 Work Session.
ATTACHMENTS
1. Where RCV is Used (PDF)
2. Election Code Committee Minutes, September 2021 (PDF)
3. Election Code Committee Minutes, February 2022 (PDF)
4. Election Code Committee Minutes, March 7, 2022 (PDF)
5. Election Code Committee Minutes, May 9, 2022 (PDF)
6. Election Code Committee Minutes, May 31, 2022 (draft) (PDF)
7. Powerpoint Presentation (PDF) COPY
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ORDINANCE NO. 080, 2022
OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS
SUBMITTING TO A VOTE OF THE REGISTERED ELECTORS OF THE CITY OF FORT
COLLINS A PROPOSED AMENDMENT TO THE CITY CHARTER CONCERNING THE
USE OF A RANKED VOTING METHOD TO ELECT FUTURE MAYORS AND
COUNCILMEMBERS OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS
WHEREAS, Article IV, Section 8 of the Charter of the City of Fort Collins (the “Charter”)
provides that the Charter may be amended as provided by the laws of the State of Colorado; and
WHEREAS, Section 31-2-210, Colorado Revised Statutes, provides that Charter
amendments may be initiated by the adoption of an ordinance by the City Council submitting a
proposed amendment to a vote of the registered electors of the City of Fort Collins; and
WHEREAS, on May 17, 2022, the City Council adopted on second reading Ordinance No.
056, 2022, calling a special municipal election (“November Election”) to be held in conjunction
with the November 8, 2022, Larimer County General Election; and
WHEREAS, Article VIII of the Charter concerns the conduct of elections in the City of
Fort Collins, including Article VIII, Section 7, regarding the Certification of Election Results; and
WHEREAS, Section 31-10-617, Colorado Revised Statutes, provides authority to
municipalities to choose to use a ranked voting method to elect the mayor or members of the
governing body of the municipality; and
WHEREAS, the City Council is of the opinion that a ranked voting method could offer
more expressive voting for Fort Collins electors, encourage participation in the electoral process,
and result in municipal representation that is better representative of the preferences of Fort Collins
electors; and
WHEREAS, the Council’s intent in adopting this Ordinance is to present to the City’s
electorate at the November Election, through the ballot title set in Section 3 of this Ordinance, a
proposed amendments to Article VIII and Article IX of the City Charter that would, if adopted,
provide that Fort Collins electors shall elect the City mayor and council members through a ranked
voting method, beginning with the regular City election in 2025, and for all elections moving
forward; and
WHEREAS, accordingly, the City Council desires to submit to the Fort Collins electors
the Charter amendment below.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT
COLLINS as follows:
Section 1. That the City Council hereby makes and adopts the determinations and
findings contained in the recitals set forth above.
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Section 2. That the following proposed changes to Article VIII and Article IX of the
City Charter, requiring the use of a ranked voting method for all elections after January 1, 2025,
shall be submitted to the registered electors of the City as “Proposed Charter Amendment ___” at
the November Election:
ARTICLE VIII. ELECTIONS
Section 1. Applicability of state constitution.
The Council shall provide by ordinance for the manner of holding city elections. All ordinances
regarding elections shall be consistent with the provisions of this Charter and the state Constitution.
Any matter regarding elections not covered by the state Constitution, this Charter or ordinance of
the Council shall be governed by the laws of the State of Colorado relating to municipal elections,
or coordinated municipal elections, as applicable.
. . .
Section 7. Certification of election results.
(a) No later than the date specified by Council by ordinance and, after verifying the total number
of legal votes cast for each candidate and measure voted upon, the Board of Elections shall
complete a certificate declaring the results of the election. The candidate receiving the highest
number of votes for a particular office, as determined pursuant to this Section 7, shall be declared
elected to that office. In event of a tie, the selection shall be made by the Board of Elections by lot
after notice to the candidates affected. In case the candidate elected fails to qualify within sixty
(60) days after the date of issuance of the certificate of election, tabulation of results in that contest
shall be rerun with the disqualified candidate being eliminated prior to any tabulation and the
candidate with the resulting highest vote shall be elected, and the candidate failing to qualify shall
forfeit his or her office whether or not such candidate has taken the oath of office. If there is no
other elected successor who qualifies, the office shall be deemed vacant, and shall be filled by
appointment by the remaining members of the council, as provided in Article II, Section 18. In the
event of a mandatory recount or recount by request, the Board of Elections shall complete an
amended certificate declaring the results of the election no later than the fifth day after the
completion of the recount.
(b) For coordinated city elections (which are not administered by the City), the election shall be
determined and certified and any tie vote or recount shall be administered, as provided in the
applicable state law. The candidate receiving the highest number of votes for a particular office,
as determined pursuant to Section 7(c), shall be declared elected to that office.
(c) Ranked voting methods. Beginning in 2025, the candidate receiving the highest number of
votes for a particular office will be determined using a ranked voting method.
(1) For a City-administered election, the ranked voting method will be in accordance with
specifications adopted by the City Council by ordinance.
(2) For a coordinated election, the ranked voting method will be in accordance with, and
as provided by, applicable state law.
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ARTICLE IX. RECALL
Section 3. Elections.
. . .
(d) Election results. If a majority of those voting on the question of the recall of any incumbent
from office votes "No," the incumbent continues in office. If a majority votes "Yes" for the
incumbent's removal, the incumbent shall thereupon be deemed removed from his or her
office upon the taking of the oath of office by his or her successor. If the officer is recalled,
the candidate for succession receiving the highest number of votes at the election determined
in accordance with Article VIII, Section 7, shall be declared elected for the remainder of the
incumbent's term. The candidate elected shall take office upon taking the oath of office, which
shall occur as the first order of business at the next regular or special Council meeting. In case
the candidate elected fails to qualify within sixty (60) days after the issuance of a certificate
of election, the candidate with the next highest vote shall be elected, and if there is no other
elected successor who qualifies, the office shall be deemed vacant, and shall be filled by
appointment by the remaining members of the Council, as provided in Article II, Section 18.
Section 3. That the following ballot title, with its title and submission clause, is hereby
adopted for submitting Proposed Charter Amendment No. to the voters at the November
Election:
CITY-INITIATED
PROPOSED CHARTER AMENDMENT NO. ___
(Ranked Voting)
Shall Article VIII of the Charter of the City of Fort Collins, regarding the conduct of City
elections, be amended to:
• require that for all regular city elections after January 1, 2025, the offices of Mayor
and of each District Councilmember shall be elected using a “ranked voting
method,” pursuant to the applicable Colorado statutes or, for City-conducted
elections, procedures and deadlines adopted by the City Council by ordinance;
• clarify the applicable law for coordinated elections; and
• make minor conforming edits; and
shall Article IX of the Charter, regarding recall, be amended to incorporate the ranked
voting method set out in Article VIII?
Yes/For
No/Against
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Section 4. That pursuant to Section 31-2-210(4) of the Colorado Revised Statutes, the
City Clerk is directed to publish in the Coloradoan a notice of the City’s November 8, 2022, special
election coordinated with Larimer County and to include in that notice the full text of the proposed
amendments to City Charter Article VIII and Article IX as stated in this Ordinance. Such notice
is to be published within thirty (30) days of the adoption of this Ordinance and not less than sixty
(60) days nor more than one hundred twenty (120) days before said election.
Introduced, considered favorably on first reading and ordered published this 21st day of
June, A.D. 2022, and to be presented for final passage on the 5th day of July, A.D. 2022.
Mayor
ATTEST:
City Clerk
Passed and adopted on final reading this 5th day of July, A.D. 2022.
Mayor
ATTEST:
City Clerk