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Home My WebLink AboutCOUNCIL - AGENDA ITEM - 02/01/2011 - FIRST READING OF ORDINANCE NO. 011, 2011, SUBMITTI DATE: February 1, 2011 SUMMARYAGENDA ITEM STAFF: Darin Atteberry _ Steve Roy T COLLINS CITY COUNCIL First Reading of Ordinance No. 011, 2011, Submitting to a Vote of the Registered Electors of the City of Fort Collins a Proposed Amendment to Article II of the City Charter, Pertaining to Council District Boundaries. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY This Ordinance submits to the voters at the April 5, 2011 election, a proposed Charter amendment modifying the method used for periodically adjusting Council district boundaries. The proposed Charter amendment will require the City Clerk's office to adjust Council districts on the basis of population rather than the number of registered electors. BACKGROUND / DISCUSSION In September of 2010, the City Clerk's office began the process of adjusting the City Council districts in compliance with the City Charter,Article II, Section 1 (d). The Charter currently requires the City Clerk to determine if the number of registered electors in the district containing the lowest number of registered electors is less than eighty-five percent (85%) of the number of registered electors in the district containing the highest number. If so, the Clerk must recommend district boundary adjustments to the Council. During the redistricting process,questions were raised by citizens and Councilmembers about the current formula for redistricting and, in particular, using the number of registered electors in the redistricting formula instead of total population and whether using total population data would provide a more accurate basis for the formula. Since September, discussions have ensued about whether it would be administratively feasible to change Council districts on the basis of total population rather than the number of registered electors. The City Clerk's office has determined that it is administratively feasible to do so due to advances in technology that allow for total population to be calculated more efficiently and accurately. If this Charter amendment is approved by the voters on April 5, staff will bring an ordinance to Council to amend Chapter 7 of the City Code, Section 7-87 to provide that: 1. Not less than one year after the official decennial publication of the U.S. Census concerning the population of the City of Fort Collins, the City Clerk shall recommend to the City Council any district boundary changes necessary to ensure, to the extent reasonably possible, that there is no more than a ten percent deviation between the most populous and the least populous District. 2. Not more than once every five years after making the determination required under subsection(1)above,the City Clerk shall again review the district boundaries to determine if the maximum deviation between the most populous and the least populous district exceeds ten (10) percent, and if so, shall recommend to the City Council any district boundary changes necessary to ensure thateach district contains,as nearly as reasonably possible, an equal number of inhabitants. 3. Any changes to district boundaries shall be established by ordinance no less than one hundred and twenty (120) days before a regular municipal election. (This time period may need to be adjusted if, at the April 5, 2011 election, voters approve the implementation of ranked choice voting.) STAFF RECOMMENDATION Staff recommends adoption of the Ordinance on First Reading. ORDINANCE NO . 011 , 2011 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 ARTICLE II OF THE CITY CHARTER, PERTAINING TO COUNCIL DISTRICT BOUNDARIES WHEREAS , Article IV, Section 8 of the City Charter states that the Charter may be amended as provided by the laws of the State of Colorado; and WHEREAS , Section 31 -2-210, C .R. S . states 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 , Article II, Section 1 (d) of the City Charter requires the City Clerk to determine, prior to each regular biennial election, if the number of registered electors in the Council district containing the lowest number of registered electors is less than eighty-five percent of the number of registered electors in the district containing the highest number and, if so, to recommend district boundary changes to the Council to be established by ordinance; and WHEREAS , due to advances in technology, it is now feasible for the City Clerk to more efficiently and accurately calculate the total population of Council districts ; and WHEREAS , upon recommendation of the City staff, the City Council believes that the method used by the City for adjusting Council district boundaries should be based upon total population rather than the number of registered electors in each district, and that such method is more clearly consistent with the constitutional principle of "one person, one vote" and the basic precepts of representative government. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS as follows : Section 1 . That the following proposed changes to Article II, Section I of the City Charter shall be submitted to the registered electors of the City as "Proposed Charter Amendment No. 1 " at the regular municipal election to be held on Tuesday, April 5 , 2011 : Section 1. Membership ; terms. (a) Composition of Council. The Council shall consist of seven (7) members, including a Mayor and Mayor Pro Tem, elected as provided in this Article . (b) Method of election. The Mayor shall be nominated and elected from the city at large . The remaining six (6) members shall be nominated and elected by Districts . The election of District Councilmembers shall alternate between the election of representatives for Council Districts 1 , 3 and 5 and the election of representatives for Council Districts 2 , 4 and 6 . (c) Redisti irtingCouncil district boundaries. The city shall be divided into six (6) contiguous, reasonably compact Ddistricts, , reasonably compact uni each of which shall consist of contiguous, undivided general election precincts and, to the extent reasonably possible, an equal number of inhabitants . The Ddistricts shall be numbered consecutively in a clockwise fashion beginning with the northeast Ddistrict, which shall be District 1 . The Council shall provideestablish by ordinance for—the giving-*rocess for adjusting district boundaries and giving notice of any rcdistricting proccedingsproposed boundary changes, and the manner of protesting such proposed changes . (d) I;iv im , "r redistricting. No later than one �mndred and eighty ( 180) dayS of registered eiectors in the District containing the lowest rmmber of rcgisterc electors is less than eighty-five (85) percent of the tramber of registered electors i the eonticit District boundary changes, which shall be cstabli3licd by orditimice least one hundred and twenty ( f 20) days before the electiorr (ed) Terms. Except as otherwise provided in Section 18 of this Article and Section 3 (d) of Article IX, the term of office of the Mayor shall be two (2) years, and the term of office of all other members of the Council shall be four (4) years each; provided, however, that all such officers shall serve until their successors have been elected and have taken office. The terms of the Mayor and other members of the Council shall begin when they take the oath of office, which shall occur as the first order of business at the first regular or special Council meeting following their election or appointment. Section 2 . That the following ballot language is hereby adopted for submitting Proposed Charter Amendment No. 1 to the voters at said election: CITY-INITIATED PROPOSED CHARTER AMENDMENT NO. 1 Shall Article II, Section I of the Fort Collins City Charter be amended to change the method for adjusting City Council district boundaries so that the size and configuration of Council districts will be based upon the number of people residing in each district rather than the number of registered electors? YES NO -2- Introduced, considered favorably on first reading, and ordered published this 1 st day of February, A. D . 2011 , and to be presented for final passage on the 15th day of February, A.D . 2011 . Mayor ATTEST : City Clerk Passed and adopted on final reading on the 15th day of February, A . D . 2011 . Mayor ATTEST : City Clerk -3 -