Once again, Council president Margaret Morris attempted to get the Council to pass a resolution to establish a charter revision commission, and once again, the effort was impeded.
In July, councilmembers took issue with the process of selecting members of the commission and insisted that it be "more open and inclusive." It was suggested that each of the five wards needed to be represented on the commission. At the July meeting, Morris invited people to send their comments about the proposed law to her, and, based on that input, she would make revisions and present the revised law at the Council's August meeting.
The Commission shall consist of nine members and a quorum shall consist of five members. Seven community members shall be appointed by the President of the City of Hudson Common Council in consultation with the Common Council. At least one resident from each Ward shall serve on the Commission. The Common Council President and the Majority Leader shall serve, ex officio, as the eighth and ninth members. Each of the nine members shall have equal voting powers in any matter put to a vote of the members of the Commission. The President of the Common Council shall serve as Chair, one member of the Commission shall be elected by the Commission to serve as Vice-Chair to preside in the absence of the Chair, and one as Secretary to record the proceedings of the Commission.
Despite the changes, Councilmember Claire Cousin (Fifth Ward) expressed concern that too much of the selection power was vested in the Council president. She made this statement:
I cannot support this appointment structure as written. I'm concerned that this version places too much appointment power in the hands of the Common Council President. For a process this important, appointments should be a collective decision of the Council, not concentrated in one person.
Cousin proposed the following amendment:
The seven community members shall be appointed by the Common Council, with a least one representative designated by each ward. No single officer of the Common Council shall have sole appointment authority over the community members.
Cousin called for further revision, although this seems unnecessary if the proposed amendment were to be adopted:
I'd also like to clarify what "in consultation with the Council" actually means. Does the Council have a meaningful role in approving or selecting these appointments, or is the final authority solely with the Council Pres? I would support language that makes that role explicit rather than leaving it open to interpretation.
Cousin made a motion to amend the proposed law which was not seconded. Councilmember Rich Volo (Fourth Ward) suggested the issue be tabled. Morris supported the idea of tabling, saying that she did not want to amend to the proposed law "on the fly." When the vote was called on tabling the resolution, there were just four votes opposed (Morris, Henry Haddad, Jason Foster, Dominic Merante). The other seven votes were in favor of tabling. What is to happen next is unclear.
In the public comment, Ronald Kopnicki said he wanted "a sense of how sweeping a change is being anticipated." It would appear this is something that has not been determined nor should it be. The proposed law provides this definition of the commission's scope of work:
The work of the Commission shall be governed by section 36 of the M.H.R.L.[Municipal Home Rule Law]. The Commission shall review the entire Charter of the City of Hudson, as directed by subdivision 5 of section 36 of the M.H.R.L. Notwithstanding such requirement, the Commission may leave part of the existing Charter unchanged and may propose amendments to parts.
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When Cousin was helping run HHA redevelopment, she chaired a committee intentionally limited to three members, below a quorum, so its meetings with Mountco could take place outside public meetings.
ReplyDeleteShe defended the broader process as “silent work” on what was then a $220 million redevelopment impacting every resident of Hudson.
Now Margaret Morris proposes a nine-member public Charter Commission, with every ward represented, and Cousin objects that too much authority rests with the Council president.
Morris beat DePietro 604–301 and made Charter review a stated priority of her campaign.
Cousin has never won a competitive election but collect payments for many years by running in unopposed elections for Supervisor or Common Council, or receiving state campaign funds for losing a primary against Didi.
Apparently three people behind closed doors was enough for $220 million in redevelopment, but nine people from across Hudson working in public is a power grab.