Supervisors to consider charter changes

Leadership succession, compensation for some elected officials and rules about how resident appointees should conduct themselves are among proposals being considered for inclusion in the Carson City charter.

The Board of Supervisors and Charter Review Committee will meet Thursday afternoon to discuss additions to the set of governing laws, created in 1969 when the city consolidated services with Ormsby County.

Also planned is charter wording to "give us our own leverage to enter into contracts with the private sector" for water services, said Mayor Marv Teixeira.

The idea is to provide the city-operated utility authority comparable to water districts, which would expand the city's flexibility to operate and do more of such things as the recent agreement with Lyon County. The two municipalities will assist each other in providing consistent water service once a the two systems are tied together, according to previous reports.

Another addition to the charter being proposed is allowing elected officials - except for the supervisors - cost-of-living-raises similar to those granted other city department heads.

Also, more than 100 residents sit on various advisories, boards, committees and commissions, according to the city's administrative office. Not many of the groups have bylaws, however. The committee also would like the supervisors to consider adding to the charter some blanket rules of conduct so all of these people have guidelines to reference.

And, rules for succession if a mayor dies in office are being proposed for inclusion in the charter. This would include how the mayor pro-tem would step into the role and for how long and for how the pro-tem's resulting vacancy will be filled.

With new elected officials, "priorities change," said Donna DePauw, committee chairwoman, but the charter shouldn't be changed on a whim because "we're using taxpayer dollars."

Any changes approved by the supervisors will be reviewed one last time by the district attorney's office, then presented to the state Legislative Council Bureau for recommendation. Legislators must provide their consent before the city charter is amended.

Carson is one of about a dozen charter cities in Nevada and has one of the state's only active resident committees for charter review, DePauw said.

The counsel bureau could begin reviewing any proposed changes by Sept. 1. The state Legislative session begins in February.

This is expected to be the Charter Review Committee's last meeting until 2008.

• Contact reporter Terri Harber at tharber @nevadaappeal.com or 882-2111, ext. 215.

If you go

WHAT: Carson City Board of Supervisors meeting

WHEN: Charter Review begins as 1:30 p.m. today.

Regular agenda at 8:30 p.m.

WHERE: Sierra Room,

Community Center, 851 E. William St.

Also on the agenda

• A proposal to stop issuing bicycle licenses because demand has dwindled.

• Final bids for contractors building the new sheriff's administration facility.

• A growth-management rate of 3 percent for 2007, which will dictate the number of residential building permits issued.

• A final report about the Waterfall Fire Education Grant, which expires in August.