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Gilbert's Stealth Search for an Administrator/Clerk and Deputy Clerk
by Helen D. Gunderson, Gazette editor
November 9, 2003
Job Interviewing Underway at City Hall
When I stopped at the post office recently to pick up mail, there was a
person next door, standing inside the entrance of city hall. I learned that the
person was waiting for a job interview and asked who the interview was
to be with. The interviewee thought it was to be with the entire council
but wasn't sure. It probably would not have been with the entire council
because for all the members to be at city hall for an unannounced
meeting would be a clear cut violation of Iowa's open meeting laws.
However, I suspect that the interview was to be with the finance
committee. It consists of council members Chris Benda and Jon Popp with
mayor Bob Jaquis as an ex-officio member.
Council Committees Skirt the Spirit of Iowa's Open Meetings Laws
I have been concerned about the council's use of committees ever
since they were formed last winter. From their inception, it has
appeared that the committees have little, if any, regard for the spirit
of Iowa's open meetings laws. These governing bodies have held their
meetings privately. They have posted no agendas. They have prepared no
public record such as minutes or written reports. At minimum, it seems
there should be written records indicating when a meeting was held, who
was there, what was discussed, and what was decided. At best, the
committees should have agendas, meetings that are open to the public,
AND good record-keeping.
In September, when a colleague and I asked the mayor how it was
possible for the city to post job openings for a city
administrator/clerk and a deputy clerk on the Iowa League of Cities web
site without council approval, he tersely replied that the matter had
been delegated to the finance committee. Well, the matter was sort of
delegated to the finance committee at the June 2 council meeting.
Time-line of Council Discussion or Lack of Discussion of
Restaffing City Hall
 June 2,
2003
The issue of restaffing city hall was not on the agenda, so it could
not have been discussed substantively. And indeed there was only a
brief, somewhat bumbling conversation. The Gazette summary of that
meeting shows the following that transpired during the general
discussion among council members at the end of the meeting. It was
initiated by council member Peg Uthe
| Peg asked what the process was to be regarding the city clerk. The
mayor said that a temporary person had started work today as a part-time
clerk. He added that the discussion is up to the council and that it is
"important to talk about our needs." Either the mayor or a council
member said something about referring the discussion to a sub-committee
of the council. The mayor said something to the effect that "we gotta
start some place." |
That does not sound like a clear cut direction. It does not tell the
finance committee what the scope of its work or level of authority is to
be.
June 16 and
30, 2003
The council meetings included discussion led by the finance committee
about outsourcing the city's book-keeping to an accounting firm in Ames.
There was no discussion about restaffing city hall.
July 14,
2003
At the council meeting, council member Craig Allen reported about the
prospects of having consultant Sue Cosner facilitate a discussion about
restaffing city hall. Also, the finance committee referred to a
rudimentary list tasks that needed to be considered in restaffing city
hall.
July 22,
2003
At the council meeting, there was a discussion with consultants, Sue
Cosner and Gary Reiners, about restaffing city hall. It was an indepth
and thoughtful discussion. However, it was not conclusive. It appeared
that there would be another discussion of a similar nature with the
consultants at a future meeting before preparing, finalizing, and
posting a job description. That follow-up discussion did not happen.
August 4,
2003
There was no discussion about restaffing during the council meeting.
August 18,
2003
At the council meeting, under the agenda item about the city personnel
job description, the following is all that was said about the matter.
| Peg
asked, "Are we posting that?" We suspect that she meant a job
description for restaffing city hall. The mayor responded something to
the effect, "We would like to. Just before vacation, she got the matrix
to me. |
September
8, 2003
At the council meeting, here is how the conversation went regarding agenda item number six "Continue discussion of city
personnel job description."
Mayor: Anybody have anything for item number
six?
pause
Council member Jon Popp: We've posted the information,
Mayor: And it's on the Iowa League's web site.
pause
Mayor: And we plan on putting it in the newsletter.
Council member Jon Popp: Newsletter. And [could you] project the
date when we're going to try to send that newsletter out? Next week or
are you thinking of this week?
Mayor: Wanta get it finished up this week. It's almost done. I
forgot to add the trick-or-treating, and I thought I'd add that. And I'm
debating whether I have it, can get it done in time to leave the clean
up date for Saturday. Have you seen that flyer?
Council member Jon Popp: No, I haven't seen it.
Mayor: It's on the front of city hall. Says the Ames recycling plant
is having a free day, but it's been posted all over town, if we don't
get it in, we'll just switch up material.
pause
Mayor: OK.
Pause.
The meeting moved onto committee reports, and nothing else was said
about restaffing city hall. |
September 22, 2003
The council
briefly discussed the status of restaffing city hall. I believe
that it was council member Jon Popp who briefly reported that there had
been several applicants for two positions with one position for an
administrator/clerk and the other for a deputy clerk. The council
referred review of the resumes to its finance committee; however,
all council members will get a chance to read the material. The
finance committee is to report back to the council with its
findings.
October 6, 2003
At the council meeting, the following is all that was said about restaffing
city hall.
|
Mayor: OK, let's move on to item number five. Again this is on
here in case somebody had something they wanted to bring up. I didn't
have anything specific.
Peg Uthe: It looks like there is a very good pool [of
applicants]. I recognize a few of them. Mayor: OK. Lynn
Henn: Uh, I guess, is the [finance] committee going to try and
narrow it down to bring some of the names to us. Chris Benda: I
was going to mention that Jon and I should try to get together. Jon
Popp: I didn't get much done last week because I was out of town for
most of the week. (There was then some jesting and laughing among
the council members that Jon could
have taken Chris along on his business trip, but they changed their minds
when they found out that Jon had simply gone to Missouri.) |
October 20,
2003
At the council meeting under agenda item number six titled, "Discussion of City Personnel
vacancies," there really wasn't a discussion. Unfortunately, I put a
new tape in my recorder and missed recording about 10-20 seconds of
this agenda item. However, from my notes, I recall that the mayor
begins by asking Jon Popp if he wants to address the matter now or under
the finance commission report which is next on the agenda. Jon says he
could go ahead and address it. He starts by reporting that they
[presumably the finance committee] had received applications. He
continues with the following two sentences which are transcribed from
the tape and last 22 seconds.
| Had some phone interviews with about six people we
selected and trying to progress with that and had some good comments and
reviewed those resumes. So we're still making some progress and trying
set up now some specific in-person interviews with some people selected
off of that discussion. |
Then there were nods/mumbles of approval by a couple of other council
members and silence. Next, the mayor asks, "OK, are we down to the water
and sewer committee [report], then?"
This agenda item lasted no more than 45 seconds.
November 3,
2003
During the council meeting, there was no discussion of restaffing
city hall. Right after the meeting adjourned, the mayor and three
council members at the meeting continued to sit around the table and
talked briefly about the status of job applications.
The Whole Idea of Having a Council
There is a reason that towns are governed by a council. The idea is
that the mayor and all council members will sit around a table and
discuss business in order to discern truth and make wise decisions. This
is a matter of good communication in which the participants in the
circle speak and listen. They challenge each other. They help clarify or
expand on the thoughts put forth by another. They also clarify their own
position. It's a web of communication and the process cannot adequately
be accomplished by a committee of two or three people traipsing along
over a period of several month with terse reports back to the council as
a whole. It cannot be done by private phone calls, e-mail, or neighborly
talks.
And by golly, part of the reason for having elected officers is for
them to do their work in public so that the people who elected them can
see how they think and posture themselves. We want to know if they are
wise, responsible, and compassionate. The idea is accountability. Being
an elected official is different than running a private business or
parenting a family. Public officials are elected to conduct business in
public.
The Law
This is also a matter of the law. The open
meetings laws apply to various governing bodies in the state, including
city councils, and are enumerated in Chapter 21 of the Iowa Code and
begin with a statement of intent.
21.1 This chapter seeks to assure, through a requirement of open meetings of
governmental bodies, that the basis and rationale of governmental decisions, as well
as those decisions themselves, are easily accessible to the people. Ambiguity in the
construction or application of this chapter should be resolved in favor of openness.
What is the Basis and Rationale for Restaffing City Hall?
The Gilbert mayor, city council, and their committees need to do better
in terms of honoring the spirit of the open meetings laws. It's not
clear what they have decided or are deciding in terms of restaffing city
hall. And for sure, the basis and rationale of their decisions have not
been available to the public.
Why didn't the council define the scope and authority of the finance
committee for this important work? How were the job descriptions for an
administrator/clerk and deputy clerk finalized and their postings
approved? How were issues of equal opportunity and affirmative action
addressed? How was the criteria developed for reviewing resumes? How was
the interviewing process designed? Oh, so many questions but so little
in terms of the public having access to knowing the answers, if indeed,
there are answers.
In 1999 during the search for a city manager and again in 2000 during
the search for a city clerk, the interviews were done in public. Why the
current stealth behavior in searching for people to fill comparable
positions?
The New Look of Gilbert Government
When January comes, there will be little change in the city council.
Sure, there will be a new mayor when Yvonne Wannemuehler takes the helm,
and she just might have the independent spirit to move Gilbert's
government more in the direction of open-ness. However, the council will
be a strong one.
Bob Jaquis will still be at the table when he switches hats from his
current role as mayor to serving as a voting council member, and Jon
Popp returns the council. The only new face will be Chad Cook. The three
will be in office for four years. Craig Allen and Lyn Henn were not up
for election but have two years left on their terms. So four of the six
members of the cast of characters will be the same as now.
The city needs to hire strong administrative and clerical staff
persons who will demand that the mayor and council model, and not skirt,
the spirit of the open meetings laws. Knowing the council's style and
having little, if any, access to the basis and rationale of what's going
on with the search for new staff, it is easy to suspect that the
council's priorities in reviewing job applicants do not include one of
the qualities we would look for — and that would be a
candidate who has a high regard for the open meetings laws.
Instead, the council will most likely hire staff that will acquiesce to
doing things much in the way business is currently conducted Gilbert. My
hope for the new year is that I am wrong about this. Indeed, miracles
can and do happen.
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