X. Other

Rule 45. Board Member Referrals to Staff

Board member referrals that are anticipated to involve significant staff time (generally 8 hours or more) or other resource commitment and/or are a departure from established County or departmental policy require Board approval prior to starting work. Board approval shall be obtained through any action of the Board that reflects the majority support of the Board.

Annually there will be two paths to bring new policy initiatives to the Board’s agenda. The first path will be at the beginning of the calendar year when the Board reviews its priorities for the upcoming twelve months. The second path will be available mid-year after budget hearings. After budget hearings, the County Administrator will schedule a discussion to review the remaining six months of the year at which point a Board Member may try to add a new policy by majority vote. The County Administrator will place an informational item on the consent agenda for the referral, to include what existing projects and resources will be impacted by the new referral, and what resources are needed to carry out the new referral. Based on this information, the Board may adjust the scope of the referral, adjust relative time priority of existing efforts, or discontinue work on an existing referral or other project to create available resources for the new referral. An Ad Hoc Committee can also make a referral for staff work, in consultation with the County Administrator but without requiring a majority Board vote.

This policy shall not prevent an individual Board member from requesting verbal or written information that may require minor staff time, or pulling information that is contained in existing Departmental reports. The staff time threshold is not intended to preclude a group meeting or discussion where a cumulative time from all attendees surpasses the 8 hour threshold. A request for information to support Board members in responding to constituent questions is not considered a referral for staff work. These requests should be directed to the County Administrator or to relevant Department/Agency Heads with a copy to the County Administrator.

Rule 46. Action Summaries and Recordings of Meetings

The Clerk shall prepare and distribute Action Summaries (“minutes”) of Board meetings. The minutes shall consist of the brief statement of each item posted on the agenda and supplemental agenda plus all motions, resolutions and ordinance numbers related thereto, all votes recorded thereon, and the final action taken by the Board. The minutes shall be made available internally and to the public and shall be placed on the Internet

The Clerk shall maintain the official audio record of each Board meeting and will make these recordings available for listening by the public at no charge. The Clerk shall also maintain the official audio/video record of any meeting broadcasted. These audio/video records will also be made available to the public for viewing at no cost.