October 18, 2023 |
PHOTO – Saratoga Town Hall – Bigfoot99 file photo
Saratoga is working to change how sitting council members function on boards and committees.
In the Town of Saratoga, ten different boards oversee various aspects of town life, including the cemetery district and the airport advisory board. A council member is selected to sit on each board to ensure the board acts in accordance with established regulations. The liaison also provides reports on each meeting to the governing body. The council liaison also can offer a tie breaking vote.
During the October 3rd Saratoga town council meeting, Mayor Chuck Davis introduced the first reading of Ordinance 868, a revision to the town’s municipal code regulating the composition of the recreation commission. Mayor Davis said the Wyoming Association of Municipalities recommends not having town council members sit on any boards. The mayor said Town Attorney Kylie Waldrip is drafting similar ordinance changes for each of the town’s committees.
The introduction of Ordinance 868 comes after the August 1st Saratoga town council meeting. During that time, Councilwoman Kathy Beck, who is the council liaison for the recreation commission, was forced to defend her decision to allow the purchase of lunches and t-shirts for an upcoming pickleball tournament. Beck said the rec commission planned to sell the food and shirts to tournament participants. At the time, Attorney Waldrip said, in her legal opinion, the town could not sell items to the public for profit.
Following the contentious August 1st meeting, Mayor Davis said he would begin working on WAM recommended reducing the power that council liaisons can wield over the town’s boards. However, the mayor said he wasn’t singling out the recreation board with the ordinance.
At the October 3rd meeting, Mayor Davis explained how Ordinance 868 alters the role council liaisons have on town boards. The mayor said the recreation committee was first board to undergo the change.
Mayor Davis asked for a vote to adopt Ordinance 868 on first reading. Councilman Mike Cooley motioned with Councilman Jacob Fluty seconding. The ordinance passed.
After the vote, Councilwoman Beck pointed out that the word “recreation” was misspelled in the ordinance. The official document has the word spelled as “receration”. Councilman Cooley offered to amend his motion to include correcting the error.
The motion passed once again.
Ordinance 868 was brought up for a second reading last night with the corrected spelling. Bigfoot99 will have more information about the ordinance change.
