City Council adopts new policy

At last week’s city council meeting, the Colorado City City Council approved the following policy with a 5-1 vote.
The following principles form an outline of the process that the Council will use to govern the City of Colorado City:

Council Responsibility is to Govern the City
Principle 1: The Council serves as the Trustee on half of the Citizens.
The Council is the governing body of the City. The Council will establish sufficient processes to maintain oversight of the finances and operations of the City. In addition, the Council will develop methods of accountability for both the Council and the City Manager.

Principle 2: The Council will establish the strategic direction of the City and focus its work on policy decisions.
The Council will establish a framework for setting the strategic direction of the City. The Council’s focus will be on policy decisions and on the results/outcomes to be achieved.

Principle 3: The Council has a responsibility to represent the Citizens.
The Council represents all Citizens and is uniquely positioned to connect the priorities and issues of the Citizens to the policies of the municipality. Further, the Council has the responsibility to encourage participation, to represent the priorities and strategies of the City, and to solicit Citizen input.
City Staff Responsibility is to Support the Council

Principle 1: The City Staff will provide complete and accurate information and analysis.
The City Staff has the responsibility to ensure that the information provided to the Council is complete, accurate, timely and sufficiently comprehensive to support the decision requirements of the Council.

Principle 2: The City Staff will provide analysis of alternatives and recommendations.
When appropriate, the City Manager and Staff will develop alternatives for the Council’s consideration along with analysis sufficient to support the Council’s policy-making responsibility. An important responsibility of the City Manager and Staff is to provide a recommendation for consideration by the Council.

Principle 3: The City Manager and City Staff will provide the same timely information to all member of the Council
While recognizing different learning styles and specific needs of the individual Council members, the City Manager and staff will ensure that all Council members receive the same information to support the Council’s decision-making responsibilities.
Council/Staff Relationship
Principle 1: The Council will focus on policy and outcomes.
The Council will focus on what results or outcomes need to be addressed on behalf of our Citizens and stakeholders. The Council’s unique value is to ensure that the strategic direction leads the City to the desired outcome.

Principle 2: The Council will focus on oversight without managing.
The Council has an important oversight and fiduciary responsibility and must develop processes to ensure accountability. However, the Council should not attempt to manage or tell staff how to do their job.

Principle 3: The Council will develop an evaluation and accountability system for the City Manager.
The Council will establish, in partnership with the City Manager, an evaluation system that ensures accountability, performance and alignment with priorities and strategies. The Council and City Manager will mutually develop criteria for evaluation and should ensure that an evaluation of the City Manager is conducted on an annual basis.
Principle 4: The Council will evaluate its own performance.

The Council will develop a system to evaluate its own performance on an annual basis. In addition to soliciting feedback from each Council member, the Council will also ask the City Manager for feedback on the Council’s results and relationship to the staff.

Council Code of Conduct We Commit to:

1. Act always in an honest, open and ethical manner.
2. Always respect others – we encourage diverse viewpoints, and if we disagree, we will do so in an agreeable manner.
3. Communicate in an open, direct manner and encourage members to ask questions.
4. Listen carefully to each other before judging or deciding.
5. Decide based upon “What is best for Colorado City” while keeping in mind our responsibility is to the whole.
6. Focus our thinking on the “Why” and “What” of each agenda item and respect and trust our staff’s contribution on the “How” details.
7. Make our (precious) time together as effective as possible by being prepared, starting on time, avoiding repetition, moving to the next issue once a decision is made, and being fully engaged during meetings.
8. Support the decisions, directions and policies that are arrived at by the Council.
9. Give our personal best and take individual responsibility for enforcing our ground rules and creating a good working relationship with each Council Member.
10. Have fun, but never at the expense of others, and make this a fantastic, memorable experience for all of us!
Council – Measures of Success:
1. There are open communications among the Mayor, Council Members and City Manager
2. Each Council Member has a voice and contributes
3. The Council is open to new ideas and creative thinking
4. Council Members exhibit respect for each others’ perspectives and styles, and if necessary agree to disagree without being disagreeable
5. There is positive, enthusiastic behavior by all Council Members
6. The Council and each Member acts in a professional ethical manner, with integrity
7. There is respect and sensitivity to Council Member needs
8. The Council and City Manager work as a team
9. Decisions are based on organizational benefit, not individual advantage or agenda
10. There are clear goals and direction that are well defined and consistent
11. Decisions are made and supported with no carryover from issue to issue
12. The City Manager produces results consistent with Council vision, goals and direction
13. Council actions and decisions are well explained to Citizens
14. Citizens feel the Council is effective and they trust and take pride in the Council, City Manager and Mission of the City.