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Charter Review Committee
White Paper on Election vs. Appointment of City Recorder and Municipal Judge
Date: 18 November 2004
Sub Committee Member(s): Kate Culbertson, John Enders
Issue Statement:
Should the City Recorder and the Municipal Judge continue to be elective positions, or should
Corollary Issue
the charter be amended to make them appointive positions? (: Should the
formula for computing salaries of both public officials be removed from the charter?)
Background:
Recorder: Election of city recorders formerly was more commonplace. The Ashland City
Recorder is the city “clerk,” and also the city “treasurer.” S/he ensures that public meetings and
records laws are followed, proper administrative processes followed, oversees banking and
handling of cash and investments for the city, and ensures city officials follow contract laws.
S/he also is the city elections officer, which meant more before elections laws were taken over at
the state level. As state elections and other administrative laws superceded municipal charters
and statutes, the role of the city recorder became more administrative, clerical and bureaucratic,
though the city recorder continues to oversee the municipal nomination/eligibility/filing process.
The term is four years, and city recorders usually learn on-the-job.
Judge: The election of city judge in a small city is rare, if not unique. The Ashland Municipal
Judge hears cases involving all misdemeanors not associated with felonies, and infractions of
city ordinances. The term is four years, and commonly the post is held by a practicing attorney.
(Salaries: Salaries of both elected officials are set under a formula set in the charter. They use
1974 as the base year and are to increase annually based on the “average” increase for other
supervisory staff.)
Pros and Cons:
City Recorder:
Pros—Election of the City Recorder gives the citizens an official independent of the City
Council, Mayor and Administration to whom they can communicate and seek recourse. Such
independence also allows the recorder to be free of political interference or pressures from other
city officials – s/he answers only to the voters. The City Recorder can investigate citizen
complaints regarding the Mayor, Council or City Administrator and his or her staff, and report
freely on the findings. An elected City Recorder gives citizens an important place where they
can have input, free from the current Administration and staff.
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Cons—Election of the City Recorder is antiquated, with the duties of the recorder being much
more administrative and clerical today than when the recorder was the chief electoral officer for
the city. The position does not need to be elected. The Recorder develops a constituency of
friends and allies, and attempting to change the position to an appointive one can lead to
significant opposition. In the worst case, the recorder can be a partisan official who divides the
city administration. There also is the possibility in the future that an unqualified or inappropriate
candidate for the position would seek and obtain the position.
Municipal Judge:
Pros: Election of the Municipal Judge provides for a separation of powers of the judicial branch
of city government from the executive (mayor) and legislative branches (council). An elected
Judge connects the city to its citizens; local minor offenses are heard locally, and the community
retains more control over the justice meted out to its citizens. Justice is based on local
“community standards,” which can vary dramatically between communities. The state court
system is overburdened and could not properly absorb the extra load. An elected Judge is not
beholden to any mayor or council, and can rule based on the law, not on political or police
pressures. (Example: Tree-sitting and/or nudity ordinances).
Cons: The municipal judge hears minor cases, and the cost of electing him or her is expensive.
The current charter also does not require the judge to be a resident of the city. The judge’s salary
is costly. His/her work could be done by a circuit judge (state) or a justice of the peace (county).
There also is the possibility in the future that an unqualified or inappropriate candidate for the
position would seek and obtain the position.
(Salary issue: Retaining the salary formula in the charter allows the recorder and the judge to be
independent from the mayor and council. If the salaries were set by the budget committee, it
would undermine the political independence of those two officials).
Budget Implications:
There are no apparent budget implications involved in whether the
municipal judge and recorder are appointive versus elected; presumably their salaries would be
the same in either case. Election or appointment of the City Recorder and/or the Municipal Judge
likely would have minimal or no impact on that official’s salary. The election of both officials,
however, adds an additional electoral expense for the city during each election. That cost totals
approximately ______________.
The Municipal Judge’s salary in 2004 is __________________.
The City Recorder’s salary in 2004 is _________________.
Summary:
Appointment rather than election of the two positions would not significantly change how
each official does his or her work. It would reduce the amount of control citizens exercise over
their government and courts. And it could make both officials vulnerable to political pressures
from a mayor or council majority, and possibly from the city administrator.
Note: The current Municipal Judge would not take part either way in any charter revision
campaign that sought to change the charter to an appointive judge. The current City Recorder
would not openly take part either way in any charter revision campaign that sought to make the
recorder an appointive position, but would oppose such a change if the appointment powers were
to be placed in the hands of the city administrator.
Resources consulted:
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Model Charter, National Civic League; Model Charter, League of Oregon Cities; Roy
Bashaw; Kathy Shaw; Brian Almquist; Alan Drescher; Barbara Christensen, etc.
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