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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPACKET Town Board Work Session 2008-05-27 CpW N OA • 4.) efr WORK SESSION TOWN BOARD Tuesday, May 27, 2008 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. Town Board Room 170 MacGregor Ave. AGENDA 1 . Public Officials Liability 2. Conflict of Interest 3. Open Meeting and Records 4. Administrative Matters Jackie Williamson From: EP Administration [ir3045@estes.org] Sent: Friday, May 23, 2008 1:33 PM To: Jackie Williamson Subject: Job Done Notice(Send) ***************************** *** Job Done Notice(Send) *** ***************************** JOB NO. 0349 ST. TIME 05/23 13:26 PGS. 1 SEND DOCUMENT NAME TX/RX INCOMPLETE TRANSACTION OK 6672527 Greg White 5869561 KEPL 5869532 Trail Gazette 5866336 Chamber of Commerce 5861691 Channel 8 6353677 Reporter Herald 2247899 Coloradoan 5771590 EP News ERROR 4£ { 1 The Fire Services Task Force is not asking for specifics at this time, but in trying to move forward they are asking if the Town Board would be willing to make a specific financial agreement regarding annual appropriations to fire services, understanding that this appropriation would need to be reviewed annually by the existing board. TOWN BOARD WORK SESSION MAY 27, 2008 CONFLICT OF INTEREST A member of the Board of Trustees having a "personal or private interest in a matter proposed or pending before the governing body" shall disclose the interest to the Town Board and not vote on the matter. The term personal or private interest is not defined. The standard of conduct for a Trustee is found in Section 24-18-101 et seq. C.R.S. FINANCIAL INTEREST 1. Accept a gift of substantial value which; a. Would improperly influence a reasonable person in making an official decision or b. Which a reasonable person would assume is or is intended as a reward for the Trustee's official action on a particular item. 2. Take an official action which substantially benefits the Trustee's business or is substantially to the economic detriment of a competing business. Trustee's business includes: a. Ownership in a business (director or officer) b. Employment or prospective employment—consultant, agent c. A loan or debtor interest d. A creditor interest in an insolvent business 3. What if the financial benefit would be to a spouse or a member of the family? a. If a conflict of interest concerns a spouse, it is also a Trustee's conflict of interest because it is assumed that spouses would share financial benefits in their normal daily living. b. Close family members—sons, daughters. If the children are emancipated then there is no financial conflict of interest. 4. If a neighboring piece of property or one in the same general area of the Trustee's property is being reviewed, should the Trustee declare a conflict of interest? If the action of the Town Board will substantially benefit or reduce the value of the Trustee's property, a conflict of interest should be declared. Appearance of Impropriety or Conflict of Interest. A Trustee should consider declaring a Conflict of Interest and abstaining from discussion and action on a official action, if under the circumstances of the matter, there is an appearance of impropriety. For example, a Trustee is a member of the Board of Directors of local non-profit organization. The non-profit organization is asking for an official action of the Town Board. The participation of the Trustee in the vote on the matter would not be a violation of the State Code of Ethics since there is no substantial financial interest involved but rather an appearance of impropriety in discussion and vote on the matter. Procedure Declaring a Conflict of Interest. At the time of introduction of an individual item on the Town Board Agenda in which the Trustee feels that he or she has a conflict of interest, the Trustee shall state that he or she has a conflict of interest and then abstain from participating and/or voting on the matter. A Trustee having a conflict of interest on any matter should not in any way influence other members of the Town Board at any time with regard to said matter. It has been the practice of some Trustees to leave the room during discussion and voting on an individual item. That is an individual Trustee's decision. There is no requirement to leave the room. Questions regarding Conflict of Interest. If an individual Trustee is unsure as to whether or not a conflict of interest exists, please contact the Town Administrator or Town Attorney and discuss the matter. The Trustee's request will be kept confidential. IF YOU FEEL YOU HAVE A CONFLICT OF INTEREST, YOU PROBABLY DO. TOWN BOARD WORK SESSION MAY 27, 2008 AMENDMENT 41 On February 25, 2008, the Colorado Supreme Court lifted the Stay that had been imposed by the District Court with regard to Amendment 41. Amendment 41 is now effective either as of the day of the ruling or March 10, 2008. 1. Applicability. Amendment 41 applies to the Town of Estes Park as a Local Government. Amendment 41 does not apply to special districts such as the Hospital District, Park & Rec District nor the School District. Amendment 41 does not apply to EPURA, or PRPA. Amendment 41 applies to employees of the Town of Estes Park, elected officials of the Town of Estes Park, and appointed officials of the Town of Estes Park (members of the Estes Valley Planning Commission, Board of Adjustment). Volunteers of the Town of Estes Park are not subject to the provisions of Amendment 41. 2. Senate Bill 07-210. In 2007, the General Assembly passed Senate Bill 07-210 which established the Independent Ethics Commission and clarified certain provisions of Amendment 41. Amendment 41 provides that those individuals covered by Amendment 41 shall not receive any gift having a fair market value greater than $50 in any calendar year for private or personal financial gain. SB-210 clarified that private or personal financial gain means any money, forebearance, forgiveness of indebtedness, gift or other thing of value given or offered by a person seeking to influence an official act that is performed in the course and scope of public duties by a public officer, member of the general assembly, local government official, or government employee. Official act is defined as any vote, decision, recommendation, approval, disapproval, or other action including inaction which involves the use of discretionary authority. Examples: Conferences— Banquets — Receptions Sporting Events Free Passes— Local Events Discounts Travel Expenses TOWN BOARD WORK SESSION MAY 27, 2008 QUASI-JUDICIAL/LEGISLATIVE QUASI-JUDICIAL HEARINGS Official action taken by the Town Board on certain matters are quasi-judicial decisions. As such, the applicant and all persons concerned have a right to expect that the Town Board will make an impartial decision based upon the information presented to the Town Board concerning the matter at the public hearing. Quasi-Judicial Hearing Requirements: 1. Notice 2. Public Hearing 3. Decision be based on an established set of standards a. State Liquor Code b. Estes Valley Development Code Perception of Bias. If the Trustee feels that due to certain circumstances surrounding the matter, for example, application by a close personal friend, business associate, or neighbor, would create a perception that the Trustee could be biased, it is my opinion that the Trustee should declare a conflict of interest and not participate. Ex-parte Communications. Since a Trustee's decision on the application is to be made upon the information presented by the applicant, the staff, site visits, and input at the public hearings, the Trustee should not, if possible, have ex-parte contact (discussions with applicants or opponents outside of the public meeting) concerning a quasi-judicial matter. If an ex-parte communication does occur, the Trustee should reveal the essence of that communication at the time of review of the application. If a citizen wishes to discuss general policy matters with a Trustee and there is no pending application, the Trustee can discuss general policy matters with a citizen. LEGISLATIVE MATTERS If matter before the Town Board is not a quasi-judicial matter, it is a legislative matter. Examples of legislative matters are as follows: 1. Municipal Code and Estes Valley Development Code amendments 2. Approval of agreements and contracts 3. Policy decisions 4. Annexations 5. Approval of budgets Certain legislative decisions may appear to have the same type of formality as a quasi-judicial decision - public notice, public hearings, Annexations and approval of budgets are examples. However, these are legislative decisions of the Town Board. The Town Board is free to have ex- parte communications concerning legislative matters. TOWN BOARD WORK SESSION MAY 27, 2008 OPEN MEETINGS — PUBLIC RECORDS Open Meetings The Colorado Supreme Court has described the Open Meetings law as "reflecting the considered judgment of the Colorado electorate that democratic government best serves the common wealth if its decisional processes are open to public scrutiny". Meetings Definition. Any meeting of three or more members of the Board of Trustees at which public business is discussed is a meeting subject to the Open Meetings law. This includes in person, by telephone, or electronic— email. Notice of the Meeting. Prior notice of all meetings is required. The notice shall be posted no less than 24 hours prior to the holding of the meeting. Minutes. Minutes shall be kept of all meetings. Executive Sessions. Any executive session must be approved pursuant to a motion approved by two-thirds of the quorum of the Town Board. The minutes of the regular meeting must reflect the topic of discussion of the executive session. Executive Sessions may be held by the Town Board for the following reasons: 1. Property. An executive session may be held to discuss the purchase, acquisition, lease, transfer or sale of a property interest. 2. Legal Advice. An executive session may be called for the purpose of receiving legal advice on specific legal questions. 3. Negotiations. An executive session may be called to determine positions, develop a strategy, or instruct all negotiators. 4. Personnel Matters. An executive session may be called to discuss personnel matters. Please note that the discussion involves a specific employee, that employee may request an open meeting. 5. No official action may be taken at an executive session. 6. Minutes of an Executive Session. Minutes of an executive session must be kept except for that portion of an executive session under the attorney/client privilege. OPEN RECORDS All public records of the Town are open for inspection by any person upon request. Open records include all written documentation including email.