HomeMy WebLinkAbout1981-2517 CREATING UTILITY RATE ADVISORY BOARD & DEFINING ITS DUTIES 411 ORDINANCE NO. 25/7
AN ORDINANCE relating to government administration; creating a
Utility Rate Advisory Board and defining its duties;
enacting Chapter 1.90, "Utility Rate Advisory
Board", and Sections 1.90.010, 1.90.020, 1.90.030,
1.90.040, 1.90.050, 1.90.060 and 1.90.070 thereof,
as a new chapter and new sections of the City of
Yakima Municipal Code.
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY OF YAKIMA:
Section 1. Chapter 1.90, "Utility Rate Advisory Board",
and Sections 1.90.010, 1.90.020, 1.90.030, 1.90.040, 1.90.050,
1.90.060 and 1.90.070 thereof, are hereby enacted as a new
chapter and new sections of the City of Yakima Municipal Code,
to read as follows:
"Chapter 1.90
UTILITY RATE ADVISORY BOARD
1.90.010 Purpose. The purpose and intent ofthis
chapter is to make available to the City Council addi-
tional expertise relative to the operation and management
policies of City-owned utilities, specifically water,
irrigation, transit, sewer and refuse activities. The
Utility Rate Advisory Board, herein created, shall not
supplant administrative input to the City Council but
shall complement staff input through utilization and
application of the special expertise possessed by its
members. It is not the purpose nor the intent of this
chapter to in any way interfere with the administrative
staff functions involving the day to day operation of
the city utilities.
1.90.020 Utility Rate Advisory Board created.
There is hereby created within the City of Yakima a
Utility Rate Advisory Board to be composed of five mem-
bers appointed by the City Manager and confirmed by
the City Council. For the initial term of office, one
member shall serve for one year, two members shall serve
for two years and two members shall serve for three years.
Thereafter, members shall be appointed for a term of
three years. At the first regular meeting following
their appointment the members shall determine by lot
those members who are to serve for the initial one, two
and three year terms.
The members of the Board shall be selected without
regard to political affiliation and shall serve without
compensation. Members of the Board shall be represen-
• tative of the following sectors of the community:
banking, certified public accounting, civil engineering,
consumers, and public utility (privately owned).
1.90.030 Removal--Vacancies. The City Manager may
remove any appointed member of the Board, subject to
410 confirmation by a majority of the City Council. Vacan-
cies occurring otherwise than by expiration of a term
shall be filled for any unexpired term in the manner
used for regular appointments to the Board. Unexcused
absence by any Board member from three consecutive meet-
ings shall constitute grounds for removal, and six ab-
sences by any Board member, excused or unexcused, occurring
within a twelve month period shall likewise be grounds
for removal.
1.90.040 Meetings, officers, records and quorum.
The Board shall elect its own chairperson and vice-
chairperson and create and fill such other offices
it may determine it requires. The Board shall hold
regular meetings at least once during each quarter of
each calendar year. It shall adopt rules for transac-
tion of business, and it shall keep a record of its
nieetings, resolutions, transactions, findings and deter-
minations.
Three members of the Board shall constitute a quorum
for the transaction of business.
1.90.050 Duties of the Board. The Board shall
perform the following duties:
410
1. The Board shall serve as an advisor to the
City Manager and City Council relative to
policy and planning for financing the opera-
tion and maintenance of capital facilities
of the utilities owned by the City of Yakima
as listed in Section 1.90.010 of this chapter.
2. The Board shall advise the City Council on
all matters relating to the incurring of in-
debtedness for or by those City-owned utili-
ties and the issuance of utility bonds.
3. The Board shall advise the City Council rela-
tive to rates and charges for those utility
services and shall, when authorized by the
City Council, conduct surveys, analyses, studies
and reports relating to those City-owned uti-
lities.
4. The Board shall perform such other related
duties and provide such additional related'
advice and assistance to the City Council
as the City Council may request or direct.
1.90.060 Expenditures--Budget. The expenditures
of the Board, exclusive of donations, shall be limited
to appropriations made to the various utility divisions
of the City of Yakima by the City Council for the Utility
Rate Advisory Board function. The services and facili-
'ties of the various utility divisions of the City, as
approved by the City Manager, shall be utilized by the
Board in performing its duties, except that services
of outside consultants may be obtained for a temporary
'Veriod 'of time when authorized by the City Council. 'All
services requiring appropriations shall be submitted
through the budgets of the various utility departments
within the City.
1.90.070 Staff assistance. The staff of the
various departments ot the City, as assigned by the City
Mariager, shall provide staff assistance and shall also
serve to facilitate communications by the Utility Rate 110
gdvisory Board to the City Council. Except for purposes
of inquiry, the Board and its members shall deal with
- employees of the various city departments only through
the City Manager or administrative staff assigned by
the City Manager.
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411 Section 2. This ordinance • shall be in full force and effect
thirty days after its passage, approval and publication as pro-
vided by law and by the City Charter.
PASSED BY THE CITY COUNCIL, signed and approved this i'1
day of 1981.
4 %517 Mayor
ATTEST:
410 - Cit, Clerk f
410
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