john crawford Posted January 7, 2019 at 06:37 PM Report Share Posted January 7, 2019 at 06:37 PM In our small town , which has a weak mayor form of governments a special meeting call for tonight. It seems that the newly elected council person have notified all council members that they are in control of the town government. The mayor is only to open the meeting and say nothing All employees in the town hall either have been fired or have resigned. The newly elected councilperson has stopped all town employee pay including the police. QUESTION ThIs town was incorporated in1881. Is this all correct for a council to overtake the town government? JWC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joshua Katz Posted January 7, 2019 at 07:12 PM Report Share Posted January 7, 2019 at 07:12 PM We have no idea. It depends on your town charter and ordinances, and relevant state statutes and constitutional provisions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Brown Posted January 8, 2019 at 12:08 PM Report Share Posted January 8, 2019 at 12:08 PM (edited) I imagine that either state law, your city Charter, a city ordinance, or your own Council rules specify who presides at Council meetings. Unless your own rules provide otherwise, it should make no difference whether this is a regular meeting or a special meeting. Edited January 8, 2019 at 12:09 PM by Richard Brown Added last sentence Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joshua Katz Posted January 8, 2019 at 01:00 PM Report Share Posted January 8, 2019 at 01:00 PM Although, again depending on your rules, in general, members of a board (to which your council is analogous) have power only as members of that board, unless the rules say otherwise. (So the mayor might have other powers, but it is unlikely that your newly-elected council member does.) It sounds as if you are describing one council member making decisions that, presumably, only the council itself can make, such as establishing rules of order for meetings and making employment decisions. That said, the following sentence is unclear to me because I'm not sure how the pronoun works: 18 hours ago, john crawford said: It seems that the newly elected council person have notified all council members that they are in control of the town government. The mayor is only to open the meeting and say nothing Who has said that who is in control? One council member out of many is unlikely to be "in control" of the town government, unless there is a rule saying otherwise. The council may or may not be, depending on the relevant laws. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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