A few quick answers
Absolutely. Both the municipal code and the employment contract with the Administrator give this role the responsibility and requirement to make recommendations.
The City Administrator is the only employee of Board of Mayor and Aldermen, and is the only employee the Board has authority over.
Both the municipal code and the employment agreement with the City Administrator give the City Administrator the sole original authority to hire, reassign, evaluate, and terminate all city employees. The singular exception is before hiring a department head, the City Administrator must give a written recommendation to the board.
No. The Board of Mayor and Aldermen only have the legal authority to hire a City Administrator. The Board of Mayor and Aldermen can reject a recommendation from the City Administrator at which time he or she would continue to make recommendations until the Board agreed.
No. The Mayor has the responsibility of leading the meetings and it is his agenda. The Mayor works with the City Administrator who works with the staff to prepare an agenda.
ANY Alderman may at any meeting add an item to the agenda at the beginning of the meeting when the agenda is being approved.
Also with recent changes, any two alderpersons may add an item to the agenda prior to the meeting.
No. The City Administrator works at the will of the Board within the constraints provided by the Municipal Code and the employment agreement with the City of Tullahoma. He or she has only the power and authority granted them.
If there is an issue with authority granted, one will first need to reference the Municipal Code and employment agreement, to see if there is a conflict. If the conflict is in those the Ordinance will need to be changed and employment agreement renegotiated.
If there is a breach of contract, ordinance, or of public trust, there are mechanisms granted to the elected officials to handle such issues.
First, a little background
In our last article, we talked about the role of an Alderman and learned that Tullahoma has a Council-Administrator form of government. As a quick refresher, in a council-administrator form of government, the Board of Mayor and Alderman are responsible for setting policy. They do not have administrative authority over city staff. Instead, they hire a City Administrator who assumes that administrative role and acts, as their contract states, the C.E.O. of the City of Tullahoma.
To get a better picture, an excellent example of how Tullahoma’s government works, think of a general corporation. In reality, that is what a city is. In Tennessee, as with most states, cities are created by a group of people out of an area of rural county land who agree to incorporate so that they can have services that the county does not provide. This group of people chooses one of the charters that the state offers and then starts the incorporation process.It is important to note that cities have no authority on their own; the state grants them their powers. This structure seems foreign to many because we are the most familiar with how the federal and state governments operate. The U.S. Constitution mandates that all states model the constitutional republic style of government that our federal government follows. Like the federal government, each state has a Constitution that sets up its three branches of government. Unlike cities, which have no authority other than what the state provides, a state’s authority comes from its constitution.
So far in this article, we’ve talked about us having a council-administrator form of government, how cities come to be, where their authority comes from, and that the Board of Mayor and Alderman set policy leaving the administration to the City Administrator. Next, we’ll dive into the role of the city administrator.demistifying the City Administrator's role
Sections 1-301 and 1-302 of the Tullahoma Municipal Code create the City Administrator’s office, define how that role is appointed, and define the qualifications and duties. Separately, a contract signed by the City and the employee (City Administrator) creates a contractually bound obligation between the two. The primary duty of the City Administrator is “to supervise and coordinate all administrative activities of each department directly under the control of the board of mayor and aldermen in accordance with an organization chart adopted by the board of mayor and aldermen and filed with the city recorder.
Section 1-301 Creation of the Office
- Serves at the pleasure of the board of mayor and aldermen
- Minimum qualifications are college degree and training or experience in municipal administration, public administration or civil engineering. The separate contract
- Reason for dismissal must be for due cause and require. two (2) majority votes
- Reason for dismissal must be for due cause and require. two (2) majority votes
Section 1-301 Creation of the Office
- To supervise and coordinate ALL administrative activities of EACH department and do so under the control of the Board of Mayor and Alderman.
- To make recommendations to the Board of Mayor and Alderman for improving the quality and quantity of public services to be rendered by the city to the citizens thereof
- To keep the board of mayor and aldermen fully advised as to theconditions and needs of the city, including an inventory of property andequipment and to recommend necessary repairs or replacements.
- To recommend to the board of mayor and aldermen necessaryprograms or projects involving public works or public improvements to beundertaken by the city and the priority of same.
- To direct the enforcement of all personnel rules, regulations and personnel policies which may be adopted by the Board of Mayor and Aldermen from time to time and to approve any dismissal, promotion or demotion of any employee when same is deemed necessary and proper in accordance with such rules, regulations and policies. The city administrator will review the findings and decision of the respective department heads involved in dismissals, promotions and demotions, and will either approve or reject same. After such approval or rejection, the grievance procedure provided for in said personnel policies will then be applicable.
- To act as purchasing agent
- To review, approve, and recommend a budget for all departments
- Has original authority and jurisdiction to execute and deliver all notices, orders, and other documents necessary for the enforcement of all city ordinances.
- Review all applications for employment filed with the city personnel officer for department head positions, interview applicants, and make written recommendations to the Board of Mayor and Aldermen.
Contractual Agreements via the Employment Agreement
- Employee is the Chief Executive Officer of the City
- Responsibilities include appointment and termination on behalf of the City ALL other employees of the organization.
- Direct, assign, reassign, and evaluate all of the employees of the City
- Organize, reorganize, and arrange the staff of the City.
- Develop and establish internal regulations, rules and procedures which they deem necessary for the efficient and effective operation of the City
- Accept all resignations of employees of the City
- They or a designee SHALL attend, and SHALL be permitted to attend, all meetings of the governing body, both public and closed
