By Karen Gleason
The 830 Times
Eight proposed amendments to the Del Rio City Charter will be on the ballot for registered voters living inside the city limits and casting ballots in the November General Election.
The proposed amendments are the result of a months-long effort by a group of citizen volunteers who served on a charter review committee appointed by the Del Rio City Council. The volunteer committee, guided by the city’s contracted attorneys, made their final recommendations for the charter changes to the city council.
The council in August approved an ordinance “ordering and calling for a special election for the purpose of proposing amendments to the existing charter for adoption or rejection; providing measures and propositions for proposed amendments to the existing charter.”
- Proposition A asks voters if they are for or against “an amendment to the City of Del Rio Charter to delete any provisions which are repetitive of state law, repetitive of other sections of the Charter and otherwise unnecessary to be in the Charter?”
- Proposition B asks voters if they are for or against “Amendments to the City of Del Rio Charter for consistency with state law?”
- Proposition C asks voters if they are for or against “an amendment to the City of Del Rio Charter to provide for greater clarity as to intent and to simplify the language ease of understanding?”
- Proposition D asks voters if they are for or against “an amendment to the City of Del Rio Charter to change the limits of Council Member compensation from one hundred dollars ($100) to two hundred dollars ($200) for attendance upon each regular meeting of the city council?”
- Proposition E asks voters if they are for or against “an amendment to the City of Del Rio Charter to require the City Council to solicit the recommendation of the city manager prior to the adoption of an ordinance creating, changing or abolishing any offices or departments?”
- Proposition F asks voters if they are for or against “an amendment to the City of Del Rio Charter to remove the requirement that a city attorney be licensed to practice before the Federal Western District of Texas court as a condition of continued employment with the City?”
- Proposition G asks voters if they are for or against the question, “Shall the City of Del Rio Charter be amended to require the finance director to receive the advice of the city attorney prior to the approval of contracts, orders and other documents by which the city incurs financial obligations?”
- Proposition H asks voters if they are for or against “an amendment to the City of Del Rio Charter to require the City Council to, within forty-five (45) days of a vacancy occurring in a position appointed by the City Council, either engage a person or entity to begin the search to permanently fill the vacancy or actively advertise to fill the vacancy?”
Voters who would like to read a copy of the ordinance passed by the city council, which contains both the propositions that will appear on the ballot and exact wording of those portions of the charter eyed for change, may do so at the following link, from the Val Verde County Clerk’s website:
The county clerk’s website also has copies of the sample ballots for each county voting precinct, some of which include city voting districts.
Those sample ballots may be accessed from the following link on the county clerk’s website: https://valverdecounty.texas.gov/270/Elections
The writer can be reached at delriomagnoliafan@gmail.com.
