Mayors and city councils square off over bill

Mayors and city councils are normally a united force up on the Hill, but the two groups squared off against each other Monday during debate over a bill that would forbid city councils from taking power from their mayor without a vote of the people.

The bill, SB41, passed unanimously out of the Senate Government Operations and Political Subdivisions Committee. It stems from high-profile power struggles in cities such as Bluffdale and Syracuse, where city councils voted to have a city manager be their chief administrative officer, instead of the mayor.

During debate on the measure, Syracuse Mayor Fred Panucci said he believed that any changes made to a city's form of government should be made by the public, not a city council that is "hungry for power."

When the mayor is a city's chief administrative officer, he is responsible for making most administrative decisions with the help of a city administrator. A city manager oversees all the city staff and reports directly to the city council, not the mayor.

"This bill will correct or eliminate the opportunity for city councils who are hungry for power to change the representation that the people voted for," Panucci said. "If the people want to change, let them vote for it."

In October 2006, Panucci's city council voted to make him a part-time mayor and hire a city manager run the day-to-day affairs of the city. City councilman Lurlen Knight said the change was supported because the council believed Panucci wasn't following all ordinances, nor doing his job correctly.

"He would use his title to override any decisions," said Knight, who supports allowing city councils to take power from their mayor, and then having that decision ratified by a public vote.

Panucci and his supporters gathered more than 1,700 signatures for a referendum to overturn the decision. The City Council now must decide whether to have an election in June or in November for voters to decide whether to overturn the council's change, Panucci said.

Last year, the City Council in Bluffdale made a similar move against Mayor Claudia Anderson. She had her powers returned to her after a referendum by residents.

Gary Crane, Layton city attorney, said Monday that he is opposed to SB41 because elected officials should be trusted to make good decisions. If a mayor is abusive, a city council needs the right to quickly curb that mayor's power, he said.

Also, having a city manager who is trained to run a city, versus a mayor with no training, is essential to managing the growth and making correct planning decisions in larger cities, he said.

"That's the smoothest form of government there is," Crane said. "It is an essential part in moving from a small city to a large city."

SB41 now moves to the House floor for debate. Two members of the committee who voted in support of the bill, Sen. Scott Jenkins, R-Plain City, and Sen. Pete Knudson, R-Brigham City, once served as mayors.

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