CHAPTER 30:
City Council
Section
General Provisions
30.04 Regular meetings; special meetings
Rules of Procedure
30.15 Mayor to preside; power of vote
30.16 Quorum; order of business
30.17 Rules of order; suspension of rules
30.18 Addressing meetings; conduct
30.19 Mayor’s veto power; reconsideration
30.20 Rescinded action at special meetings
30.22 Attendance by other than physical presence
Elections
30.39 Contesting election; procedures
GENERAL PROVISIONS
30.01 COMPOSITION; TERMS.
The City Council consisting of two Aldermen from each ward shall be elected to office for a four year term with one Alderman from each ward being elected to a four year term in the year 1973 and one Alderman from each ward to be elected in the year 1975 and continuing in staggered terms thereafter so that one Alderman shall be elected from each ward in every municipal election held in each odd-numbered year.
(’81 Code, § 2.01)
30.02 OATH AND COMPENSATION.
The members of the City Council shall take the oath of office prescribed by statute, and shall receive such compensation as may be provided by ordinance.
(’81 Code, § 2.03) (Am. Ord. 2004-15, passed 9-15-05)
30.03 VACANCIES.
The City Council shall be the judge of the election and the qualifications of its own members and in case any vacancy shall occur in the office of Alderman, Mayor, Clerk or Treasurer, by death, resignation, removal or other cause, such vacancy shall be filled as state law shall provide or a state statue shall provide.
(’81 Code, § 2.02)
30.04 REGULAR MEETINGS; SPECIAL MEETINGS.
(A) The City Council shall hold its regular meetings on the third Monday of each month at 7:00 p.m. Notice of a regular meeting is not required. If the regular meeting date falls on a holiday, the meeting shall be held on the next secular day. Meetings of the City Council shall be open to the public, as provided by statute. (’81 Code, § 2.04) (Am. Ord. passed 2-21-83)
(B) Special meetings may be called by the Mayor or any three Aldermen provided that notice of such special meeting is provided as required by state law. (’81 Code, § 2.05)
30.05 STANDING COMMITTEES.
(A) The following shall be the standing committees of the City Council.
(1) Police and Emergency Management.
(2) Finance.
(3) Public Grounds and Buildings.
(4) Water.
(5) Sewer.
(6) Streets and Alleys.
(7) Lights and Printing.
(8) Liquor Commission.
(B) Special committees shall be created from time to time as directed by the City Council.
(C) Each standing committees and special committee shall consist of three members, unless the Council shall otherwise direct. Members of committees shall be appointed by the Mayor. The Mayor shall be ex-officio a member of the committees.
(’81 Code, § 2.18) (Am. Ord. 1986-1, passed 3-10-86)
RULES OF PROCEDURE
30.15 MAYOR TO PRESIDE; POWER OF VOTE.
(A) The Mayor shall be the presiding officer of regular and special meeting of the City Council and when the Council meets as a committee of the whole. (’81 Code, § 2.06)
(B) The Mayor shall not vote on any ordinance, resolution or motion except where the vote of the Aldermen has resulted in a tie or where one-half of the elected have voted in favor of an ordinance, resolution or motion even though there is no tie vote. In both instances, the Mayor shall vote. Nothing in this section shall deprive the Mayor pro tem from voting in his capacity as Alderman, but he shall not be entitled to another vote in his capacity as Mayor pro tem. (’81 Code, § 2.07)
30.16 QUORUM; ORDER OF BUSINESS.
(A) A majority of the City Council, or the Mayor and any three Aldermen, shall constitute a quorum to do business, but no ordinance shall be passed except upon the favorable vote of a majority of the elected members, as provided by statute. (’81 Code, § 2.16)
(B) The order of business of the City Council shall be set forth on the agenda published in accordance with the Open Meetings Act by the City of Lewistown in advance of each meeting. The order of business prescribed on the agenda shall be established by the City Clerk in advance of each meeting to permit the City Council to address the business of the city which is necessary and appropriate for the City Council to address. (’81 Code, § 2.10) (Am. Ord. 2007-13, passed 8-28-07; Am. Ord. 2021-7, passed 6-8-21)
30.17 RULES OF ORDER; SUSPENSION OF RULES.
(A) Robert’s Rules of Order shall govern the deliberations of the City Council except when in conflict with any provisions of this chapter. (’81 Code, § 2.15)
(B) The rules of order, other than those prescribed by statute, may be suspended at any time by the consent of a majority of the members of the City Council present at any meeting. (’81 Code, § 2.14)
30.18 ADDRESSING MEETINGS; CONDUCT.
(A) No person other than the Mayor or a member of the City Council shall address that body at any regular or special meeting except upon consent of a majority of the members present or except during that part of said meeting designated for public comments and petitions.
(B) Public Comments and Petitions. Except upon consent of a majority of the members present:
(1) No person shall be permitted to address the City Council at a regular or special meeting without first having his or her name and topic of discussion placed upon the agenda in advance of said meeting by the City Administrator;
(2) No person shall be permitted to address the City Council for a period in excess of five minutes with respect to any one topic; and
(3) No one topic shall be permitted to be addressed before the City Council for a period in excess of 20 minutes.
(C) No person shall disturb any meeting of the City Council or any committee thereof.
(’81 Code, §§ 2.13, 2.17) (Am. Ord. 2014-9, passed 10-14-14) Penalty, see § 10.99
30.19 MAYOR’S VETO POWER; RECONSIDERATION.
(A) All resolutions and motions which create any liability against the city, or which provide for the expenditures or appropriation of its money, or to sell any city property, and all ordinances passed by City Council shall be deposited with the Clerk. If the Mayor approves of any of them, he shall sign it. If he disapproves of any of them, he shall return it to the Council not less than five days after the Council’s passage, the Mayor’s written objection, the veto shall be considered at the next regular meeting of the Council as provided in division (B). (’81 Code, § 2.08)
(B) Every resolution and motion specified in division (A) and every ordinance which is returned to the City Council by the Mayor shall be reconsidered by the Council. If, after such reconsideration, two-thirds of all the Aldermen elected to the Council shall agree to pass an ordinance, resolution or motion, notwithstanding the Mayor’s refusal to approve it, it shall be effective. The vote on the question of passage over the Mayor’s veto shall be effective. The vote on the question of passage over the Mayor’s veto shall be by “yeas” and “nays,” and shall be recorded in the journal. (’81 Code, § 2.09)
30.20 RESCINDED ACTION AT SPECIAL MEETINGS.
No vote or action of the City Council shall be rescinded at any special meeting of the Council unless there is present at such special meeting as many members of the Council as were present at the meeting when such a vote or action was taken, as provided by statute.
(’81 Code, § 2.11)
30.21 RESOLUTIONS.
On request of any two members of the Council, any resolutions submitted to the City Council shall be reduced to writing before being voted upon.
(’81 Code, § 2.12)
30.22 ATTENDANCE BY OTHER THAN PHYSICAL PRESENCE.
(A) The Mayor, an Alderman or Officer may attend a meeting of the City Council of the City of Lewistown by video or audio conferencing on not more than two occasions during each fiscal year if such individual cannot be physically present due to one or more of the following reasons:
(1) Personal illness or disability;
(2) Employment purposes, including business of the City of Lewistown; or
(3) A family or other emergency.
(B) The Mayor, an Alderman or Officer attending by video or audio conferencing shall not be permitted to participate in any vote taken during the video or audio conference.
(C) Any individual designated in division (A) of this section desiring to attend a meeting by video or audio conferencing shall provide the City Administrator or the City Clerk advance notice of the same not less than two hours prior to said meeting, unless the advance notice is impractical.
(D) Upon receiving said advance notice from the Mayor, an Alderman or Officer, the City Administrator or the City Clerk shall cause to be available, at the start of the meeting, a device which shall, at minimum, be capable of audio conferencing between the Council and the individual.
(E) No person shall be authorized to attend any meeting by other than physical presence unless a quorum is physically present at that meeting.
(F) At all times during the participation of the Mayor, an Alderman or Officer at a meeting by audio or video conferencing, the meeting shall be conducted in accordance with the requirements of the Open Meetings Act.
(G) An Alderman attending any meeting by other than physical presence shall not be paid a meeting fee for that meeting as referenced in the ordinance now in effect and as hereafter amended.
(Ord. 2016-3, passed 6-14-16; Am. Ord. 2018-10, passed 5-22-18)
ELECTIONS
30.35 ELECTION WARDS.
(A) The Council shall be the legislative department of the city government and shall perform such duties and have such powers as may be delegated by statute to it.
(B) The presently existing three wards in the city and their boundaries are as follows:
(1) Ward I. Beginning on the south side of Milton Avenue where Milton Avenue intersects with the west boundary line of the city, thence traveling in an easterly direction along Milton Avenue to the west boundary line of the intersection of Milton Avenue and Madison Street, then south on Madison Street one block to the south boundary line of the intersection of Madison Street and Washington Avenue, thence east on the south side of Washington Avenue to the west boundary line of Washington Avenue and Main Street, thence south along the west boundary line of Main Street to the south corporate limits of the city.
(2) Ward II. Beginning on the south side of Milton Avenue where Milton Avenue intersects with the west boundary line of the corporate limits of the city, thence east along the south side of Milton Avenue to the west boundary line of the intersection of Milton Avenue and Madison Street, thence south on the west side of Madison Street one block to the south boundary line of the intersection of Madison Street and Washington Avenue, thence east along the south side of Washington Avenue to the west boundary line of the intersection of Washington Avenue and Main Street, thence north on the west boundary line of Main Street to the north boundary line of the intersection of Main Street and MacArthur Avenue, thence east on the north boundary line of MacArthur Avenue to the west boundary line of the intersection of MacArthur Avenue and Chestnut Street, thence north boundary line of the intersection of Chestnut Street and Halsey Avenue, thence east on the north boundary line of Halsey Avenue, continued, including that northeasterly part of the avenue commonly known as St. Mary’s Cemetery Road to the northeast corner of the corporate limits of the city.
(3) Ward III. Beginning on the west side of Main Street where Main Street intersects with the south boundary line of the city, thence north on the west boundary line of Main Street to the north boundary line of the intersection of Main Street and MacArthur Avenue, thence east on the north line of MacArthur Avenue to the west boundary line of the intersection of MacArthur Avenue and Chestnut Street, thence north on the west boundary line of Chestnut Street to the north boundary line of the intersection of Chestnut Street and Halsey Avenue, thence east on the north boundary line of Halsey Avenue, continued, including that northeasterly part of the avenue commonly known as St. Mary’s Cemetery Road to the northeast corner of the corporate limits of the city.
(’81 Code, § 2.01)
30.36 ELECTION OF OFFICERS.
Elections for municipal offices shall be held as provided by statute and at the time prescribed by statute.
(’81 Code, § 3.17)
30.37 BALLOTS PRESERVED.
The Clerk shall preserve all ballots returned to him by the judges of any city election for six months thereafter and at the expiration of that time, if no contest has been instituted and is still pending, the Clerk shall burn the ballots under the direction of the Council.
(’81 Code, § 2.19(j))
30.38 COUNTING BALLOTS.
In the case of a contested election, the parties thereto shall be entitled to have the package or packages of ballots which have been returned to the Clerk pursuant to law opened in the presence of a
committee of the Council and the officer having the custody thereof, and to have the ballots and then and there counted by a committee of three members appointed for that purpose.
(’81 Code, § 2.19(i))
30.39 CONTESTING ELECTION; PROCEDURES.
(A) Contest of election. The election of any Alderman may be contested by any elector of the city and the proceeding shall be in accordance with the Illinois Compiled Statutes regulating the mode of contesting elections of county officials, so far as the same may be applicable. The City Council shall be the tribunal before which such contest shall be heard, and its decision shall be final. (’81 Code, § 2.19(a))
(B) Statement of contest. Whenever any person desires to contest the right of another to hold the office of Alderman, he shall, within 30 days after the person whose election is to be contested is declared elected, file with the Clerk a statement in writing, briefly stating the point on which he will contest the election, which statement shall be verified by affidavit. (’81 Code, § 2.19(b))
(C) Notice to respondent. Upon filing such statement, the contestant shall also serve a copy thereof upon the person whose election he intends to contest, and in case such person is absent from the city and cannot be found, then by leaving a copy of the statement at his usual place of abode, with some member of his family of the age of ten years or upwards, and informing such person of the contents thereof. (’81 Code, § 2.19(c))
(D) Taking of testimony. When the statement has been filed and served, the Council upon the request of either party shall meet and fix the time and place for taking the depositions of witnesses. At such time either party may proceed to take the testimony of any witness in the manner provided by law for taking depositions in court of records, before any judge, justice of the peace, master of chancery or notary public, at the time and place so fixed, and continue the same from day to day thereafter until the testimony is taken. (’81 Code, § 2.19(d))
(E) Proofs taken and filed. In all cases of contested elections, the proofs shall be taken and filed with the Clerk within 60 days from the day fixed by the Council. The Council may from time to time upon sufficient cause shown extend the time for taking and filing such proofs. No testimony shall be taken or proof received or produced on the hearing before the Council except upon the points set forth in the statement filed with the Clerk. (’81 Code, § 2.19(e))
(F) Council procedure. When all the evidence has been taken, as provided in this section, it shall be filed immediately in the office of the Clerk, who shall at once lay the same before the Council, which shall without delay refer the same to some appropriate committee to examine and report thereon. Upon such report being made, the Council shall hear the case, and may require all testimony and proofs taken to be read in open meetings, and shall by a majority vote upon a call of the “yeas” and “nays,” declare as elected the person who shall appear by the evidence to have been elected; and the Clerk shall enter such decision and declaration in the journal of the Council. (’81 Code, § 2.19(f))
(G) Respondent not to act. In any election contest the respondent or person whose election is the subject of the contest shall not take any part in such contest, so far as the determination thereof is concerned, nor shall he cast any vote in connection therewith. (’81 Code, § 2.19(g))
30.40 LEGAL DISQUALIFICATION.
Whenever it appears that the person receiving the highest number of votes is ineligible to the office because of any legal disqualification, the Council shall declare such election null and void, and immediately call a special election to fill the office.
(’81 Code, § 2.19(h))