HUBBARD CHARTER OF 2003

PREAMBLE

We, the people of Hubbard, Marion County, Oregon, in order to avail ourselves of self-determination in municipal affairs to the fullest extent now or hereafter possible under the constitutions and laws of the United States and the state of Oregon, through this charter confer upon the city the following powers, subject it to the following restrictions, prescribe for it the following procedures and governmental structure, and repeal all previous charter provisions of the city.

CHAPTER I NAME AND BOUNDARIES

Section 1. Title of Charter. This charter may be referred to as the “Hubbard Charter of 2003.”

Section 2. Name of City. The city of Hubbard, Marion County, Oregon, continues under this charter to be a municipal corporation with the name “City of Hubbard.”

Section 3. Boundaries. The city includes all territory within its boundaries as they now exist or hereafter are modified pursuant to state law. The custodian of the city’s records shall keep an accurate, current description of the boundaries and make a copy of it available for public inspection in the city during regular city office hours.

CHAPTER II POWERS

Section 4. Powers of the City. The city has all powers that the constitutions, statutes, and common law of the United States and of this state, now or hereafter expressly or impliedly grant or allow the city, as fully as though this charter specifically enumerated each of those powers.

Section 5. Construction of Powers. In this charter, no specification of a power is exclusive or restricts authority that the city would have if the power were not specified. The charter shall be liberally construed so that the city may exercise fully all its powers possible under this charter and under United States and Oregon law. All powers are continuing unless a specific grant of power clearly indicates the contrary.

Section 6. Distribution of Powers. Except as this charter prescribes otherwise and as the Oregon Constitution reserves municipal legislative power to the voters of the city, all powers of the city are vested in the council.

CHAPTER III FORM OF GOVERNMENT

Section 7. Council. The council consists of a mayor and four councilors elected from the city at large, or in case of one or more vacancies in the council, the council members whose offices are not vacant.

Section 8. Councilors. The term of office of a councilor in office when this charter is adopted is the term of office for which the councilor has been elected before the adoption of the charter, or is elected at the time of the adoption. At each general election after the adoption, two councilors shall be elected, each for a four-year term.

Section 9. Mayor. The term of office of the mayor in office when this charter is adopted continues until the beginning of the first odd-numbered year after that time. At each subsequent general election, a mayor shall be elected for a two-year term.

Section 10. Other Officers. Additional officers of the city shall be a municipal judge, a recorder, and such other officers as the council deems necessary. Each of these officers shall be appointed and may be removed by the council. The council may combine any two or more appointive city offices. The council may designate any appointive officer to supervise any other appointive officer except the municipal judge in the exercise of his judicial functions.

Section 11. Terms of Office. The term of office of an elective officer who is elected at a general election begins at the first council meeting of the year immediately after the election and continues until the successor to the office assumes the office.

CHAPTER IV COUNCIL

Section 12. Rules. The council shall, by ordinance, prescribe rules to govern its meetings and proceedings.

Section 13. Meetings. The council shall meet in the city regularly at least once a month at a time and place designated by council’s rules, and may meet at other times in accordance with the rules.

Section 14. Quorum. A majority of the council constitutes a quorum for its business, but a smaller number of the council may meet and compel attendance of absent councilors as prescribed by council rules.

Section 15. Record of Proceedings. A record of council proceedings shall be kept and authenticated in a manner prescribed by the council.

Section 16. Mayor’s Functions at Council Meetings.

(1)    When present at council meetings the mayor shall:

(a)    Preside over deliberations of the council,

(b)    Preserve order,

(c)    Enforce council rules, and

(d)    Determine the order of business under the rules.

(2)    Notwithstanding subsection (1) of this section, the mayor may temporarily cease to chair a council meeting and delegate the functions described in subsection (1) to another council member.

(3)    The mayor is a voting member of the council.

Section 17. Council President.

(1)    At its first meeting after this charter takes effect and at its first meeting of each odd-numbered year, the council shall appoint a president from its councilors.

(2)    Except in voting on questions before the council, the president shall function as mayor when the mayor is:

(a)    Absent from a council meeting, or

(b)    Unable to function as mayor.

Section 18. Vote Required. Except as provided in Section 20, Section 29, and Section 31 of this charter, the express concurrence of the majority of the council members present and constituting a quorum is necessary to decide affirmatively a question before the council.

Section 19. Vacancies: Occurrence. The office of a member of the council becomes vacant:

(1)    Upon the incumbent’s:

(a)    Death,

(b)    Adjudicated incompetence, or

(c)    Recall from the office; or

(2)    Upon declaration by the council of the vacancy in case of the incumbent’s:

(a)    Failure, following election or appointment to the office, to qualify for the office within ten days after the time for his or her term of office to begin,

(b)    Absence from the city for 30 days without the council’s consent or from all meetings of the council within a 60-day period,

(c)    Ceasing to reside in the city,

(d)    Ceasing to be a qualified elector under state law,

(e)    Conviction of a federal or state offense punishable by loss of liberty, or

(f)    Resignation from office.

Section 20. Vacancies: Filling. A vacancy in the council shall be filled by appointment by a majority of the council. The appointee’s term of office runs from the time of his or her qualifying for office after the appointment and until expiration of the term of the predecessor who has left the office vacant. During a council member’s disability to serve on the council or during a member’s absence from the city, a majority of the other council members may by appointment fill the vacancy pro-tem.

CHAPTER V POWERS AND DUTIES OF OFFICERS

Section 21. Mayor. The mayor shall appoint:

(1)    Members of committees established by council rules, and

(2)    Other persons required by the council to be so appointed.

Section 22. Municipal Court and Judge.

(1)    The council creates the office of municipal judge and fills it by appointment, appointee shall hold, within the city at a place and time that the council specifies, a court known as the Municipal Court for the city of Hubbard, Marion County, Oregon.

(2)    Except as this charter or city ordinance prescribes to the contrary, proceedings of the court shall conform to general laws of this state governing justices of the peace and justice courts.

(3)    All area within the city and, to the extent provided by state law, area outside the city is within the territorial jurisdiction of the court.

(4)    The municipal court has original jurisdiction over every offense that an ordinance of the city makes punishable. The court may enforce forfeitures and other penalties that such ordinance prescribe.

(5)    The municipal judge may:

(a)    Render judgments and, for enforcing them, impose sanctions on persons and property within the court’s territorial jurisdiction;

(b)    Order the arrest of anyone accused of an offense against the city;

(c)    Commit to jail or admit to bail anyone accused of such an offense;

(d)    Issue and compel obedience to subpoenas;

(e)    Compel witnesses to appear and testify and jurors to serve in the trial of matters before the court;

(f)    Penalize contempt of court;

(g)    Issue process necessary to effectuate judgments and orders of the court;

(h)    Issue search warrants; and

(i)    Perform other judicial and quasi-judicial functions prescribed by ordinance.

(6)    The council may authorize the municipal judge to appoint municipal judges pro-tem for terms of office set by the judge or council.

(7)    Notwithstanding this section, the council may transfer some or all of the functions of the municipal court to an appropriate state court.

CHAPTER VI PERSONNEL

Section 23. Qualifications.

(1)    An elective city officer shall be a qualified elector under the state constitution and shall have resided in the city during the 12 months immediately before being elected or appointed to the office. In this subsection “city” means area inside the city limits at the time of the election or appointment.

(2)    No person may be a candidate at a single election for more than one elective city office.

(3)    An elective officer may be employed in a city position that is substantially volunteer in nature. The question of whether the position is substantially volunteer in nature may be decided by the municipal court or in any other manner specified by resolution of the city council.

(4)    Except as subsection (3) of this section provides to the contrary, the council is the final judge of the election and qualification of its members.

(5)    The qualifications of appointive officers of the city shall be determined by the city council.

Section 24. Compensation. The council shall prescribe the compensation of city officers. The council may prescribe a plan for reimbursing city personnel for expenses that they incur in serving the city.

Section 25. Oath. Before assuming the city office, an officer shall take an oath or shall affirm that he or she will faithfully perform the duties of the office and support the constitution and laws of the United States and of the state of Oregon.

CHAPTER VII ELECTIONS

Section 26. State Law. Except as this charter or a city ordinance prescribes to the contrary, a city election shall conform to state law applicable to the election.

Section 27. Nominations. A person may be nominated in a manner prescribed by general ordinance to run for an elective office of the city.

CHAPTER VIII ORDINANCES

Section 28. Enacting Clause. The ordaining clause of an ordinance shall be “The city of Hubbard ordains as follows:”

Section 29. Mode of Enactment.

(1) Except as provided in subsection 2 and 3 of this section 29, an ordinance shall be fully and distinctly read in open council meeting on two different days before being adopted by the council.

(2) Except as provided in subsection 3 of this section, the council may adopt an ordinance at a single meeting by the express unanimous votes of all council members present, provided that the ordinance is read first in full and then by title.

(3) A reading of an ordinance may be by title only if:

(a)    No council member present at the reading requests that the ordinance be read in full; or

(b)    At least one week before the reading:

(i)    A copy of the ordinance is provided for each council member, and

(ii)    Three copies of the ordinance are available for public inspection in the office of the custodian of city records, and

(iii)    Notice of their availability is given by written notice posted at the city hall and two other public places in the city.

(4)    An ordinance read by title only has no legal effect if it differs substantially from its terms as it was filed prior to the reading unless each section so differing is read fully and distinctly in open council meeting before the council adopts the ordinance.

(5)    Upon the adoption of an ordinance, the ayes and nays of the council members shall be entered in the record of council proceedings.

(6)    After adoption of an ordinance, the custodian of city records shall endorse it with the date of adoption and the endorser’s name and title of office.

Section 30. Effective Date of Ordinance. A non-emergency ordinance takes effect on the thirtieth day after its adoption or on a later day the ordinance prescribes. An ordinance adopted to meet an emergency may take effect as soon as adopted.

CHAPTER IX PUBLIC IMPROVEMENTS

Section 31. Procedure.

(1)    The procedure for making, altering, vacating, or abandoning a public improvement shall be governed by general ordinance or, to the extent not so governed by applicable state law. Proposed action on a public improvement that is not declared by two-thirds of the council present to be needed at once because of an emergency, shall be suspended for six months upon remonstrance by the owners of two-thirds of the property to be specially assessed for the improvement. The second such remonstrance suspends the action only with the consent of the council.

(2)    In this section “owner” means the record holder of legal title or, as to land being purchased under a land sale contract that is recorded or verified in writing by the record holder of legal title, the purchaser.

Section 32. Special Assessments. The procedure for fixing, levying, and collecting special assessments against real property for public improvements or other public services shall be governed by general ordinance.

CHAPTER X MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS

Section 33. Debt. The city’s indebtedness may not exceed debt limits imposed by state law. A city officer or employee who creates or officially approves indebtedness in excess of this limitation is jointly and severally liable for the excess. A charter amendment is not required to authorize city indebtedness.

Section 34. Continuation of Ordinances. Insofar as consistent with this charter, and until amended or repealed, all ordinances in force when the charter takes effect retain the effect they have at that time.

Section 35. Repeal. All charter provisions adopted before this charter takes effect are hereby repealed.

Section 36. Time of Effect. This charter takes effect January 1, 2003.