Correction of Item Numbers — original pdf
Revised Agenda
Versión en español a continuación. Regular Meeting of the Ethics Review Commission Wednesday, October 14, 2020, 6:00 PM Ethics Review Commission to be held October 14, 2020 with Social Distancing Modifications Public comment will be allowed via telephone; no in-person input will be allowed. All speakers must register in advance no later than Tuesday, OCTOBER 13, 2020 by Noon. All public comment will occur at the beginning of the meeting. To speak remotely at the October 14, 2020 ETHICS REVIEW COMMISSION Meeting, residents must: •Call or email the board liaison at 512.974.2915 and sue.palmer@austintexas.gov no later than noon, (the day before the meeting). The information required is the speaker name, item number(s) they wish to speak on, whether they are for/against/neutral, and a telephone number or email address. •Once a request to speak has been called in or emailed to the board liaison, residents will receive either an email or phone call providing the telephone number to call on the day of the scheduled meeting. •Speakers must call in at least 15 minutes prior to meeting start in order to speak, late callers will not be accepted and will not be able to speak. •Speakers will be placed in a queue until their time to speak. •Handouts or other information may be emailed to sue.palmer@austintexas.gov by Noon the day before the scheduled meeting. This information will be provided to Board and Commission members in advance of the meeting. •If this meeting is broadcast live, residents may watch the meeting here: http://www.austintexas.gov/page/watch-atxn-live Reunión del Ethics Review Commission FECHA de la reunion (October 14, 2020) La junta se llevará con modificaciones de distanciamiento social Se permitirán comentarios públicos por teléfono; no se permitirá ninguna entrada en persona. Todos los oradores deben registrarse con anticipación (October 13, 2020 antes del mediodía). Todos los comentarios públicos se producirán al comienzo de la reunión. 1 Para hablar de forma remota en la reunión, los residentes deben: • Llame o envíe un correo electrónico al enlace de la junta en Sue Palmer 512-974-2915 sue.palmer@austintexas.gov a más tardar al mediodía (el día antes de la reunión). La información requerida es el nombre del orador, los números de artículo sobre los que desean hablar, si están a favor / en contra / neutrales, y un número de teléfono o dirección de correo electrónico. • Una vez que se haya llamado o enviado por correo electrónico una solicitud para hablar al enlace de la junta, los residentes recibirán un correo electrónico o una llamada telefónica con el número de teléfono para llamar el día de la reunión programada. • Los oradores deben llamar al menos 15 minutos antes del inicio de la reunión para poder hablar, no se aceptarán personas que llamen tarde y no podrán hablar. • Los oradores se colocarán en una fila hasta que llegue el momento de hablar. • Los información pueden enviarse por correo electrónico a sue.palmer@austintexas.gov antes del mediodía del día anterior a la reunión programada. Esta información se proporcionará a los miembros de la Junta y la Comisión antes de la reunión. • Si esta reunión se transmite en vivo, los residentes pueden ver la reunión aquí: http://www.austintexas.gov/page/watch-atxn-live folletos u otra 2 ETHICS REVIEW COMMISSION OCTOBER 14, 2020 AT 6:00 P.M. VIA VIDEOCONFERENCING CURRENT COMMISSION MEMBERS: Chair Luis Soberon Debra Danburg Raafia Lari Nathan Ryan Vice-Chair J. Michael Ohueri Secretary Kenneth “Tray” Gober Betsy Greenberg Robin Lerner Pedro A. Villalobos Mary Kahle Donna Beth McCormick REVISED AGENDA CALL TO ORDER CITIZEN COMMUNICATION Because of the COVID-19 Pandemic, all citizen communications will occur at the beginning of the meeting. Speakers are limited to a maximum time limit of three minutes per speaker only on items listed below. 1. EXECUTIVE SESSION The Ethics Review Commission may announce it will go into Executive Session pursuant to Chapter 551 of the Texas Government Code to receive advice from legal counsel on any matters specifically listed on this agenda (Private Consultation with Attorney-Section 551.071). The Commission may go into executive session to discuss legal issues related to item 3(a) on the agenda: Whether the Ethics Review Commission would have the authority to issue civil fines if granted that authority by City Council. 2. NEW BUSINESS Discussion and possible action regarding the following: a. Whether the Ethics Review Commission would have the authority to issue civil fines if granted that authority by City Council. b. Scheduling the Commission Meeting calendar for 2021 and whether the Commissioner prefers to try to switch to a meeting date that will allow for video-taping rather than audio-taping of its meetings. 3 c. Improving citizen participation, including the possibility of live-streaming future meetings. 3. OLD BUSINESS Discussion and possible action regarding the following: a. Working group status reports and/or recommendations on the following. i. Working group one (Vice-Chair Ohueri and Commissioners Greenberg and Lerner) on the following subjects: - Commission sanctions including effectiveness, past cases, and recommendations. - Potential amendments to City Code, Chapter 2-7 (Ethics and Financial Disclosure). ii. Working group two (Chair Soberon and Secretary Gober) on the following subjects: - Commission procedures including effectiveness, past cases, and recommendations. - Scope of work of the Commission (powers, duties, and obligations), including effectiveness, past cases, and recommendations. Potential amendments to the Rules of the Ethics Review Commission. - - Best practices for city attorney opinions including effectiveness, past cases, and recommendations. iii. Equity Working Group (Commissioners Kahle, Lari, and Ryan) status report and/or recommendations on: addressing issues of race, identity, and equity including: (i) planning for presentations or trainings by the Equity Office; (ii) helping focus the Commission’s evaluation of racial injustice and how the Commission can operate more fairly and effectively in light of racial injustice. b. Update on candidate forums for City Council candidates, including the candidate forums moderated by the League of Women Voters-Austin Area (LWV-AA), the five-minute recorded statement, and the candidate questionnaire prepared by the LWV-AA. 4. APPROVAL OF MINUTES: SEPTEMBER 9, 2020 REGULAR COMMISSION MEETING. Discussion and possible action regarding the minutes for the September 9, 2020 regular commission meeting. 5. FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS, including upcoming preliminary hearings on one ethics complaint filed by the City Auditor against Delia Garza, and campaign finance complaints filed by Mark Littlefield against Peck Young, Voices of Austin, and A Jo Baylor, Our Mobility, Our Future PAC. 4 ADJOURNMENT The City of Austin is committed to compliance with the American with Disabilities Act. Reasonable modifications and equal access to communications will be provided upon request. Meeting locations are planned with wheelchair access. If requiring Sign Language Interpreters or alternative formats, please give notice at least two (2) days (48 hours) before the meeting date. Please call Sue Palmer at the Law Department, at (512) 974-2915 for additional information; TTY users route through Relay Texas at 711. For more information on the Ethics Review Commission, please contact Sue Palmer at (512) 974-2915 or Lynn Carter at (512) 974-2171. 5