ONGOING DISCUSSIONS

Oneida Common Council debates city manager position

ONEIDA, N.Y. >> City officials held a public comment hearing period at the recent common council meeting about a local law that would amending the Oneida City Charter. The law, if passed, would create the office of city manager and change the city code to reflect the duties and responsibilities of the city manager.

The city manager’s responsibilities include planning, organizing, and directing the city government. The manager must monitor the city’s activities and ensure that council policies and directives are properly implemented and monitored.

Margaret Milman-barris, a former city supervisor and 2022 Democratic mayoral candidate, presented specific concerns regarding the city manager position. Current city supervisor and former sixth-ward councilman Joe Magliocca added his perspective during the discussions.

Mayor Helen Acker and city attorney Nadine Bell joined the council to respond to the concerns raised by Milman-barris. The discussion ended with an open forum being declared on the issue. A second public hearing regarding the city manager position will be held Tuesday, July 18 before the council acts on the amending the charter and hiring a city manager.

Milman-barris said he was concerned about the manager firing department heads without city approval. “I don’t think that’s what the council wants and it’s not in the best interests of the city,” she said.

Bell said that portion of the manager’s power could be removed before a final vote. “The ability to fire a department head is difficult because that have specific civil service rights. That prevents someone from coming in and firing someone because they don’t like their shoes or something they said at the water cooler.”

Milman-barris also said she’d like the city manager to be an apolitical position. The candidate would not have a stated political affiliation and would have not run for political office in the past five years.

“You’re going to see that finding someone someone that will be almost impossible,” third ward councilman Rick Rossi said.

Former councilman and deputy mayor Jim Chamberlain said he believed strongly that any city employee should live in and walk among a city’s residents. he cited the city of Sherrill as an example of the benefits of that requirement.

No one spoke during the first public hearing, which involved a local law amending the Oneida city code regarding the issuance and service of appearance tickets to city court.

Magliocca said the idea of a city manager had been around since the 1970s. The council had agreed on the introduction of a city manager but failed to pass that resolution by voter referendum last November.

“You guys really dropped the ball on this,” Magliocca said to the council. “But there’s still hope we can get this done.”

Historian and national political commentator Doris Kearns Goodwin recently defined the duties of a mayor and a city manager and also three key differences between the two positions.

A mayor is the chief executive officer of a city or town. The mayor is the public face of a local government. They address the media and the general public. They are also held responsible for the conduct of city officials, even officials who do not report directly to them.

A city’s mayor charts its public policy course. Policy decisions come from consultation with the public and other members of government. In a mayor-council form of government, the mayor shares governing duties with a city council. They attend council meetings and vote on legislation along with other city council members.

Mayors and legislative bodies may draft laws and set policies. In some cases, the mayor may oversee departments like the police and public schools to ensure that policy decisions are carried out.

Appointing and removing employees is more likely to fall to a city manager.

A city manager is the chief administrative officer of a city or town that operates on a council-manager form of government. A city manager is not elected like a mayor but may be a full-time position.

While elected officials like city councilors and a mayor might write laws, the city manager is responsible for implementing them.

City managers oversee day-to-day operations of a city. In a council-manager system of government, the city manager makes sure these departments, including police, fire and public schools, function properly.

A city manager may be responsible for overseeing the budget, expenditures, and disbursements. And, a city manager does not vote on city council matters, but they do attend council meetings. They sometimes oversee those meetings.

Mayors and city managers, Goodwin said, have three notable differences.

• Mayors are elected, but city managers are not. Mayors are typically elected to either a two-year term or a four-year term. City managers tend to be long-term city employees who are hired or fired by a legislative body.

• City managers tend to have more specific training. Many city managers hold a Masters of Public Administration. Mayors may hold an MPA, but they are typically elected based upon political skill.

• City managers often make more money than mayors. In small cities, city managers are prized for their administrative abilities and tend to draw fairly substantial salaries; mayors tend to make lower salaries on average.

FILE PHOTO Oneida Mayor Helen Acker.