LOC News
LOC Membership Approves Constitutional Amendments
During the LOC’s Annual Business Meeting on October 22, the membership voted to make the following five key amendments the LOC Constitution:
1. Modifying the Governing Structure of the Board of Directors.
Beginning with the 2022 board election, the leadership structure will begin to change, specifically as it relates to the position of LOC Treasurer.
This year, and in years past, the Treasurer was elected by the membership at large and would serve a one-year term. The Treasurer then automatically ascends to the position of Vice-President, serving a one-year term. The Vice-President automatically ascends to the position of President, serving a one-year term. The President then automatically becomes the Immediate Past-President, serving a one-year term. For each position held, the person occupying it must be an elected official of a member city.
However, with the new constitutional amendment, the Treasurer position is removed from the automatic line of ascension to the President, and instead will serve as a standalone two-year position. During the 2022 election, the membership will elect a Treasurer for a two-year term. However, it will not elect a Vice-President in 2022, as the 2022 Treasurer, Hermiston Mayor Dave Drotzmann, will automatically ascend to the position of Vice-President. The membership will vote on a Vice-President, for the first time, during calendar year 2023.
2. Creating Additional Non-Voting Board Members.
The LOC has divided the state into 12 distinct regions. To allow for each region of the state to have a position on the Board, a new provision to the Constitution was added which allows the President and LOC Nominating Committee to appoint persons from member cities in unrepresented regions to serve in a non-voting capacity on the Board. LOC staff is presently working with the Board and Nominating Committee to comply with this new constitutional provision as Region 10 (south central Oregon) and Region 12 (eastern Oregon) are not predicted to have any representation on the board in calendar year 2022. The duration for these appointed terms will be one year.
3. Defining Who Constitutes an Appointed Official.
The term “appointed” is now defined within the LOC Constitution to mean: “any person who has been appointed by a city council and holds the title of city manager or city administrator. If a member city does not have a position titled city manager or city administrator, the city recorder, provided they are appointed to their position by the city council, also constitutes an appointed position.”
By defining the word “appointed” in this manner, in forthcoming board elections, beginning in calendar year 2022, city recorders in cities which have no city manager or city administrator as an organization’s chief executive officer, are eligible to serve in board positions reserved for appointed city officials.
4. Past Presidents Ability to Continue Serving on the Board.
The amended LOC Constitution allows any Past President of the board to continue to serve on the board if they hold either an elected or appointed position with a member city.
5. Conducting Meetings Via Electronic Methods.
The LOC Constitution was amended, in relevant part, to read as follows: “The Board may hold any meeting by, or through the use of, any means of communication allowing all participants to simultaneously hear and speak to one another.”
Contact: Patty Mulvihill, General Counsel - pmulvihill@orcities.org
Last Updated 10/29/21