5. 1 Staff Report Discussion Questions re Advisory Committees�71�.t�1yc �r �1DIA� -
Staff Report
Date of Meeting: April 5, 2023
To: Mayor and City Council
From: Anne Hurlburt, Interim City Administrator
Re: Discussion re: Scandia Advisory Committees
Council member Kronmiller has requested that the City Council have a discussion about city
advisory committees and their roles and responsibilities before making additional committee
appointments.
A list of discussion questions has been prepared. Other Council members may wish to add their
own questions.
As background and reference for your discussion, the packet includes two documents from the
League of Minnesota Cities regarding meetings and conflicts of interest.
Scandia has addressed some of these issues for the Planning Commission by adopting guidelines
covering their site visits and ex parte communications. The Commission will be reviewing some
updates to the guidelines at their April 4 meeting, which if approved would be sent to the
Council for action at the April 18 regular meeting. A copy of the guidelines with the proposed
changes is also provided in your packet.
Attachments:
1. Proposed Discussion Questions re: Scandia Advisory Committees dated March 31, 2023
2. LMC Information Memo, Meetings of City Councils
3. LMC Information Memo, Official Conflict of Interest
4. Planning Commission Site Visit Guidelines (version with draft amendments to be
considered 4/4/2023)
Proposed Discussion Questions for City Council re: Scandia Advisory Committees
March 31, 2023 for April 5, 2023 City Council Work Session
Should the city allow two members of the same household serve on a city committee?
What are the advantages or disadvantages?
2. Do our committee members understand the requirements of the Open Meeting Law? How
can we train them so that they protect both themselves and the city? (Note: see League of
Minnesota Cities publication on Meetings of City Councils, Part II, Open Meeting Law.)
3. Do we need clear policies for all committees regarding ex -parte communications? (Note:
Planning Commission has guidelines.)
4. Do we need policies on conflicts of interest, gifts and/or data practices? (Note: see
League of Minnesota Cities publication on Official Conflict of Interest.)
5. Should there be policies on when a committee can appoint a subcommittee or "spin-off'?
6. What is the role of city council committee liaisons? (Note: on some committees, they
have chaired or voted; on others they are clearly "ex -officio " and do not count for a
quorum)
7. When is a committee an "official" city committee, subject to public notice, open meeting
law, data practices, and other requirements? (Note: some current practices create
concerns, i.e., Sister City Committee.)
8. How do we ensure committees do not make excessive demands on staff time or city
resources without council approval?