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Regular City Council Meeting <br /> Monday, February 10, 2014 <br /> Page 29 <br /> Related specifically to Item "D," Councilmember Laliberte opined that this in- <br /> volved communication, transparency and tools for the public. Councilmember <br /> Laliberte noted that Item "E" was in error and intended for a different ordinance; <br /> and should be stricken. <br /> Items "F, G, and H" <br /> Councilmember McGehee questioned whether Item "F" belonged in the Finance <br /> Commission ordinance; opining that the role belonged to the City Council, as it <br /> related to salary compensation and spending levels, opining that this was too spe- <br /> cific, and not necessarily things a commission should be involved with annually. <br /> Councilmember Etten concurred with both of those points, opining that he didn't <br /> want a commission aiming for specific spending levels if their role was advisory, <br /> agreeing that the City Council was tasked with that role. Councilmember Etten <br /> agreed that Item "F" didn't need to be part of their task, since they were already <br /> tasked with a lot of work, and Finance Director Miller would need to spend con- <br /> siderable time keeping people informed without adding this detail. <br /> Councilmember Willmus opined that he had no problem with Councilmember <br /> Laliberte's proposed language. <br /> Councilmember Laliberte proposed to edit Item "C" language as she had previ- <br /> ously proposed (green type) as follows: <br /> C. "Recommend budget goals, including but not limited to local tax rate and <br /> tax levy targets, management of enterprise funds, and spending levels[." And <br /> supported-budgetsT"] <br /> The proposed revised language was approved by consensus. <br /> Councilmember McGehee advocated striking language in Item"F." <br /> Councilmember Laliberte provided her intent for including that language, noting <br /> that whenever staff presented the City Council with peer city comparisons, they <br /> were questioned on why a particular city or group of cities was used for that eval- <br /> uation; and further noted that those peer cities were not necessarily always the <br /> same across the board. However, Councilmember Laliberte noted that no one on <br /> the City Council seems to be willing to make recommendations on which cities <br /> should be used for peer comparisons. Councilmember Laliberte opined that, if the <br /> City was going to compare itself to other cities for utility rates or anything regard- <br /> ing financial matters, they needed to seriously consider identifying those peer <br /> communities seriously at a future City Council Worksession to make sure every- <br /> one was in agreement or to change the current process to provide a clear directive <br /> for staff. <br />