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�� �. Council Memo To: city council From Craig Klausing Date: Tuesday, March 14,2006 Re: Ethics Commission INTRODUCTION Date: 03120106 Item: 4. Ethics Commission • This memo suminar�zes recent history with the R.oseville Ethics Coi��nlissioi� and rec- ommends that the Council recreate the Commission. RECENT HISTORY In 1990, the Council adopted Resolution 8593 creating the Conaz�assion and describing the role of the Commission. (Attachment 1.) In 2002, the Council created an Ethics Taskforce. Mayor Kysylyczyn appointed Profes- sor David Schultz as Chair of that Taskforce. The other members of the Taskforce were Ann Berry, Connie Pease, Deon Stuthman, City Manager Neal Beets, and myself. A copy of the fmal Taskforce Report is attached. (Attachment 2.) Fundamentally, the Taskforce recomir�ez�cied that the Commission be retained but that some ethical standards be revised. The Taskforce found that the Co�z�issioi7 provided an important educational function in the community. However, the Taskforce found that the Com��ission had dif- ficulty in conducting investigations because it was a multi-member citizen body not trained in conducting investigations and lacking subpoena power. The Taskforce specifi- cally recommended that tl�e �as�force not be granted subpoena authority On May 20,2002, the City Council considered the Taskforce Report. The Council did not adopt the Report. On July 15, 2002, by its vote of 3-2, the Council approved a motion abolishing the Ethics Commission. (Attachment 3.) As a result, today we still have a Resolution creating ethics guidelines and creating an Ethics Commission but a subsequent Council Motion abolishing the Ethics Commission. When questions arose about how ethics complaints should be handled in light of tlle abo- lition of the Commission, the Council discussed and informally decided (no motion or vote) that, in the absence of an Ethics Commission, ethics complaints about the conduct