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Roseville City Council <br />Page 5 of 6 <br />dated Feb. 6, 2004, Attachment 4) "it is appropriate for the Council to follow <br />Resolution 9372 unless the Resolution is modified or suspended by majority <br />vote of the Council." <br />I suggest that Council Resolution 9372 be amended as follows: <br />. Requiring an application and council interview for all new commission <br />appointments; <br />• For reappointments, an application for reappointment would be required <br />but no additional council interview would be held unless three council- <br />members request an interview of a particular sitting commissioner who is <br />seeking reappointment. <br />Reasons: An application should always be required to demonstrate and update <br />the applicant's or commissioner's level of interest and general background in- <br />formation. <br />In addition, the Council should interview in person all applicants for vacant <br />commission seats to supplement the written application and to see how appli- <br />cants present themselves and respond to questions. <br />However, sitting commissioners create a record by their years of public service <br />on that citizen commission. Unless three councilmembers request another in- <br />terview for a sitting commissioner, those years of demonstrated volunteer ser- <br />vice plus the written application for reappointment are a sufficient basis for the <br />Council to decide whether to reappoint a sitting commissioner. <br />Finally, given the normal turnover of commissioners due to resignations, per- <br />sonal decisions not to seek reappointment, or expiration of term limits, there <br />will always be vacant commission seats for the City Council to fill and appli- <br />cants for the Council to interview for those seats. <br />This year, for example, wholly apart from the reappointment process there were <br />four pure vacancies on our citizen advisory commissions. With advertising we <br />typically receive 8-12 applications for four vacancies. Scheduling and inter- <br />viewing 8-12 persons for four vacant seats is already a daunting task. Allowing <br />the usual 10-15 minutes per interview, it takes up 2+ hours of Council time in- <br />terviewing applicants for those vacant seats. Scheduling and interviewingeven <br />more persons — including the six or more sitting commission volunteers who <br />are eligible for reappointment each year and who have already demonstrated <br />their approach to group problem-solving through participation in many hours <br />of public commission meetings over several years time — seems needlesly bur- <br />densome on everyone. <br />Moreover, if a sitting commissioner's conduct seems questionable to three or <br />more councilmembers, then upon your request we would schedule that specific <br />commissioner for a reinterview before the Council decides whether to reappoint <br />that person or instead to seek applications for that seat. <br />