Quartzsite Mayor sends letter to 3 council members

The following is a letter from Quartzsite Mayor Ed Foster delivered to three Council members' boxes on June 16, 2010. The Desert Messenger received a copy on June 17, 2010, from Quartzsite Town Hall, after filing the proper Public Record Request paperwork.

"To: Council members
Patricia Anderson, Joe Winslow, Jose Lizarraga
Subject:
Respect

If you can't respect me as Mayor you must respect the office of Mayor.

The Mayor calls meetings and if you have a problem with the schedule I propose then you can contact me by letter or phone and I will give consideration to you reasons. I am going to recognize the change you have made this time, but this will not be acceptable in the future.

No meetings of the common council of Quartzsite will be called in the future with out the consent of the Mayor.

The common council of Quartzsite was organize[d] under parliamentary rules and will be run in the future under those rules. The agenda will be set by the Mayor and nothing will be placed on the agenda unless the Mayor approves.

Ed Foster
Mayor"

With so much confusing information on the Internet and some articles/websites written as fact, but are more opinion/editorial in nature, I thought it would be good for the citizens to have more clarification regarding Town Council Procedures.

Here is the exact text from the town's policy procedure manual, which is an approved ordinance :

Quartzsite Town Council Procedure Policy
(also received after filling out the proper paperwork with Town of Quartziste)

Ord. No. 09-29:

Section II. General Rules
13 - Rules of Order:
" 'Robert's Rules of Order Revised' shall govern the proceeding of the Council. The Town Attorney shall serve as the parliamentarian."

Section III. Types of Meetings
3. Work Sessions

"The Council may meet informally in work sessions at the call of the Mayor or any three (3) Members of the Council. Work sessions are open to the public, with public participation. No official action can be taken at a work session."

Section V - Order of Business & Agenda
2. Agenda-Determination of Specific Items to be included:

"Requests for items to be placed on the agenda should be submitted to the Town Manager or Town Clerk in writing no later than 11:00 am on the Wednesday of the week proceding the scheduled Council meeting. The public shall request items to be placed on the agenda through a Council Member.
"The Town Manager shall prepare a proposed agenda and meet with the Mayor, and Town Attorney to discuss and prioritize the agenda itmes and decide their placement on the agenda. A finalized copy of the agenda along with all available information pertaining thereto will be placed in the Council Members' boxes by Friday afternoon."