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ARTICLE III

LEGISLATION

All legislative action shall be by ordinance or resolution, except when otherwise required by the Constitution or the laws of the State of Ohio, but departmental procedure and administrative matters may be transacted by motion recorded on the journal.

3.01.     FORMAT

A.   All legislation is to be prepared and/or submitted by the Law Department.

B.   Every resolution and ordinance shall contain one (1) subject only, which subject shall be clearly expressed in its title. (Charter 3.11)

C.   Every resolution and ordinance shall reflect, somewhere on its first page, who initially sponsored it for Council’s consideration. (Charter 3.11)

D. Every resolution and ordinance shall be fully and distinctly read by title only, on three different days, unless at least two-thirds of the members of Council vote to suspend this rule. If this rule is suspended, then the resolution or ordinance shall be so read by title at least once before passage. (Charter 3.11) (amended 3-13-2006)

3.02.     POSTING

A.   All ordinances, resolutions, statements, orders, proclamations, notices and reports required by law, or by the Charter, to be published, shall be posted at City Hall, the Public Library, and in no less than three (3) other of the most public places in the City, as determined by Council. (Charter 3.11) The other three locations are: The Aurora Post Office, Heinen’s Grocery Store, and Fire Station No. 2. (Codified 123.01)

B.   The documents listed above shall be posted for a period of not less than fifteen (15) days prior to the taking effect thereof, except as may otherwise be provided in this Charter or applicable Ohio law. (Charter 3.11) (amended 3-13-2006)

3.03.     PASSAGE

A.   No ordinance, resolution, measure or other action shall be passed without the concurrence of at least a majority of the members of Council, unless a larger number be required by the provisions of the Charter or applicable Ohio law. (Charter 3.11) (amended 3-13-2006)

B.   If the competitive bid process has been by-passed, then at least 2/3rds the members of Council is needed for passage. (Charter 6.03)

C.   On the passage of every ordinance, resolution, measure or other action, the votes shall be taken by yeas and nays and each Council member’s vote shall be entered upon the journal. (Charter 3.11)

D.   All legislation must be presented to the Mayor no more than 48 hours after passage by Council, for approval or disapproval. If the Mayor approves the legislation, he/she must sign it and file it with the Clerk of Council within ten days. If the Mayor does not return it within this time period, it shall become effective in the same manner as if it were signed. (Charter 4.06)

E.   All legislation shall go in effect 30 days after the signing of the Mayor, unless the legislation contains an emergency clause.

F.   Any legislation with an emergency clause must state the reason for the emergency, and pass on a vote of at least two-thirds the total members of Council, to go in effect immediately upon the signing of the Mayor. If the ordinance passes by less than the required number of votes to become an emergency, then it shall go in effect after 30 days, rather than immediately. (Charter 3.13)

3.04.     RECONSIDERATION

A.   Reconsideration of a piece of legislation can be requested by the Mayor or the Council President. This request is not a motion, but to advise Council members that the passage or defeat of the legislation as it stands is debatable.

B.   A motion to reconsider can only be made by a member who voted on the prevailing side. It may be seconded by any member.

C.   A majority vote is required to pass a motion for reconsideration.

D.   Reconsideration of legislation can only occur prior to the approval of a the minutes from the meeting where the adoption or defeat of the legislation occurred.

E.   No legislation shall be reconsidered after going into effect. (amended 2-25-2002, 2-23-2004)

3.05.     VETO

A.   If the Mayor disapproves a piece of legislation, the Mayor shall return it, with the objections, in writing to the Clerk of Council within ten days after it is presented to the Mayor by the Clerk, which objections shall be entered in full on the journal of Council. (Charter 4.06)

B.   For the next meeting of Council, the Clerk of Council shall place on the agenda, immediately following the roll call, the question of whether Council wishes to sustain or override the veto of the Mayor.

1. Sustain - if the Council agrees with the veto of the Mayor, it will be sustaining the veto. This agreement must be indicated by either no motion for reconsideration, or a motion for reconsideration with a failing vote for passage.

2. Override - if the Council does not agree with the veto of the Mayor, it will be overriding the veto. This disagreement must be indicated by a motion for reconsideration, followed by passage of the legislation.

3. Council may choose to reconsider a vetoed piece of legislation at its next meeting. This motion will require a majority vote of Council. If reconsidered, a two-thirds or more vote will be required for passage of the ordinance and overriding of the veto.

4. A vetoed piece of legislation, which has been overridden by Council, shall not be forwarded for the Mayor’s signature. The legislation shall take effect based on the rules of the Charter.