City Councilor Ken Cockayne said that most of the chief operating officer petitions that were circulated in recent weeks have been signed in front of a notary public.
He said he spent most of the day tracking down circulators and seeing others in his office.
Cockayne said that he's not concerned that the more than 4,000 signatures collected won't be counted because of problems with notarizing the petitions.
He said that a dozen notaries offered to help him witness petition signings and about 30 people came to his office today to sign the petitions themselves.
Organizers expect to deliver the petitions to the city clerk next week, before the July 31 deadline.
After they're delivered, the clerk's office has the unenviable job of checking to make sure at least about 3,200 signatures are valid and from registered voters in Bristol. It will take awhile.
On a personal note, I want to say that I'm disgusted with some of the things people have written in their comments on this blog about City Clerk Therese Pac, who has always been a professional in her dealings with me and, as far as I know, with others. I've had to kill a number of especially vile comments about her that are so inappropriate that I am frankly staggered that people would write them. Why are some of the anonymous posters on here so eager to write sickening crap about women?
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Copyright 2008. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com
Showing posts with label petition. Show all posts
Showing posts with label petition. Show all posts
July 23, 2008
July 21, 2008
Yarde says "absolutely unfair" to require notaries
Businessman Craig Yarde just sent along his reaction to the news that the city may require the chief operating officer petitions to be notarized:
This is absolutely unfair. I have circulators who are on vacation and therefore I will not be able to count hundreds of signatures of citizens who signed. Never mind I have to return forms back to over seventy people and find a way to get a them to see a notary. All this in five days because I have to go to Chicago for a corporate Reliance meeting next week. It's not fair for the city to impose this one week before they are due. They have never did this before. This is a great example of why we need a chief operating officer. I can't believe Mayor Ward would authorize this. Well, that's what you get when you have 21 department heads doing whatever they want because they don't have anyone who's managing them. Who made this call. The citizens should call Mayor Ward and tell him to manage his people and let the citizens of Bristol decide if they want a COO rather than trying to put road blocks.
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Copyright 2008. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com
This is absolutely unfair. I have circulators who are on vacation and therefore I will not be able to count hundreds of signatures of citizens who signed. Never mind I have to return forms back to over seventy people and find a way to get a them to see a notary. All this in five days because I have to go to Chicago for a corporate Reliance meeting next week. It's not fair for the city to impose this one week before they are due. They have never did this before. This is a great example of why we need a chief operating officer. I can't believe Mayor Ward would authorize this. Well, that's what you get when you have 21 department heads doing whatever they want because they don't have anyone who's managing them. Who made this call. The citizens should call Mayor Ward and tell him to manage his people and let the citizens of Bristol decide if they want a COO rather than trying to put road blocks.
*******
Copyright 2008. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com
July 1, 2008
Petition drive organizers trying to make sure it's done right
As organizers who are hoping to force a referendum on the chief operating officer proposal increase their efforts to make sure petition gatherers are following proper procedures, the city attorney is lending a hand.
Dale Clift, the city attorney, issued a formal opinion that says those gathering signatures have the full 45 days to turn in petitions.
He said in the decision that “at first reading” of the relevant state law “it appears that both the submission and the certification” of the signatures “must occur within the 45 day period However after consideration of the legal effects of this interpretation, I have concluded that the entire 45-day period should be available.”
That helps give the organizers time to scrape together than 3,100 or so signatures they need.
Organizers had worried they had to turn in the petitions as much as 10 days early in order to have them certified within the 45-day period.
City Councilor Ken Cockayne, one of those pushing the referendum, said he is "very happy at the thoroughness" and speed with which Clift issued a ruling on the matter. He is also content with the decision.Councilor Craig Minor, who is heading up the referendum drive with Cockayne, said that supporters are gathering signatures quickly. He said he anticipates that the petitions will be turned in early.
Minor and other organizers are tracking down reports that some petitions may have been left unattended at businesses, a move that would make it impossible for anyone to verify that they had personally witnessed each signature.
Any petitions that were done improperly won’t be submitted, organizers said.
The Charter Revision Commission, which recently completed its work, recommended the city create a chief operating officer post to handle administrative oversight and provide long-term planning.Supporters of the position said it would bring greater efficiency to City Hall and save taxpayers money in the long run.But Mayor Art Ward and four of the six city councilors rejected the idea. They said it wouldn’t help or it would cost too much money.If the council had approved it, the public would have the final say on the proposed charter change. It would have been on the November 4 ballot.If the petition drive succeeds, voters will still get the chance to have the last word.
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Copyright 2008. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com
Dale Clift, the city attorney, issued a formal opinion that says those gathering signatures have the full 45 days to turn in petitions.
He said in the decision that “at first reading” of the relevant state law “it appears that both the submission and the certification” of the signatures “must occur within the 45 day period However after consideration of the legal effects of this interpretation, I have concluded that the entire 45-day period should be available.”
That helps give the organizers time to scrape together than 3,100 or so signatures they need.
Organizers had worried they had to turn in the petitions as much as 10 days early in order to have them certified within the 45-day period.
City Councilor Ken Cockayne, one of those pushing the referendum, said he is "very happy at the thoroughness" and speed with which Clift issued a ruling on the matter. He is also content with the decision.Councilor Craig Minor, who is heading up the referendum drive with Cockayne, said that supporters are gathering signatures quickly. He said he anticipates that the petitions will be turned in early.
Minor and other organizers are tracking down reports that some petitions may have been left unattended at businesses, a move that would make it impossible for anyone to verify that they had personally witnessed each signature.
Any petitions that were done improperly won’t be submitted, organizers said.
The Charter Revision Commission, which recently completed its work, recommended the city create a chief operating officer post to handle administrative oversight and provide long-term planning.Supporters of the position said it would bring greater efficiency to City Hall and save taxpayers money in the long run.But Mayor Art Ward and four of the six city councilors rejected the idea. They said it wouldn’t help or it would cost too much money.If the council had approved it, the public would have the final say on the proposed charter change. It would have been on the November 4 ballot.If the petition drive succeeds, voters will still get the chance to have the last word.
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Copyright 2008. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com
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