Calder

BAKER CITY — Former Baker City councilor Nathan Hodgdon sent an email to city officials Saturday, Sept. 9, stating that a group of citizens will seek a temporary restraining order in Baker County Circuit Court preventing the remaining three councilors from filling vacancies on the council if councilors don’t agree to instead schedule a special election allowing voters to choose four new councilors.

Hodgdon’s email to the city council, city manager and city recorder included a deadline of noon Sept. 11 to “respond positively to this request.”

If the council does not, “the citizens are prepared to seek legal recourse to address this matter,” Hodgdon wrote. “Specifically, citizens will be compelled to request a temporary restraining order from the Baker County Circuit Court to ensure compliance with our City Charter and state law.”

Mayor Beverly Calder said Sept. 11 that the council can’t respond to Hodgdon’s request because the council lacks a quorum of four members.

Calder said last week that the council, despite lacking a quorum, intends to fill the vacancies. She cited Section 15 of the city charter, which reads: “A vacancy in the council shall be filled by appointment by a majority of the council.”

That section doesn’t mention a quorum being required.

Hodgdon, however, cites two other sections of the charter, both of which do specifically mandate that the council have a quorum of at least four members.

Section 17 reads, in part: “Four members of the council shall constitute a quorum to do business….”

Section 20 reads, in full: “The concurrence of a majority of a quorum shall be required to determine any matter before the council.”

Hodgdon’s email to the city contends that Calder’s proposal to have councilors choose who fills the vacancies “is in violation of the plain reading of our charter and represents an illegal course of action under the statute.”

Calder said that she and the two other remaining councilors, Ray Duman and Jason Spriet, are waiting for a written opinion from an attorney on the question of whether the council can fill vacancies despite lacking a quorum.

Jon France, the city’s interim manager, said that Dan Van Thiel, the city’s contract attorney, has been on vacation but was expected to return Sept. 12.

Resignations result in lack of quorum

Hodgdon and councilor Johnny Waggoner Sr. resigned at the same time on Sept. 6. Their resignations, following the resignations of Boston Colton on Aug. 25 and of Dean Guyer on Aug. 11, left the council with three members.

Hodgdon contends that without a quorum, the council can’t appoint people to fill the four vacancies. He cites a state law, ORS 221.160, which states that the remedy in such cases is to have a special election to fill the vacancies.

That law reads: “Whenever because of death, resignation or other cause the number of the members of the governing body of any city is insufficient to constitute a quorum for the transaction of the business thereof, and the charter of such city does not otherwise provide, the mayor, or if there is no mayor, a majority of the remaining members of the governing body, may call a special election for the purpose of electing a sufficient number of persons to fill all the vacancies then existing in the governing body.”

Calder contends that Section 15 of the Baker City charter does provide a method for filling vacancies — appointment by a majority of the council — and that the city therefore needn’t call a special election because the situation doesn’t meet both of the standards listed in the state law — lack of a quorum and absence of an alternative method in the charter.

“Madam Mayor & City Council Members:

I am writing on behalf of concerned citizens and residents of Baker City, Oregon in regards to the council vacancies and how they should be filled.

The citizens of Baker City share a deep commitment to our local governance and adherence to the principles outlined in our City Charter. Your stated efforts to uphold the integrity of our local government are appreciated and we are eager to assist in resolving this matter expeditiously and in full compliance with the city’s legal obligations.

It has been reported within the local newspaper that the mayor and council intend to fill council vacancies without the quorum required by the Charter. Upon careful examination of the City Charter, it has been noted that there are two separate sections which require a quorum of four members on the City Council to conduct business, which includes any vote or matter to be determined by council. This provision is outlined in Sections 17 and 20. Since there are only three sitting members on the City Council, the council’s plan is in conflict with the Charter’s requirements and requires immediate attention.

In light of this discrepancy, we formally request that the Mayor and the City Council take immediate action to call a special election to fill the existing vacancies in accordance with ORS 221.160, which serves as the statutory authority on the matter. It is recognized that Baker County officials have presented an alternative legal opinion, but the people of Baker City maintain that legal opinion is in violation of the plain reading of our Charter and represents an illegal course of action under the statute.

The mayor cited the associated cost of a special election at approximately $11,000. In response to this concern, I wish to reiterate the previous offer of assistance in organizing an independent citizen crowdfunding campaign to offset the financial burden of this election up to that amount. It should be recognized that all city funds ultimately are of the citizenry, so while a special election should not require crowdfunding, the end result is still the same that citizens are the source of funding. This demonstration shows the deep commitment of the community to upholding the rights of the voters to have a special election as required by the City Charter.

Our community strongly desires to preserve the principles of representative democracy in our local government, and we believe that a special election is essential to uphold these values. We firmly believe that this is the most equitable and lawful course of action, and we hope that the City Council shares this perspective.

However, should the City Council fail to respond positively to this request by the deadline of 12:00pm, Monday, September 11th, 2023, the citizens are prepared to seek legal recourse to address this matter. Specifically, citizens will be compelled to request a temporary restraining order from the Baker County Circuit Court to ensure compliance with our City Charter and state law.

We believe in working together for the well-being of our city, and we trust that you will give this matter the attention it deserves. I formally request a response from the Mayor and/or majority of the City Council before the noon deadline on Monday, September 11.

Thank you for your prompt attention to this important matter. I look forward to working together to resolve this situation, upholding the principles of our City Charter, and making a special election a unifying experience that brings the city together as is so desperately needed in this time.”

Sincerely,

Nathan Hodgdon

“A letter written to the City Council members demanding a response from the council — which currently does not have a quorum — can not be responded to.

Every citizen has the right to petition local government. If a citizen wants to put a certain issue in front of voters, they will need to file a petition with the Elections Officer where they want the issue to be voted upon. The petition must include a minimum number of signatures from eligible voters (that number can be verified with the County Clerk). Once the person has collected the required number of signatures, the signatures would be verified by the County Clerk before being placed on a ballot.

Councilors do not have the ability to put anything on a ballot themselves, as council only acts as a group. Without a quorum, the Baker City Council can only listen and not act, nor respond to demands of the council, until the quorum issue is resolved.

Thank you everyone for your patience and diligence. This past week has been more challenging but I am confident that our City Charter was well written and will guide our steps forward.”