Details in Clawson’s Proposed Charter Change
(Elizabethh Schanz, Sept. 26, 2023)
Clawson, MI – The City of Clawson has proposed revisions to update its charter, the local constitution, that will be voted on during the Nov. 7 election.
Clawson’s charter was initially created in 1921 when the community was established as a village. When it became a city in 1940, a new charter was created. If revisions are passed, this would be the first time the charter had been updated since 1940. The revisions aim to create clearer wording, explicitly state protections for all people in the community, expand the size of the city council, and who can run from those positions and more.
Laura Slowinski serves as the City of Clawson Charter Commission Chair. She said revisions were sparked because of how long it had been the charter had last been updated. She said the changes were meant to lead to less ambiguity and to fit the current community of Clawson.
“Clawson’s growth and prosperity over the last 83 years has proven the charter’s good, but maybe it was time to see if it should be updated and hopefully will continue to serve Clawson for another many years,” Slowinski said.
On Nov. 30, 2021, the commission met for the first time to start the process for the charter revisions and has since met about 42 times. All of the meetings have taken place in public, are open to the community, as well as recorded and viewable on YouTube.
Slowinski said there has been a lot of work creating the new verbiage including listening to community members, officials, commissioners, board members and more to hear about their experiences with the charter. Additionally, Slowinski said the commission consulted resources from the Michigan Municipal League (MML) and the Model City Charter. Throughout the process, they also made regular updates to the Clawson City Council, although it was not required.
“We went line by line reading the charter and asked ourselves was the article necessary due to state law, was it easy to understand, and if it had many viewpoints or was it clear and concise,” Slowinski said. “Every recommended change had a majority vote from the commission, which was very important.”
Slowinski said at the end of the official update process the commission submitted proposed updates to the attorney general, Michigan Bureau of Elections Board and the Governor of Michigan for review and suggestions.
Overall, the commission intended for the changes to the charter to make the “law of the city” clearer for citizens and officials to understand. Slowinski said what people may think are the “biggest changes” depends on the individual. Similarly, some people may wonder what impact the proposed changes could have on how the city of Clawson runs and how the charter can impact their lives. Here are some major takeaways from the charter revisions.
Review of charter every 12 years
One proposed change was officially establishing a time period in order for the charter to be reviewed more often and decide if updates are needed, under Section 16.15 of the proposed charter revisions.
“They’ll (Charter Commission) get to question the citizens if they want to update it (the charter) again,” Slowinski said.
This would create more opportunities for review of the charter and the potential to propose adjustments that reflect changes over time.
Addition of a “Non-discrimination; equal rights” passage
The newly added and proposed “Non-discrimination; equal rights” section (Section 3.05) puts into writing protections for all people of Clawson regardless of “race, color, religion, national origin, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, height, weight, marital or family status, or any other status that is protected by federal, state, or local law or ordinance.”
Slowinski said putting this passage into the charter revisions was fitting because of the character and goals of Clawson.
“Our city slogan is ‘a small city with a big heart’ and we want everybody to know everyone is welcome here. Putting that into the charter was the way that we did that,” Slowinski said.
Change in age to run for the offices of mayor or city council and other changes for officials
Under the Section 4.01 “City council; authority; members, qualifications,” the passage would change who is eligible to run for mayoral or city council positions.
Initially the Clawson Charter had a minimum age requirement 25 to run for these positions and if the revision passes the age requirement would be lowered to 21.
In 2021, Stacey Gomoll, 23 years-old at the time, wanted to run for a city council but after beginning her campaign learned the charter’s age requirement at the time blocked her from continuing it.
However, if the revised charter passes, younger people can run for the positions they previously had not been able to hold in Clawson.
“There’s a lot of younger people in Clawson and we wanted to give them the opportunity to serve,” Slowinski said. “I want the residents to remember that seats (on the City Council) are not appointed, so if there is somebody who decides they want to run the citizens are still going need to elect them.”
Additionally, the section outlines the expansion of the number of council members
from five members including the mayor to seven members including the mayor. This revision would begin in the 2025 regular city election. The change would have some cost to it, including training for the officials and the potential for longer meetings. Though it also brings the opportunity for more viewpoints and ideas.
Slowinski said the intention behind the decision was that a seven-person council would be able to “get more done” because the “power is spread among members thus reducing the chance that one person can hold up the council” which she said more often happens on a five-person council.
Leading up to the election
To inform Clawson residents, Slowinski said the commission is intending to hold public forums in order to give information and answer questions, mail a printed proposed revised charter out and answering questions about what the new charter revisions entail.
“The people are still going to need to do their research, watch our meetings and reach out to us and we can answer any questions they may have,” Slowinski said. “Basically what we’re doing is educating and making sure that everybody has the information that they need to vote in November. That’s our goal from now until the election.”
Slowinski said ultimately it comes down to the citizens of Clawson to approve the proposed revised charter. On the ballot residents will see just one question – “Shall the 2023 City Charter proposed by the Clawson Charter Commission be adopted?” The final proposed Clawson Charter revisions and more information about the Clawson Charter can be found on their website.
