At their meeting on October 15, 2019, members of the Champaign City Council submitted a request to the City Manager to schedule a future study session to review all boards and commissions in the City of Champaign and their corresponding ordinances. The City’s boards and commissions perform an important function in providing input to the City Council regarding issues facing the community. The role and purpose of each board and commission is defined in the City’s Municipal Code. All citizens who serve on boards and commissions are volunteers who are appointed by the Mayor and approved by action of the City Council.
Also at the October 15 meeting, comments were made during Audience Participation regarding the Citizen Review Subcommittee of the Human Relations Commission, and since that time local media has incorrectly reported the purpose of the City Council’s study session request, presuming the focus would be on the citizen review of police complaints.
“The City Council’s study session request is for a review of all City boards and commissions, and no single body has been singled out for special attention. The purpose will be to review the role and duties of each board and commission, allowing Council members to set clear expectations for their work in the future. As advisors to the City Council, these citizen volunteers must understand how they can be most effective in supporting the City Council and continuing to advocate for responsive City government,” stated City Manager Dorothy Ann David. “Despite some misinformation circulating in the community, the City Council has never expressed any intent to change Champaign’s commitment to involving citizen review as part of the police complaint process.”
City Administration will research this topic with the goal of presenting its findings to the City Council in early 2020. For more information about all the City’s boards and commissions, please visit the City’s website at champaignil.gov/boards.