Charter Review Commission

The City’s charter is a legal document that outlines the structure of government by defining the powers, functions, boundaries and procedures to be followed by elected officials & staff; and, it was last updated in 2001. Best practice for reviewing and revising a city charter is every ten years so the City is past due for a review. 

Click this link to access the current charter.

The City has contracted with the National Civic League (NCL) to work with us on updating the charter. Between now and the end of 2025, the National Civic League will lead the community in an eight-month process to review legal requirements, gather input from key stakeholders, map the trusted relationships in the community and develop and present proposed changes.

A major component of the review process will be the appointment of a Charter Review Commission. Members of the Charter Review Commission will be appointed via recommendations from the City Commission and city staff in a manner consistent with other public engagement processes as well as by a civic lottery. A civic lottery is a tool for randomly selecting residents to participate in democratic initiatives in order obtain a representative sample. The civic lottery will be conducted in June and appointments to the Charter Review Commission will be approved at the July 21 City Commission meeting.

Key Dates:

• August 6 - First Charter Review Commission Meeting
  • Presentation
  • Meeting Notes
• August 7 - Community Event at the Decatur Recreation Center from 6 to 8 PM
  • Presentation
  • Meeting Notes
• August 26 - Meeting 2: Identify Charter areas for Revision
  • Meeting Notes
• September 11 - Meeting 3: Review and Address Areas
  • Meeting Notes
• September 30 - Meeting 4: Review and Address Areas
  • Meeting Notes
• October 22 - Virtual Public Input Session from 7 to 8:30 PM
  • Use this link to register for Zoom access
  • FAQ - Directly Elected vs. Council-Elected Mayor
• October 23 - Meeting 5: Review and Address Areas
  • Meeting Notes
• November 6 - Meeting 6: Review and Address Areas; Finalize Recommendation(s)
  • Meeting Notes
• November 17 - City Commission Work Session
  • List of Recommended Changes
• November 18 - Meeting 7: Finalize Recommendations
  • Meeting Notes

Other dates and times of meetings will be posted soon.