On May 26, the Bethel City Council reinstated the COVID-19 emergency after the first declaration of emergency expired two days earlier. The new declaration has some changes which limit the authority of the city manager, specifically his authority to change cab fares. The city council also set the stage for a potential "by-mail" election this October, and confirmed the hire of new police chief Richard Simmons.
One of the reasons why the council extended the emergency ordinance was to stay in sync with the state’s emergency declaration. City Attorney Elizabeth "Libby" Bakalar said that the city could lose funding opportunities if it didn’t extend the ordinance. Council member Mark Springer proposed that if the emergency declaration was extended, the council should consider whether the city manager’s emergency powers should be restricted.
“Whether we should try to seek some normalcy in administrative operations,” Springer said.
Council member Alyssa Leary proposed a change to the original emergency declaration that would effectively check the city manager’s powers by prohibiting him from unilaterally changing the Bethel Municipal Code regarding cab rules, and requiring him to report all actions he takes in response to COVID-19 to the city council. Leary said that one of the reasons she proposed the change was because she had heard so many complaints from the public about the per-minute cab fares.
“So this just puts something in so that, you know, any revision to the taxicab rates, the rate structure will not be made solely by the city manager,” Leary said.
That motion was approved, and the emergency declaration was extended for another 60 days.
An ordinance was introduced allowing the city to conduct an election entirely by mail. Passing this ordinance would just open the possibility for a "by-mail" election. The council would have to pass another ordinance at least 60 days before an election to make a "by-mail" election official. City Clerk Lori Strickler explained that since nobody knows what the COVID-19 pandemic will look like this fall, the city may want the option to protect both the public and the election staff.
“Over half of my election staff is of a high risk age group, all Elders retired,” Strickler said. “And I want to make sure that they, one, are able to and willing to work the election, and I can do that safely.”
City Attorney Bakalar explained that a by-mail election has mechanisms to protect against voter fraud. She said mail-in voters have to provide a social security number or similar private identification information to ensure they are the person they claim to be.
The council also said goodbye to one police chief as they voted to confirm her replacement. Nearly all of the council members thanked outgoing Acting Police Chief Amy Davis for her service to the community.
“I personally have seen Acting Chief Davis interact compassionately with victims of horrendous crimes,” said council member Hugh Dyment. “And I've seen her act professionally with alleged perpetrators of crimes. And we also expect that of our police.”
The city council accepted the replacement Davis found for herself: incoming police chief Richard Simmons. He is a lieutenant in the Fort Worth, Texas Police Department, who has graduated from the FBI National Academy. Davis said that she believes Simmons will make an effort to be involved in the community.
