Cole Stanley during a candidate forum/Photo by the Stanley Campaign
Mayor Cole Stanley suggested on Tuesday night that voters could soon end up potentially deciding a few major policy issues for Amarillo.
During the Amarillo City Council meeting on Tuesday, Stanley opened the discussion over a proposed Sanctuary City for the Unborn by asking members of the City Council to share their thoughts on the proposal. City Councilman Josh Craft mentioned the suggestions he had received that the item be placed on the ballot for voters to decide in the future.
When addressing Craft’s suggestion, Stanley mentioned that in order to save City resources in calling an election, the City Council could consider also proposing some amendments to the Amarillo City Charter at the same time.
“We have an opportunity to look at something where we bring it to our community,” Stanley said, referencing Craft’s comments on the Sanctuary City for the Unborn ordinance. “Now, the drawbacks with that is it takes time and costs money. Well, I’ve got a charter that I don’t know the last time it was amended, but it was written in 1913. And I’m pretty sure there’s some stuff in there from 1913.”
In particular, Stanley mentioned the method by which the City Council is elected as a possible item that could be addressed in a charter amendment election.
“What if we were willing to tackle the charter and say, ‘Hey, you know this might be the healthiest way to vote five people in and out all at once. What if we had staggered terms? What if we changed a few other things that are just a hindrance that we would let you vote on?’ So we could get some bang for our buck in what Councilman Craft is talking about if we don't do a council vote and we do a called election.”
If the Amarillo City Council ordered a charter amendment election, it would be the third such election since 2013. In 2013, Amarillo voters approved several charter amendments, including an item that renamed the then-Amarillo City Commission to Amarillo City Council. In 2020, voters approved one charter amendment to cut the number of required City Council meetings by half, while rejecting an item to extend the terms of the City Council.
Stanley did not say exactly how the City Council would go about addressing the issue, but has, in the past, stated his opposition to single-member districts. During the Amarillo Pioneer Candidate Forum in April, Stanley addressed his position on the issue.
“I’m not for a true single-member district. I’ve never been for that,” Stanley said. “There are many, many problems when you have a true single-member district city and I don't think that that would help us. It would cause divisiveness, it would be harder to get things done. It would actually grow your budget. Some of the state and federal laws are going to require that if you have single-member districts you would have different admin and staff for each individual district. It also doesn't help us in having a true representation.”
However, during that same event, Stanley did express openness to potentially increasing the size of the City Council.
The earliest the City Council could order an election on any referendum would be in May 2024. The City Council could also consider ordering a referendum or charter amendment election in November 2024.