RESOLUTION NO. ____
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF LAWRENCE, KANSAS, RECOGNIZING THE WORK OF THE TASK FORCE ON HOMELESS SERVICES, ITS JUNE, 2005, FINAL PLAN, THE SUBSEQUENT ADOPTION OF RESOLUTION NO. 6608, AND THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE COMMUNITY COMMISSION ON HOMELESSNESS; RENEWING ITS PURPOSE, RESTATING ITS DUTIES, AND RENAMING IT THE “HOMELESS ISSUES ADVISORY COMMITTEE;” AND REPEALING RESOLUTION NO. 6608.
WHEREAS, in 2003, the Mayor of the City of Lawrence, Kansas (“City”), appointed eighteen (18) Lawrence residents, each having an interest in homeless issues within the community, to the Task Force on Homeless Services and charged them with confronting the issues experienced both by homeless persons and individuals within the community and with reaching a consensus regarding the means by which those issues could best be addressed;
WHEREAS, through the adoption of City of Lawrence, Kan., Res. No. 6608 (Aug. 23, 2005), the City formally recognized and adopted the June, 2005, Final Plan of the Task Force on Homeless Services and, in so doing, established the “Community Commission on Homelessness,” the express purpose of which was to encourage additional work on homeless issues within the community and to advise the City regarding those issues; and
WHEREAS the Community Commission on Homelessness now asks the City to renew its purpose, to restate its duties, and to rename it the “Homeless Issues Advisory Committee.”
BE IT RESOLVED BY THE GOVERNING BODY OF THE CITY OF LAWRENCE, KANSAS:
SECTION 1. Title. The Community Commission on Homelessness is hereby renamed and shall hereafter be known as the “Homeless Issues Advisory Committee.”
SECTION 2. Purpose. The Homeless Issues Advisory Committee shall report to and advise the Governing Body on issues facing the homeless within the community.
SECTION 3. Duties. The Homeless Issues Advisory Committee shall function as an advisory body to the Governing Body and shall make recommendations to it regarding the advancement of appropriate programs and services for the homeless. The Homeless Issues Advisory Committee may also make similar reports, findings, and recommendations to other governmental bodies in Douglas County. The Homeless Issues Advisory Committee shall also provide recommendations on homeless issues to the Governing Body as requested or directed thereby, evaluate progress toward stated goals and programs regarding the homeless, review local Continuum of Care proposals to ensure the coordination of homeless programs and to avoid the duplication of services, promote community awareness of existing programs and resources in order to assist homeless individuals and families within the community and Douglas County, and to facilitate communications between the interested stakeholders. To accomplish those duties, the Homeless Issues Advisory Committee shall gather opinions and concerns regarding the homeless from those experiencing homelessness as well as from the interested stakeholders, and it shall monitor program and service effectiveness. From those surveys, the Homeless Issues Advisory Committee shall produce and deliver to the Governing Body an annual report setting forth its findings and recommendations.
SECTION 4. Number and Qualification of Members. The Homeless Issues Advisory Committee shall be composed of no more than eleven (11) members, each of whom shall reside and/or work within Douglas County. Membership on the Homeless Issues Advisory Committee is entirely voluntary and no member shall receive payment therefor.
SECTION 5. Appointment. With the consent of the Governing Body, the Mayor shall appoint members to the Homeless Issues Advisory Committee. The appointments shall include diverse groups of persons from the following stakeholder groups: The Lawrence-Douglas County Housing Authority, law enforcement, Lawrence Memorial Hospital, mental health providers, and other homeless community representatives and advocates. In addition, the remaining members may be recruited from agencies receiving Continuum of Care funds, including any of the following stakeholder groups: private housing providers, emergency service providers, local businesses, social service providers (such as SRS and Douglas County Senior Services), funding source representatives, faith-based representatives (such as InterFaith Initiative), neighborhood and community representatives, or other sources.
SECTION 6. Terms; Term Limits. Each member of the Homeless Issues Advisory Committee shall be appointed to serve a term of three years. No member shall be reappointed to the Homeless Issues Advisory Committee if he or she has served two full consecutive terms. For the purposes of determining eligibility for reappointment, any unexpired term of more than two years shall be deemed a full term. Regardless of the date of any member’s appointment, the expiration date of any term shall be December 31st of the appropriate year.
SECTION 7. Meetings. The Homeless Issues Advisory Committee shall convene regularly at such time and at such place as presently determined. Meeting times and locations may be altered by consent of the majority of all members.
SECTION 8. Bylaws. The Homeless Issues Advisory Committee shall prepare bylaws to govern its internal structure and its decision-making procedure. At a minimum, the bylaws shall require the same structure and shall include the rules established by this Resolution. The bylaws shall also, at a minimum, require the affirmative vote of a majority of a quorum of all then-current members to make recommendations or to take other significant action. A quorum shall consist of a majority of all then-current members. The bylaws shall further require, at a minimum, the following officers: a Chair, who shall call and preside over all meetings, and a Vice-Chair, who shall serve in the absence of the Chair.
SECTION 9. Open Meetings; Open Records. All meetings of the Homeless Issues Advisory Committee shall be held in compliance with the Kansas Open Public Meetings Act of 1972, codified as amended at K.S.A. 75-4316 et seq. All records of the Homeless Issues Advisory Committee shall be subject to the provisions of the Kansas Open Records Act of 1984, codified as amended at K.S.A. 45-205 et seq.
SECTION 10: Oversight. The Governing Body shall, from time to time, review whether the continued existence of the Homeless Issues Advisory Committee is necessary or desirable and, if so, whether any amendments should be made to this Resolution, to the purpose of the Homeless Issues Advisory Committee, or to its the duties. If the City takes no formal action to terminate the Homeless Issues Advisory Committee, to alter its purpose or duties, or to amend this Resolution, then the Homeless Issues Advisory Committee shall continue to operate in accordance with the terms of this Resolution and its bylaws.
SECTION 11: Repeal. City of Lawrence, Kan., Resolution No. 6608 (Aug. 23, 2005) is hereby repealed, it being the intent of the Governing Body that this Resolution supersede all provisions of Resolution No. 6608.
SECTION 12. Effective Date. This Resolution shall take effect and be in full force and effect from and after its adoption by the Governing Body.
ADOPTED by the Governing Body this _____ day of ____________________________, 2011.
APPROVED:
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Aron E. Cromwell, Mayor
ATTEST:
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Jonathan M. Douglass, City Clerk
APPROVED AS TO FORM AND LEGALITY:
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Toni R. Wheeler
Director of the Legal Department