History...
The Village of Sandpoint was incorporated on February 7, 1901 by the Kootenai County Board of County Commissions. Present day Bonner and Boundary Counties were a part of Kootenai County at that time. The Kootenai County Commissioners appointed five village trustees who first met on February 25, 1901 in the Sandpoint courthouse to take their oaths of office.

The first village election was held in April of that year. Judge Whitaker was the first chairman of the trustees elected by the voters - not the first mayor as is popularly thought.

Almost six years later on December 12, 1906, 270 of the 282 qualified electors of the Village petitioned the Board of Trustees requesting that the Village of Sandpoint be organized and changed to a city.

On January 15, 1907 the Village of Sandpoint became the City of Sandpoint. The April, 1907 election moved the City into a mayor/council form of government - the same form of government we have today. A mayor and eight council members were elected biennially until 1919 when the council was reduced to six members. Dr. O. F. Page who had served as chairman of the Trustees in 1902 and 1905-1907, was elected Sandpoint's first mayor. He served one term as mayor from 1907 through 1909.

Sandpoint has been served by 19 trustees, 31 mayors and just over 150 council members. Fourteen of those council members have also served as mayors. At this time, Sandpoint's mayor is paid $1000.00 per month; council members receive $200.00 per month. These salaries are set by ordinance. Idaho Code Title 50 contains most of the present laws of the State of Idaho regulating the formation and powers of cities within our state.

Definition of a City...
Chapter 1 of Title 50 provides that "residents of any unincorporated contiguous area containing not less than 125 qualified electors may present a petition signed by a majority of the electors to the board of county commissioners asking that they be incorporated as a city, designating the name they wish to assume and the metes and bounds of the proposed city." Idaho Code 50-102 provides that the commissioners may then certify the incorporation and, upon doing so, the commissioners shall appoint a mayor and either 4or 6 council members who serve until the next election. The City of Dover is the most recently incorporated city in Bonner County.

Forms of City Government...
Under Idaho law, only two forms of city government are allowed:

a mayor/council form

a council/manager form.

Sandpoint has a mayor/council form of government. Under this form of government, the mayor is the chief administrative official, overseeing the day-to-day operations of the city, presiding over meetings of the city council, and voting only in the case of a tie. Since 1980, Sandpoint's mayors have been "full-time" mayors, coming to city hall every day and directing the day-to-day operations of the city.

The council/manager form of government must be voted in by the electorate. Under it, the council may either designate the mayor from among themselves to serve a period of two years or the council may adopt an ordinance providing for the direct election of the mayor by the voters. If the direct election option is exercised, the mayor's position then replaces one of the council member's positions. Under this form of government, the mayor votes as a member of the council and otherwise serves as the official head of the city for ceremonial purposes. But it is the appointed manager who has general supervision over the business of the city. He or she is supervised by the council as a body, not by the mayor individually. Once placed into effect by the voters, the council/manager form of government can be discontinued only by a direct vote of the people and then, only after at least six years in operation.

The council/manager form of government must not be confused with the appointment of a city administrator. These are two entirely different matters. In fact, the presence of a city administrator does not constitute a "form" of government at all as designated by Idaho Code. A city administrator is simply another appointed official and, in the minds of some, only creates another "level of bureaucracy". A deputy attorney general once characterized the appointment of a city administrator as the way in which some Idaho cities have sought to circumvent the city/manager form of government allowed by Idaho Code. It is seen as an action taken by some for a way in which city council's delegate the supervision of the day to day operations of the city to someone other than the elected mayor.

Idaho law sets out the procedures by which cities conduct the business of running their local communities including, but not limited to:

how cities may annex territory;

vacate, sell or lease property;

approve franchises;

issue licenses, and;

form local improvement districts.

Idaho Code requires only three appointed officers in each city: a clerk, a treasurer, and an attorney. Such other officers as may be deemed necessary for the efficient operation of the city may be appointed. In most of the smaller cities in Idaho, the clerk's and treasurer's position are combined and the clerk/treasurer and the city attorney are the only two employees of those cities. These appointments are made by the mayor and require the consent of the majority of the council.

Within the present organizational structure of the City of Sandpoint, there are eight full-time appointed department head positions:

City clerk (also serves as personnel director and administrative assistant to the mayor)

Treasurer

Attorney/Planning Director

          Police Chief

Fire Chief

Public Works Director
Parks and Recreation Director

Salaries for department heads presently range from $52,936 to $73,029 per year plus benefits.

Idaho law also authorizes a mayor and council to appoint "such boards, commissions and committees as may be deemed necessary or expedient to assist the mayor and council in better carrying out the responsibilities of their offices." All appointments are made by the mayor with the consent of the council. Members serve without compensation. Sandpoint is presently served by a Planning and Zoning Commission of seven members, an Arts Commission of five members, and a Parks and Recreation Commission of five members.  

Of course, the primary responsibility of city government is to meet the health and safety needs of its citizens. This necessitates the establishment of police and fire departments. But, perhaps even more important, though less obvious, is the public works department, which ensures pure drinking water and the treatment of our waste products.

The City has recently expanded its street department and currently employs six full time employees and a street superintendent.  The street department oversees all aspects of street construction and maintenance including snow plowing.

The planning department oversees planning and zoning issues.

The parks and recreation department compliments the community's health and safety by enhancing our quality of life.

Conducting City Business...
The City of Sandpoint presently employs 80 full time people: 26 in public works, 19 police officers, 4 police support staff, 10 in fire, 7 in parks and recreation, 5 in finance, 1 at the Bonner Business Center, 2 in the Clerk's office and 5 in planning/legal. Our numbers swell from April through August when public works, parks and recreation add seasonal employees to augment their regular crews.

Benefits for city employees include health and dental insurance on every employee and a life insurance policy on each city with small policies on dependents, all paid for by the city.  Employees pay a minimum amount (no more than $20.00 per month) for health insurance coverage for their dependents and they pay the entire premium if they want dental insurance for their dependents.  The city is also a member of the Idaho Public Employee Retirement System.

City Clerks Office...
A city clerk's office is generally the hub of the wheel in city activities. Every matter that goes before a council, is dealt with at least once, and generally several times, before it is finalized. The clerk is responsible for :

notices regarding public meetings;

the publication of the summaries of ordinances adopted;

the drafting and processing of contracts, ordinances, resolutions, and a myriad of

other documents.

Records management is a key responsibility of a city clerk and longevity in office renders any city clerk a community historian.

The mayor and council meet through regular and special meetings, workshops and public hearings:

Meetings...
A meeting may be a regular meeting or a special meeting. All regular meetings require public notice of forty-eight (48) hours. Special meetings require only twenty-four (24) hours public notice. Public notice means that a written notice stating the purpose or agenda for the meeting must be posted on the bulletin board at the entrance into city hall and provided to the media. The City Clerk meets with or talks with the media on a daily basis. This includes the Daily Bee, the Spokesman Review and KSPT/KPND. They are always kept informed of our schedule of meetings.

Regular or special meetings are the format through which decisions are made. Minutes must be kept of every regular or special meeting. Minutes contain required information such as when the meeting began and ended, who was present, what motions were made and, if seconded, what action was taken. Minutes do not generally include lengthy accounts of the discussion that took place but may briefly mention the general tenor of the discussion.

Workshops are informal gatherings where specific issues are discussed but no decisions may be made. Public notice is also required for workshops. Workshops should not be confused with public hearings in that while you may discuss an issue with a person or a group at a workshop, it is not a forum at which you accept public testimony.

Generally speaking workshops are an opportunity for the mayor and council to have an expanded discussion of specific subject matter among themselves or with staff members and that discussion may form the basis for a future proposal or decision. Informal minutes are kept of workshops.

A public hearing is a formal procedure which occurs at either a regular or special meeting. The meeting is temporarily closed and the public hearing opened. It is held specifically for the purpose of taking public testimony on a definite proposal - for example, an LID, annexation or a grant application. Public hearings are not held just to receive casual public input or comments on only an idea or concept. The public must be given specific advance notice through the legal notices of the city's official newspaper including the exact proposal for which testimony will be received.

Whenever the mayor and council gather, their sessions are open to the public and public attendance is encouraged. However, the public should not necessarily expect to participate. There is a 1983 case, Green v City of Moberly, which was explained by Idaho's attorney general Jim Jones in this way: "Citizens have no constitutional right to address the city council during council sessions, any more than they have the right to go onto the floor of either house of Congress or the state legislature and orally present opinions."  There is a public forum opportunity to address the mayor and council on any matter.

City Law Making...
City laws are enacted by the passage of an ordinance. An ordinance can be as simple as a paragraph or two or as long as 50 to 60 pages. Every time an ordinance is passed, it creates a new law. Idaho law requires that every ordinance be considered three times before it is adopted. Although one reading in full is required, Idaho law also allows for rules to be suspended so that an ordinance may be read, passed and adopted at one meeting. Ninety-nine percent of the ordinances are passed under suspension of the rules at the same meeting at which they have been introduced.

Sometimes ordinances address entirely new subject matter but more often than not, they amend a present law. Together, all of the city's ordinances or laws become a code book. Therefore, in order to know at any one time what the city's current law is on a particular subject, ordinances are constantly recodified.

The City of Sandpoint has adopted and follows Robert's Rules of Order for its parliamentary procedure. The purpose of parliamentary law is to enable groups to transact business with efficiency and harmony and most importantly to protect the rights of each individual.

All items that are placed on a council meeting agenda have been reviewed by, and carry a recommendation from, one of the council's two committees: Administrative or Public Works. Each committee consists of three council members:

The Administrative Committee considers subjects including, but not limited to, contracts, licensing, franchises, financial matters relating to all departments except Public Works.

 

The Public Works Committee deals with concerns involving water, waste water, and streets.

 

Assignments to committees are made by the mayor and may be changed at any time during the course of his or her tenure.