METRO COUNCIL INFORMAL AGENDA
February 26, 2002
2-5 p.m.
2:10 Welcome and Statement of Purpose Hosticka
2:15 Overview and Results of Councilor Interviews Facilitator
What We Heard/Conclusions
Agenda Review
Guiding Principles for This Meeting
2:30 The Election Season
Legal Guidelines Cooper
Councilor Guidelines
3:15 BREAK
3:30 Communication and Flow of Information
Requests of the Presiding Officer by Councilors
Committee Work
Other; who speaks (same as "who speaks" in next section?)
4:00 The Transition and May Ballot Measure
Strategies for Communication
Message
How (Externally/Internally)
Who Speaks for Metro, and When
Staffing for Councilors [deferred by Councilors]
4:50 Closing
Review Agreements
Next steps [what/who]
Comments
Note: All Councilors, Executive Officer Mike Burton and Auditor Alexis Dow were present at the Informal.
Guiding Principles for The Meeting
▪ Focus attention on the person who is speaking
▪ Speak as an individual: I think, I feel, I believe . . .
▪ Focus on tasks, not personalities; use considerate language
▪ Look for areas of agreement before expressing disagreement
▪ Stay mindful of the need for brevity
▪ Confidentiality:
▪ Outcomes and one’s own process are not confidential
▪ What any other participant says or does is confidential
▪ Support for decisions made here:
▪ Disagree honestly and thoroughly prior to final decision.
▪ Once decision is made, all Councilors support it publicly.
▪ If you are unwilling to do so, make this known to all Councilors prior to any public comment.
Note: The principles above were agreed to by all Councilors.
What’s the Working Environment We Want?
Note: while not explicitly agreed to, these principles were used to guide much of the discussion that followed which the remaining notes address.
▪ Acknowledge the reality of the three "hats" that co-exist for all Councilors:
1. Colleagues on the Council
2. Representatives of different districts
3. Candidates for elected office (sometimes opposing each other)
▪ The success of Metro and the Council comes first inside the building (be especially aware during election seasons) for all Councilors.
▪ “No surprises” for any of us by any of us. [Not defined at the retreat; suggested as follow-up.]
▪ In communications outside the Council Office (public, press/media, etc.) we clarify for audience which hat we have on.
▪ Effective systems and information sharing are in place so that Councilors’ efforts are well coordinated.
▪ Regarding "One Voice:" When? Who? [See below for work done on this subject]
Ideas Related to Supporting the Appropriate Use of "One Voice"
Note: these were not explicitly agreed to, but Councilors indicated their alignment with the intentions.
▪ In public settings, Councilors will strive to declare as clearly as possible that they are representing their individual positions and opinions, and not those of the Council.
▪ Instead of trying to predict an outcome that has not been determined by the Council, speak to what process is going to happen, and how people can get involved and have a say.
▪ Do not assume that a Councilor has misrepresented a Metro situation from what is heard second-hand. Check with the Councilor; investigate with an open mind.
Regarding letters and e-mails that may or do come to all Councilors:
▪ This is an issue of efficiency and coordination as well as of providing one voice.
▪ Councilors will send letters that are best addressed by the Council as a whole (rather than by an individual Councilor) to Communications Director John Donovan. Examples include letters about especially "hot" topics or those that require background research before sending a reply.
▪ The Communications Director, in coordination with the PO, will draft a single reply for all Councilors to use, or sign, or recommend an alternative approach.
▪ All Councilors will be kept informed about the handling of this correspondence, and will have the option to add an individual response when a common reply is drafted.
Agreements regarding procedures for correspondence on major Metro issues:
▪ All UGB and Goal 5 correspondence to Councilors will be sent to the Director of Planning’s "planning slot." New e-mail addresses will be established for this.
▪ Executive Officer Burton will see that the systems and responsibilities are in place to implement this agreement, and will keep Councilors informed about how to make use of it.
▪ The EO and Council will keep each other updated on their work on these issues, will share constituent communication, and will coordinate their responses to the public.
Regarding support of decisions made by the Council
▪ Debate honestly and thoroughly in the course of decision-making.
▪ Councilors are free to publicly agree or disagree with the decision once it is made. It is understood that Councilors will strive to make these disagreements respectful and good-natured.
▪ Councilors do not sabotage the decision or each other., meaning, disagreement isn’t personalized Additional comments on the meaning of "sabotage”:
▪ Disrespectful toward Metro/individuals
▪ Secretive
▪ Interfering with the machinery of the decision being implemented
▪ Undermining people (ascribing motivations) and products of the decision
▪ Altering a direction or process privately after it’s already been established
▪ Acts of willful interference
Regarding Public Speculation by Councilors about Future Metro Policy
▪ When asked about future decisions/outcomes in public venues, Councilors will:
▪ Present possibilities as "scenarios," not givens.
▪ State clearly what decisions have and have not been made.
▪ Be clear about who does and does not have a role in the decision-making.
Expectations and Requests of the Presiding Officer
Facilitate Communication:
▪ Clarify and spread the word about who’s doing what.
▪ Keep Councilors informed and facilitate coordination with each other’s work and
processes.
▪ Help with preventing unpleasant surprises for anyone.
▪ Oversee Council Analysts in providing to all Councilors a standardized one-page summary of Committee products and important issues; technical information is attached to this summary.
Be the Council’s "Hall Monitor:”
▪ Be the communication link between the Executive Office and Council Office. Watch out for and interrupt mixed and contradictory directions and messages.
Facilitate Open Debate and Discussion at Council Meetings:
▪ Set the environment for openness, best thinking, and constructive decision making.
▪ At Council Informals, encourage discussions and information-sharing that may not happen otherwise.
Provide Opportunities for Discussion Outside Council Meetings:
▪ Track those topics that are well served by discussion beyond the scope of regular Council meetings and design separate "discussion only" meetings.
▪ Coordinate timing of discussions with the Chair of the relevant committee and let all Councilors know when they will happen.
Provide information about the work of the analysts, public outreach/communications staff and other lead staff:
▪ Re-establish and circulate the:
▪ legislative flow sheet
▪ schedule of staff and Councilor/public speaking engagements
▪ weekly report on staff workplan
▪ Lead the Council’s public messages about the May Ballot Measure
▪ Carry the flag for the Council with the public and media.
▪ Coordinate messages with the EO, to strengthen the "unified voice."
▪ Other:
▪ Help implement procedures we agree to.
▪ Monitor staff workload, and our coordination with it:
▪ Is there too much? What’s changing? What needs to be shifted?
▪ “Do a Good Job!”
Communication Regarding Committee Work and Progress
What we ask of Committee Chairs:
▪ Support the delivery of accurate and timely summaries of committee work to all councilors [see expectations of the PO
▪ Provide opportunities for input prior to final decision-making.
What we ask of each other when not on the Committee:
▪ Give attention to and provide feedback on requests that are sent out from the Committee Chair.
▪ Know that good ideas and different perspectives are welcome
▪ Communicate with the Chair about these.
▪ When providing feedback, indicate new ideas that you’d like to be considered
Procedural Issues Related to the 2002 Transition Process
▪ Use a Pro-active Process: among other possibilities, provide an opportunity for Councilors to have input before the package is considered to be in final form, or approval or final review is being asked of the Council.
▪ Councilor David Bragdon will be responsible for managing the process with the Transition Advisory Task Force, particularly the Council’s receiving of their final report. The Council’s approach is that the report is advisory and welcomed. There will be an informal with the Task Force Chair prior to a formal presentation at a Council meeting. Councilor Bragdon will coordinate with PO Hosticka to arrange this.
▪ Presiding Officer Hosticka will publish and deliver to all Councilors a longer-term list of upcoming informals and the topics for each.