Bedford City Council

Council members serve three-year terms and are unpaid.

Place 4

Raymond Champney is unopposed and will keep the seat until 2011.

Place 6

The winner will replace Bob Whistler, who chose not to run for re-election.

Name: Chris Brown

Age: 19

Occupation: Political science major at University of North Texas

Online: www.BrownForBedford.com

Background: Brown served as a member of the city's charter review committee.

About the candidate: Brown said his priorities are to increase sales tax revenue by retaining and revitalizing current businesses and filling vacant commercial buildings; to encourage residents' awareness and involvement; and to bring an unbiased outlook and a fresh perspective to the City Council.

Name: Jim Wallace

Age: 35

Occupation: Closed-captioning editor; he previously spent 11 years in TV and radio broadcasting and owned his own business for eight years

Online: www.votejimwallace.com

Background: Wallace attended Odessa College and studied business administration at the University of North Texas. He was also a precinct chair and captain this year.

About the candidate: Wallace said his priorities are to make sure property tax rates are competitive; to increase public safety and recreation services; and to relieve traffic congestion.

Bedford charter amendments

Residents will vote on 33 propositions, most of which would make the city charter consistent with state law. A 15-member committee meeting since October made the recommendations for the propositions.

The charter is Bedford's version of the Constitution, although state law supersedes it.

"While it's a lot of propositions, we hope people read them and vote," City Secretary Shanae Jennings said.

Here's a look at the propositions (affected charter section or sections in parentheses):

Proposition 1 (City Council): Deletes specific years in which the process of alternating City Council elections began, clarifies that the council appoints all boards and commissions, renumbers the section and replaces "planning commission" with "planning and zoning commission."

Proposition 2 (City Council): Adds the words "to the city manager" in a sentence about whom City Council members should ask about appointments and removals; corrects the spelling of "willful"; replaces "expel" with "remove"; replaces "offending member" with "violating member"; replaces "guilty" with "in violation"; deletes a section requiring that council minutes be entered into the minute book in 48 hours and that the city secretary provide an index; adds "council approved" before the word "minutes"; adds language allowing ordinances and resolutions be passed at any council meeting as allowed by charter or state law, replacing a section that explains the difference between emergency and nonemergency measures.

Proposition 3 (city secretary): Divides a long sentence into two sentences; deletes a masculine pronoun; replaces "maintain all ordinances and resolutions" with "record in full in a book kept for the purpose"; adds "state law." In a section about initiatives and referendum, it adds "a district" before "judge" and removes "city" before council. In a section about procedures after filing a petition, it adds a space between words; changes section numbers; and replaces "two days" with "two working days."

Proposition 4 (condemnation of dangerous structures): Replaces "is liable to fall down and injure persons or property" with "determined to be dangerous and the possibility of injury to persons or property exists"; replaces "governing body" with "council"; adds "repair or" in front of "take down and remove"; removes "city" before the word "council" in three instances.

Proposition 5 (action on petitions): Replaces "proposed initiative" with "proposed initiative or referendum"; changes the date the election must be held from a specific number of election days to "on the first available general election dates as established by state law"; changes the numbers of days to withdraw a petition from 15 days before the election to anytime before the date the election is called.

Proposition 6 (City Council members' induction into office, Municipal Court, regulation of rates and services, special assessment, recall elections): Changes the date council members are inducted into office to reflect state law. In the Municipal Court section, changes the court's jurisdiction from a list of specific ordinance violations to the more general "violations of city ordinances and other matters"; replaces that the court shall have "power to punish for contempt as provided by state law" with "all powers and authorities provided by city ordinance and state law"; removes "contempt" from the court's title. In a section about regulation of rates and services, removes an outdated state law reference and removes language stating that the charter takes precedence unless state or federal law requires otherwise. In a section about special assessment, replaces "charter" with "state law, ordinance or the charter" and deletes "for local improvements." In a section about recall elections, changes the date of the election from a specific number of days to a date determined by state law.

Proposition 7 (administrative departments, property appraisals): Deletes a section that establishes several departments, some of which no longer exist; deletes a section that establishes the directors for those departments; deletes a section about the board of equalization, which no longer exists.

Proposition 8 (Municipal Court, temporary licenses): Renumbers one section since a section about the city secretary's role as ex officio clerk of the court has been deleted; changes title from "same - power" to "clerk - power"; puts the word "municipal" in front of "court"; replaces "permit" with "licenses" three times.

Proposition 9 (City Council): Changes the time that city officials resign their offices when they file to run for another office from a specific number of days before the filing deadline to "automatically" to reflect state law.

Proposition 10 (City Council): Forbids elected city officials from working for the city or being appointed city manager for a year after they have left office.

Proposition 11 (City Council): Changes the date of a special election to fill council vacancies from a specific number of days to current state law.

Proposition 12 (City Council): Deletes a section explaining the difference between emergency and nonemergency measures. The section is obsolete because of the city's standard operating procedures and state law.

Proposition 13 (city manager): Makes gender changes; replaces "not consistent with the charter" with "state law."

Proposition 14 (budget process): Makes minor word and gender changes.

Proposition 15 (preparation and submission of the budget): Adds that the council is to receive information for the "current fiscal year, including the estimated expenditures for the fourth quarter of the current fiscal year," instead of just the "current year." The change would allow the council to know whether the budget has a surplus that could be applied toward proposed budget items.

Proposition 16 (preparation and submission of the budget): Adds words so budgetary information "may be requested in writing by any member of the city council" instead of "required by the city council." The change is being made because the original sentence could be interpreted to mean that the council had to vote for the information.

Proposition 17 (amendment and supplemental budgets): Replaces a section about amending the budget "in case of grave public necessity" with "the original budget may be amended or supplemented"; deletes language so the budget can be amended with vote of the full council instead of with "the full majority of the council ... including the mayor as a voting member."

Proposition 18 (time of elections): Adds "or at such time as prescribed by law" to the city election date.

Proposition 19 (municipal judge): Adds the word "municipal" in front of the word "judge"; removes the words "commencing with the next election for municipal judge" in two instances; makes two sentences out of one long sentence.

Proposition 20 (municipal court): Deletes section that designates the city secretary or deputy city secretary as the ex officio clerk of the Municipal Court.

Proposition 21 (Planning and Zoning Commission): Changes the removal process of a commission member from "by the mayor, with the consent of the council, after public hearing and for cause set forth in writing" to a majority vote of the council.

Proposition 22 (master plan development): Deletes a requirement in which the council must make changes to the master plan within 60 days after the changes are submitted. The sentence is being dropped to prevent legal problems.

Proposition 23 (franchises): Eliminates the requirement for two readings for franchises; moves section about the city's franchise power, which is in another section, to this section.

Proposition 24 (franchises): Updates language so city has "the right to regulate utilities to the full extent allowed by state and federal law"; renumbers some sections.

Proposition 25 (franchises): Eliminates language that recognizes franchises as contracts.

Proposition 26 (franchises): Deletes language that starts the time period for filing franchises with the city secretary.

Proposition 27 (officials accepting gifts): Changes the punishment from accepting gifts or favors from a misdemeanor and removal from office to malfeasance and forfeiture of the office or position.

Proposition 28 ("no lien on public property"): Deletes "contractors, etc., to notify the city of claims" from title; deletes language about the notification by and payments to subcontractors.

Proposition 29 (petition requirements): Changes the text that each signer has an opportunity to read before signing from the "ordinance proposed or sought to be considered" to "the reasons for the recall of the elected official."

Proposition 30 (powers of city, ethics requirements, bonds, miscellaneous): In a section about the city's powers, makes two sentences from one long sentence. In a section about ethics requirements, deletes the words "of ordinance." In a section about bonds and warrants, deletes "in keeping with the Constitution and laws of the state, and not contrary thereto" and deletes a section about the "manner of issuance." In a section about miscellaneous provisions, deletes "city" before council twice and "of the city" after council and deletes "as prescribed by the laws of the state."

Proposition 31 (form of government, presiding officer, initiatives and referendums): In a section about "form of government," adds "or resolution" after "prescribed by ordinance." In a section about "presiding officer; mayor," allows the appointment of a deputy mayor pro tempore. In a section about "Initiative and referendum: General authority," adds "lawful" to "propose lawful ordinances."

Proposition 32 (multiple sections): In a section about the annual audit, adds "city" in place of "department of finance and any separate or subordinate accounts kept by any other office, department or agency of the city government." The change clarifies that not just one department is subject to audit. In a section about city manager qualifications, deletes masculine pronouns. In a section about the budget, adds "time" so the segment reads "at which time"; deletes "if there be changes"; adds "property" before "tax"; replaces "in" with "at." In a section about the election of municipal judges, changes the title from "How municipal judge" to "Election of municipal judge." In a section about fire limits, replaces "governing body" with "council." In a section about ordinances, replaces "vigor" with effect." In a section about mandatory charter review, deletes a specific date that the charter review commission should be appointed; replaces "insure" with "ensure"; adds "and state law" after "charter."

Proposition 33 (various sections): Corrects grammar, punctuation and spelling in various sections.