LEWISTON- The Mayor and City Council are not on the same page regarding city committees, and it could lead to a showdown in the near future.
Councilors Joshua Nagine and Scott Harriman had previously asked about discussing the creation of two standing subcommittees on public safety and economic development. That discussion finally took place at their December 2nd meeting.
However, Mayor Carl Sheline revived his defunct Mayoral committees on public safety and economic development via two orders dated November 25th. Documents outlining the new committees were included in the meeting packet released to Councilors and the public on November 28th.
The inclusion of those documents, and the creation of the new Mayoral committees, seemed to take Councilors by surprise. Several expressed displeasure that they were not informed earlier and that no public announcement was made.
Sheline’s original public safety committee, then named a community safety committee, was created in September of 2023, with an expiration date of September 30th of the following year.
Sheline’s original economic development committee was created in January of 2022, with an expiration date of December 31st of that same year.
In order for items to be on a City Council agenda, there is an administrative meeting the week before a Council meeting to determine what makes the list. The agenda for the December 2nd meeting was decided during the administrative meeting on November 25th, meaning that Sheline revived his committees the same day he learned that the Council would be discussing creating their own.
Harriman pointed out that just two weeks ago, multiple Councilors expressed a desire to create standing committees for the two topics.
“One week ago, which I just found out today because you didn’t tell anybody, you just created two brand new ad hoc committees,” Harriman said. “I really don’t know what the intention was behind that, but it doesn’t seem like its actually going to move us forward and get anything done.”
“I also wonder if you even consulted staff about those committees before creating brand new ones.”
Nagine also noted the coincidence of the timing.
The Lewiston City Charter allows committees to be created by both the City Council or by the Mayor. Mayoral committees are entirely up to the purview of the Mayor, which includes membership, responsibilities, reporting requirements, and timelines. However, these committees are considered “ad hoc” (not permanent).
Council committees can be standing (permanent) or ad hoc, and they are created through an ordinance approved by Councilors. These committees operate the same as Mayoral committees, but the Mayor only has as much say as the Council allows in the ordinance. The rules and all other details are outlined in the ordinance.
Technically, the Mayor and Council could each create their own dueling committees on the same topics. This would be problematic for multiple reasons, most of them dealing with efficiency.
City staff would have to serve on two committees, instead of just one. This could also lead to confusion about which direction the city actually wants to head in.
There are other redundancy concerns, too, all of which prompted City Administrator Bryan Kaenrath to ask elected leaders to do their best to avoid dueling committees.
“We do need to have a larger discussion” about how to proceed, Kaenrath said. He reiterated this concern later on during the meeting.
Several criticized the lack of progress made by Sheline’s Mayoral committees in general, and felt more comfortable with the Council assuming control.
Ward Two Councilor Susan Longchamps stated that she serves on the Mayor’s safety committee, saying, “We have met twice this year and, in my opinion, accomplished nothing.”
When Ward Four Councilor Michael Roy wondered if Longchamps might have any kind of update she could provide, she responded by saying, “We haven’t had any meetings to give an update.”
Several Councilors expressed support and gratitude for those who had volunteered to serve on the two committees, and placed blame for lack of progress on lack of leadership, drive, and focus.
Sheline defended the committees he has created and the progress they have made.
He said that his November 25th orders to revive the committees were “housekeeping procedures” and that committee memberships “are still the same.” He named a handful of members of the public safety committee and stated that an up-to-date list should be on the city’s website.
As of December 8th, the committee membership for the economic development committee was posted online. The membership for the public safety committee was not.
Sheline also acknowledged that the public safety committee has only met twice, pointing blame at the change in police department leadership. He said he expects the work to continue in January.
The Mayor said that he thinks standing committees make sense in the future, but that right now the city is “on a good track” with his ad hoc committees.
“I realize that there’s been some bumps in the road and obviously as Mayor I’m willing to accept responsibility for that. I think we’re heading in the right direction.”
Sheline also took aim at Nagine and Harriman.
“It’s hard not to see this as an attack that was brought forward by two Councilors who were just censured,” he said. “If the Council wants to work in good faith, I would simply ask that which I’ve already asked: that the Council be allowed to continue the momentum we’ve built.”
Harriman fired back with, “This [public safety] ad hoc committee has been in various forms for over two years and has not accomplished very much, so I really don’t think there’s much momentum to build on.”
Sheline responded, “We can go back and forth all night, but I completely reject that there’s no momentum.”
Nagine then said to Sheline, “I just want to clarify for myself personally that it’s not an attack on you in any way, shape, or form.”
“My concern here is that there is no representation from my constituency for the concerns that they have with public safety, and I think we establish that through a process whereby the Council has some feedback and they’re also able to be involved in the process of filling out the committees.”
Several Councilors also expressed frustration with the lack of reporting to both them and to the public.
Roy stated, “Some of us have been on the committee[s] and we haven’t had updates. Nobody has heard anything about what’s going on. We really need some set-up dates to let the public be aware of what’s going on.”
Harriman noted that the economic development committee has been around since January of 2022, yet, “I don’t know that we’ve seen a report yet.”
Ward Seven Councilor Tim Gallant asked the Mayor to send Councilors a list of committee members so that they can be assured that all wards are represented.
“I would like to know who represents Ward Seven so I can talk to them,” he said. “That’s part of the problem with these ad hoc [committees] that are developed and put together, because they tend to be a group from one particular area that people assume is the only place with the problem.”
City Councilors were unanimous in their desire for the city to use Council-created standing committees for public safety and economic development.
“You’re hearing from seven Councilors that don’t agree that the ad hoc committee structure has worked,” Nagine said.
“A Council committee under ordinance would be more effective” than the Mayoral ad hoc committees, he continued.
Mayor Sheline pointed out that since an ordinance would need two formal votes and then another 30 days to take effect, his ad hoc committees should be allowed to do their work.
Sheline did not say whether he would disband his committees if the Council created their own.
Longchamps pressed the Mayor by asking, “So, are you agreeing to if we have a standing committee that you will pull the other committee?”
The Mayor then responded by saying he “would like to work in good faith with the Council to let the Mayoral ad hoc committee[s] continue with [their] mission[s] and then work towards standing committee[s] that work for everybody.”
Ward Six Councilor David Chittim said, “I take the Mayor at his word” that he will work in good faith to transition the ad hoc committee into a permanent committee when the time comes.
Councilors seemed to be in agreement that the direction for each committee should come from the needs and goals of city staff. Committee work should support staff, they indicated.
Gallant said that he wants the work of the committees to be driven by plans from the City Administrator and relevant department heads.
Nagine agreed, saying that the direction should mainly come from “the professionals.”
The Council was set to only discuss the topic of the two committees, and no votes were taken. City staff were asked to draft potential ordinances that would create the committees, although it is not yet known when Councilors will begin the process to discuss and vote.
There may be some sparks during discussions around potential committee members and group responsibilities, but the big focus will be on what happens when those standing committees are finalized.
Will Mayor Sheline agree to disband his committees when the Council passes those ordinances? Will he demand that membership include those on his ad hoc committees? Will the Mayor use his committees to gain leverage to have more of a say on what will be in the ordinances?
These questions remain to be answered. If things don’t change, be on the lookout for a political showdown in the spring.