FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

LOCAL GROUP LAUNCHES REFERENDUM PETITION DRIVE

OSHKOSH, WI. -- (June 25, 2004) -- A local Political Action Committee today announced the start of a referendum petition drive to change the form of government in Oshkosh.

Picking up where Oshkosh Common Councilor Brian Poeschl's recent proposed charter ordinance change left off, Citizens for Responsible Government seeks to extend the changes even further, and seeks to place the proposed charter ordinance on the November ballot as a referendum question.

Among the highlights of the proposed charter ordinance…

• A part-time mayor - elected by the citizens - who has veto power, but who shall not serve as a voting member of the Oshkosh Common Council, except to break a tie or veto a council decision. In the event of a veto, it would take a 5/6 super-majority vote of the Common Council in order to override such a mayoral veto;
• The size of the Common Council would be reduced to six (6) members, all elected at large by the citizens. While not going to aldermanic districts, council seats would be numbered and people seeking a council seat would have to designate which seat number they intend to run for. Three council seats would be up for election one year and the other three would be up the following year;
• The mayor would be able to recommend to the rest of the council that a department head be terminated, as could any council member, if they believed such action was necessary. Such termination by the council could only occur with a 5/6 super-majority vote of the council. The City Manager could still terminate department heads as he or she sees fit without council input. All hiring decisions would be left to the City Manager, in his or her sole discretion;
• Council members would elect a council president and, while the mayor would preside at all meetings of the Common Council, the council president would assume the role of Acting Mayor in the event the mayor was absent for any reason;
• The mayor would also serve as chair and a voting member of the Plan Commission. He or she would also make recommendations, subject to council approval, to the various city boards and commissions.
  

"We have listened to the many citizens who have expressed displeasure with the present form, and performance, of our local government. We have also listened to the various concerns some people had with the recently proposed charter ordinance changes. All things considered, we are offering what we feel are reasonable and fair compromises," said spokesperson Cheryl Hentz. "We believe that this proposed charter ordinance will give the people in this community some responsible leadership at the council level and will make them feel that council members and staff alike are more accountable to the people they serve. And it will give the community a mayor with some real strength and meaning for a change, instead of just being a ceremonial position."

Citizens for Responsible Government will begin circulating petitions during the last week in June. After the required 2,822 signatures have been validated, the Common Council can decide to automatically pass it, but that is not something Hentz said the group is expecting.

“The majority of our current council clearly is not interested in doing anything to give the people of this community more strength or a louder voice. If they truly wanted to do that, they could have offered some amendments to Mr. Poeschl’s proposal and passed it with the same 5-2 vote they do with so many other things,” Hentz said. “But they offered nothing, and subsequently did nothing. We fully expect to have to take this to referendum in November and we’re perfectly content with that. The people of this community deserve a chance to speak on what they want in local government. That’s the very premise of our entire government change effort.”

Citizens for Responsible Government is a registered Political Action Committee. Anyone who wishes to help circulate petitions or who just wants to sign a petition should contact the group in care of Cheryl Hentz at (920) 426-4123. And for more information, people can check out the Eye on Oshkosh web site at www.eyeonoshkosh.com or tune in to upcoming shows where this topic will be discussed.