Statement from the Mayor

Posted
PRESS RELEASE Organization of City of Manning Government/Ordinance Adoption The City of Manning operates under the “Council” form of municipal government. In accordance with State law, under this form of government “all legislative and administrative powers of the .” All departments, offices, and agencies of the City may be administered by an officer appointed by the Council. Such officer is under the direction of and subject to the supervision of the City Council. The Council has established the position of City Administrator to assist the Council in managing the affairs of the City. Section 2-86 of the City of Manning Code of Ordinances lists the Administrator’s duties, which included responsibility for public safety, among other things. The agenda for June 5, 2018, included an item to amend Section 2-86 of the City of Manning Code of Ordinances dealing with the duties of the City Administrator, to include supervision over the Public Safety Department. The ordinance, as required by law, was presented in written form at the meeting. The discussion of the ordinance raised a legal question, which as allowed by law, was addressed during executive session with legal counsel. After this discussion, Council left closed session returning to the open meeting. A reading and unanimous vote by Council was made during open session to place the Public Safety Department, which includes the Police Department, under a committee of Council. The ordinance was given second reading on June 18, 2018. *Editor's Note: Please note that the last few words of Mayor Nelson's statement were inadvertently left off in today's print edition of The Manning Times. We apologize for this error.