FOLEY, Ala. - As the 2012 council and mayor elections draw nearer, so does the near certainty of the Foley City Council format changing and the city's mayor no longer having voting rights or being a member of the council during government proceedings.

Assistant city administrator Sandra Pate said the recent census data indicate the city of Foley has a population of around 14,618, and the population after the 2000 census was around 7,590.

Change on the horizon

Under existing Alabama law, all cities below 12,000 population have a weak council-strong mayor format where the mayor presides over the council and can vote during meetings. Municipalities with at least a 12,000 population have a weak mayor-strong council format where the mayor does not have voting rights and does not sit with the council. If the new federal census data shows a population rise to at least 12,000 or a drop below 12,000, the mayor's role in city council proceedings changes after the next municipal general election.

Because the city of Foley has crossed the 12,000-population threshold, the council is planned to take the new format after the next council and mayor election, which is scheduled for August 2012.

Besides the mayor losing voting power during council meetings, one of the changes is the addition of the mayor's veto power.

"The mayor would be a mayor. That's it," David Cohen, Daphne city clerk, said, noting one of the changes is the addition of the mayor's veto power in regards to "an ordinance of permanent nature or any ordinance that has to do with money.

"He has no right to vote or sit with the council. He has every right to be included, but if they say, 'Mayor you have to go,' they can dictate it."

Proposed legislation would give citizens the choice

There is legislation in Alabama House of Representatives that would allow residents of a city to choose the government format if the population rises to the 12,000 mark.

State Rep. Stephen McMillan, R-Baldwin County, proposed the bill hoping to give residents more information and input when the change occurs.

"The voters have no say about it and for the most part, in my opinion, probably don't even know about that drastic change in the mayor and the council," McMillan said. "What I'm proposing is the council holds a public hearing and answers questions and explains that change."

The bill synopsis states, "This bill would provide that if the population of a city increases to 12,000 or more persons after a federal census, the change in the mayor's role in the city council proceedings may be subject to a referendum and a petition of a certain percentage of the registered voters in the city."

If enough residents sign the referendum and petition, it would come to a simple majority vote of the citizens deciding which type of council format they desire, McMillan said.

"I just think the citizens should be aware of the drastic change in government and should be allowed to vote," McMillan said.

The bill reported out of committee in the House in March, and it is on the regular calendar. If it does not come up for discussion before the 28th day of the 30-day legislative session, it is automatically postponed and cannot be discussed until re-introduced in a future session. McMillan said it takes a minimum of five days once a bill is introduced, and there are seven days left in the current session, with Tuesday being the next legislative day. If the schedule continues on a Tuesday-Wednesday-Thursday format, the 28th legislative day would be June 1.

If the House approves the bill, it must go through the same process in the Alabama State Senate, coming before a committee and then placed on the calendar and brought up during session to be discussed and voted on.

"The exact same bill has to go through the exact same process in each chamber," McMillan said, noting the likely earliest the bill could be passed by both the senate and house is 2012.

New format to challenge council chemistry

The Foley council members and mayor hope the upcoming council format change would not negatively affect the effectiveness of the group.

"I think it's something that would certainly be a challenge because the mayor would sit separately," Councilman Charles Ebert III said. "It would be something new for us to get used to, and I think it would require a commitment of the team to work together and get through it as painlessly as possible."

City leaders commented that the current council and mayor have strong chemistry and work well together.

"In any form of government, it gets down to how the council and mayor interact," Councilman Ralph Hellmich said. "We have a really good chemistry between our council and mayor and a level of mutual respect that we hope will overcome the change. With that being said, there will be elections next year and I don't know who will run and who will win and who will lose; but when you get into government, it's not about me, it's about us. Whoever it is will have to work together for the better of the city."

Mayor John Koniar said he does not see the change causing problems in the city.

"When you have problems is when you have big personalities that don't get along. We've always been very cordial and gotten along," Koniar said, noting under the new format the council would elect a council president to run all meetings.

When asked if he planned to run for mayor in the 2012 election, Koniar said, "I plan to, yes."

The only other Baldwin County municipalities with the strong council-weak mayor format are the cities of Fairhope and Daphne.