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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPO 6542: CANCELLING THE CONDUCT OF A JOINT ELECTION WITH THE SABINE PASS INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT P.O. No. 6542 03/30/2016 sb ORDINANCE NO. AN ORDINANCE AMENDING ORDINANCE NO. 16-12 FOR PURPOSE OF CANCELLING THE CONDUCT OF A JOINT ELECTION WITH THE SABINE PASS INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT; PROVIDING FOR THE CONDUCT OF THE MAY 7, 2016 GENERAL ELECTION FOR THE PURPOSE OF ELECTING A MAYOR, IN THE CITY OF PORT ARTHUR, TEXAS; PROVIDING FOR A JOINT ELECTION WITH THE PORT ARTHUR INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT, THE PORT OF PORT ARTHUR NAVIGATION DISTRICT, AND THE SABINE PASS PORT AUTHORITY; AND PROVIDING FOR A SPECIAL ELECTION TO SUBMIT PROPOSITIONS IN ACCORDANCE WITH CHAPTER 271 OF THE TEXAS ELECTION CODE, AND PROVIDING FOR THE PUBLICATION OF THE ELECTION NOTICE WHEREAS, the City of Port Arthur is a home rule city with a governing body composed of a Mayor and eight (8) Councilmembers as delineated below: District/ Term Expiration of Term Position Mayor Prince 3 year May 2016 Councilmembers: Raymond Scott, Jr. 1 3 year May 2017 Tiffany Hamilton 2 3 year May 2017 Morris Albright 3 3 year May 2017 Stephen A. Mosely 4 3 year May 2017 Willie "Bae" Lewis, Jr. 5 3 year May 2018 Osman Swati 6 3 year May 2018 Charlotte M. Moses 7 3 year May 2017 (unexpired term) Kaprina Frank 8 3 year May 2017 WHEREAS, the term for Mayor will expire May 2016; and WHEREAS, pursuant to Section 3.004 and Section 41.001 of the Texas Election Code, the City Council shall order a General Election for Council positions to be held in the City of Port Arthur on the first Saturday in May of 2016, the same being May 7, 2016, s.po6542 Page 1 between the hours of 7:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m., for the purpose of electing a Mayor, said Order being attached as Exhibit "A"; and WHEREAS,the governing body for the Sabine Pass Independent School District has submitted a cancellation notice, as delineated in Exhibit"B", and will no longer be included in the May 7, 2016 General/Joint/ Special Election. NOW THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PORT ARTHUR, TEXAS: Section 1. That the facts and opinions in the preamble are true and correct. Section 2. That the City Council desires to submit propositions to the voters, said propositions being described in Exhibit "A-1" to the Order attached hereto as Exhibit "A", and the polling locations being attached as Exhibit "A-2". Section 3. That Ordinance No. 16-12 is herein amended as to cancel the Joint Election with Sabine Pass Independent School District, as evidenced in the submitted documents attached hereto as Exhibit "B", and designate the Joint Election with the Port Arthur Independent School District, the Port of Port Arthur Navigation District, and the Sabine Pass Port Authority. Section 4. That pursuant to the provisions of the Texas Election Code and Article III, Section 7 of the City Charter of the City of Port Arthur, it is hereby ordered that the ballot for said General Election shall include a place for Mayor. Section 5. That one (1) voting place shall be provided, (as shown in Exhibit"A-1" to the proposed Order and Notice of Election, attached hereto as Exhibit"A") within each of the precincts or combined precincts into which the City is divided for voting purposes. Section 6. That all persons are qualified to vote at said elections who are qualified voters under the Constitution and Laws of the State of Texas and the City Charter. s.po6542 Page 2 Section 7. That the term of office for the persons that file for Mayor shall be for a period of three (3) years and until his/her respective successor shall have been elected and duly qualified. Section 8. That said election shall be by Electronic Voting System as authorized in Texas Election Code Sec. 123.001. Early voting shall be conducted at the locations shown on Exhibit"A-1"attached hereto; and shall be under the control and supervision of the City Secretary. This includes the usage of electronic voting equipment certified by the Secretary of State. Section 9. That said election shall only provide one kind of voting system, no paper ballots will be provided, as mandated by Texas Election Code Sec 123.005. Section 10. That the Robert E. "Bob" Bowers Civic Center at 3401 Cultural Center Drive is hereby designated as the"Counting Station"to receive and tabulate voted ballots. Section 11. That pursuant to Section 67.003 of the Texas Election Code, the City Council of the City of Port Arthur shall meet on May 18, 2016, which is within eleven (11) days following election day (May 7, 2016) and officially canvass the returns and declare the results of said Election. The respective candidate receiving a majority of the votes cast at said election for Mayor shall be declared to be elected. A runoff election shall be held as provided in Section 2.025(a) of the Texas Election Code on June 25, 2016, after the final canvass is completed in the event that a candidate does not receive the majority of votes cast in the General Election. Section 12. That each candidate for an office for which this election is to be held must be at least twenty-one (21) years of age, a citizen and qualified voter of the State of Texas and the City of Port Arthur, shall have resided twelve (12) months in the State and twelve (12) months in the City of Port Arthur and six (6) months in their District from which s.po6542 Page 3 elected immediately preceding election day. Section 13. That in accordance with Texas Election Code Sections 141.031, 143.005, and 143.007 and Section 5 of Article III of the City Charter, each candidate shall file an application with the City Secretary not later than 5 p.m., February 19, 2016 and not earlier than January 20, 2016, stating that he/she is fully qualified under the laws of the State of Texas and the Charter of said City to hold the office he/she seeks. Each application shall include a statement that the candidate is aware of the nepotism law, Chapter 573 Government Code, V.T.C.A., as required by Election Code Section 141.031. Section 14. That the City Secretary shall, under her official hand and seal, certify the list of candidates to the City Council and cause the names of candidates in such election to be published in the City's official newspaper prior to commencement of early voting; and shall also post such names in a conspicuous place in her office. Section 15. That the conduct of such election shall be in accordance with the requirements of the Texas Election Code, including provisions for bilingual assistance, notices, instructions, electronic ballots, and other written materials and information relating to the electoral process, for which presentation and assistance is required. Section 16. That the City Secretary is hereby directed to cause the official ballots for use at said Election to be prepared in the manner prescribed by Article III, of the Charter and the Texas Election Code. Section 17. That the Mayor shall cause notice of this election to be given in accordance with Section 4.003 of the Texas Election Code by publishing a copy of the Notice of Election in the official newspaper of the City of Port Arthur at least one (1) time, not earlier than the thirtieth (30th) day nor later than the tenth (10th) day before Election Day; and a copy of this Ordinance together with a copy of said Notice shall be filed in the s.po6542 Page 4 office of the City Secretary and another copy of said notice shall be posted on the bulletin board used for posting notices of the meetings of the City Council of the City of Port Arthur at least twenty-one (21) days before the election. Section 18. That the Notice of Election shall include the location of each polling place and shall comply with Exhibit "A" attached and made part hereof. Section 19. That this Ordinance shall take effect immediately from and after its passage. Section 20. That a copy of this Ordinance shall be spread upon the Minutes of the City Council. READ, ADOPTED AND APPROVED on this day of , A.D., 2016, at a Meeting of the City Council of the City of Port Arthur, Texas, by the following vote: AYES: Mayor , Councilmembers ; • NOES: • DELORIS PRINCE, MAYOR ATTEST: SHERRI BELLARD, CITY SECRETARY s.po6542 Page 5 APPROVED AS TO ORM: VALECIA TIZENO, CITY 0TORNEY APPROVED FOR ADMINISTRATION: BRIAN MCDOUGAL, CITY MANAGER s.pc6542 Page 6 Exhibit"A" ORDER AND NOTICE OF A GENERAL, JOINT AND SPECIAL ELECTION IN THE CITY OF PORT ARTHUR, JEFFERSON COUNTY, TEXAS Notice is hereby given that the City of Port Arthur will hold a General, Joint and Special Election for the purpose of electing a Mayor in conjunction with the Port Arthur Independent School District, the Port of Port Arthur Navigation District, the Sabine Pass Port Authority, and a Special Election to submit two propositions. The first proposition for voters to consider is whether or not the City of Port Arthur shall implement a Street Maintenance Sales Tax at a rate of 1/8 percent by reducing the existing Section 4A (type A Economic Development Corporation) sales and use tax (1/2 percent) by 1/8 to facilitate this purpose. The second proposition is for voters to consider the usage of Type A sales tax for categories of projects applicable to Type B Corporations pursuant to Chapter 505 of the Texas Local Government Code (formerly Article 5190.6 Vernon's Texas Code Statutes) on Saturday, May 7, 2016, between the hours 7:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. I, Deloris "Bobbie" Prince, Mayor of the City of Port Arthur, Texas, as authorized by the City Council, do hereby Order and give Notice of a General Election to be held in the City of Port Arthur, Texas, on Saturday, May 7, 2016, between the hours of 7:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m., for the purpose of electing a Mayor. The term of office for Mayor shall be for a period of three years until his/her respective successor shall have been elected and duly qualified. Candidates may file an application with the City Secretary for a place on the ballot beginning January 20, 2016 through February 19, 2016 at 5:00 p.m. Said election shall be by Electronic Voting System as provided in Section 123.001 of the Election Code, Section 9.004, et seq., Local Government Code and the City Charter. The proposed Charter Change Amendment being attached as "A-1". The location of each polling place is shown on Exhibit "A-2". Early voting by personal appearance will be conducted each weekday at the following locations between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. beginning on April 25, 2016 and ending on May 3, 2016: City Hall, 444 Fourth Street Port Arthur Public Library, 4615 Ninth Avenue Early voting by personal appearance will be conducted on Thursday, April 28, 2016, and on Tuesday, May 3, 2016, between the hours of 7:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. at the following location of the main early voting polling place: City Hall, 444 Fourth Street s.po6542 Page 7 Exhibit"A" Page 2 ORDER AND NOTICE OF GENERAL, JOINT AND SPECIAL ELECTION TO BE HELD MAY 7, 2016 Please contact the City Secretary's Office at (409) 983-8115 for an Application for a Ballot by Mail or submit your request by e-mail at mailballotapplications@portarthurtx.gov. Applications for a Ballot by Mail shall be mailed to: City of Port Arthur Or City of Port Arthur City Secretary Sherri Bellard City Secretary Sherri Bellard Post Office Box 1089 444 Fourth Street Port Arthur, Texas 77641-1089 Port Arthur, Texas 77640 Applications delivered by the voter in person must be received no later than 5:00 p.m. on Friday, April 22, 2016. Applications for Mail Ballots by mail must be received no later than the close of business on Tuesday, April 26, 2016. Issued this day of , 2016. Deloris "Bobbie" Prince, Mayor City of Port Arthur s.po6542 Page 8 "Exhibit A-1" PROPOSED PROPOSITIONS: Proposition No. 1: For the next four (4) years, commencing October 1, 2016, shall the City of Port Arthur authorize the adoption a local sales and use tax in the City of Port Arthur at a rate of 1/8 percent to provide revenue for maintenance and repair of municipal streets by reducing the existing Section 4A (Type A Economic Development Corporation) Sales and Use Tax (1/2 percent) by 1/8 to facilitate this purpose and for the retention of the remaining 3/8 percent to continue to be utilized for the Section 4A (Type A Economic Development Corporation) Sales and Use Tax? Proposition No. 2: For the next three (3) years, commencing on October 1, 2016 and extending until September 30, 2019, shall the existing Section 4A (Type A Economic Development Corporation) Sales and Use Tax within the City of Port Arthur shall be utilized for the cost of land, buildings, equipment, facilities, and improvements found by the City of Port Arthur Section 4A Economic Development Corporation Board of Directors to be required or suitable for the promotion of development and expansion of affordable housing, as described by 42 U.S.C. 12745, with a project area bounded by Atlanta Street on the west, 8th Street on the north, Nashville Street on the east and 5th Street on the south within the City of Port Arthur, Texas, which is a category of projects under Section 505.153 of the Local Government Code (Type B Economic Development Corporation), with the condition it will be limited to single family dwellings and the total annual spending by the City of Port Arthur Section 4A Economic Development Corporation will not exceed $300,000. Said period of time can be extended an additional three (3) years by the City Council by a two- thirds (2/3) vote of the City Council after reviewing public comment on the proposed cost and impact of the project? s.po6542 Page 9 EXHIBIT"A-2" ELECTION PRECINCTS: POLLING PLACES: R. L. ELDRIDGE COMMUNITY CENTER 5262 S. Gulfway Drive (Sabine Pass) (All or a portion of Jefferson County Election Precinct 32) MEMORIAL 9TH GRADE ACADEMY (Formerly known as Stephen F. Austin) 2441 - 61st Street (All or a portion of Jefferson County Election Precincts 33 & 34) TYRRELL ELEMENTARY 4401 Ferndale (All or a portion of Jefferson County Election Precincts 43, 44, 47, 48, 49, 76 & 93) PORT ARTHUR PUBLIC LIBRARY 4615 Ninth Avenue (All or a portion of Jefferson County Election Precincts 45, 46, 70, 82, 95, 96, 98, 101 & 105) PORT ARTHUR CITY HALL 444 Fourth Street (All or a portion of Jefferson County Election Precinct 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55 &81) ABRAHAM LINCOLN MIDDLE SCHOOL 1023 Abe Lincoln (FORMERLY KNOWN AS MEMORIAL HIGH SCHOOL 9TH GRADE CAMPUS AND LINCOLN HIGH SCHOOL) (All or a portion of Jefferson County Election Precincts 57, 58, 59 & 104) TAFT ELEMENTARY SCHOOL 2500 Taft Avenue (All or a portion of Jefferson County Election Precincts 42, 60, 61, 71 & 102) s.po6542 Page 10