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ADOPTED 2021 BylawsUpdated August 2021 -1- BYLAWS AND RULES OF PROCEDURE OF THE RICHFIELD TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION RICHFIELD, MINNESOTA The following Bylaws and Rules of procedure are adopted by the City's Transportation Commission to facilitate the performance of its duties and functions as authorized by the City Council. PART I. RESPONSIBILITIES Section 1. Commission Responsibilities The Commission will be responsible for making recommendations to the Council on transportation planning including:  Encouraging citizen involvement in the Commission’s work;  Reviewing policy plans on the state, regional or city level;  Conducting transportation studies; and,  Overseeing the planning of transportation projects. The Commission will be charged to recommend transportation capital improvements and prepare reports to Council on other related topics that the Council refers to the Commission. PART II. MEETINGS Section 1. Regular Meetings Regular meetings of the Transportation Commission shall be on the first Wednesday of each month commencing at 7:00 P.M. in the Richfield Municipal Center and the meeting day may be adjusted for the convenience of the members. In lieu of in-person meetings at the Richfield Municipal Center, the Transportation Commission may also choose to hold its regular meetings virtually provided that proper notice is given and access is made available to the public. Section 2. Special Meetings Special meetings of the Transportation Commission can be called by the Chairperson and one member or by three members of the Commission or at the request of the City Council. Notice, designating the time and place of the meetings, shall be given to all members not less than twenty-four (24) hours in advance thereof. Section 3. Open Meeting Law All meetings of the Transportation Commission must be noticed and held in compliance with the Minnesota Open Meeting Law. Section 4. Deadline for Hearing Items The Transportation Commission will accept all requests to be heard before it, no later than ten (10) working days preceding the regular Transportation Commission meeting. Updated August 2021 -2- Section 5. Quorum A majority of active members of the Transportation Commission shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business. No formal action shall be taken in the absence of a quorum with the exception that the Transportation Commission members present may take testimony for use at a later meeting at which a quorum is present, and may adjourn a meeting to a later time without further notice. Section 6. Voting At all meetings of the Transportation Commission, each member attending shall be entitled to cast one vote. Voting shall be by voice. An affirmative vote of a majority of members present or four members, whichever is greater, shall be necessary for the passage of any matter before the Transportation Commission, except as otherwise provided in these Bylaws. All liaisons to the Commission are ex-officio and do not cast a vote. Section 7. Proceedings a) Format of Meeting At a regular meeting of the Transportation Commission, the following format shall be followed in conducting the business of the meeting. 1) City staff will note the attendance and/or take roll 2) Review and Approve Agenda 3) Approval of Minutes 3) Regular Business and Public Hearing Items 4) Updates 5) Future Agenda Items 6) Upcoming Meetings 7) Other Business 8) Adjournment b) Public Hearing The purpose of a hearing is to collect information and facts in order for the Commission to develop a recommendation for the City Council. At a public hearing the following procedure shall be followed for each case for which a public hearing is held: 1) Chair shall state the issue to be heard. 2) Chair shall call upon the City staff to present the staff report. 3) Members of the Transportation Commission shall be allowed to question the staff report proposal. Updated August 2021 -3- 4) Interested persons may address the Commission, giving relevant information regarding the proposal before the Commission. a) All questions or statements by Richfield staff personnel, Transportation Commission members, applicants or interested citizens will be directed through the Chair. b) All who wish to speak will be heard, but only in accordance with the above procedure and after recognition by the Chair. c) No individual may speak longer than five (5) minutes, except through previous arrangement with the Chair, or by vote of the Commission. d) The spokesperson for a group will be allowed ten (10) minutes. e) In addition to the statements by individual or groups, there will be a period, not to exceed thirty (30) minutes, during which the public may question the City's staff members present, the applicant or their representatives or any member of the Transportation Commission. Questions must be directed through the Chair. 6) The hearing shall be closed. Interested persons shall not be heard again unless the hearing is reopened by a majority vote of the Commission. 7) The Commission shall discuss and clarify the item before it, and take action on it. 8) Any decision of the Commission on the merits of any question before it shall be embodied in the form of a motion, resolution, or report, and referred to the City Council or city staff for action. c) Rules of Procedure At all regular meetings of the Transportation Commission where formal action is required on a matter before the Commission, the meetings shall be governed by the latest printed edition of "Sturgis Standard Code of Parliamentary Procedure.” At general meetings of the Transportation Commission no formal parliamentary procedure shall govern the conduct of the proceedings unless found to be necessary such as when a formal motion is before the Commission. PART III. ORGANIZATION Section 1. Membership Updated August 2021 -4- The Commission will consist of 9 regular members and 2 youth members appointed by the City Council. To be eligible for appointment, a person must be a Richfield resident or owner/manager of a business in Richfield and must have an interest in diverse transportation or environmental issues. It is desirable that each Council Ward be represented by three residents or owner/managers of businesses. Appointments for vacant seats on the Commission are made in January of each calendar year by the City Council. Section 2. Commission Liaisons In order to enhance collaboration and communication between City advisory commissions, non-voting liaisons from other City advisory commissions may be appointed based on current City projects and the needs of the Transportation Commission. The liaisons from the other commissions will serve as non-voting members of the Transportation Commission and their appointment and terms shall be governed by the bylaws of their respective commission, but the term may not exceed the remaining term of the appointee’s membership on the appointing commission. The Richfield Bike Advocates (RBA) may appoint one Richfield resident member to serve as a non-voting liaison to the Transportation Commission. The RBA shall maintain this liaison role indefinitely assuming at least two of the following measures are met:  An active online presence is maintained via the RBA website and social media pages;  In-person public events are held to encourage, advocate, or educate the public on bicycle or other pedestrian issues; or  Organizational meetings consisting of at least 5 residents who identify as members of Richfield Bike Advocates are held at least quarterly. The RBA liaison’s term shall be as directed by the RBA, however, in the event the RBA liaison ceases to be a Richfield resident or an active member in the RBA, their liaison role on the Transportation Commission shall end and another RBA liaison must be appointed. The RBA liaison will be required to provide organizational activity updates to the Transportation Commission at each meeting. Section 3. Term of Membership Transportation Commission terms are for three years and are staggered, resulting in three vacant seats each year. No member shall serve more than three consecutive terms on the Transportation Commission. Mid-term commission appointments for a period of time greater than one-half of a complete term shall be counted as a full term. Section 4. Election of Officers Updated August 2021 -5- At the first regular meeting in February of each year, the Commission shall hold an organizational meeting and elect from its membership a Chairperson, and Vice-chairperson. The City staff liaison shall conduct the annual election of officers by opening up the meeting for nominations. Once a nomination is seconded, that commissioner is in the pool for the Chairperson position. If there is only one nomination for the Chairperson position, the City staff liaison shall call a voice vote. If there are two or more commissioners pursuing the Chairperson position, a roll call vote shall be called and the individual with a majority of votes shall be elected Chairperson. In the event of a tied vote, the City Council liaison shall cast the tie-breaking vote. Vice-chairperson shall be elected from the remaining members by the same procedure. If the Chairperson resigns from office before the next regular organization meeting, the Vice-chairperson shall automatically become acting Chairperson. In any instance where an officer of the Commission resigns or retires from office, a new officer shall be elected to the vacated position at the next regular meeting of the Commission by the same procedure as above. If the Chairperson and Vice-chairperson are absent from a meeting, the Commission shall elect a temporary Chairperson by voice vote. Section 5. Tenure The Chairperson, and Vice-chairperson shall take office immediately following their election and hold office until their successors are elected and assume office. Election of officers will occur annually at the February meeting of the Commission. Section 6. Duties of Officers The duties and powers of the officers of the Transportation Commission shall be as follows: a) Chairperson 1) Presides over all meetings of the Commission. 2) Appoints sub-Commissions and performs such other duties as may be ordered by the Commission. 3) Signs documents of the Commission. 4) Sees that all actions of the Commission are properly taken. 5) Calls special meetings of the Commission in accordance with these Bylaws. 6) Works with appropriate city staff in organizing agendas of all general Transportation Commission meetings. Updated August 2021 -6- b) Vice-chairperson Performs all of the duties and responsibilities of the Chairperson in his/her absence. c) City Public Works Staff 1) Keeps the minutes of the meetings of the Commission in an appropriate minute book. 2) Maintains all minutes of the Commission as well as other official documents of the Commission PART IV. MISCELLANEOUS Section 1. Suspension of Rules The Commission may suspend any of these Rules by a 2/3 vote of those members present. Section 2. Amendments These Rules may be amended at any regular meeting by a 2/3 majority of the members of the Commission, provided that the amendment was presented and written into the minutes of a previous meeting. Section 3. Review The contents of these Bylaws and Rules of procedure should be comprehensively reviewed, evaluated, and modified where necessary, at the organization meeting held in April of each year.