Tuesday, October 3, 2023 at 6 PM
Online only
This meeting has happened. Minutes are final.
What happened
5 items of legislation were taken up.
- 2 recommended to be marked work completed
- 1 accepted
- 1 recommended to be approved
- 1 recommended to be placed on file
Agenda 5 items
Notices from the agenda
This meeting was held via Zoom and was called to order by Chair Davis at 6:04 pm and adjourned at 6:52 pm with a roll call vote of all in favor (Councilor Scott, Councilor McLaughlin, Councilor Burnley, Councilor Kelly, and Chair Davis), none opposed, and none absent. Others present: Neha Singh – Mayor’s Office, Brendan Salisbury – City Clerk’s Office, David Shapiro – Solicitor’s Office, Stephanie Widzowski – Clerk of Committees.
(Posted online: 9/29/23 at 10:30 AM)
Pursuant to Chapter 2 of the Acts of 2023, this meeting of a City Council Committee will be conducted via remote participation. We will post an audio recording, audio-video recording, transcript, or other comprehensive record of these proceedings as soon as possible after the meeting on the City of Somerville website and local cable access government channels. Copy & paste the following link into your internet browser to view this meeting live: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_bzi7lGHeQRGb6Xvl_AVp5A Individuals with disabilities who need auxiliary aids and services for effective communication (i.e. CART, ASL), written materials in alternative formats, or reasonable modifications in policies and procedures, in order to access the programs and activities of the City of Somerville or to attend meetings, should contact Adrienne Pomeroy in advance, at 617-625-6600 x2059 or ada@somervillema.gov.
Roll Call
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1.
Approval of the Minutes of the Legislative Matters Committee Meeting of September 19, 2023.
Roll call: 3 aye · 2 absent
- Lance L. DavisAye
- Charlotte KellyAbsent
- Willie Burnley Jr.Aye
- Matthew McLaughlinAbsent
- Jefferson Thomas (J.T.) ScottAye
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2.
Amending Chapter 8, Article I of the Code of Ordinances by adding a new section regarding Closed Captioning Accessibility.
{\rtf1\ansi\ansicpg1252\deff0\deflang1033{\fonttbl{\f0\froman\fprq2\fcharset0 Times New Roman;}{\f1\fnil\fcharset0 Times New Roman;}} {\colortbl ;\red0\green0\blue0;} \viewkind4\uc1\pard\nowidctlpar\qj\f0\fs24 Legislative & Policy Analyst Salisbury said that the Licensing Commission met last Thursday and changed closed captioning rules for businesses that serve food or drink and have public TVs. Deputy Solicitor Shapiro said that the ordinance before the Committee would be broader than what the Licensing Commission could regulate, applying to gyms, nail salons, and more. Councilor Burnley spoke to the exception in the proposed ordinance for \ldblquote public entertainment venues\rdblquote - essentially, the ordinance is intended for businesses with regular hours with TVs capable of closed captioning, not special events such as concerts.\par \par Councilor Burnley moved to recommend approval, and the vote was taken. Dir. Singh added that she had wanted more time to get feedback from staff on implementation. Chair Davis asked if there would be enough time before the next City Council meeting to gather feedback, to which Dir. Singh said yes.\par \pard\cf1\f1\par }
Roll call: 5 aye
- Lance L. DavisAye
- Charlotte KellyAye
- Willie Burnley Jr.Aye
- Matthew McLaughlinAye
- Jefferson Thomas (J.T.) ScottAye
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3.
Amendment to Ordinance 2-221, regarding adult use marijuana licenses, as described within.
{\rtf1\ansi\ansicpg1252\deff0\deflang1033{\fonttbl{\f0\froman\fprq2\fcharset0 Times New Roman;}{\f1\fnil\fcharset0 Times New Roman;}} {\colortbl ;\red0\green0\blue0;} \viewkind4\uc1\pard\nowidctlpar\qj\f0\fs24 Chair Davis summarized the changes to the ordinance as requiring a Labor Peace Agreement and a Project Labor Agreement. Legislative & Policy Analyst Salisbury said they reached out to advocates and were not able to talk much with them, but from what they did discuss, there did not seem to be a new legal basis for advocacy. Their research found a precedent for states passing similar legislation, but no municipalities. Deputy Solicitor Shapiro said that there was a federal preemption issue under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). Chair Davis asked why the city cannot put more protections in place here, which led to a discussion of preemption and under which circumstances it occurs. \par \pard\cf1\f1\par }
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4.
That the City Solicitor draft language to change all pronouns in the city’s ordinances to gender-neutral.
{\rtf1\ansi\ansicpg1252\deff0\deflang1033{\fonttbl{\f0\froman\fprq2\fcharset0 Times New Roman;}{\f1\fnil\fcharset0 Times New Roman;}} {\colortbl ;\red0\green0\blue0;} \viewkind4\uc1\pard\nowidctlpar\qj\f0\fs24 Legislative & Policy Analyst Salisbury explained that changing pronouns in the current ordinance management system, Municode, would be difficult and that it would be more feasible after transferring to a new system. They talked with the Intergovernmental Affairs team and decided that, rather than having the Solicitor\rquote s Office work on this immediately, staff would bring the issue to the City Council once the technology is updated. Chair Davis said that if it would be more appropriate for the City Clerk\rquote s Office to change the text when the time comes, he will submit an order for that.\par \par Councilor Burnley asked about the direction the city will go with the new system and how it will be more versatile. Analyst Salisbury said that the new system will make it much faster to update multiple instances of changes. Moreover, the historical record in Municode will be maintained.\par \pard\cf1\f1\par }
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5.
That the Director of Mobility review the attached draft Act Relative to the Operation and Regulation of Electric Bicycles in the City of Salem and consider supporting similar legislation.
{\rtf1\ansi\ansicpg1252\deff0\deflang1033{\fonttbl{\f0\froman\fprq2\fcharset0 Times New Roman;}{\f1\fnil\fcharset0 Times New Roman;}} {\colortbl ;\red0\green0\blue0;} \viewkind4\uc1\pard\nowidctlpar\qj\f0\fs24 Legislative & Policy Analyst Salisbury said that Salem\rquote s draft legislation predates the Massachusetts Legislature\rquote s action on regulation of e-bikes in August 2022 that added definitions and gave municipalities limited powers to regulate. He said that there are ongoing discussions with Mobility for what options could be taken. Councilor Kelly asked why the regulation for helmets specified riders 16 or younger. Analyst Salisbury said that e-bikes were treated like regular bicycles under state law before getting their own definition, which also specified 16 or younger. He added that studies have suggested that laws requiring universal helmet use backfire, causing either lower helmet use or bicycle use overall.\par \pard\cf1\f1\par }