READING, Pa. – Reading City Council tabled a proposed ordinance that would require council approval for the termination of the city's managing director, rather than leave the decision entirely up to the mayor.
All city managers currently serve at the will of the mayor, according to the city charter, and council has no say in the termination of the city's top executive position.
The proposed ordinance says the mayor's complete authority to fire the managing director has "resulted in a lack of historical stability and continuity in this top position."
The ordinance proposes that the termination of the managing director require approval from both the mayor and City Council by resolution with a super-majority vote.
The ordinance would place the question to amend the charter to the voters in the general election.
Mayor Eddie Moran said he had concerns with the move and threatened to veto the ordinance if council passed it.
"Over the last 25 years, the City of Reading has been governed under a strong mayor of formal government," Moran said, "and recently we, as a governing body, have engaged in discussions about the pros and cons of changing the form of government."
"Ultimately, we were told by a legal counsel that changing the former government requires the city to initiate a long, unprecedented and unpredictable process under a government study commission," he continued. "The state legislation created this difficult and lengthy process because this decision to fundamentally change government should be given the serious consideration and debate it deserves."
He called the proposed ordinance "nothing more than a backdoor attempt to change the form of government without having to follow the process."
Councilwoman Donna Reed said the measure was actually a compromise among councilmembers.
"This body is engaged by the charter to hire, but then has no other impact through the course of the managing director or department directors," Reed said. "And we have seen a revolving door since 1996. Very few managing directors have served more than a couple years, and the conflicts are historic."
Council agreed that the topic needed further discussion.
It also introduced a proposed ordinance to give council a say in the dismissal of department heads, but the mayor did not address that issue.
Council typically refrains from discussing introduced ordinances until the next Committee of the Whole meeting.
