CITY of ALBUQUERQUE
TWENTY SEVENTH COUNCIL
COUNCIL BILL NO. R-26-30 ENACTMENT NO. ________________
SPONSORED BY: Dan Champine
RESOLUTION
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Adopting A Proposition To Be Submitted To The Voters At The Next Election To Be Held In The City Of Albuquerque Concerning An Amendment To Article V, Section 4 Of The Albuquerque City Charter; Providing The Form Of The Question And The Designation Clause For Such Question On The Ballot (Champine)
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WHEREAS, Proposition P-26-2 proposes to amend the Albuquerque City Charter to modify the procedures to appoint and remove the City Attorney and City Clerk and designate both positions and their respective offices as independent from both the City Administration and City Council; and
WHEREAS, Pursuant to Article VI of the Albuquerque City Charter, amendments to the Charter may be proposed by the Council and must be approved by a vote of a majority of all Councilors plus one; and
WHEREAS, P-26-2 specifies that the City Clerk is required to coordinate with the Bernalillo County Clerk to prepare and file any necessary documents and agreements for an election on P-26-2; and
WHEREAS, When a local government ballot question is to be submitted to the voters, Section 1-16-3(B) of the State’s Election Code requires the local government to file a resolution proposing the ballot question with the county clerk.
BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL, THE GOVERNING BODY OF THE CITY OF ALBUQUERQUE:
SECTION 1. The City Clerk is instructed to place the following proposition on the 2026 General Election ballot, and the qualified voters of the City of Albuquerque shall be permitted to vote on the proposal. In consultation with the Bernalillo County Clerk and/or the Secretary of State, the City Clerk shall have the authority to modify the proposal as to form to conform with applicable law.
SECTION 2. QUESTION TO BE SUBMITTED. The City Clerk is instructed to coordinate with the Bernalillo County Clerk to submit the following summary, title, and complete text of the following proposition to the City’s qualified, registered voters, who shall be permitted to vote on the proposal. The ballot face shall be in substantially the following form:
OFFICIAL ELECTION BALLOT
GENERAL ELECTION
HELD NOVEMBER 3, 2026
PROPOSITION
Proposition to amend the Albuquerque City Charter related to the appointment, removal, and independence of the City Attorney and City Clerk.
SUMMARY
This proposition would amend the Albuquerque City Charter related to the appointment processes, removal processes, and independence of the City Attorney and City Clerk.
TITLE AND PROPOSITION
PROPOSING TO AMEND THE CITY CHARTER REGARDING THE APPOINTMENT, REMOVAL, AND INDEPENDENCE OF THE CITY ATTORNEY AND CITY CLERK
ARTICLE V. MAYOR
Section 4. DUTIES OF THE MAYOR.
The Mayor shall:
(e) Select and remove the City Attorney only as follows:
1. The City Attorney shall be selected and appointed through an open and competitive hiring process [conducted by the Mayor with the advice and consent of two-thirds of the entire membership of the Council] [initiated by the Mayor and conducted by a Committee that shall be composed of two Mayoral appointees and two City Council appointees. The Mayor or Councilors may serve as appointees to this Committee. The Mayor, with Committee approval, shall make a recommendation for hire to the full Council for the position of City Attorney. The appointment of the City Attorney shall require an affirmative vote of two-thirds of the entire membership of the Council.]
2. The City Attorney’s appointment shall be for a term that coincides and terminates with the term of the Mayor [making the appointment] unless sooner removed as provided herein. [At the beginning of the Mayor’s term, whether the first term of a new Mayor or a successive term of a reelected Mayor, or upon a vacancy in the position of City Attorney, the Mayor and Committee shall have 90 days to recommend to the Council an appointee to fill the position.]
3. The City Attorney [may only be removed from office for cause by the Mayor with the concurrence of two-thirds of the entire membership of the Council after cause has been determined by the Director of the Office of Internal Audit and Investigations.] [shall have an employment agreement with the City specifying the terms and conditions of employment including a provision for the early termination of employment and expiring at the end of the current Mayor’s term. The Mayor may terminate this agreement at any time with an affirmative vote of five members of the Council. The Council may terminate the agreement at any time, with notice to the Mayor and City Attorney, by an affirmative vote of seven members of the Council.]
[4. The City Attorney is accountable to, but independent of, the Mayor’s Administration and the City Council. The City Attorney’s Office is an independent office of city government and is not part of the City’s executive branch or the City Council.]
(f) Select and remove the City Clerk only as follows:
1. The City Clerk shall be selected and appointed through an open and competitive hiring process [conducted by the Mayor with the advice and consent of two-thirds of the entire membership of the Council.] [initiated by the Mayor and conducted by a Committee that shall be composed of two Mayoral appointees and two City Council appointees. The Mayor or Councilors may serve as appointees to this Committee. The Mayor, with Committee approval, shall make a recommendation for hire to the full Council for the position of City Clerk. The appointment of the City Clerk shall require an affirmative vote of two-thirds of the entire membership of the Council.]
2. The City Clerk’s appointment shall be for a term that coincides and terminates with the term of the Mayor [making the appointment] unless sooner removed as provided herein. [At the beginning of the Mayor’s term, whether the first term of a new Mayor or a successive term of a reelected Mayor, or upon or upon a vacancy in the position of City Clerk, the Mayor and Committee shall have 90 days to recommend to the Council an appointee to fill the position.]
3. [The City Clerk may only be removed from office for cause by the Mayor with the concurrence of two-thirds of the entire membership of the Council after cause has been determined by the Director of the Office of Internal Audit and Investigations.] [The City Clerk shall have an employment agreement with the City specifying the terms and conditions of employment including a provision for the early termination of employment and expiring at the end of the current Mayor’s term. The Mayor may terminate this agreement at any time with an affirmative vote of five members of the Council. The Council may terminate the agreement at any time, with notice to the Mayor and City Clerk, by an affirmative vote of seven members of the Council.]
[4. The City Clerk is accountable to, but independent of the Mayor’s Administration and the City Council. The Office of the City Clerk is an independent office of city government and is not part of the City’s executive branch or the City Council.]
SECTION 2. SEVERABILITY CLAUSE. If any section, paragraph, sentence, word, or phrase of this resolution is for any reason held to be invalid or unenforceable by any court of competent jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining provisions of this resolution. The Council hereby declares that it would have passed this resolution and each section, paragraph, sentence, word or phrase thereof irrespective of any provision being declared unconstitutional or otherwise invalid.
SECTION 3. The City Clerk shall file this resolution with the Bernalillo County Clerk immediately upon its effective date and shall forward a copy of the transmittal to the City Council President and Director of Council Services. Not less than 90 days before the election at which this ballot question is proposed to be submitted to the voters, the City Clerk shall provide confirmation to the City Council President and Director of Council Services that this ballot question has been submitted and will appear on the 2026 General Election ballot.