TAMPA, Fla. — On Thursday, Tampa City Council voted to override four of Mayor Jane Castor's vetoes on their decision to place amendments to the city’s charter in the hands of voters.
It was an hours-long, often heated debate during Thursday's city council meeting. Taylor Cook with Tampa Bay Community Action Committee was there for the long haul.
“It’s about what the people get to vote on and have a say in,” said Cook.
During a January 5th meeting, the city council decided that five amendments to the city’s charter should be placed on the ballot for voters’ consideration during the city's March 7th municipal election, including a change that would set term limits for city council members and another that would allow the city’s Citizens Review Board to hire an independent attorney.
“Obviously, our group supports independent counsel for the CRB, but it doesn’t even matter if it votes up or down because at least the people got to vote on it,” said Cook.
On Wednesday, the Mayor vetoed the city council’s decision, saying the council’s process for proposing these amendments was deeply flawed. But during Thursday’s meeting, the city council voted to override four of the mayor’s vetoes.
“We have four amendments that will be on the ballot for voters to choose from, and more importantly, there are going to be all of us on the ballot, so the voters not only can vote for the amendments, but they can decide whether or not they liked what we did,” said Council Member Lynn Hurtak.
Council Member Charlie Miranda shared his thoughts on how the whole situation went down.
“The problem is the process again,” said Miranda. “It’s only come from us. If I don’t like something tomorrow, am I going to ask the same thing next year to change again?”
Still, some people shared their disappointment after the council did not override the Mayor’s veto on allowing the Citizens Review Board to select legal counsel who is not a city employee.
Mayor Jane Castor sent the following statement Thursday:
"Every decision I make as mayor is based on what's best for Tampa residents today and their children tomorrow, rather than what's easy or politically expedient. My charter amendment vetoes reflected that, but I was under no illusion that I would convince every council member to change his or her mind."
