ELECTIONS 2007:Charter results mixed

CITY HALL — Voters on Tuesday took advantage of the council's decision to split up proposed amendments to the city charter on the ballot, rather than present them to voters as a complete package, passing three measures and rejecting two.

The measures were recommended by the 15-member Charter Review Committee, which the council created in November 2005, to review the city's 90-year-old charter. The charter serves as the city's blueprint for local government.

Voters approved Measure E, which enables City Council members to appoint a replacement for a council vacancy no matter how many months are remaining in the seat's term. The committee recommended the change to eliminate the need for a costly and time-consuming special election, former committee chairwoman Carolyn Jackson said.

Measure F was also approved, which will allow the council to pass and amend budget items by a majority, rather than a four-fifths vote. The committee made that recommendation in order to give the council the ability to conduct business in the absence of a council member.

Voters also approved Measure G, which makes other minor changes to the charter, including cleaning up archaic language and including the duties of the Police Commission, an oversight body, in the text of the charter.

But voters rejected both Measure B and Measure C, which would have made the city's clerk and treasurer posts appointed, rather than elected, positions. Opponents of the measures contended that they would have removed voters' ability to decide the fate of two important city positions. Others argued that having an appointed city treasurer and clerk would also put too much power in the hands of the city manager, said Burbank resident Michelle Feather, an outspoken opponent of charter changes.

With the defeat of Measures B and C, the significance of Measure D was voided, since its purpose was to facilitate smooth transitions between elected and appointed city clerk and treasurer positions.

Voters also rejected Measure A — which was not a charter change — that would have given the council the ability to increase the city's transient occupancy tax from its existing 10% rate by a maximum of 2%. The tax is collected from patrons of Burbank hotels, based on room rates.