Re: 201037521 General ~ Human Relations Commission: Research on HRC change to ordinance to permit non-residents & non-citizens on Gwinnett Commissions, Boards & Authorities
Tricia Sung
Good morning Tricia,
Happy New Year. Thank you for copying me on your email message to Chairman Nash. You and I have spoken in past HRC meetings about your desire to include non-residents and non-citizens of Gwinnett County on the HRC. As I have previously indicated to you, the members of the HRC will first need to take a formal vote in favor of recommending to the Gwinnett Board of Commissioners an amendment to the Human Relations Commission Ordinance to allow non-Gwinnett residents and non-U.S. citizens to serve on the HRC. The vote will need to be recorded on your formal meeting minutes. At that point, I can draft modifications to the existing Human Relations Commission Ordinance to eliminate the language that speaks to Gwinnett County residents serving on the HRC. There is no need to specifically include language that allows non-residents and non-citizens to serve, as there will be no exclusionary language in the Ordinance.
I must point out that it is unreasonable to expect Chairman Nash to have answers to the questions you pose by this Thursday, January 9th, especially since she would need to rely upon County staff to try to provide the answers. She also cannot predict whether the collective members of the HRC would vote to approve the recommended changes to the HRC Ordinance. More importantly, your questions are unnecessary, as it is within the purview of the HRC (as a united body) to make recommended changes to the HRC Ordinance and present those recommendations to the BOC for consideration and vote. Before the Commissioners vote, however, they may request additional information from the HRC, the acting Human Resources Director, and/or the Law Department to help them make an informed decision, and we will attempt to provide the information requested.
However, the first step for you is to obtain a formal vote by a majority of the HRC members to modify the Ordinance so as to allow non-Gwinnett residents and non-U.S. citizens to serve on the HRC. You should seek to obtain this vote at your January 9th meeting. If a majority of the HRC members vote in the affirmative, I will commit to drafting changes to the HRC Ordinance for the HRC’s review and recommendation to the Board of Commissioners before your February meeting. It takes time to get the recommended revisions on a BOC agenda, however.
In the meantime, I think that is okay for the HRC Chair, Donald Sequoira, to continue to serve as Chair and as a member of the HRC at the January 9th meeting. If, however, you are unable to secure a majority vote to amend the HRC Ordinance, you will need to take steps to hold a special election of a new chair.
I hope that this is responsive to your request for assistance. Please feel free to phone or email me if I can provide further guidance. I look forward to continuing to provide legal advice and counsel to the HRC in the new year.
Tuwanda Rush Williams
Senior Assistant County Attorney
Gwinnett County Law Department
75 Langley Drive
Lawrenceville, Georgia 30046-6935
tuwanda....@gwinnettcounty.com
From: Tricia Sung [mailto:gwinnett...@gmail.com]
Sent: Tuesday, January 07, 2014 8:47 AM
To: Nash, Charlotte
Cc: Williams, Tuwanda; Fuller, Scott
Subject: Research on HRC change to ordinance to permit non-residents & non-citizens on Gwinnett Commissions, Boards & Authorities
Dear Gwinnett BOC Chair Charlotte Nash,
Good morning. Hope this finds you well. I would like to request your assistance with completing the following four research questions related to the Gwinnett County Human Relations Committee's proposal to change the HRC county ordinance, to permit non-Gwinnett residents and non-Gwinnett citizens to serve on Gwinnett Commissions
Please provide feedback by Thursday, January 9, 2014 by 5 p.m.
Thank you,
--
Tricia Sung
Gwinnett County Human Relations Commission
HRC Member - Public Relations Chair
Director, Gwinnett HRC History Project
gwinnett...@gmail.com
404-494-0362
HRC Change to County Ordinance to Permit Non-Gwinnett residents and non-Gwinnett citizens to serve on Gwinnett Commissions
Facts:
- Gwinnett County is comprised of non-Gwinnett residents and non-Gwinnett citizens who work, own businesses, attend school, and attend places of worship and all contribute to Gwinnett County
- Residency is determined by the place where the person lives/resides and Citizenship is determined by immigration and naturalization services
- The Gwinnett County ordinance for the Human Relations Commission and Gwinnett County requires both residency and citizenship
- The Gwinnett HRC would like to engage and include both non-Gwinnett residents and non-Gwinnett citizens
- In November 2013, the HRC moved to elect a chair, Donald Sequeira, who resides at 8580 Merion Drive in Forsyth County and has been an active contributor to both the HRC and to the Gwinnett community with his church, his property in Lilburn, the Gwinnett Chamber, the business community, and with community organizations.
- As advised by legal counsel in November 2013, if the HRC wishes to change the residency and citizenship requirement, then the HRC would need to submit a formal proposal/recommendation to the Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners to change the HRC county ordinance. With that approval, then the HRC would then be permitted to legally have a chair who is a non-Gwinnett resident and/or non-Gwinnett citizen
- In November 2013, the HRC motioned to advance a proposal to the Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners and then agreed to table until the next meeting in January 2014 while an HRC member, Tricia Sung, conducts research and fact-gathering related to this proposal for presentation in the January 2014 meeting
- This communication is part of the non-resident and non-citizen commission ordinance proposal research
Research Questions:
- Have there ever been any Chairs, past or present, of any Gwinnett County Commission, Board, Authorities or Committees who is/was not a Gwinnett resident and/or is/was not a Gwinnett citizen?
- Would the Gwinnett BOC approve the proposal for non-residents and non-citizens to serve on Gwinnett Commissions?
- What is the process for the HRC to submit a proposal to the Gwinnett County BOC to change the HRC county ordinance to permit non-residents and non-citizens to serve on Gwinnett Commissions?
- What is the timeline for a response? What does the HRC do in the interim with the HRC chair's status/role while awaiting the Gwinnett County BOC response/decision? May Donald Sequeira continue to serve as chair in the interim?
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from Gwinnettcounty.com
Gwinnett County Boards, Authorities, and Committees
A number of boards, authorities, and committees are in place to provide recommendations or input on specific issues in Gwinnett County. These groups vary in size and purpose and are created by state law, local legislation, or County ordinance or resolution. County residents make up the membership of boards, authorities, and committees.
The Board of Commissioners appoints one or more members to many of these groups. Membership terms vary depending on the particular board, authority, or committee. Commissioners usually make a large number of appointments during the first business meeting of the year, but also make other appointments throughout the year to fill expired terms and/or vacancies as needed. Qualifications may be required in order to hold certain positions.
To learn more about a particular Gwinnett County board, authority or committee, please select the appropriate link below for information such as responsibilities, members, meeting notices, agendas, and minutes.
· Board of Construction Adjustments & Appeals
· Board of Registrations & Elections
· Development Advisory Committee
· Development Authority of Gwinnett County
· Evermore Community Improvement District
· Family & Children Services Board
· Georgia BioScience Joint Development Authority
· Gwinnett Animal Advisory Council
· Gwinnett Convention & Visitors Bureau
· Gwinnett County Public Employees Retirement System
· Gwinnett County Public Employees Retirement System - Audit Committee
· Gwinnett County Public Employees Retirement System - Investment Committee
· Gwinnett County Public Library Board of Trustees
· Gwinnett Historical Restoration & Preservation Board
· Gwinnett Place Community Improvement District
· Gwinnett Transit System Advisory Board
· Gwinnett United in Drug Education (G.U.I.D.E.)
· Gwinnett Village Community Improvement District
· I-85 Alternatives Analysis Study Policy Advisory Committee
· Licensing & Revenue Board of Appeals
· Lilburn Community Improvement District
· Partnership for Community Action
· Purchasing Policy & Review Committee
· Region Three Behavioral Health & Developmental Disabilities (DBHDD)
· Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) Citizen Review Committee
· Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) Citizens Project Selection Committee - 2009
· Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) Joint Technical Committee
· Upper Ocmulgee River Resource Conservation & Development Council, Inc.
Tricia Sung