An East Lansing committee responsible for proposing changes to city rules is seeking public input.
The city council created the Charter Review Committee earlier this year to conduct a review of the rules and regulations that guide city governance. The group will take public input and recommend changes to the City Charter.
The committee includes nine residents who applied for a seat.
Diane Goddeeris chairs the committee. A former mayor and city councilmember, she said she wanted to use her experience to guide the review process.
“The background that I have ... has served me well to understand how important the charter is," she said. "I wanted to do the community service where I felt I could be of value to the community.”
The committee is holding monthly meetings to hear from residents and consider revisions to city rules. Goddeeris said changes will have a limited scope.
“The charter really is that just basic document that says, this is how the city will run. This is how council is elected. This is how the city attorney is chosen,” she said.
Potential changes are likely to include minor language revisions in the charter—but the process could also lead to adjustments to the timing for East Lansing elections or the number of city council seats.
The city council put three charter amendment proposals before voters during the 2023 East Lansing elections. Voters turned down a plan to change the swearing-in date for councilmembers. They also narrowly rejected an expansion of the city council and approved a measure to potentially support ranked-choice voting in local elections.