Newport City Council Workshop on Boards and Commission Oversight – August 6, 2025
Newport City Council Workshop on Boards and Commission Oversight – August 6, 2025
A workshop was held on August 6, 2025 at 5:30 PM in City Council Chambers to discuss a proposed ad hoc advisory committee aimed at improving the processes, appointment procedures, and operational support for the city’s 26 boards and commissions. Councilor Smythe introduced the concept, citing widespread issues such as applicant communication gaps, expired terms, lack of new member onboarding, and inconsistent meeting structures. Several council members opposed the idea, arguing it would add unnecessary bureaucracy and that existing council and staff responsibilities already cover these areas. Public testimony from board members provided mixed perspectives. No formal vote was taken; the discussion concluded with acknowledgment of the need for improvements but disagreement on the mechanism.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Jack Grant (Henderson Home Commission member) described his positive appointment experience: he researched the role, had a phone interview with the mayor, was notified of his docket appearance, and received clear guidance. He said the monthly chairs’ meetings work well and that an additional layer would slow down processes.
- Andy Bjork (Energy & Environment Commission, also served on Cemetery and HDC) observed that some commissions lack basic policies and procedures, forcing members to spend time on operations rather than content. He supported the idea of a handbook or structural guidance but did not endorse a new committee.
- Emily Conklin (Vice Chair, Energy & Environment Commission) shared that she applied in 2021 and heard nothing until she saw herself on the council agenda. She noted three chairs in her tenure and emphasized the value of onboarding materials, Roberts Rules training, and a standard handbook to improve commission effectiveness and diversity.
Discussion Items
- Councilor Smythe presented the proposal, explaining she would remove the word “oversight” from the resolution because it implied a bureaucratic layer. She described the committee as an ad hoc, advisory group to help develop a standard operating procedure, appointment process improvements, and a member handbook. She noted that approximately 50 applicants have been waiting months to years without communication, 11 out of 26 boards have members serving 10–26 years (8 of them consistently as chairs), and some commissions are meeting without a quorum or with expired terms.
- Councilor Napolitano opposed the proposal, stating she had never heard of these issues from the many board chairs she communicates with, and that such matters are a council and staff responsibility. She suggested splitting tasks among staff rather than creating a new committee.
- Councilor Sileo echoed opposition, saying the council has sufficient processes and that adding another board would complicate matters. He recommended focusing on council-led improvements and noted that monthly chairs’ meetings already provide a forum for issues.
- Councilor Pinnock supported the idea, mentioning that she has received text messages from commission members seeking direction and that the committee could provide structure without being a new layer of bureaucracy.
- Mayor Quattrocchi (acting as chair) highlighted existing annual reports and monthly chairs’ meetings. He acknowledged some room for improvement but stressed that council is the proper body to oversee boards and commissions.
- Councilor Ryan did not speak extensively but noted the value of a handbook concept.
Key Outcomes
- No vote or formal decision was taken on the proposed committee.
- Councilor Smythe committed to revising the resolution to remove the term “oversight” and to circulate a revised proposal for further discussion.
- The idea of a standard handbook for all boards and commissions received broad support, though opinions differed on whether a separate committee was needed to create it.
- The meeting adjourned without a timeline for next steps, but councilors acknowledged the need to address applicant backlogs, term expirations, and onboarding gaps.
Meeting Transcript
Good evening, everyone. Uh, we are here for the workshop. Uh, on the oversight uh committee for boards of commissions. Um, we'll start off with Council Smith if you want to this is your resolution or if you want to start to discuss. Um, do you want me to go? Should I read some of the the resolution or um I would just go I would just jump in and what the basically just the the gist of it of what what the oversight committee is what your thoughts are supposed to be doing. So um, after some feedback that I received from council and from the public, uh, the word oversight, I think was a big hang up for a lot of people. Um, they looked at that as just another level of bureaucracy and interfering with council authority. So I'm going to revise that resolution to take that word out of there because I think that it's very confusing to people. That's not the intent of this committee. It's more of sort of an advisory place. Um, I guess for council, for the boards and commissions, and also for the public. Um, so a lot of what I have found being on the commissions myself. So a lot of what I have found being on the commissions myself, but also, you know, in the past few years, talking to other members, other chairs of the commissions, that there's some struggle with there not being a sort of a set process in how the um commissions are appointed per se. There's a lot of confusion around that. I've I've received numerous um communications that you know, people have applied, they didn't hear anything. It was also my experience that when I was appointed to some of the commissions, I wasn't notified ahead of time. I wasn't notified that the appointment was going to be on the docket. So I I think that there's just some, I don't want to say miscommunication, but I think just some areas that that really need to be sort of tied together. Just to make it a little bit clearer, uh, it was my understanding that as of right now, there are 50 people that have applied to the various boards and commissions that either haven't received any communication as to what has happened with their application. Um that, you know, they they've been waiting for for some up to to three to four years to be appointed to anything. So I think that there is a concern there. I I did meet with one of the executive assistants just to get a better idea of what the process is. Um and again, it wasn't it wasn't really a clear process. And so I went back to rules of council, the charter, just to see, you know, where there was some governing information as to what the process is. And the charter is relatively vague as to what that is. The rules of council did have a couple of paragraphs in there. But to me, even reading it, I I feel as though the chair appointing um the commission members that that in some way that alone does take some of the, I don't want to say authority, but some of the the kind of voting process of of the council as to who is appointed. Um I've also heard from other members that have said that you know they they wouldn't have applied to the commission had it not been for um a chair. Um I didn't ask which one uh that specifically went to them and said, hey, can you please apply? We you know, I'd like you to be on this commission. And that person sort of kind of kind of jumped ahead of the other applicants to get appointed, which which to me there's there's a little bit of of some bias there that I think that we need to to maybe work on sort of avoiding. Um but then I went back to the information that that I received from the chair's office on on the boards and commissions, and I found some interesting information that um and and bear with me, I forgot my glasses, so um I'm trying hard to be able to read my own handwriting. But um a couple of things that I noticed that that there were some commissions that um either had members listed, but those members didn't know that they were part of that commission. Um so there were some commissions that were meeting with members that were less than a quorum and yet they were still having regular meetings. There have been some commissions that, you know, they're they're not up to date on um posting the minutes of their meetings. There's also, you know, there were a few that that their terms had expired and they didn't even know that their terms had expired. Um so they were still acting within the membership with without actually being members. And there were a few that recently that that happened too that I know that when I when I posed those questions that it was in process, I guess there were some negotiations as to whether or not they were going to do one or two or three-year terms. So there was kind of a lapse there, but and and there's a couple of uh members that they haven't been sworn in yet. They're going to meetings, um, but also noticing that out of I think it was 11, 11 out of the 26 boards and commissions that we have. Um there are individuals that are serving up to even five terms. Um, some that have been on the boards and commissions from 10 to 26 years, and and eight of those have consistently been the chairs. been sworn in yet they're going to meetings um but also noticing that out of i think it was 11 11 out of the 26 boards and commissions that we have um there are individuals that are serving up to even five terms um some that have been on the boards and commissions from 10 to to 26 years and and eight of those have consistently been the chairs um not not that that's that's that's a huge concern but i i just feel as though not having not having a better process a more robust process in place that is easy for the public to understand but that also encourages um you know membership that that is reflective of our diverse community um that that there's a little bit more more fairness and equitability in how the members are being appointed but um you know also just I I feel as though our our boards and commissions that there is a a really great opportunity for them to be utilized more to have more of a robust place in being able to help advise council on issues within the community um but to also provide more community support community engagement um what I'm hearing from from some of the commissions is that they would like to do more workshops but they they either aren't sure how to or there are some concerns with facilitating the workshops um and and then there's also some commissions that that have stated you know what what exactly is our our purpose how how can we help council city administration and and the community um so I feel as though there's there's a little bit of a uh a lapse there and an opportunity to really be able to utilize the the subject matter experts that are on our boards and commissions um and also maybe a way of supplementing some of that community engagement for areas that we would typically hire a consultant for I know recently one of the consultants that that we um were gonna hire that there was a an 85,000 dollar line item specific to community engagement that that I feel that there's some some ways that we can even save some money um by utilizing boards and commissions a little bit more so with that um you know I was thinking and and counselor pennick and I have have spoken about it that maybe having a committee that is in place that can sort of help us come up with a better process um that is a little bit more equitable among council and appointing members and that can also meet with the different boards and commissions to help them come up with sort of a standard operating procedure into how they're functioning because I I also know that a lot of a lot of the chairs don't necessarily meet with their new commission members so some people are showing up to the meeting and that and that was also my experience showing up to the first meeting and and you're just diving in and you don't really have uh much of a footing as to okay well what is this commission really working on and and how can my experience and and my knowledge be able to help them so there really isn't that that sort of introductory piece that kind of one-on-one of hey this is what we're working on that I feel as though um the commission's having sort of a standard operating procedure that also includes hey these are the heavier items that we are currently working on this will help get you up to speed as a new member so I I just think that this committee that there's an opportunity for it to sort of uh engage council as to to what council thinks the boards and commissions purposes should be but also to meet with the various boards and commissions and and kind of find out from them you know where are you struggling where are you struggling with membership where are you struggling with the issues that you would like to handle um you know how how can we come up with ways to sort of fine-tune that for you so initially I I had thought that that maybe this could be a committee that would be in place um as as council sees fit sort of sort of an ad hoc committee that it wouldn't be something that that would be permanent just something that would be able to help us to to kind of pull together the process and make it work for us and the community a little bit better. Do you have any thank you, Counselor Smythe. Yeah, I I as someone who was new to serving on a commission it would have I didn't really know like what it was about when I as a resident but I was also lucky enough to serve on a commission of engineers who took their time to like explain everything to me and just help me with like the language and walk me through the process but I know that has not been the experience of other folks. So I think of this as sort of like a commission council liaison like someone who can help us better utilize our boards and commissions because they are a civic asset. And I do think that they're a help to us and I also think that there is opportunity for more residents to be involved if they know a little bit more about what's going on. I'll leave it there. Any other discussion before I open up the public comments.
openpublica.com