East Providence council, mayor’s office at odds over access to department heads

Executive branch is limiting directors’ exposure to legislative side

By Mike Rego
Posted 4/17/19

EAST PROVIDENCE — A simmering rift between the council and the mayor’s office over access to department directors came to a boil at the body’s April 16 meeting, with the results of the …

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East Providence council, mayor’s office at odds over access to department heads

Executive branch is limiting directors’ exposure to legislative side

Posted

EAST PROVIDENCE — A simmering rift between the council and the mayor’s office over access to department directors came to a boil at the body’s April 16 meeting, with the results of the conversation leaving the item’s sponsor still unsatisfied and the matter unresolved.

Ward 4 Councilman Ricardo Mourato raised the issue of Mayor Bob DaSilva’s seeming reluctance to allow the heads of the city’s respective departments to be present at gatherings upon the council’s request, something that was a regular occurrence under the previous form of East Providence governance, that of manager/council.

Under the new structure, elected mayor/council, the administration, represented Tuesday by Director of Policy Marc Furtado, has staked the position a “strong” executive branch has the right to determine if and/or when it would consent to providing the council/legislative branch an avenue to engage with the directors.

The stance of the mayor’s office, asserted by Mr. Furtado, apparently did not sit well with Mr. Mourato nor other members of the council.

“I hate for it to have gotten to this point, but it just needed to be said,” Mr. Mourato reiterated after the meeting. “You can’t tie the hands of the council as it tries to do its legislative duties. I look at it as these are our experts, the department heads. They’re experts in their fields and that’s what we pay them for. We should be able to get their opinion on these issues. I want to hear from our department heads. Those are the people who I trust.”

During Tuesday’s meeting, Mr. Mourato noted at the council’s request City Clerk Samantha Burnett researched how other municipalities contend with the issue of accessing department heads. Mrs. Burnett provided the council with roughly 20 examples, finding the procedure is codified in some charters and isn’t clearly delineated in others.

Mr. Mourato admitted the language in the revised East Providence City Charter pertaining to the matter, Article II Section 2-9.6 “Powers” of the City Council (See accompanying box), could be read as vague. However, he noted regardless in most other municipalities the executive branches “send the department heads when necessary” to the legislative side.

City Solicitor Michael Marcello, clarifying that it was Council President Bobby Britto who requested he render an opinion on the subject after at first saying it was the mayor’s office who sought guidance, said there existed a gray area on the matter in the E.P. Charter while coming down on the side of the executive’s authority to limit council access to directors.

For his part, Mr. Furtado stressed the newness of the city’s governmental structure and the willingness of the executive branch to cooperate, but that the separation of powers was evident and it was about “interpretation” of the charter. He also referred to Charter Article II Section 2-10 about potential "interference" by the council with the mayor's authority (Also see accompanying box).

“The position of the mayor’s office isn’t that we want to stonewall or anything like that, not that we don’t want department heads to appear,” Mr. Furtado said. “It’s just that simply we now have a very clear separation of powers between the legislative branch and the executive branch. And the department heads, with the exception of the city clerk, fall under the executive branch.”

He added, the mayor’s office, which he said was setting “precedents” for future interactions between the branches, would readily make directors available to the council for “legislative matters” such as ordinances, but he also alluded to the mayor’s reluctance to expose department heads to potential and unnecessary public browbeating, a situation they have faced in the past by previous councils.

Mr. Mourato countered, saying, “I don’t buy” that assertion, “and even if it was a clear-cut mayor’s prerogative it still makes no sense.” He stressed the notion of transparency, adding “these things need to be vetted in public.”

“From the beginning this council has shown it’s not the previous council or the council’s before that. We’re all in agreement we don’t need all the department heads at every meeting. For example, you don’t see the chief of police at every meeting,” Mr. Mourato continued, “(The mayor’s office) says they aren’t interfering with the council, but they are interfering because they’re not allowing our experts to express their opinions.”

Charter Section 2-9.6 includes a reference to the "subpoena" authority of the council, something all sides acknowledged Tuesday wasn't the preferable form action to be taken in this situation.

Like his peer, Ward 3 Councilman Nate Cahoon expressed his unease with the current situation. He also said it appeared there was a “conflict” of interest for the solicitor in this particular case.

“There is an inherent conflict when the solicitor has to represent both the executive branch and the legislative branch in situations like we’re discussing right now, potentially a conflict, yes,” Mr. Marcello responded, while explaining his office represents the entire “city.”

Mr. Cahoon also pointed to the council’s role as the legislative branch and its ability to hold the executive accountable through the budgetary process. He recounted how many of the city’s department heads are among the highest paid in their fields in the state. And if they weren’t made available to the public through the council, then it could be taken into consideration when awarding their compensation in the future.

“I’m not saying that they don’t earn those salaries,” Mr. Cahoon said. “But certainly if they’re not going to do things that other department heads are doing throughout the state, then maybe we have to take a look from a value perspective of what those salaries should actually be. And when it comes time to make a budget, maybe we have to make plans accordingly.”

At-Large Councilor Bob Rodericks said the situation was a matter of “common sense” and with the new form of government there “growing pains involved.” Ward 2 Councilor Anna Sousa said it was imperative the mayor’s office and the council cooperate because most residents seek out her and her counterparts on issues, not necessarily the executive. And Mr. Britto, as president of the body, he would continue to work with the mayor and the solicitor to seek an amicable solution to the situation.

As could be deduced from the exchanges, the matter remained unresolved.

But before the discussion ended Tuesday, Mr. Furtado took a conciliatory tone, saying, “I’m not trying to beat around the bush, and it is a work in progress. We want to come up with a process… where does the purview of the executive end the legislative begin or visa versa. The council always has a right to be informed, just as the public has a right to be informed…The mayor is concerned with setting precedents, 10, 20, 30 years down the line…We have to make sure there are checks and balances…We disagree on this particular issue, but we will come to a common ground.”

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