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ARTICLE 5. THE EXECUTIVE BRANCH: THE MAYOR and GENERAL PROVISIONS

Annotations By: Jacqueline Bejma

Sec. 5-101. Mayor

The mayor is chief executive of the City and has control of and is accountable for the executive branch of city government

The mayor is accountable to the citizens of the City of Detroit

The Mayor is the chief executive of the City and, as provided by this Charter, has control of and is accountable for the executive branch of City government. The Mayor is also directly accountable to the citizens of the City of Detroit.

Sec. 5-102. The Executive Branch

Executive and administrative authority for implementing services, programs and activities of city government is vested exclusively in the executive branch

Except as otherwise provided by law or this Charter, executive and administrative authority for the implementation of programs, services and activities of city government is vested exclusively in the executive branch.

Sec. 5-103. Mayoral Appointments

The Mayor may appoint a secretary and other necessary assistants.

The mayor must appoint a director for each department of the executive branch

The Mayor may appoint a secretary and other necessary assistants.

Except as otherwise provided by law or this Charter, the Mayor shall appoint for each department of the executive branch a director who serves at the pleasure of the Mayor as head of the department. As used in this chapter, "director" means the administrative head of each department regardless of the title of a particular director.

Sec. 5-104. Other Mayoral Powers

The mayor may administer oaths and take affidavits

The Mayor is a conservator of the peace of the City and may administer oaths and take affidavits.

Sec. 5-105. Appointment of Deputies

The director of each department must appoint a deputy who is to be approved by the mayor

Makes appointment of deputy directors optional

Except as otherwise provided by law or this Charter, the Director of each department of the executive branch may, with the consent of the Mayor, appoint a Deputy. The appointment shall be made and may be revoked without cause by a writing filed with the City Clerk.

Sec. 5-106. Powers and Duties of Department Directors

Each director in the executive branch must:

• Hire, promote, supervise, discipline and remove all employees of the department
• Assign duties and supervise these employees
• Prescribe rules necessary for the organization and internal government of the department
• Create reasonable rules governing dealings between the department and the public
• Present an annual report that measures the performance of the department in quantitative terms; submit the report to the mayor and city council

• Respond to any inquiry or investigation of the ombudsperson, auditor general, Inspector General, Board of Ethics or City Council

Except as otherwise provided by law or this Charter, the Director of each department of the executive branch shall:

1. In accordance with Article 6, Chapter 4, hire, promote, supervise, discipline and remove all employees of the department.
2. Assign duties to the employees and supervise the performance of these duties.
3. Prescribe rules which are necessary for the organization and internal governance of the department. However, no rule may be inconsistent with any collective bargaining contract or any rule or policy of the Human Resources Department.
4. Prepare reasonable rules governing dealings between the department and the public. A rule becomes effective in accordance with section 2-111.
5. Present annually in quantitatively measurable terms the department’s operational performance during the past year and the objective for planned improvement in the coming year. The report shall be submitted to the Mayor and City Council not later than the date established for the Mayor to submit to the City Council a proposed annual budget for the next fiscal year.
6. Respond to any inquiry or investigation of the Inspector General, Ombudsperson, Board of Ethics, Auditor General and City Council.

Sec. 5-107. Powers of a Departmental Deputy

Each deputy will serve under the director’s supervision and during any absence or disability

The Deputy in each department of the executive branch shall, under the Director’s supervision, during the director’s absence or disability, or while the director’s position is vacant, exercise all the powers and perform all the duties of the director to the full extent permitted by law.

Sec. 5-108. Deputy Mayor

The mayor will designate a member of staff of a director of a department to serve as deputy mayor

The deputy mayor will act as mayor during any absence or temporary disability of the mayor

The deputy mayor cannot:

• Exercise power of appointment to or removal from office (except in emergencies declared by 2/3 majority of city council)
• Approve or veto any ordinance or resolution within 5 days of the mayor’s 7 days to exercise a veto

By a writing filed with the City Clerk, the Mayor shall designate a member of the Mayoral staff or the director of a department of the executive branch as the deputy Mayor. The Mayor may terminate the designation without cause by filing a notice of termination with the City Clerk.

During the absence or temporary disability of the Mayor, the Deputy Mayor shall be acting Mayor and shall exercise all the powers and perform all the duties of the Mayor to the full extent permitted by law, except that the Deputy Mayor may not:

1. Exercise any power of appointment to or removal from office, except in an emergency declared by a two-thirds (2/3) majority of City Council members present; or
2. Approve or veto any ordinance or resolution within the first five (5) days of the seven (7) days allowed under section 4-117 for exercise of the Mayor’s veto power.

Sec. 5-109. Succession to Office

If there is a vacancy in the mayor’s office, the president of the city council will succeed the mayor until a new mayor is elected

In cases of dispute over a vacancy in the mayor’s office, the city council president or any  3 members of city council can petition the court for a determination

If a vacancy occurs in the office of Mayor, the City Council president shall succeed to the office until a new Mayor is elected.

If a dispute arises concerning whether a vacancy in the office of Mayor has occurred, the City Council president or any three (3) members of the City Council may petition the appropriate court for a determination of this fact question.

Sec. 5-110. Community Meetings

Each calendar year the Mayor shall hold at least one community meeting in each of the City Council districts, exclusive of the at-large district. A city-wide community meeting shall be held not later than September 30 of each calendar year at auditorium of the Coleman A. Young Municipal Center or other location suited to accommodate an equal number or more citizens. Meetings shall occur between seven (7) o’clock P.M. and eight (8) o’clock P.M. on a day other than when a City Council meeting is held.

The meetings shall be published and noticed in the manner set forth in the Michigan Open Meetings Act. Meetings shall be conspicuously posted on the City of Detroit’s website or then existing medium of electronic or non-print communication and on other forms of media owned or operated by the City of Detroit, including its cable television stations.

Each calendar year the Mayor shall hold at least one community meeting in each of the non at-large districts. A city-wide community meeting shall be held not later than September 30 of each calendar year at the Coleman A. Young Municipal Center auditorium or other location suited to accommodate at least an equal number of citizens. Meetings shall begin between the hours of seven (7) o’clock P.M. and eight (8) o’clock P.M. and shall not conflict with an evening City Council meeting scheduled under section 4-102.

The meetings shall be published and noticed in the manner set forth in the Michigan Open Meetings Act. Meetings shall be conspicuously posted on the City of Detroit’s website or then existing modes of electronic or non-print communication and on other forms of media owned or operated by the City of Detroit, including any television channels.