Staff Writer
A City Council member left a Monday night meeting in apparent frustration after he was not allowed to voice his opinion on a proposed labor contract for the Public Works Department. Mark Goughan paused long enough to vote against the issue as he gathered his council papers and left his council seat after Mayor Miles Williams decided that Goughan could not continue with his prepared statement on the contract.
“My goal is to try to keep this government from growing as fast as it has been,” said Goughan on Monday night as he began reading his statement.
The councilor’s comments came during a discussion to ratify an agreement between the city and the union representing the Public Work Department. The contract is effective from Jan. 1, 2007 through Dec. 31, 2009 and includes language that would pay the 16 employees covered under the contract retroactively. A total of $24,430 was built in the 2007 budget to accommodate these wage changes, according to Steven Buck, city manager. However, the retroactive pay is expected to be less than that amount, according to Buck.
As Goughan was reading his statement, Councilor Robert Albert raised a “point of order” and said that Goughan’s comments should pertain to the motion.
Goughan replied that he was attempting to explain why he was voting against the contract. The councilor said Tuesday that he was reading from an abbreviated version of a letter to the editor. That letter appears in full on page 4A of this week’s Aroostook Republican.
However, the mayor ruled that Albert’s objection stood and Goughan could not continue his statement. He then left the meeting.
“What a disgrace,” said Doug Morrell, another council member, as Goughan departed.
Earlier in the discussion on the contract, Morrell has questioned the 100 percent retroactive pay incorporated in the agreement.
“How did we come to that — in giving the taxpayers’ money away,” said Morrell, adding that each negotiating party should have given in 50 percent.
Williams said that the negotiations for this contract began in 2006 and was finished last month. Negotiators believed this was the best for the city, the mayor said.
The city council voted 5-2 in favor of the contract. Goughan and Morrell were opposed.
Goughan said on Tuesday morning that he should have been afforded the right to speak for two to three minutes regarding the issue.
“The majority of the council are using the charter as a weapon against those of us in the minority,” Goughan said. “That’s rude what they did last night.”
Controversy briefly flared again later in the meeting when the council debated whether to televise workshops over the local cable access channel, during which the 2008 budget proposal is being examined. While the sessions are open for public observation, they are not considered hearings where comments are received from the public, according to Williams.
“I originally was all for this,” said Williams. “But, I’ve changed my mind.”
The mayor said that proposals change during discussion before a final budget draft is ready for public review.
Albert agreed, saying that department heads don’t feel they can speak freely during a televised session. However, another councilor, David Martin, said that during a previous budget workshop not broadcasted that nothing was said that was out of order.
“I support televising,” Martin said.
Morrell said the public has a right to see the proceedings.
‘There’s nothing I’ve heard that can’t be televised,” Morrell said. “We’re here to represent them (taxpayers) and not ourselves.”
Councilors Ken Murchison and Karla Bell voiced opposition to broadcasting the workshops.
Martin made a motion to televise the workshop, with Morrell offering the second. However, the motion failed by a vote of 2-4.
