At their regular meeting on April 14, the City Commission discussed voter redistricting, changes to the City Employee Handbook, getting a water easement to a local subdivision, and joining the local Hazard Mitigation Plan.
Dan Santee, an attorney and partner with the firm Denton Navarro Rodriguez Bernal Santee & Zech, P.C. (DNRBS&Z), attorneys for the City of Mason, gave a presentation to the Commission on a study regarding voter redistricting in the City of Mason. Following the 2020 Census, the City of Mason did not do a redistricting assessment, Santee said. Even though the City is not experiencing an explosion of growth, like many cities he represents, Santee told the Commission it is a good idea “to run the numbers.” To determine deviation in voting districts in a city, the total population is divided by the number of voting districts, Santee said, with the goal of 10 percent deviation or less. Mason currently has a 29.4% deviation, he said. The Commission will have the redistricting study on its agenda as a discussion and action item next month, said Mayor Robert Rayburn.
Commissioners deliberated at length about some items in the Employee Handbook. By a vote of 3-2, commissioners approved a motion that included: changing the probationary period for employees required to have a CDL from three months to six months; allowing employees to take vacation after six months, instead of waiting until one year of employment; and giving employees “comp time” if their already-scheduled day off falls on a holiday.
