Proposition 14 under City Charter Article XIX Section 4, oaths
of office: this would amend the charter and not require assistants
to city officers to take oath of office. City officers include elected
city councilmembers that have many assistants that do the day to
day work for the councilmembers. They are privy to all the
intimate details of the political processes and of dealing with the public.
As such, they need to be sworn in as much as the council
members or other city officers. Do not take away this time honored,
reasonable requirement that they must be accountable in their
positions of public trust, Vote No on Proposition 14 on November 2, 1999.
Statement prepared by:
Fred Bucke
Linda Jordan
Phone: (206) 523-6066
Rebuttal to Statement Against
The current Charter is very vague about which City officers
and employees need to take an oath. It is arguable that every
City employee and volunteer member of a commission needs to
take an oath since each is an "assistant" to some officer. This
could result in a situation in which several dozen people a day have
to take oaths, for no real purpose.
Proposition 14 would clarify that only elected officials and
department heads need to take oaths. Changing the requirement in
no way lessens accountability. Individuals are held
accountable through a variety of laws, personnel standards, and ethics rules.
Proposition 14 simply clarifies the requirement for oaths and
limits it to a reasonable group of individuals in leadership positions.
Vote YES.
Rebuttal prepared by:
Paul Schell, Mayor, City of Seattle
Sue Donaldson, President, Seattle City Council