Hildale patient about filling council post
 Mayor says there's no hurry to replace respected former UEP trustee
 
By Patrice St. Germain
patrices@thespectrum.com
WILLIAM E. JESSOP COUNCIL ATTENDANCE RECORD

William Jessop was appointed in June 2004 to finish the unexpired term of Fred Jessop.
  • In 2004, from the time he was appointed, there were nine meetings. Jessop missed one - a special meeting on June 21.

  • In 2005, the Hildale City Council had 12 regular meetings and eight special meetings.

  • Jessop attended three regular meetings (the last regular meeting attended was April 2005) and three special meetings (the last special meeting attended was May 7, 2005).

  • Jessop was absent for six regular meetings and two special meetings.

  • Jessop was excused for three regular meetings and three special meetings.

  • Jessop's overall attendance: Attended six meetings, absent eight meetings and excused six meetings.

  • In 2006, the Hildale council has had two meetings. Jessop was excused for both meetings.

HILDALE - A former United Effort Plan trustee elected to serve a two-year term on the Hildale City Council attended six meetings out of 20 during 2005, the year he ran for election.

William E. Jessop, also known as William E Timpson, attended six regular and special meetings out of the 20 the City Council held, leaving 14 meetings that Jessop did not attend.

The last meeting he attended was a special meeting in May 2005, the month before a 3rd District Court judge removed Jessop and five others as trustees of the UEP, the financial arm of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. But despite his poor attendance record, Hildale Mayor David Zitting is not planning to rush into appointing another councilor because of the high respect he and other councilors have for Jessop and, in part, because of difficulties the city has had in the past with filling council vacancies.

"I'm not in a hurry to make a change," Zitting said. "When Uncle Fred (Fred Jessop) left, it took months and months to fill that vacancy."

Jessop was marked excused for October to December 2005 and for January and February of this year, although Zitting said he has not had any contact with Jessop in several months.

Jessop was marked absent for three months in a row from July to September 2005, which, by state code 10-3-301, indicates an open position.

The difference between an absence and excused is contact.

Absences are when a councilor doesn't show up at a meeting without letting anyone know he will not be present. Excused indicates there is some contact with someone within the municipality - generally the mayor, city recorder or city manager - as to why a councilor will not be at a meeting.

Zitting also said the council had the desire to excuse Jessop, a former church bishop, because the council valued his opinion and input when he did attend meetings.

Zitting said he assumes Jessop still lives in town but has not spoken to or seen him in several months. He said he wasn't sure where Jessop worked.

Zitting said he was not sure if the city had an ordinance pertaining to council attendance and state code leaves it up to the municipality to require attendance of its own members.

In Hildale, city councilors are paid $70 for each regular meeting they attend, although payment is not given if the councilor does not attend the meeting regardless if he is absent or excused.

Hurricane City has an ordinance specifically dealing with the mayor and council including a section on attendance in place. The section of the ordinance states that if an elected city officer is absent from the city any time during his term of office for a continuous period of more than sixty (60) days without the consent of the City Council, the city office is automatically vacant.

Hurricane City Manager Clark Fawcett, who has been with the city more than 20 years, said that the city never had to enforce that part of the ordinance.

"Our worse case was years ago when we had a mayor who had property in California and he missed some meetings, but it wasn't very frequent," Fawcett said.

Mayor Zitting said that despite the absent councilman, the city council is still functional, although Fawcett has his own feelings on that issue.

"When you are short a member or two, if you are voting, it has to be a unanimous situation. Otherwise it's a non-meeting and I think that puts the pressure to vote to the point a member may not be voting the way they really want to," Fawcett said.

Missing too many meetings if you are on the St. George City Council could get the law after the absent councilor. The ordinance section pertaining to council attendance states that an absent councilor can be compelled to attend a meeting and the chief of police can enforce the attendance.

St. George City Recorder Gay Cragun said St. George councilors have all been good about attending meetings.
 
TheSpectrum.com
Originally published February 18, 2006
 
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