The Charter Review Board will conduct public hearings on the following proposed charter amendments:

1. Changing the Structure of County Government. The Charter Review Board is considering the three following structural changes, only one of which may be placed on the ballot. These changes include:

a. Reapportioning County Commission Districts 5, 6, & 7, so that the commissioners elected countywide would have to reside in geographically distinct districts.

b. Replacing one elected countywide county commissioner with an elected County Chair, elected countywide, who will serve as spokesperson for the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC), chair the BOCC's meetings, and appoint BOCC members to boards, councils, and authorities. The two remaining countywide commissioners would have to reside in geographically distinct districts.

c. Replacing one county commissioner with an elected County Chair, elected countywide, who will serve as spokesperson to the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC), chair the BOCC's meetings, and appoint BOCC members to boards, councils, and authorities. The two remaining commissioners would be elected from six geographically distinct districts (eliminating elected countywide commissioners).

2. Changing the election of county commissioners from partisan elections to nonpartisan elections.

3. Changing the meeting schedule of the Charter Review Board from every five years to every eight years to coincide with the Presidential election schedule.

4. Limiting increases in the charter government operating budget to 3% or the annual inflation rate, whichever is lower, per year, with a stipulation that this limit can be overridden by a 6-1 vote of BOCC.

5. Amending the previously passed County Auditor proposal.

6. Providing that Charter Review Board Proposed Amendments to the County Charter be placed on the ballot after the conclusion of the Charter Review Board's one year term.

7. Requiring County Administrator to be a member of the International City/County Managers Association upon
appointment.

The Charter Review Board (CRB) will be taking public testimony on these issues at both hearings. The Hillsborough County Charter requires the CRB to conduct two public hearings prior to placing proposed charter changes on the ballot. The Charter requires a vote of at least ten of the fourteen members of the CRB to place items on the ballot. Any proposed changes would be on the November 2002 General Election Ballot.