Purpose

The purpose of this procedure is to outline the Charter of the City of Lansing as it relates to the Board of Police Commissioners and the Lansing Police Department. The Board is established pursuant to Article 5, Chapter 1 and 3, of the City Charter.

Appointment of Board Members

• Members of the Board shall be appointed by the Mayor and with the advice and consent of the City Council (5-103.3).
• Each member shall serve for a term of four years (5-103.3).
• The Board shall be composed of 8 members:
  • 4 members shall be from the City-at-large.
  • One member shall be appointed from each of the 4 wards of the City (5-103.8).
• The term of office expires each year for both a member of large and a member from a ward (5-103.8 and 5-103.9).

Organization of the Board

• The Board shall organize itself for the conduct of its business and select its own officers, including a secretary who shall take minutes of the Board meetings (5-105.1).
• The Board shall adopt its own rules of procedure consistent with the City Charter (5-105.2).
• The rules shall state the schedule of the regular Board meetings. The schedule shall not conflict with regular meetings of the City Council (5-105.3).
• The rules shall require that the public notice of all meeting shall be given in the manner provided by statute for meeting of public bodies (5-105.4).
• The rules shall require that the public have a reasonable opportunity to be heard at all regular meetings of the board (5-105.5).
• All board meetings shall be required to be open to the public to the same extent as meetings of the City Council (5-105.6).
• The rules shall define the extent to which nonattendance at meetings may be grounds for removal from office (5-105.7).

Advisory Board Functions

• The Board shall at its regular meetings review the progress and planning of the Chief of Police to ensure that all activities are in accordance with City policy.; The Board may propose changes in agency operations for the purpose of making its programs more effective (5-106.1).
• The Board of Police Commissioners, at the direction of the Mayor, and through the Hiring/Recruitment Sub-Committee will work closely with Human Resources Department, Human Relations Department and the Chief/Designee to develop and ensure the hiring process for both Certified/Certifiable and Police Recruit candidates is done in a fair and timely manor while adhering to all Federal, State, and Local laws concerning EEO in hiring. As part of this process the Board, at the direction of the Mayor, will encourage all stakeholders to work towards continuous improvement of the process using lessons learned from current and future processes to improve future hiring practices to ensure that it is only transparent, but defensible if challenged. The Sub-Committee will meet quarterly with the resolutions to be presented to the entire Board of Commissioners for those candidates deemed to meet all the criteria for hiring as a Lansing police Officer or a candidate to be sponsored as a Police Recruit.
• Proposed policies and programs or changes in existing policies or programs requiring Council action shall be submitted by the Chief of Police to the Board prior to submission to the Mayor and Council for action. The Board's written recommendations concerning the proposal shall be submitted to the Mayor along with the Chief's proposal. When the Mayor submits the proposal to the Council for action, the Board's recommendations shall also be transmitted to the Council along with that of the Mayor (5-106.2).
• The Department's budget material, including capital improvement proposals, shall be submitted to the Board before submission to the Mayor and the Board's written recommendations shall be submitted to the Mayor along with the Department's recommendations. The Mayor shall transmit the Board's recommendations to the Council along with budget material for that agency (5-106.3).
• The Board shall, prior to December 1, prepare a written report evaluating the effectiveness and analyzing the status and priorities for service and activities of the Department. Copies thereof shall be filed with the Mayor, the Council, and the City Clerk (5-106.4).
• The Board may develop its own proposals for new or altered policies and programs and transmit these to the Mayor and City Council (5-106.5).

Duties

• The Board shall establish administrative rules for the organization and overall administration of the Department including promotional and training procedures in consultation with the Chief of Police and the Mayor. These administrative rules shall not be effectuated in accordance with Section 5-105.8 of the Charter, but shall become effective upon filing with the City Clerk (5-301.2).
• The Board shall approve rules and regulations for the conduct of the members of the Department, in consultation with the Chief of Police and the Mayor (5-301.3).
• The Board shall establish a procedure for receiving and resolving any complaint concerning the operation of the Department (5-301.4).
• The Board shall review and approve the Departmental Budget before its submission to the Mayor (5-301.5).
• The Board shall act as final authority of the City in imposing or reviewing discipline of the Department employees consistent with the terms of the state law and applicable collective bargaining contracts (5-301.6).
• The Board shall render an annual report to the Mayor and City Council, which shall include a description and evaluation of the Department's activities during the previous year including the handling of crime and complaints, if any, and proposals for future plans (5-301.7).
• Whenever necessary to carry out its assigned duties, the Board shall have the same power to subpoena witnesses, administer oaths and require the production of evidence as the City Council (5-302).

Adopted by the Board of Police Commissioners on November 21, 2000.