How should San Antonio update the city charter?

Texas Public Radio
By David Martin Davies
Published January 18, 2024 at 1:47 PM CST

This November as many in San Antonio will head to the polls to vote on the race for president and other political offices, there will likely be some important local questions to weigh in on.

There will be questions about the future governance for the city of San Antonio.

City Hall is in the early stages of preparing proposed charter changes that voters would have to approve of. These changes could provide better representation at city council depending on what the charter review commission compiles for the voters.

San Antonio's city charter is basically the city's constitution. It establishes the city's government structure and distributes powers and duties among the branches of government.

The charter can only be amended every two years by a public vote.

Most of the time the changes put before voters have been tinkering around the edges of the overall document, but now there seems to be an appetite for some major structural changes to the charter, including possibly expanding the number of city council seats, changing how long council members will serve and when the election will be.

There’s a lot being considered with the aim of providing greater representation and ending up with better local governing.

Guests:

Bonnie Prosser Elder is chair of the San Antonio Charter Review Commission.

David Zammiello is chair of the San Antonio Charter Review Commission.

"The Source" is a live call-in program airing Mondays through Thursdays from 12-1 p.m. Leave a message before the program at (210) 615-8982. During the live show, call 833-877-8255 or email [email protected].

This interview will air on Thursday, January 18, 2024.