The St. Louis Board of Aldermen is the lawmaking body of St. Louis, an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It consists of 14 alderpersons who are each elected from one of the city's wards. The President of the Board of Aldermen is a separate position that is elected citywide, has the same voting power as the alderpersons, and serves as the body's presiding officer.
Alderpersons may introduce legislation known as board bills, which are subject to approval by the mayor if passed by the Board. The Board is responsible for setting the city budget and conducting oversight of city departments and agencies.
The Board meets in the north wing of City Hall, located in the Downtown West neighborhood. Regular elections to the Board of Aldermen are held in the spring of odd-numbered years. Beginning with the 2023 elections, the Board of Aldermen was reduced from 28 members to 14.
The Board of Aldermen consists of one representative from each of the city's 14 wards. The body's President is elected separately by a citywide ballot. Like the mayor, alderpersons representing odd-numbered wards are elected in odd numbered years following the United States Presidential Election, while the President of the Board and the alderpersons from even-numbered wards are elected in the off-years. All alderpersons serve terms are four years.[1]
Proposition R (2012)
Proposition R (2012) was a charter amendment passed in November 2012 to reduce the number of city of St. Louis alderpersons from 28 to 14. It was slated to take place 10 years in the future (effective January 1, 2022) and was passed by city voters on November 6, 2012, with 61 percent voting in favor (60 percent was needed for passage).[2]
Proposition D (2020)
Proposition D, a ballot measure to make municipal elections in St. Louis officially non-partisan, was passed by city voters on November 3, 2020 with 68 percent voting in favor.[3] Proposition D also changed St. Louis municipal elections to use approval voting, which allows voters to vote for as many candidates in a race as they would like, with each of their choices carrying an equal weight, meaning they do not rank the candidates.[4]
Proposition R (2022)
Proposition R (2022) called for an independent commission to draw boundaries between the wards of St. Louis and ensured that that the board was not able to change the election method without a public vote.[5] Prop R also strengthened ethics by creating new stipulations for conflicts of interest and required alderpersons to recuse themselves when such conflicts arise. Finally, it changed the "Board of Aldermen" to the gender-neutral "Board of Alderpersons."[6]
Powers
By custom and tradition, an alderperson has a great deal of influence over decisions impacting the ward they represent on matters ranging from zoning changes, to street resurfacing, to tax abatement to business licensing, etc.
By city charter, alderpersons are legislators. Alderpersons introduce laws and legislation known as board bills that can become city ordinances which can impact the quality of lives of city residents.
Committees
Since April 2023, the Board of Aldermen has had seven standing committees.[7]
Committee
Chair
Budget & Public Employees
Cara Spencer (8th)
Health & Human Development
Pam Boyd (13th)
Housing, Urban Development, & Zoning
Shameem Clark-Hubbard (10th)
Legislation & Rules
Joe Vollmer (5th)
Public Infrastructure & Utilities
Anne Schweitzer (1st)
Public Safety
Bret Narayan (4th)
Transportation & Commerce
Shane Cohn (3rd)
Qualifications
To become an alderperson, one must be a registered voter, twenty-five years of age, have been a United States citizen for at least five years, a resident of the city for three years, and for one year a resident of the ward from which elected. The President must be at least thirty years of age and a city resident for at least five years.[8][9]
Membership
While the office of alderperson is officially nonpartisan, all incumbents are either Democrats or independents. The last Republican to hold a Board seat lost re-election in 2011.[10] The following table is accurate as of April 18, 2023.
The president presides at all the meeting, preserves decorum and determines all questions of order. The president appoints standing and special committees and serves as an equal member of all committees. The president assigns bills to appropriate committees and refers bills, when ready, to the Engrossment Committee. The president directs action from the broad elevated podium in the front and center of the semi-circulate position.
^"St. Louis Board of Aldermen will have all Democrats, two new faces". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. April 9, 2015. Retrieved July 2, 2018.
External links
Board of Aldermen of the City of St. Louis
August 23, 2023
louis, board, aldermen, this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations, reliable, sources, unsourced, material, challenged, removed, find, sources, news, newspapers, books, scholar, jstor, jun. This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources St Louis Board of Aldermen news newspapers books scholar JSTOR June 2021 Learn how and when to remove this template message The St Louis Board of Aldermen is the lawmaking body of St Louis an independent city in the U S state of Missouri It consists of 14 alderpersons who are each elected from one of the city s wards The President of the Board of Aldermen is a separate position that is elected citywide has the same voting power as the alderpersons and serves as the body s presiding officer St Louis Board of AldermenCity of St LouisTypeTypeUnicameralTerm limitsNoneLeadershipPresidentMegan Green since November 18 2022Vice PresidentShane Cohn since April 18 2023Floor LeaderShameem Clark Hubbard since April 18 2023Assistant Floor LeaderRasheen Aldridge since April 18 2023StructureSeats14 ward based alderpersons and 1 city wide president officially non partisan Political groups Democratic 14 AuthorityCharter of the City of St LouisSalary 72 000 year alderpersons 80 000 year President ElectionsVoting systemNonpartisan blanket primary using approval votingLast electionApril 4 2023Next electionApril 1 2025RedistrictingLegislative controlMeeting placeSt Louis City HallWebsitestlouis mo gov BoardofAldermenAlderpersons may introduce legislation known as board bills which are subject to approval by the mayor if passed by the Board The Board is responsible for setting the city budget and conducting oversight of city departments and agencies The Board meets in the north wing of City Hall located in the Downtown West neighborhood Regular elections to the Board of Aldermen are held in the spring of odd numbered years Beginning with the 2023 elections the Board of Aldermen was reduced from 28 members to 14 Contents 1 Composition 1 1 Proposition R 2012 1 2 Proposition D 2020 1 3 Proposition R 2022 2 Powers 3 Committees 4 Qualifications 5 Membership 6 List of presidents 7 Party composition 8 Notes 9 References 10 External linksComposition EditThe Board of Aldermen consists of one representative from each of the city s 14 wards The body s President is elected separately by a citywide ballot Like the mayor alderpersons representing odd numbered wards are elected in odd numbered years following the United States Presidential Election while the President of the Board and the alderpersons from even numbered wards are elected in the off years All alderpersons serve terms are four years 1 Proposition R 2012 Edit Proposition R 2012 was a charter amendment passed in November 2012 to reduce the number of city of St Louis alderpersons from 28 to 14 It was slated to take place 10 years in the future effective January 1 2022 and was passed by city voters on November 6 2012 with 61 percent voting in favor 60 percent was needed for passage 2 Proposition D 2020 Edit Proposition D a ballot measure to make municipal elections in St Louis officially non partisan was passed by city voters on November 3 2020 with 68 percent voting in favor 3 Proposition D also changed St Louis municipal elections to use approval voting which allows voters to vote for as many candidates in a race as they would like with each of their choices carrying an equal weight meaning they do not rank the candidates 4 Proposition R 2022 Edit Proposition R 2022 called for an independent commission to draw boundaries between the wards of St Louis and ensured that that the board was not able to change the election method without a public vote 5 Prop R also strengthened ethics by creating new stipulations for conflicts of interest and required alderpersons to recuse themselves when such conflicts arise Finally it changed the Board of Aldermen to the gender neutral Board of Alderpersons 6 Powers EditBy custom and tradition an alderperson has a great deal of influence over decisions impacting the ward they represent on matters ranging from zoning changes to street resurfacing to tax abatement to business licensing etc By city charter alderpersons are legislators Alderpersons introduce laws and legislation known as board bills that can become city ordinances which can impact the quality of lives of city residents Committees EditSince April 2023 the Board of Aldermen has had seven standing committees 7 Committee ChairBudget amp Public Employees Cara Spencer 8th Health amp Human Development Pam Boyd 13th Housing Urban Development amp Zoning Shameem Clark Hubbard 10th Legislation amp Rules Joe Vollmer 5th Public Infrastructure amp Utilities Anne Schweitzer 1st Public Safety Bret Narayan 4th Transportation amp Commerce Shane Cohn 3rd Qualifications EditTo become an alderperson one must be a registered voter twenty five years of age have been a United States citizen for at least five years a resident of the city for three years and for one year a resident of the ward from which elected The President must be at least thirty years of age and a city resident for at least five years 8 9 Membership EditWhile the office of alderperson is officially nonpartisan all incumbents are either Democrats or independents The last Republican to hold a Board seat lost re election in 2011 10 The following table is accurate as of April 18 2023 Ward Position Map Member Took office Corridor Major neighborhood s served Current term expiresPresident Megan Green 2022 At large 2027Ward 1 Anne Schweitzer 2021 South Carondelet Patch Bevo Mill 2025Ward 2 Tom Oldenburg 2017 South St Louis Hills Princeton Heights Boulevard Heights 2027Ward 3 Shane Cohn 2009 South Dutchtown 2025Ward 4 Bret Narayan 2019 South Dogtown Lindenwood Park 2027Ward 5 Joe Vollmer 2003 South The Hill North Hampton Southwest Garden 2025Ward 6 Daniela Velazquez 2023 South Tower Grove South Shaw Compton Heights 2027Ward 7 Alisha Sonnier 2023 Central South Tower Grove East Benton Park West 2025Ward 8 Cara Spencer 2015 Central South Downtown Soulard Lafayette Square 2027Ward 9 Michael Browning 2023 Central Central West End Forest Park Southeast 2025Ward 10 Shameem Clark Hubbard 2019 Central North Skinker DeBaliviere West End 2027Ward 11 Laura Keys 2022 Central North JeffVanderLou O Fallon Midtown 2025Ward 12 Sharon Tyus 2013 a North The Ville Penrose 2027Ward 13 Pamela Boyd 2017 North Wells Goodfellow North Riverfront 2025Ward 14 Rasheen Aldridge 2023 Central North Downtown St Louis Place Hyde Park 2027List of presidents EditThe president presides at all the meeting preserves decorum and determines all questions of order The president appoints standing and special committees and serves as an equal member of all committees The president assigns bills to appropriate committees and refers bills when ready to the Engrossment Committee The president directs action from the broad elevated podium in the front and center of the semi circulate position Party President Tenure RefRepublican Louis P Aloe 1917 1924 11 Republican Walter J G Neun 1924 1935Democratic William L Mason 1935 1941Republican Michael J Hart 1941 1943Republican Aloys P Kaufmann 1943 1943Republican Edgar S Nicolai 1943 1945Republican Albert L Schweitzer 1945 1947Republican Charles Albanese 1947 1955Democratic Donald Gunn 1955 1959Democratic A J Cervantes 1959 1963Democratic Donald Gunn 1963 1968Democratic James Noonan 1968 1969Republican Joseph Badaracco 1969 1975Republican Paul Simon 1975 1980Democratic Eugene Bradley 1980 1980Democratic Thomas Zych 1980 1987Democratic Thomas A Villa 1987 1995Democratic Francis G Slay 1995 2001Democratic James F Shrewsbury 2001 2007Democratic Lewis E Reed 2007 2022Democratic Joseph Vollmer interim 2022 2022Democratic Megan Green 2022 incumbent Party composition EditParty compositionYear 12 Democratic Republican Independent1945 8 20 01947 8 20 01949 13 15 01951 17 11 01953 21 7 01955 24 4 01957 24 4 01959 24 4 01961 24 4 01963 24 4 01965 26 2 01967 22 6 01969 24 4 01971 24 4 01973 25 3 01975 26 2 01977 27 1 01979 26 2 01981 26 2 01983 27 1 02009 27 1 02011 27 0 12013 27 0 12015 13 28 0 02017 28 0 02019 28 0 02021 28 0 02023 14 0 0Notes Edit Tyus was previously an alderwoman from 1991 to 2003 References Edit Laws and Lawmaking stlouis mo gov Propositions pass to cut St Louis aldermen return local police control St Louis Business Journal November 7 2012 Retrieved January 16 2016 St Louis Missouri Proposition D Approval Voting Initiative November 2020 Ballotpedia Retrieved 14 March 2021 St Louis Missouri Proposition D Approval Voting Initiative November 2020 Ballotpedia Pro amp Con How Prop R would affect St Louis Board of Aldermen STLPR Retrieved 2022 10 25 St Louis Missouri Proposition R Redistricting Commission Public Vote to Change Voting Methods and Conflicts of Interest Requirements Initiative April 2022 Ballotpedia Rules of the St Louis Board of Aldermen 2023 24 Session PDF About the Board of Aldermen stlouis mo gov St Louis City Board of Aldermen Rules Archived from the original on 2015 03 12 Retrieved 2013 10 07 McDermott Kevin April 9 2015 St Louis Board of Aldermen will have all Democrats two new faces St Louis Post Dispatch Stein Lana 2002 St Louis Politics The Triumph of Tradition St Louis Missouri Missouri Historical Society Press p 255 Lana Stein St Louis Politics page 174 St Louis Board of Aldermen will have all Democrats two new faces St Louis Post Dispatch April 9 2015 Retrieved July 2 2018 External links EditBoard of Aldermen of the City of St Louis Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title St Louis Board of Aldermen amp oldid 1160439485, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
