Milton Council Member Alan Lowery is seeking the support of Milton citizens into placing term limits on elected officials, through a ‘12 is enough for Milton’ campaign and a petition which could take the item to a future election ballot.
Lowery has been the lone council member to advocate for restricting term limits, which can be continuous with each four-year term “until their respective successors are elected and qualified,” according to the Milton City Charter.
A suggestion to creating term limits was brought up during an executive committee meeting last year. While a majority of the council voiced their objections to the term limit restriction, Mayor Wesley Meiss did support such a measure at the particular time.
Many of the council members said citizens already have the ability to decide whether an incumbent should remain in office or be replaced come election time. Other council members said term limits could prohibit elected officials from seeing tasks accomplished while in office.
The petition calls for amendment change to the city’s charter which would allow council members and the mayor to serve no more than three consecutive four-year elective terms.
Lowery said his stance on term limits stems from elected officials receiving retirement funds.
“My biggest deal is that we should not be getting retirement. If we put in 20 years, according to the state, we have to get half of our pay,” Lowery said. “This is not a retirement job. This is a job you do for your love of the community, not for the money.”
Lowery said copies of the petition are located at several Milton businesses and the form is available for download at the ‘12 is Enough for Milton’ Facebook page.
Lowery is seeking at least 700 signed petitions from valid citizens living within Milton city limits.
“As soon as we get to 700, I will present it to the council… and we won’t have a choice as a council but to have it put on the ballot,” he said. “The people can decide what they want. If they vote it down, then that is fine but at least then they had the opportunity.”
This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Lone Milton Council Member seeks term limits through petition