Welcome, community! If you did not read the Action Alert from 4/22/24, please do so now. It will give you the background on the public utilities (GRU) referendum that the LWV of Alachua County supports wholeheartedly.

Your Action is Needed: 05/20/24

The first of two required readings of an ordinance to repeal Article 7 in the city charter, which created the GRU Authority, happened at the city commission meeting on May 16 at 1:00 p.m., in City Hall. All seven commissioners voted in favor of putting a referendum on the general election ballot. Unanimous! The vote required a supermajority, so at least six commissioners had to vote in favor. Getting all seven votes was due to the work of a collaborative group including our league, the Alachua County Labor Coalition, the Sierra Club, unions, the NAACP and GRU customers.

On May 23 at 1 p.m. at City Hall, the second ordinance reading will take place. Again, a supermajority of city commissioners must vote in favor. The ordinance would allow voters to choose whether our public utility (GRU) should be under the direction of a governor-appointed board or under our local elected officials. The LWV has a strong stance that home rule is served when local officials govern our local utility.

With this issue, public support really, really matters!

This week’s ask:

1. Look at your calendar on 5/23/24 from 1 – 2:30 p.m. Is there anything urgent? If not, please plan on attending the city commission meeting at City Hall, 200 E. University Ave. Parking is right out front. We need to have 30 people in the audience. No need to speak. We will give you a purple Home Rule for GRU sticker that you can wear to show support. Bring a friend.
2. Can’t attend? Then please send an email, even if you have already sent one. Here’s the address for all six commissioners and Mayor Ward: CityComm [at] cityofgainesville.org. Below is verbiage you can use (or use your own verbiage).

Subject line: I support a referendum for our public utilities

Dear Mayor and Commissioners;

Thank you for your vote that approved the first reading of an ordinance that will allow a ballot referendum on who should govern our public utilities (GRU). The legislative law that changed the Gainesville city charter and turned our utility over to a governor-appointed board was an affront to democracy and home rule. I support reclaiming our democracy by allowing voters to choose whether a governor-appointed board or our local elected officials should govern our public utility. Let voters discuss the merits of each system and then vote their preference on the general election ballot.

Please vote “yes” to approve the second reading of the ordinance on May 23, 2024.

Sincerely,
(your name)
(GRU customer?)
(Gainesville resident?)