Westfield Council approves term limits for elected offices despite concerns over legality

Elected leaders in Westfield will have term limits starting in 2024, that is, if no legal challenges come forward against the new ordinance.

The Westfield City Council voted 5-2 at a public meeting Monday night to approve a maximum of two four-year terms for the mayor and city council members and a maximum of three four-year terms for the clerk-treasurer.

Councilors Troy Patton, Jake Gilbert, Mike Johns, Scott Frei and Joe Edwards voted in favor of approving term limits. Councilors Cindy Spoljaric and Scott Willis voted against the ordinance.

The term limits would begin in January 2024 after the 2023 municipal elections. Time in office prior to 2024 would not count toward the new requirements, according to the ordinance.

More:Westfield City Council to consider term limits for council, mayor and clerk-treasurer

More:Term limit ordinance introduced to Westfield council, remains under discussion

Should new term limits remain in place, they could impact Westfield’s future as many of the city’s elected leaders have historically served multiple terms.

Mayor Andy Cook has occupied the city’s top job since 2008. Clerk-treasurer Cindy Gossard was appointed to her role in 2001 and has been elected to four-year terms since 2003.

Could term limits set up a potential legal battle in Westfield's future?

But the biggest concern Monday evening for some officials were potential legal costs the city could incur should a lawsuit come forward to challenge the new ordinance.

State law does not specify term limits for municipalities. Attorneys for the city and the city council said Monday night that there is no case law that fully addresses the subject. If legal challenges appear, Westfield could vote to hire specialists to fight lawsuits, the city's attorney Manny Herceg said.

"It's never really been addressed by a court, but there in lies the problem," Herceg said Monday. "I think this would not pass legal muster. I think a court would legally overturn it."

Spoljaric and Willis shared similar concerns about the legal entanglements the city could see from approving the ordinance. Mayor Andy Cook suggested the city council instead consider investing legal funds toward pursuing staggered term limits.

"I just see this being full of landmines that we're going to have to navigate," Willis said. "From a fiscal conservative standpoint, I don't think this is a good use of taxpayer dollars."

But councilors who voted in favor of the ordinance said they believed it would bring new voices into government decisions. It could "get the old roosters out of the house," Councilman Joe Edwards said.

"I think this is the right thing," Patton, who proposed the ordinance said. "I think it's the right thing for not only today, but 15 years, 20 years from now. Not only for the people that are sitting up here, but for people who come after us and maybe for the state of Indiana."

In 2018, the Evansville City Council proposed term limits for elected officials, but councilors shot down the proposal with a 5-4 vote.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Westfield City Council approves term limits to start in 2024