Local governments may publish notices instead of full safety codes

Local governments may publish notices instead of full ordinances adopting certain national codes. The publication option covers national codes for building work, safety, and health. The codes must come from a recognized, established national organization; locally modified versions also qualify. On request, finance officers must give a court clerk or law library in the same county free access to local laws through a printed book, an online link, or an electronic copy. Notices must run once a week for two successive weeks. The ordinance takes effect twenty days after publication finishes, unless a referendum process asking voters to decide is invoked.

Council members must appoint a replacement when the mayor's office becomes vacant. These succession rules cover municipalities governed by a mayor and council. The council president serves as temporary mayor; the vice president steps in if the president is absent, unable to serve, or the president's office is vacant. Appointment requires a majority vote of all council members. A mayor's temporary absence or inability to serve does not create a vacancy. Anyone holding elected municipal office must be a qualified local voter and have lived in the municipality or an annexed area for at least three months before election or appointment. The council must meet as soon as practical after the vacancy. The replacement election occurs at the next regular municipal election or a special election.

Mayors may remove their appointed officers, and workers covered by a local civil service system may request review of suspension or removal. Mayoral removal applies in municipalities governed by a mayor and common council. Civil service review covers municipal employees, police officers, and firefighters where the municipality has adopted that worker protection system. The mayor must believe removal serves the municipality's interests and report the reasons at the next regular council meeting. Workers represented by a labor or employee organization may request board review only if their labor contract specifically allows it. At a requested hearing, workers may appear themselves or through a lawyer. The board may uphold, change, or reverse the decision; its final order may be appealed to circuit court.

Elected municipal officials generally may not hold another municipal position while in office. The restriction applies to elected municipal officials during their time in office. Officials may hold unpaid volunteer positions or provide services paying up to $10,000 per calendar year. Service for a municipal ambulance service in municipalities legally classified as second or third class may pay more than $10,000 per calendar year. Officials may serve on a municipal board, commission, or committee if its founding ordinance or resolution specifically includes them.

Municipal officials and employees face criminal penalties for specified failures or misconduct, and departing officers must hand over municipal property. The criminal rule covers elected officials, appointed officials, and municipal employees. The property handover rule covers departing municipal officers. An obvious failure to perform a duty, or intentional oppression, misconduct, or abuse of office, is a Class 2 misdemeanor, a criminal offense. After conviction, a court may remove the official or employee from the municipal position. A former officer who fails to hand over property is personally responsible for resulting damages, reasonable lawyer fees and costs, and any additional local penalties. The municipality may seek a court order enforcing the duty. Officers must deliver municipal property and records to their successors within five days after leaving office.