The decision on having Peachtree City municipal elections moved to even-numbered years will have to wait a month. The council on April 2 discussed the idea and decided unanimously to continue the topic in May.
That will give city attorney Ted Meeker time to provide a list of examples so that council members can assess how the new elections structure would work and how the terms would be staggered to accomplish the move.
Meeker after the council discussion said he would develop a chart with examples on how the staggered terms would work and which council seats would be involved if such a move were to be made.
Councilman Mike King in February said he introduced the idea of changing elections to even-numbered years during his election campaign, adding that moving city elections to even-numbered years would enhance voter turnout since a higher percentage of voters go to the polls for state and national elections.
Mayor Vanessa Fleisch asked King what kind of feedback he received, with King saying there was no negative feedback.
King said voter turnout on even-numbered years ran 60-80 percent while turnout in municipal elections held during odd-numbered years ran approximately 19-22 percent.
The move to change elections to even-numbered years, if eventually approved, would first require the measure to be approved by the General Assembly whose 2015 session is now concluded.
A switch to having elections in even-numbered years would mean that the terms of some on the council would have to be shortened. To shorten the terms would require a public referendum of city voters.
King noted that shifting city elections to even-numbered years would provide a cost-saving to the city. Meeker responded saying the savings might not amount to $70,000, suggesting that City Clerk Betsy Tyler could check with the Fayette County Elections Department to determine the projected cost-savings.
The posts held by both King and Councilman Eric Imker are up for election later this year.
