St. Charles Nixes 3 Standing Committees, Adopts Committee of the Whole Model

ST. CHARLES, IL — The St. Charles City Council is transitioning to a Committee of the Whole structure for its standing committees. This will take effect Feb. 2.

Under this new format, the city’s three current standing committees — Government Operations, Planning and Development, and Government Services — will be consolidated into a single Committee of the Whole.

The Committee of the Whole will meet immediately following the 7 p.m. City Council meetings on the first and third Mondays of each month. The role of Committee chair will rotate among alderpersons each month.

Currently, all 10 alderpersons already serve on each of the three standing committees, attend all committee meetings, and vote on agenda items. This change formally consolidates those committees into one unified meeting structure.

According to city official, the benefits of the Committee of the Whole structure include:

• Streamlined Meetings and Greater Engagement: Consolidating committees streamlines agenda development and discussion. With all committee items reviewed in one meeting, it will be easier to follow City programs, projects, and initiatives — supporting greater transparency and public engagement.
• Expanded Opportunities for Public Comment: Committee of the Whole meetings will include two public comment periods: One at the beginning of the meeting for agenda-related items prior to votes and one at the end of the meeting for general topics These are in addition to the public comment period at the end of each city council meeting, providing a total of three opportunities for public input.
• More Opportunities for discussion and review: The planning and development and government services committees previously met once per month. The new structure provides two opportunities each month to discuss and review agenda items, reducing delays and improving the overall review process.
• Increased Flexibility for Scheduling Special Meetings: By consolidating committees and meeting dates to the first and third Mondays, alternating Mondays are now available for special City Council workshops and strategic discussions.