City of Birmingham’s New Approach to Boards & Agencies
In the spirit of transparency, efficiency, and accountability, Mayor Randall Woodfin and the Birmingham City Council have made it a priority to reexamine and improve the roles of city-affiliated boards, agencies, and commissions.
This effort will ensure that the City of Birmingham is cultivating a climate of transparency and overall education for its citizens, while improving the performance of boards and agencies. These entities should be publicly accessible, operationally transparent, and financially responsible.
Our objective is to change the trajectory of our current board and agency appointment system and to implement measures that will equip boards and their members to serve with an emphasis on the values of customer service, efficiency, effectiveness, transparency, and accountability. These new measures include:
- A comprehensive and in-depth review of all city boards and agencies
- Increasing transparency and accessibility by creating an interactive online directory (listed below) that lists all boards and agencies, their functions, their members and term lengths. This portal will also give individuals the ability to apply directly online for board service
- Facilitating Boards & Agencies Orientation Sessions to educate and introduce interested parties to the basic roles and responsibilities of boards and their members
- Placing a clear emphasis on ethical standards and efficient leadership for all board members
Note from the Mayor
“Making appointments to boards and agencies is one of the most important and influential powers the Mayor and City Council possess. Ensuring we are appointing people to boards that understand their fiduciary role is absolutely vital. The Mayor’s Office places a clear expectation on understanding our mission of ‘Putting People First’ and our core values, which include customer service, efficiency, effectiveness, accountability, and transparency. We need to have the same expectations for our board members.”
– Mayor Randall Woodfin
