JH Travel & Tourism board updates bylaws to formalize ED authority

The Jackson Hole Travel & Tourism Joint Powers Board considered an amended set of bylaws March 12 that expand and clarify the board’s authority to employ staff and centralize day-to-day personnel management under an Executive Director. The updated bylaws state the board is authorized (via the joint powers agreement, as amended March 4) to “employ such persons as it deems necessary,” while retaining authority to contract for services as needed (Lodging Tax Board Meeting Agenda; Jackson Hole Travel and Tourism Joint Powers Board Bylaws Attachment).

Under the amended language, the full board retains the power to hire, fire and discipline the Executive Director, and the ED is charged with proposing an annual marketing/management plan and budget and then implementing it after board approval. The bylaws also give the ED authority to hire, fire and discipline all other employee positions authorized through the budgeting process, with all employees reporting directly to the ED and taking direction “solely” from the ED — a structure the bylaws say is intended to keep the ED accountable to the board as a whole rather than to individual members or committees (Jackson Hole Travel and Tourism Joint Powers Board Bylaws Attachment).

The amendment also codifies at-will employment status and ties compensation to a board-adopted salary matrix: the board sets the ED’s salary within that matrix, and the ED sets all other staff salaries within the same parameters. The bylaws allow amendments by majority vote but require that proposed changes be presented at a regular meeting and held for at least 30 days before action (Jackson Hole Travel and Tourism Joint Powers Board Bylaws Attachment).