Provo Municipal Council members often disagree with one another on big decisions, but seldom does an empty seat cause this much ruckus.

The council is in the midst of a two-week process to appoint a successor to George Stewart, who resigned his Council seat early to serve a church mission in Mexico City. More than 20 Provoans have applied for the chance to serve out the remaining year of his term. But a questionnaire sent to applicants Monday has drawn questions of its own from Councilman Steve Turley, who said it appears to be a "litmus test" for those interested in the job.

One question reads: "How should the government balance private property rights against the public interest?" Turley, who was not involved in the drafting process before the questionnaire went out, said he suspects council leadership is looking for a particular political philosophy -- one that trends with their penchant for "being pretty aggressive on the public good over the private right."

"Instead of judging the person on their qualities, on their capabilities, we just throw out a question that I think inappropriately filters candidates for this office," he said. "I think that there's in-bounds questions and there's out-of-bounds questions. We have statutory responsibilities that are spelled out by the Legislature. We further have those spelled out in our own city code, and that question -- that philosophical question -- isn't in any of those specified prescribed duties."

Lincoln Shurtz, director of legislative affairs for the Utah League of Cities and Towns, said there is no statutory mandate to include questionnaires in the application process, but it is customary. He declined to say whether he thought the property rights question is "cherry-picking," as Turley claims.

"It's not legally inappropriate," he said.

Cynthia Dayton, the council's new chairwoman, wrote the questionnaire with Vice Chairwoman Sherrie Hall Everett and council attorney Neil Lindburg. She said the council is not trying to filter candidates -- it's not even looking for a specific answer. Instead, the question is intended to reflect applicants' knowledge of land use and zoning issues the council routinely faces, she said.

"That's one of the things we do," she said. "They're just aspects of what we deal with on a consistent basis. Why he decided to have a problem with it is his viewpoint."

Turley likened it to Congress reviewing a candidate for the U.S. Supreme Court and including a question about abortion during the vetting process.

"If some guy says that he is against abortion, boom, you can be guaranteed that Senate Democrats will not vote for approval," he said.

Taylor Oldroyd, CEO of the Utah County Association of Realtors, said he also thinks the question stinks. He said it appears to "stack the deck" against some candidates and favor one in particular: David Acheson, co-chairman of Provo's Wasatch neighborhood, who Oldroyd said has been "very vocal in the past about his view of private property rights."

"They're trying to find a narrow response to this," he said. "How they worded that question makes it hard for me to believe that anybody can answer that in a way that is fair. ... I thought private property rights was in the public interest."

Hall Everett said the council does not have a favorite candidate and is not looking for a particular leaning in the answer to the question.

"The council is seriously considering all 22 applicants," she said. "Those are the primary concerns the council deals with. When I was out campaigning, it was a question I was asked."

The council will name its new member on Jan. 20.

QUESTIONS FOR COUNCIL APPLICANTS

1. Describe what you can contribute to the council.

2. What are the top three issues the council should address?

3. How should the government balance private property rights against the public interest?

4. How can the council best manage the city's budget?

• Ace Stryker can be reached at 344-2556 or astryker@heraldextra.com.