ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT
MEETING DATE: March 11, 2026 AGENDA CATEGORY: Consent - Ordinances TO: Honorable Mayor and City Council
FROM: Virginia Gennaro, City Attorney
DATE: March 3, 2026
SUBJECT: First Reading of an Ordinance Adding Chapter 2.06, and Subsections, to Title 2 of the Bakersfield Municipal Code to Create a New City Council Appointment Position Entitled Chief Assistant City Attorney.
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends first reading of the Ordinance.
BACKGROUND:
The current City Attorney is expected to retire at the end of 2026 or soon thereafter. The City Council desires to begin recruitment immediately and use whatever remaining time the current City Attorney has to be a mentor to the prospective new city attorney. As such, it is Council’s desire to create a new City Council position called Chief Assistant City Attorney. Based on the Charter, this must be done by ordinance. Therefore, the attached Ordinance is submitted for First Reading. It has been reviewed by the Ad Hoc Committee of Councilmembers Bob Smith and Zack Bashirshtash, who were appointed by the Vice Mayor to oversee the hiring guidelines for the City Attorney recr uitment. In essence, the ordinance creates the contract position and outlines the intent of the Council and contains a sunset provision.
Second Reading is expected on March 25, 2026, and the recruitment will begin soon thereafter with Human Resources taking the lead in recruitment.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The financial impact of a new position will be included as a subcomponent of the Administrative Report for 2 nd reading and will request directions to include a salary range as part of the F iscal Year 2026-27 budget.
COUNCIL GOAL:
Innovative and Efficient City Government
ATTACHMENTS:
Ordinance