1 STAFF REPORT
DATE: February 8, 2022
TO: Justin Hess, City Manager
FROM: Judie Wilke, Assistant City Manager
SUBJECT: Adoption of F indings to Continue Virtual Meetings for City Council and all Other City Boards, Commissions and Committees During the Pandemic
RECOMMENDATION
Adopt the following finding: A s a result of the statewide emergency due to the COVID Pandemic (Pandemic), holding any City Council, Board, Commission or Committee meeting in person would present imminent risk to the health or safety of attendees.
BACKGROUND
Based on the Governor’s Executive Order suspending parts of the Brown Act during the Pandemic, the City Council, like numerous other legislative bodies in the state, have been holding virtual Council meetings with telephonic public participation and electronic attendance. The Governor’s Executive Order expired on September 30, 2021 and in its place the California legislature passed, and the Governor signed, Assembly Bill (AB) 361 amending the Brown Act to allow the continuation of virtual meetings.
DISCUSSION
AB 361 (Act) is an urgency measure allowing the suspension of certain Brown Act requirements so local legislative bodies may hold virtual meetings during a n emergency declared by the Governor. The meeting requirements contained in AB 361 are similar to the requirements the City has been adhering to since spring of 2020. Pursuant to the Act, the City Council must determine that there is an imminent risk to the health or safety of attendees of an in- person meeting to be able to hold virtual meetings . The Act also requires the Council to review the emergency and the finding of imminent harm every 30 days to continue virtual meetings.
CITY MANAGER’S
OFFICE
2 The Governor initially declared a State of Emergency due to the Pandemic in March 2020.
This State of Emergency has not been terminated. Therefore, one of the requirements of AB 361 is satisfied since there is still a Governor-declared State of Emergency.
The other necessary requirement is finding that in-person meetings will result in imminent risk to the health and safety of attendees due to the pandemic. On December 1, 2021, County officials confirmed the detection of a new COVID-19 variant, Omicron, in Northern California.1 This variant is highly transmissible and Los Angeles County has seen an alarming high number of positive cases since the start of December . On January 20, 2022, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health (County) reported 42,115 positive cases and 102 new deaths. This was the highest number of deaths since March 2021.2 The number of positive cases has been declining over the past few weeks ; however, it remains high, and the public is asked to take all necessary safety precautions.
On January 31, 2022, the County reported 10,715 new positive cases and 40 new deaths due to COVID-19.3
Keeping the community safe from COVID -19 continues to be of extreme importance.
Having in-person Council meetings would result in the City Council sitting on the dais , and staff in very close proximity to each other, as well as members of the public sitting in the audience being in close contact with each other. Also, attendees may or may not be vaccinated.
Further, the meetings occur indoors, and a typical Council meeting runs longer than three hours. Based on the high community transmission rates and the risks from COVID as articulated in the County’s newest Health O rder, t hese factors increase the possible transmission rate of COVID even if all participants are wearing mask s. As such, holding in-person meetings will result in imminent risk to attendees. The same is true for City Board, Commission and Committee meetings, even if not held in Council Chambers.
FISCAL IMPACT
Allowing the continuation of virtual Council meetings, as well as Board, Commission and Committee meetings will not result in any new or added cost from what the City has been incurring since April 2020.
1 http://www.publichealth.lacounty.gov/phcommon/public/media/mediapubhpdetail.cfm?prid=3539
2http://publichealth.lacounty.gov/phcommon/public/media/mediapubdetail.cfm?unit=media&ou=ph& prog=media&cur=cur&prid=3640&row=25&start=1
3http://publichealth.lacounty.gov/phcommon/public/media/mediapubdetail.cfm?unit=media&ou=ph&prog=medi a&cur=cur&prid=3658&row=25&start=1
3 CONCLUSION
If the Council wishes to continue holding virtual meetings as it has done since April 2020, then the Council must find, based on the evidence contained in the staff report, that there is an imminent risk to the health or safety of attendees of in- person meetings due to the COVID Pandemic.
ATTACHMENT
None.