1 STAFF REPORT
DATE: July 18, 2023
TO: Justin Hess, City Manager
FROM: Joseph H. McDougall, City Attorney
BY: Jill Vander Borght, Senior Assistant City Attorney
SUBJECT: Public Hearing Regarding Draft Maps for the City’s Transition to District - Based City Council Elections
RECOMMENDATION
Provide direction to staff on one of the options as described herein.
BACKGROUND
On August 23, 2022, the City received a notice of a potential violation of the California Voting Rights Act (CVRA) on behalf of a Latino voter in the City of Burbank, Mr. Nick Gutierrez. (Elec. Code §§14027 -14032.) On January 24, 2023, Council adopted a Resolution of Intent to Initiate a Transition to District Elections and authorized staff in paragraph 3 of the Resolution to retain National Demographics Corporation (NDC), proven expert demographers serving local governments in California in successful districting, to guide the process.
In consultation with NDC, staff developed a robust timeline of workshops and public hearings for the districting process . Council held two pre-map public hearings on March 14 and April 11 . In addition, the public was encouraged to submit draft maps at thre e community forums held on March 30, April 6, and April 8. Council also directed, and staff and a communications partner have delivered substantial and wide-reaching outreach to the community regarding the process and opportunities to engage.
Prior to the June 2, deadline, 26 draft maps were submitted along with 14 submissions in the “Draw Your Neighborhood” tool. On June 14, Council held its first public hearing to consider maps. At that hearing, Council considered the maps submitted and provi ded direction to staff and the demographer on specific focus maps. With Council’s direction,
2 the City hosted five in-person and virtual community forums on June 15, June 22, June 24, and June 29 to allow constituents multiple opportunities to discuss and d ebate the Council’s five focus maps along with other direction provided at the June 14 hearing, and subsequently submitted maps . Forums and hearings can be added or rescheduled as warranted by public and Council input. The City has received 13 additional maps by the July 7 deadline.
July 18, 2023, Public Hearing
This public hearing on July 18, 2023, is designed for Council to consider and discuss any community feedback on their five selected focus maps as well as to consider the 13 additional proposed district maps submitted on or before July 7 (Elections Code § 10010(a)(2)). At this hearing, Council will r eview the additional 13 maps submitted and will review feedback from the community regarding the five focus maps Council identified at its June 14 hearing. At the close of the public hearing, the Council has several options:
- Council may further narrow the draft map submissions for NDC and the public to consider focus maps, provide direction to the demographer regarding revisions or combinations of maps to add (if any), and schedule another public hearing on the amended maps.
- Council may schedule another public hearing on the draft maps if it believes it would benefit from additional public input or information, (for example, the Supreme Court decision in the Santa Monica case).
- Council may choose a single map and instruct staff to return with an ordinance for Council consideration and introduction at its next meeting, which would adopt the selected map for Council district elections commencing in 2024, unless the Council takes further Phase II action, as described below.
- Council may choose a single map and introduce an ordinance, which would adopt this map for Council district elections commencing in 2024, unless the Council takes further Phase II action, as described below.
Information and updates on the districting process, community forums, public hearings, and more are available on the City’s districting website at www.burbankcouncildistricting.com.
Sequencing Of District Elections
Elections Code § 10010 has provisions for the sequencing of elections in the new districts:
1) The draft districting plans that are subject to the second round of public hearings must include a potential sequencing of elections for each draft plan. (Elec. Code § 10010(a)(2).)
3 2) Elections Code § 10010(b) specifies two criteria for “consideration” in setting the sequencing. Those criteria are “consideration to the purposes of the California Voting Rights Act” and “tak[ing] into account the preferences expressed by members of the districts.” There is no judicial guidance about what either of these criteria means. Nevertheless, CVRA advocates contend this provision requires the district with the highest percent of citizens of voting age who are Latino (“LCVAP” or “Latino CVAP”) to be placed on the ballot in the presidential election cycle. However, a ssigning an election cycle based predominantly on the race of the vote rs in the district presents potential constitutional issues. In practice, cities transitioning to by-district elections have not uniformly placed the district with the highest Latino CVAP on an election cycle in the presidential year.
The sequencing of elections in draft plans, however, is only potential. The sequencing of elections in the districts of the finally adopted new districting plan is at the discretion of the Council. In anticipation of litigation, the bases for the exercise of that discretion should be made part of the record of the districting process, including compliance with the requirements of Elections Code § 10010(b). In addition to the considerations required by section 10010(b), cities commonly consider:
a. Completion of the terms of i ncumbents elected at -large. For example, a Council Member whose term ends in 2026 serves out the full four -year term even if that member resides in the same district as an incumbent whose term ends in 2024 and that district is placed on the 2024 ballot. Th is is consistent with sections 300 and 305 of the Charter of the City of Burbank.
b. Scheduling elections in a particular district based on the expiration of the term of office of the incumbent who resides in the district. For example, a district in which an incumbent resides with a term ending in 2024 could be placed on the ballot in 2024. A district in which two incumbents reside with respective terms ending in 2024 and in 2026 could be placed on the ballot in 2024 or 2026. If in 2026, the incumbent with a term ending in 2024 would be out of office after the 2024 elections in the other districts, he or she could run again in 2026 for the district seat in which he or she resides.
If the district seat were placed on the ballot in 2024, the incumbent with the term ending in 2026 would serve out the full four-year at-large term to which elected, and then could seek election in 2028 for the district seat. Alternatively, that incumbent could run for the district seat in 2024 and, if elected, resign from the at-large seat on the City Council, creating a vacancy to be filled in accordance with the City’s laws.
4 c. Scheduling elections in a district in which no current incumbent resides at the earlier election cycle but only consistent with maintaining the appropriate number of council members.
Phase II
After a district map is adopted pursuant to Elections Code section 10010 and Government Code section 34886 with five Council Members pursuant to the City Charter, the Council requested a second phase process by which the Council and the public could consider alternative proposals that might involve Charter amendments such as increasing the number of councilmembers from five to se ven, a directly elected mayor (rather than rotating mayorship among existing Council Members), or other alternatives. A proposed schedule for Phase II is attached for reference (Attachment 1). Any proposed amendment(s) to the City’s Charter to allow for al ternatives to an electoral system with five Council Members elected by-district must be placed on the March 2024 ballot to allow for implementation in a council election in November 2024. To be timely for placement on the March 2024 ballot, such amendments must be finalized and appropriate resolutions passed on or before December 8, 2023, the deadline established by the County Clerk/Register Recorder. The process of drafting and finalizing these documents will therefore need to occur in October/November 2023.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
This activity involves organizational and administrative activities of the government related to election procedures and eligibility requirements, and such internal procedural and eligibility changes have no potential for resulting in either a direct physical change in the environment, or a reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment. As such, this action is not a “project” subject to the requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) 14 Cal. Code Regs § 15378.
FISCAL IMPACT
None.
CONCLUSION
This public hearing is scheduled in accordance with state law and the Council’s previously approved schedule.
ATTACHMENTS
Attachment 1 – Burbank Phase II Timeline