CITY COUNCIL STAFF REPORT
Meeting: January 17, 2023
Subject
Study Session to consider modifying Municipal Code Title 2 regarding compositions and responsibilities of existing Commissions and Committees Recommended Action
Direct staff to proceed with ordinance amendment to consolidate existing Commissions and Committees Discussion
The City currently has ten Commissions and five Committees as stipulated in Title 2 of the Cupertino Municipal Code. In addition, the Administrative Hearing Committee, Fiscal Strategic Committee, and Legislative Review Committee are non-codified standing committees. Altogether there are 17 Commissions and Committees in total, along with Council subcommittees that were formed to focus on areas of concern. Each of the Commissions, Committees, and subcommittees is supported by a staff liaison to serve these bodies. With the current staffing challenge and the unusually high number of commissions / committees / subcommittees that the City supports, staff recommends the City Council consolidate the Commissions and Committees into the following:
Arts and Culture Commission
Bicycle Pedestrian Commission
Housing Commission
Library Commission
Parks & Recreation Commission
Planning Commission (including functions that were previously designated for Design Review Committee and Environmental Review Committee) Public Safety Commission
Sustainability Commission
Teen Commission
TICC (Technology, Information & Communication Commission) Administrative Hearing Committee
Audit Committee
Disaster Council
Further, staff recommends Council discontinue all previously formed subcommittees and delegate the areas of concerns to the City Manager to review and research. When the analysis is completed, staff will bring back a recommendation for Council to consider before proceeding on the final direction.
Based on the aforementioned recommendation, the City will have a total of 13 Commissions and Committees.
Background
Commissions
There are ten City Commissions tasked with advising the City Council in the formation of policy. With the partial exception of the Planning Commission, all other Commissions function in an advisory role to the City Council. The following table provides a summary of the Commissions’ responsibilities, their duties as codified in the code, and their staff liaisons.
Commission
Primary Responsibilities
Staff Liaison
Applicable CMC Section
Arts and Culture Commission
Advises Council and encourages the realization, preservation, and advancement of fine arts for the benefit of the citizens of Cupertino.
Parks and Recreation Department
CMC 2.80
Bicycle Pedestrian Commission
Advises Council on transportation matters within Cupertino including bicycle and pedestrian traffic, parking, education, and recreation.
Public Works Department
CMC 2.92.080
Housing Commission
Advises Council on housing policies and strategies, affordable housing projects, and sources of funding for affordable housing.
Community and Development Department
CMC 2.86.100
Library Commission
Advises Council regarding library service in the community and serves as liaison between the City and the Santa Clara County Library JPA.
Parks and Recreation Department
CMC 2.68.070
Parks & Recreation Commission
Advises Council on parks and recreation related activities, including park site acquisition and development, community activities, and recreation policies.
Parks and Recreation Department
CMC 2.68.070
Planning Commission
Advises Council on land use matters such as specific and general plans, zonings, and subdivisions. Reviews other matters as specified by City ordinances or Title VII of the Government Code of California.
Community and Development Department
CMC 2.32.070
Public Safety Commission
Advises Council on areas relating to public safety, traffic, police, fire and other areas where public safety may be of concern.
City Manager’s Office – Emergency Service Division
CMC 2.60.070
Sustainability Commission
Advises Council on major policy areas related to the environmental goals in Cupertino’s Climate Action Plan and General Plan’s Environmental Resources/Sustainability Element.
City Manager’s Office – Sustainability Division
CMC 2.94.080
Teen Commission
Advises Council and staff on issues and projects important to youth in the Cupertino community.
Parks and Recreation Department
CMC 2.95.080
Technology, Information, & Communications Commission (TICC) Advises Council on all matters relating to telecommunications in Cupertino and provides support for community access television.
Information and Technology Department
CMC 2.74.060
Committees
In addition to Commissions, the City has seven standing Committees. These Committees are subject to the Brown Act. Generally, one or two Councilmembers are assigned as members, and the Committees may include members from the public or staff. With the exception of the Administrative Hearing Committee (which conducts administrative hearings), the purpose of the Committees is to review specific topics affecting the City and to make recommendations to the City Council. Most of the Committees’ responsibilities and duties are described in Title 2 of the Municipal Code, but not all of the Committee duties are codified. The following table summarizes the Committees’ responsibilities and their priority areas along with staff liaison and their duties as described in the Municipal Code.
Committee
Primary Responsibilities
Staff Liaison
Applicable CMC Section
Administrative Hearing Committee
Reviews applicable projects as outlined by municipal code.
Community Development Department
Varies
Audit Committee
Reviews external and internal audit reports, monthly treasurer’s report, and city investment policies. Recommends appointment of external and internal auditors and recommends a budget format.
Administrative Services Department
CMC 2.88
Design Review Committee
A subcommittee of the Planning Commission that reviews aspects of site and architectural design.
Community Development Department
CMC 2.90.090
Disaster Council
Supports the City’s emergency management and preparedness responsibilities.
City Manager’s Office – Emergency Service
CMC 2.40.025
Economic Development Committee
Enhances and promotes a strong local economy to provide municipal services that businesses and residents desire and need to maintain the community’s quality of life.
City Manager’s Office – Economic Development Division
CMC 2.96.010
Environmental Review Committee
Evaluates the environmental analysis of a proposed project to determine whether the project may or may not have a significant effect on the environment Community Development Department
CMC 2.84.080
Housing Element Community Engagement Plan (CEP) Committee Advise on the Housing Element outreach process with Housing and Planning Commission Chairs; Provide input on Community Engagement required to prepare the Housing Element Community Development Department
N/A
Legislative Review Committee
Makes recommendations on legislative advocacy issues and authorizes position letters for legislation that aligns with the Cityʹs Council‐approved Legislative Platform.
City Manager’s Office
N/A
Since some of the Committees share similar duties and responsibilities with existing Commissions, staff recommends Council retain the Administrative Hearing Committee, the Audit Committee, and the Disaster Council.
Current responsibilities of the Design Review Committee and Environmental Review Committee would be assigned to the Planning Commission or to Council as appropriate. Current roles and responsibilities of the Economic Development Committee and Legislative Review Committee would be addressed by the Council as necessary. Since the Housing Element Community Engagement Plan Committee was established on a temporary basis, it is recommended that its duties/concerns are delegated to the Community Development staff.
Council Subcommittees
From time to time, City Council appoints two councilmembers to form a topic-specific subcommittee to address a particular concern. These subcommittees are not Brown Act bodies because they meet for a limited period of time and do not have ongoing jurisdiction over any subject matter. For instance, during the Housing Element site inventory selection process, Council appointed former Mayor Paul and former Councilmember Willey to outreach to property owners along Bubb Road in deciding if such properties should be included on the site inventory. The Bubb Road subcommittee met several times between September and December 2022 and subsequently concluded its task. Other than the Bubb Road subcommittee, several other subcommittees have met at various times and have concluded their original tasks. The following subcommittee are no longer active and would be discontinued.
Audit Expansion subcommittee
Bidding and Contract Process subcommittee
Bubb Road subcommittee
City Hall Renovation / Expansion Project subcommittee
Community Funding Grant Program subcommittee
Farmer’s Market subcommittee
Fiscal Strategic Plan Committee
Residential Design Standards subcommittee
In addition, the following subcommittees were approved by City Council with pending councilmember appointments.
Closed Session Minutes subcommittee
Legislative Aide selection subcommittee
Summer Intern application review subcommittee
Homelessness subcommittee
Festival fee waiver subcommittee
Staff recommends City Council delegate the specific concerns to the City Manager and have staff recommendations brought back for Council’s decision as appropriate. In particular, concerns assigned to the Legislative Aide selection subcommittee and Summer Intern application review subcommittee can be researched by the Administrative Services staff; the Homelessness subcommittee can be further evaluated by the Community Development staff. The Festival fee waiver subcommittee discussion can be delegated to the Parks and Recreation staff. When the analysis is complete, staff will present recommendations for Council to consider.
Commissions and Committees in Other Cities in Santa Clara County As included in the February 15, 2022 staff report (Attachment A), a comparison matrix detailing the number of commissions and committees for the other 13 cities in Santa Clara County shows that Cupertino has one of the highest number of commissions and committees, irrespective of population. While cities may use varying terminology, bodies that included members of the public to advise Council were included as commissions for the purposes of this analysis. Long‐standing, active bodies that are not categorized as commissions and include members of Council were included as committees in this report.
Commissions and Committees in Other Cities
City
# of commissions and committees
Population
Mountain View
19 82,272
Cupertino
17 66,762
Milpitas
17 84,196
Los Altos Hills
16 8,300
Los Altos
15 31,190
Palo Alto
14 67,019
Santa Clara
14 128,717
Gilroy
11 58,756
Campbell
11 42,288
Sunnyvale
11 156,503
Los Gatos
9 31,439
Saratoga
9 31,030
Morgan Hill
4 45,742
Monte Sereno
3 3,492
Based on the table above, cities in Santa Clara County on average support 12 commissions and committees, not including any active council subcommittees. Cupertino has an above average number of commissions and committees, especially when considering its population size in comparison to neighboring cities. The following chart shows average estimated staff liaison hours spent to support each Commission and Committee Dedicated Staff Resources
. Commission
Hours Spent Annually
Bicycle Pedestrian
240
Fine Arts
200
Housing
220
Library
350
Parks and Recreation
750
Planning
1100
Public Safety
200
Sustainability
220
Teen
300
TICC
120
TOTAL
3,740
Committees
Hours Spent Annually
Administrative Hearing Committee
30 Audit Committee
230
Disaster Council
30 Economic Development
60 Environmental
Review
80 Design Review
40 Legislative Review
400
TOTAL
870
In addition to staff liaison hours, the City Clerk’s Office spends significant time (over 1000 hours) per year on administrative duties for commissions such as orientation, training, and assisting with agendas. The City Attorney’s Office also supports certain commission and committee items and staffs the Planning Commission. These estimates do not include staff support for numerous other boards and ad hoc committees that the City maintains. Consolidating the commissions and committees could result in an estimated reduction of 520 staff hours. Total staff time spent on committees would be reduced from 870 to 350 hours.
Recommendation
Staff recommends the City Council consolidate the Commissions and Committees into the following, in addition to discontinuing all previously formed subcommittees:
Arts and Culture Commission
Bicycle Pedestrian Commission
Housing Commission
Library Commission
Parks & Recreation Commission
Planning Commission (including functions that were previously designated for Design Review Committee and Environmental Review Committee) Public Safety Commission
Sustainability Commission
Teen Commission
TICC (Technology, Information, & Communication Commission) Administrative Hearing Committee
Audit Committee
Disaster Council
Sustainability Impact
No sustainability impact.
Fiscal Impact
Some minimal savings will be achieved in addition to the staff hour savings noted above.
Prepared by: Pamela Wu, City Manager
Reviewed by: Chris Jensen, City Attorney
Matt Morley, Assistant City Manager
Approved for Submission by: Pamela Wu, City Manager
Attachments:
A – Staff Report from February 15, 2022 City Council Meeting