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ORDINANCE NO.____
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FOSTER CITY AMENDING TITLE 2 “ADMINISTRATION AND PERSONNEL” OF THE FOSTER CITY MUNICIPAL CODE TO ADD SECTION 2.56.025 “DISTRICT ELECTIONS” TO PROVIDE FOR THE ELECTION OF MEMBERS OF THE CITY COUNCIL BY FIVE DISTRICTS; ESTABLISH THE DISTRICT BOUNDARIES; AND ELECTION ORDER OF EACH DISTRICT
CITY OF FOSTER CITY
WHEREAS, members of the City Council are currently elected in “at-large” elections, in which each City Councilmember is elected by the registered voters of the entire City; and
WHEREAS, California Government Code section 34886, in certain circumstances, authorizes the legislative body of a city of any population to adopt an ordinance to change its method of election from an “at-large” system to a “district-based” system in which each councilmember is elected only by the voters in the district in which the candidate resides; and
WHEREAS, on July 22, 2024, the City of Foster City (“City”) received a certified letter from a potential plaintiffs’ attorney, alleging a violation of the California Voting Rights Act (the “CVRA”) and threatening litigation if the City declines to voluntarily change to a district-based election system for electing Councilmembers; and WHEREAS, while the City Council denies that its at large election system violates the CVRA or any other provision of law, the City Council determined that the public interest is better served by initiating a process for transition to a district-based election system and thereby avoiding the high costs associated with defending a lawsuit under the CVRA; and
WHEREAS, California Government Code section 34886 permits the City Council of any city to change the City’s method of election by ordinance to a “by-district” system in which each member of the City Council is elected only by the voters in the district in which the candidate resides; and
WHEREAS, Elections Code Section 10010 provides a method whereby a jurisdiction can expeditiously transition to a district-based election system and thereby avoid the high cost of litigation under the CVRA if the jurisdiction complied with the “safe harbor” provisions of Elections Code Section 10010; and WHEREAS, under the provisions of California Elections Code section 10010(a)(1), a city that changes from an at-large city council method of election to a by-district city council method of election is required to hold at least two public hearings over a period of not more than 30 days, at which the public is invited to provide input regarding communities of interest that would help to define the composition of the districts; and 4885-4038-6551 v1
2 WHEREAS, under the provisions of California Elections Code section 10010(a)(2), a city that changes from an at-large election system to by district must, after the first and second public hearings hold at least two additional hearings over a period of no more than 45 days, at which the public is invited to provide input regarding the content of the draft maps and the proposed sequence of elections. A fifth public hearing would be held to adopt the selected map; and
WHEREAS, at a regular meeting held on September 3, 2024, the City Council adopted Resolution No. 2024-91 to begin the process of transitioning to a district-based election system and adopting the timeline for public hearings to conform to the requirements of California Elections Code section 10010; and WHEREAS, thereafter, at regular meetings held on October 7, 2024 and October 21, 2024, pursuant to California Elections Code section 10010(a)(1), the City Council held public hearings where the public was invited to provide input regarding the number and composition of the City’s voting districts and election sequencing, before any draft maps were drawn, and the City Council considered public input and discussed the same at those meetings; and
WHEREAS, thereafter, at regular meetings on November 4, 2024 and November 18, 2024, pursuant to California Elections Code Section 10010(a)(2), the City Council held public hearings where the public was invited to provide input regarding the content of the draft maps that had been released at least seven (7) days before each meeting, and the proposed sequence of elections, and the City Council received, considered and discussed the same; and
WHEREAS, at the regular meeting on November 18, 2024, at the conclusion of the public hearing, the Council formally selected the voting district and the election sequence, attached to and incorporated herein as Exhibit A to this Ordinance, which was introduced for a first reading at that time with a second reading and adoption scheduled to take place on December 2, 2024; and
WHEREAS, throughout the foregoing process, the City engaged in a significant amount of public outreach and engagement above and beyond the public procedures required by California Elections Code Section 10010 and those portions of the Fair and Inclusive Redistricting for Municipalities and Political Subdivisions (Fair Maps) Act applicable to cities that are transitioning for the first time to district-based elections systems; and
WHEREAS, such outreach included but is not limited to, maintaining a City webpage dedicated to the process of transitioning from at-large elections to by district elections, regularly notifying residents of meetings and other engagements on the City’s social media channels and newsletter, mailing printed promotional outreach to all residential addresses, hosting two community meetings, sharing information on digital posting boards and the City’s marquee, distributing printed informational material at City facilities, posting and publishing notices (including in Mandarin) about the public hearings and attending seventeen (17) community events to discuss the districting process; 4885-4038-6551 v1
3 WHEREAS, in selecting the map, the City Council considered the criteria set forth in Elections Code Section 21130 of the Fair Maps Act and is adopting district boundaries in accordance with the provisions stated therein, as well as the federal Voting Rights Act and the California Voting Rights Act; and
WHEREAS, Map ___ meets all the requirements of state and federal law and was posted on November 8, 2024 on the City’s website for public consideration at least seven (7) days before the introduction of this Ordinance; and WHEREAS, the purpose of this Ordinance is to enact, pursuant to California Government Code section 34886, an ordinance providing for the election of members of the City Council of the City of Foster City by district in five single-member districts as reflected in Exhibit A to this Ordinance and to implement the guarantees of the California Constitution.
NOW THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FOSTER CITY DOES HEREBY ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Recitals. The City Council hereby finds that the foregoing recitals are true and accurate and are incorporated herein by reference.
Section 2. California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Determination.
Adoption of this Ordinance is exempt from environmental review as the adoption of this Ordinance does not qualify as a “project” pursuant to Public Resource Code section 21065 and CEQA Guidelines Sections 15320, 15378 and 15061(b)(3) since it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that adoption of the Ordinance would cause either a direct physical change in the environment, or a reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment.
Section 3. Code Amendment. Title 2 “Administration and Personnel” of the Foster City Municipal Code is hereby amended to add Section 2.56.025, “District Elections,” within Chapter 2.56 to read as follows:
“Section 2.56.025 - District Elections.
A. Declaration of Purpose. The City Council of the City of Foster City hereby declares that the change of method of electing members of this Council, hereby enacted, is being made in furtherance of the California Voting Rights Act.
B. City Council Districts Established. Five City Council districts are hereby established in the City of Foster City. The district boundaries and identifying number of each district shall be as described on the Council District Map__, attached hereto as Exhibit “A” and incorporated hereby by this reference and incorporated below. [SELECTED MAP]
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4 C. Election of Members of the City Council by District.
1. Following the effective date of this ordinance and upon the commencement of “by district” elections pursuant to section 2.56.025(D), members of the City Council shall be elected “by district,” as defined in California Government Code Section 34871, or any successor statute.
2. Registered voters signing nomination papers or voting for a member of the City Council shall be residents of the geographical area making up the district from which the member is to be elected.
3. No term of any member of the City Council that commenced prior to the effective date of this ordinance shall be affected by the adoption of this ordinance.
D. Commencement of District Elections. Commencing with the general municipal election in November of 2026 and every four years thereafter the voters in districts [ ] and [ ] shall elect members of the City Council by district for full four (4) year terms. At the general municipal election in 2028 and every four years thereafter, the voters in districts [ ], [ ], and [ ] shall elect members of the City Council by district for full four (4) year terms.”
Section 4. Authorization for Technical Adjustments. The City’s demographer, Redistricting Partners, is hereby authorized to make non-substantive technical adjustments to Map ___ to finalize the Map as necessary and to prepare a GIS shapefile which identifies the Council district boundaries, as well as the census blocks and tracts.
The final Map ___, the census blocks and tracts and the GIS shapefile shall be in a form approved by the City Clerk and City Attorney.
Section 5. Severability. If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase, or portion of this ordinance is for any reason held to be invalid or unenforceable by a court of competent jurisdiction, the remaining portions of this Ordinance shall nonetheless remain in full force and effect. The Council of the City of Foster City hereby declares that it would have adopted each section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase, or portion of this Ordinance, irrespective of the fact that any one or more sections, subsections, sentences, clauses, phrases, or portions of this Ordinance be declared invalid or unenforceable.
Section 6. Effective Date.
This Ordinance shall take effect thirty (30) days after adoption as provided by Government Code section 36937.
Section 7. Publication; Certification.
The City Clerk shall attest to the adoption of this Ordinance and cause the same to be published in accordance with State law. The City Clerk is also authorized and directed to file this Ordinance, Map ___, the census blocks and tracts, the GIS shapefile, and any other documents necessary to effectuate the adoption of Map ___ with the San 4885-4038-6551 v1
5 Mateo County Clerk-Recorder-Assessor-Registrar of Voters. In the case of any parcels that are split across Council district boundaries, the County Clerk-Recorder-Assessor- Registrar of Voters shall apply a uniform methodology to adjust the boundary line to a border of the parcel without materially affecting the population within each affected district.
This Ordinance was introduced by the City Council of the City of Foster City on November 18, 2024 and was adopted on _____________ by the following roll call vote:
AYES:
NOES:
ABSENT:
ABSTAIN:
CITY OF FOSTER CITY
_______________________
Patrick Sullivan, Mayor
ATTEST:
Priscilla Schaus, City Clerk
Attachments: Exhibit A District Map [ ]