1. CALL TO ORDER
Consistent with Government Code Section 54953(e) (Assembly Bill 361), all members of the Hidden Hills City Council or staf may participate in this meeting via a teleconference and such teleconference locations are not accessible to the public and are not subject to special posting requirements. Members of the public may participate in the meeting electronically as indicated further below. The City Council Chambers will not be open to the public. If you are an individual with a disability and need a reasonable modification or accommodation pursuant to the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”) please contact Deana Gonzalez at 818-888-9281 o r staf @hiddenhillscity.org. If you are hearing impaired, once in the Zoom meeting room select the button “live transcript” and then select “show subtitles”. Members of the public will have the opportunity to address the City Council only on the special meeting agenda items via Zoom or by email as indicated below.
Virtual Meeting Via ZOOM Platform: https://zoom.us/j/87634035627 To Join by Phone: 669.900.6833 or 408.638.0968 and Enter Meeting Access ID: 876 3403 5627
PLEASE NOTE THAT THE CITY COUNCIL MAY ACT ON
ANY ITEM LISTED ON THE AGENDA
2. Council:
Mayor Laura McCorkindale
Mayor Pro Tem Steve Freedland
Council Member Eniko Gold
Council Member Stuart E. Siegel
Council Member Larry G. Weber
ROLL CALL
CITY OF HIDDEN HILLS
SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL MEETING
VIA TELECONFERENCE ONLY IN COMPLIANCE WITH
GOVERNMENT CODE SECTION 54953(E)
Wednesday, October 26, 2022
9:45 AM
AGENDA
Staff:
City Manager Kerry Kallman
City Attorney Roxanne Diaz
City Clerk Deana Gonzalez
3. AUDIENCE
Members of the audience are invited to address the Council at this time only on items on the special meeting agenda. Please observe the time limit of three minutes.
Per California Government Code Section 54954.2, the City Council is prohibited from discussing or taking immediate action on any item not on the agenda unless it can be demonstrated that the item is of an emergency nature, or the need to take action arose subsequent to the posting of the agenda.
Public Participation:
Remote public participation is allowed in the following ways:
Public comment on the special meeting agenda item will be accepted by email to [email protected] prior to the meeting and the email should identify the agenda item number in the subject line of the email. Such emails should be received by the City Clerk no later than 9:00 am on the day of this meeting. Any emails received prior to that time shall be read into the record.
Alternatively, members of the public may join the meeting via the Zoom platform and the Mayor will call on you for public comment only for the items on the special meeting agenda. To provide public comment, click on the icon labeled "Participants" at the bottom center of your PC or Mac screen. At the bottom of the window on the right side of the screen, click the button labeled "Raise Hand." Your digital hand is now raised. To “Raise Hand” on an audio only call, press*6 to unmute and *9 to “Raise Hand”.
4. NEW BUSINESS
4.A
Reconsideration of the Circumstances of the COVID-19 State of Emergency and Determine that the City will Continue to Hold Meetings Via Teleconferencing Pursuant to the Finding Set Forth in Government Code Section 54953(e)(3) 4 - 10-26-22.pdf
5. ADJOURNMENT
Materials related to an item on this agenda submitted to the Council after distribution of the agenda packet are available for public inspection in the City Clerk's office at City Hall, 6165 Spring Valley Road, Hidden Hills, CA 91302 during normal business hours.
Pursuant to the Americans with Disabilities Act, any qualified individuals with a disability who plan to attend or otherwise participate in the City Council meeting and who may require accommodations or auxiliary aids should contact the City Clerk at 818/888-9281 at least 24 hours before the meeting.
This agenda was posted on Tuesday, October 25, 2022 at 9:45 a.m. ___________________________________
Deana L. Gonzalez, CMC, City Clerk
MEMORANDUM
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
From: Roxanne Diaz, City Attorney
Date: October 26, 2022
Subject: Reconsideration of the Circumstances of the COVID-19 State of Emergency and Determine that the City will Continue to Hold Meetings via Teleconferencing Pursuant to the Finding set forth in Government Code Section 54953(e)(3) Background
On September 28, 2022 the City Council reconsidered the circumstances of the COVID-19 emergency and made the required findings to have the ability to meet remotely pursuant Government Code Section 54953(e) (AB 361).
Discussion
In order to continue to meet remotely, the City Council must reconsider the circumstances of the state of emergency and find that the state of emergency continues to directly impact the ability of the members to meet safely in person or State or local officials continue to impose or recommend measures to promote social distancing.
The factual circumstances exist for the City’s legislative bodies to continue to hold meetings pursuant to AB 361. The state of emergency is still in effect, and there are recommended measures to promote social distancing and meeting in person continues to directly impact the ability of members to meet safely in person.
Since the beginning of the year, there have been several COVID-19 variants, including the Delta variant, the Omicron variant (which was prevalent in the beginning of the year), and the subvariant BA2, which is sometimes referred to as the "stealth omicron" and is a subvariant of Omicron. In addition, there are two other Omicron strains (BA.4 and BA.5) that have been dominant nationwide.
Los Angeles County has been in a prolonged summer surge with regard to COVID-19 cases. Because of the summer surge, Los Angeles County’s coronavirus cases rate was at its highest point in nearly five months. In mid-July, daily cases reached a high of 8,359, which was the highest since January City of Hidden Hills
6165 Spring Valley Road * Hidden Hills, California 91302 (818) 888-9281 * Fax (818) 719-0083
City Council
COVID and AB 361 Findings
October 26, 2022
and over the summer Los Angeles County remained in the federal government's "high" virus category. Currently, Los County has had declining case and hospitalization rates, however, experts worry that low booster rates and the potential for immune-evading variants could increase transmission especially this winter when respiratory viruses tend to infect people the most.
The County is asking residents to continue following sensible safety measures including indoor masking and staying home and away from others if sick to help reduce the rate of transmission. In addition, the County is stating that as the COVID-19 virus continues to mutate, there is a very real possibility that new variants of concern could contribute to another surge in the fall or winter, making it important that Los Angeles County residents take steps to reduce the risk for serious illness.
In addition, the State of California and the County of Los Angeles continue to recommend measures to promote social distancing. For example, the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health still requires that employers provide training on the effectiveness of physical distancing in the workplace. Additionally, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health continues to recommend that employers take steps to reduce indoor crowding and to enable employees and visitors to physically distance themselves from each other.
On August 22, 2022, the City Council approved the holding of council meetings in a hybrid format (both in person and on zoom). The flexibility of a continued hybrid format will allow the continuation of the City’s business so that Council meetings would not have to be cancelled should members have health concerns or are sick and would provide the flexibility to each member of a legislative body to determine for themselves based on their own health matters whether attending a meeting will be risk to their health and safety or that of the other attendees. By reconsidering the circumstances of the state of emergency created by the COVID-19 pandemic and finding that the state of emergency continues to directly impact the ability of the members to meet safely in person, and that state and local officials continue to recommend measures to promote social distancing, the public meetings of the City of Hidden Hills can continue to be conducted in a hybrid format (Zoom and In person) for the next 30 days.
Fiscal Impact
There is no direct impact to the General Fund as a result of the City Council’s action.
Recommendation
That the City Council adopt a motion finding that the state of emergency continues to directly impact the ability of the members of the City’s legislative bodies to meet safety in person, and that State and County of Los Angeles officials continue to recommend measures to promote social distancing, therefore legislative body meetings of the City shall continue in a virtual teleconference format in compliance with Government Code Section 54953(e).