1 Administrative Policy No. 84
CITY OF PACIFICA
ADMINISTRATIVE POLICY
No.
84 (NEW)
MINUTES FORMAT FOR CITY COUNCIL, PLANNING
COMMISSION, CITY COMMITTEE & COMMISSION MEETINGS
DATE ISSUED:
mm/dd/yyyy
PURPOSE:
The purpose of this policy is to establish consistent criteria, procedures and format for the preparation of the minutes for City Council meetings, Planning Commission meetings and meetings of City Committees and Commissions subject to the Brown Act (collectively referred to as “Council/Committee/Commission”) and adopt the use of Action Minutes as the official format of minutes pursuant to the criteria detailed in this policy.
Meeting minutes should be prepared in a manner consistent with the intent of Government Code Sections 40801, 36814, 54953(c)(2) and 53232.3(d). Minutes shall be prepared for all Council/Committee/Commission meetings subject to the Brown Act to accurately reflect the actions that the legislative body took during the meeting.
POLICY:
1. Action Minutes
Minutes shall be recorded in the style of Action Minutes for the purpose of reflecting what action was taken by the Council/Committee/Commission at meetings and require very little, if any, narrative except as discussed in Section 2 below, and only identifies the motion/second and the outcome of the vote. Each set of Action Minutes shall include:
a. Name of the Council/Committee/Commission, date, time, and place of the meeting; b. Names of the members present and absent;
c. Any identified conflicts of interest made by any Council/Committee/Commission member; d. Brief description, or title, of the items discussed and the order that the discussion took place;
e. A listing of all people who spoke to an item;
f. All motions made by the Council/Committee/Commission, including who made the motion, who seconded the motion, and the vote recording ayes, noes, abstentions (if applicable), and absences (if applicable);
g. All actions taken, including consensus;
2 Administrative Policy No. 84
h. For informal consensus, it is appropriate to note the dissension of one or more members by name and, at maximum, include a brief reason for dissent (e.g. “Councilmember Smith dissented citing budgetary concerns.”)
i. On all Oral Communications or Public Comments on Items Not on the Agenda, the name of the person addressing the body, and a brief description or statement of the topic; j. Time of Adjournment.
2. Summary Minutes
Summary Minutes may be prepared in place of Action Minutes in the following circumstances:
• Public Hearings
• Members’ Reports on Meetings Attended at the Expense of the Local Agency or on Intergovernmental Agencies
• Brief Description of Members’ Attendance at Community Events • Ceremonial Presentations
• Study / Work Sessions
• Items Where no Formal Action / Decision is Made
• To Clarify Direction of the Body
• To Make Note of a Dissenting Vote
Summary Minutes provide information as outlined in Action Minutes, but add limited Council/Committee/Commission and staff comments, as well as noting a summary of the members of public in support/opposition to an issue. Summary Minutes may include, but are not limited to, the following circumstances:
a. Limited Council/Committee/Commission and staff comments that reflect or clarify the conclusion or direction of the body and not a full discussion or detailed discussion of the members or participants. Comments should not attribute views to individual persons, but should reflect positions taken by the whole body and be written in passive, impersonal voice (e.g. “During discussion, it was clarified…”, “It was suggested that…”, “It was questioned whether…”, “It was generally felt that…”).
b. Comments that may be attributed to individual Council/Committee/Commission members / persons under limited circumstances:
i. Individual Council/Committee/Commission member’s reports pursuant to Government Code Section 53232.3(d) to identify the type of meeting attended at the expense of the local agency and the subject matter.
ii. Individual Council/Committee/Commission member’s reports on intergovernmental agencies to include the type of meeting, at minimum, and brief subject matter, at maximum.
iii. For public testimony provided during public hearings, the speaker’s name (if provided) and brief summary position of the speaker (i.e. supported or opposed). iv. For informal consensus, it is appropriate to note the dissention of one or more Council/Committee/Commission members by name and, at maximum, include a brief reason for dissent (e.g. “Councilmember Smith dissented citing budgetary concerns.”) 3 Administrative Policy No. 84
c. Limited Council/Committee/Commission, staff comments and public testimony as described in 2a and 2b(iii) for Public Hearings.
d. For ceremonial presentations (e.g. proclamations) and reports on social and community events, at a minimum Summary Minutes should identify the presenter and that presentations were made / reports were given and, at maximum, report only the subject matter of the presentation or report / event.
e. For Study or Work Session meetings Summary Minutes may include key points of the final reports or determinations and comments should be attributable to the entire body and not to individual members. Summary Minutes shall serve to clarify the final decisions made by the body and who is expected to execute the decisions, but shall not serve as a substitute for all action points or task lists.
3. Preparation of Minutes
a. The City Clerk is responsible for the preparation of the minutes for each City Council meeting and shall determine whether to prepare Action Minutes and Summary Minutes in accordance with this Policy.
b. The Planning Director is responsible for the preparation of the minutes for each Planning Commission Meeting and shall determine whether to prepare Action Minutes and Summary Minutes in accordance with this Policy.
c. The designated City Staff Liaison to each City Commission or Committee is responsible for the preparation of the minutes for that City Commission or Committee meeting and shall determine whether to prepare Action Minutes and Summary Minutes in accordance with this Policy.
4. Approval of Minutes
a. The City Clerk (or City Staff Liaison for Committees/Commissions) shall place the proposed Minutes, for one or more prior meetings, on an agenda of a subsequent meeting for approval by the City Council or Committee or Commission, whichever the case may be. b. A Councilmember, Committee or Commission member has the right to recommend corrections to the proposed Minutes at the meeting where the proposed Minutes are on the agenda for approval for the purpose of better describing the action that was taken by the legislative body.
c. Once approved, the prepared Minutes of the meeting become part of the official record of the meeting and are entered into the City archives as such.