CITY OF EL PASO DE ROBLES
"The Pass of the Oaks"
City Council Special Meeting Agenda
Thursday, September 7, 2023, 6:30 PM
Council Chamber 1000 Spring Street, Paso Robles
Members of the public are welcome to attend in person. Written public comments can be submitted via email to [email protected] prior to 12:00 PM on the day of the Council meeting to be posted as an addendum to the Agenda. If submitting written comments in advance of the meeting, please note the agenda item by number or name.
Any writing or document pertaining to an open session item on this agenda which is distributed to a majority of the City Council after the posting of this agenda will be available for public inspection at the time the subject writing or document is distributed. The writing or document will be available for public review in the City Clerk’s Office, 1000 Spring Street, Paso Robles, CA, during normal business hours, and may be posted on the City’s web site at www.prcity.com/agendacenter
AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT Any individual, who because of a disability needs special assistance to attend or participate in this meeting, may request assistance by contacting the City Clerk’s Office (805) 237- 3960. Whenever possible, requests should be made four (4) working days in advance of the meeting.
Pages
A. CALL TO ORDER
B. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
C. ROLL CALL
D. PUBLIC COMMENT
Public comment for Special Meetings is limited to agenda items only and an opportunity will be provided for each agenda items when each item is called. Please see above for how to provide public comments.
E. DISCUSSION ITEMS
1. Appointment to Fill the Vacancy in the Office of the Mayor and Discussion of Options to Fill Anticipated Vacancy on City Council
3 - 6
Elizabeth Hull, City Attorney
CEQA Determination: The City finds that this action is not a project under the California Environmental Quality Act pursuant to State Guidelines Section State CEQA Guidelines, §§ 15060, subd. (c)(2)-(3), 15378.
Recommendation:
1. Appoint a current member of the council to serve as mayor for the remainder of the term.
2. Swear in the appointee as mayor.
3. Provide direction to staff regarding the process to fill the vacancy created by the appointment of a current council member to the mayor’s office.
F. UPCOMING EVENTS
Paso Robles Senior Citizen Advisory Committee Meeting September 11, 2023, 1:30 PM Paso Robles Development Review Committee September 11, 2023, 3:30 PM Paso Robles Parks & Recreation Advisory Committee Regular Meeting September 11, 2023, 4:00 PM
Paso Robles Planning Commission Meeting September 12, 2023, 6:30 PM Library Board of Trustees September 14, 2023, 9:00 AM
Paso Robles Development Review Committee September 18, 2023, 3:30 PM Paso Robles Airport 50th Anniversary Celebration September 23, 2023 9:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Paso Robles Development Review Committee September 25, 2023, 3:30 PM Paso Robles Planning Commission Meeting September 26, 2023, 6:30 PM Community Celebration of Life for Mayor Steve Martin September 27, 2023, 5:30 PM – City Park
Paso Robles Development Review Committee October 2, 2023, 3:30 PM Paso Robles City Council Meeting October 3, 2023, 6:30 PM G. ADJOURNMENT
Council Agenda Report
From: Elizabeth Hull, City Attorney
Subject: Appointment to Fill the Vacancy in the Office of the Mayor and Discussion of Options to Fill Anticipated Vacancy on City Council
CEQA Determination: The City finds that this action is not a project under the California Environmental Quality Act pursuant to State Guidelines Section State CEQA Guidelines, §§ 15060, subd. (c)(2)-(3), 15378.
Date: September 7, 2023
Facts
1. The Mayor, Steve Martin passed away on August 14, 2023, leaving the Mayoral position vacant.
2. Mayor Martin was elected at the November 8, 2022 General Municipal Election and the mayoral term ends following the November 2026 election.
3. On September 5, 2023 the Council discussed the options to fill the mayoral vacancy and directed staff to return with an item at a special meeting on September 7, 2023, to appoint a member of the current council to serve as mayor and to provide Council with options to fill the anticipated vacancy on the City Council resulting from the appointment.
Options
1. Fill the vacancy in the Mayor’s office by appointing a member of the City Council to serve the remainder of the Mayor’s term. Following the appointment, swear in the appointee as Mayor and then provide direction to staff regarding the process to fill the vacancy created by the appointment of a current council member to the mayor’s office.
2. Provide alternative direction to staff.
Analysis
At the Council meeting on September 5, 2023, the Council discussed the options for filling the Mayoral vacancy including appointing a replacement within 60 days or calling for a special election. The Council directed staff to return with an item to allow the Council to appoint a current member of the Council to serve as Mayor.
Filling the Mayoral Vacancy by Appointment:
By majority vote the City Council may fill the mayoral seat by appointment within 60 days of the vacancy.
Since the office became vacant on August 14, 2023, the appointment decision must be made before October 13, 2023. Under Government Code section 34902(a), a Mayoral vacancy appointment is effective for the remainder of the incumbent’s term, regardless of when the vacancy occurs. Consequently, the person appointed would hold office for a remainder of the term, until that seat is up again as part of the regular election cycle in November, 2026.
Upon appointment of a current council member as the mayor there will be a new vacancy on the Council.
As with the previous vacancy, the Council has two options to fill the Council seat: call a special election or make an appointment.
State law provides that to fill the vacant Council seat, the City Council must, within 60 days from the commencement of the vacancy, either fill the vacancy by appointment or call a special election. (Gov.
Code, § 36512 (b).) Because the effective date of Council vacancy will be September 7, 2023, the City Council must therefore either call a special election or appoint someone to fill the vacancy by November 6, 2023.
Filling a New Council Vacancy by Appointment:
The appointment method to fill a vacant City Council seat allows the City Council to appoint a person to serve until the next general municipal election—, November 5, 2024. (Gov. Code, § 36512 (b)(2)(A). If the vacating Councilmember’s seat will expire in November, 2024, the appointment will be effective until the end of the term, and then the seat will regularly elect for another four-year term in November 2024. On the other hand, if the vacating Councilmember’s seat will not expire until November 2026, the appointment will be effective only until the middle of that term. The seat will then be up for a special election on November 5, 2024 for a two-year “short term”. The seat will then regularly elect for another full four-year term in November, 2026. The appointee, if otherwise qualified, may run for the seat at either election.
District 1, John Hamon, and District 2, Chris Bausch, have terms that run until 2026. If either of these Council seats become vacant and are filled by an appointment, the newly appointed Council member will hold the seat until November 2024. The seat will then be up for a special election for a two-year “short term.”
District 3, Steve Gregory, and District 4, Fred Strong, have terms that run until 2024. If either of these Council seats become vacant and are filled by an appointment, the newly appointed Council member will hold the seat until November 2024. The seat will then regularly elect for a full four-year term in November 2024.
Filling a New Council Vacancy by Special Election:
Alternatively, the City Council can call for a special election to fill the Council vacancy. Government Code Section 36512(b)(1) provides that if the Council chooses a special election, the Council shall call a special election “to be held on the next regularly established election date to be held not less than 114 days thereafter.” The next regularly established election date that is at least 114 days away will be held on March 5, 2024. The Council could call a special election and pass a resolution consolidating it with the Statewide Primary Election
If the vacancy is in District 1 or 2, the specially elected Councilmember shall hold the office for the remainder of the term until the November 2026 election when the seat will be up for election for another four-year term.
If the vacancy is in District 3 or 4, the specially elected Councilmember shall hold office for the remainder of the term until the November 2024 election when the seat will be up for election for another four-year term.
Fiscal Impact
Should the City Council choose to fill a vacated City Council seat thru an appointment application process, there would be nominal staff and material costs to facilitate the advertising of the opening, processing of applications, reviewing general eligibility requirements of applicants, and preparing the agenda for a special or regular City Council meeting to review the applications/conduct interviews.
Should the City Council choose to fill a vacated City Council seat thru a special election, it will be necessary utilize the County of San Luis Obispo Clerk-Recorder Office to conduct the election. The special election costs for a single district election may vary from the estimate given by the County for a city-wide special election. Staff has reached out to the Clerk-Recorder Office to get an updated estimated cost for a single district election. At the time of this writing, that information is not available. However, the estimated costs of elections are highly variable based on a variety of factors, including the timing of the election, number of active registered voters, mandated state requirements, and the cost of supplies, postage, and labor.
Any estimate received from the Clerk-Recorder's Office does not include City staff time associated with processing candidate(s) paperwork, filings, and other requirements of the City Clerk as part of the elections process.
CEQA
The City finds that this action is not a project under the California Environmental Quality Act pursuant to State Guidelines Section State CEQA Guidelines, §§ 15060, subd. (c)(2)-(3), 15378.
Recommendation (Option 1)
a. Appoint a current member of the council to serve as mayor for the remainder of the term. b. Swear in the appointee as mayor.
c. Provide direction to staff regarding the process to fill the vacancy created by the appointment of a current council member to the mayor’s office.
Attachments
1. Draft Oath of Office
Attachment 1
City of El Paso de Robles
Oath of Office
FOR PUBLIC OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES
(State Constitution, Article XX, Section 3, as amended) State of California )
County of San Luis Obispo )
SS
I, ___________, do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the State of California against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the Constitution of the United States; and the Constitution of the State of California; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office upon which I am about to enter.
I do further swear that in all matters concerning the City, I shall strive to promote the common good, to uphold the public trust, without fear or favor of any person, and to leave the City greater and better than it was when entrusted to me.
Mayor Appointment Date: September 7, 2023
_________________________________
Signature
Subscribed and sworn to before me this 7th day of September, 2023 _________________________________
Melissa Boyer, City Clerk