{CW113646.4}
RESOLUTION NO. 2022-33
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF PATTERSON CITY COUNCIL
REGARDING INVOCATIONS AT CITY COUNCIL MEETINGS
WHEREAS, the City Council of the City of Patterson (the “City Council”) is an elected legislative and deliberative body; and
WHEREAS, legislative bodies in the United States have long maintained a tradition of solemnizing proceedings by allowing for an open invocation or prayer before each meeting, for the benefit and blessing of the legislative body; and
WHEREAS, such invocations before meetings of legislative and deliberative public bodies have been consistently upheld as constitutional by courts of the United States, including the United States Supreme Court; and
WHEREAS, in Marsh v. Chambers 463 U.S. 793 (1983) (“Marsh”), the United States Supreme Court held that “[t]he opening sessions of legislative and other deliberative public bodies with prayer is deeply embedded in the history and tradition of this country” and that “[f]rom colonial times through the founding of the Republic and ever since, the practice of legislative prayer; and has coexisted with the principles of disestablishment and religious freedom.” (Id. at 768.); and
WHEREAS, the Supreme Court in Marsh further held that “[t]o involve divine guidance on a public body…is not…an establishment of religion or a step toward establishment; it is simply a tolerable acknowledgement of beliefs widely held among people of this country.” (Id. at 675.); and
WHEREAS, the Supreme Court has cautioned against screening, censoring, prescribing, or proscribing the specific content of public prayers offered by private speakers, as such efforts would violate First Amendment rights of those speakers and impermissibly entangle governing in religious themes (See, e.g., Lee v. Weisman, 505 U.S. 577, 588-89 (1992); Town of Greece, N.Y. v. Galloway, 872 U.S. 565 (2014); and
WHEREAS, in Town of Greece, N.Y. v. Galloway, 872 U.S. 565 (2014), the Supreme Court held that “absent a pattern of prayers that over time denigrate, proselytize, or betray an impermissible government purpose…” an invocation policy passes constitutional muster; and WHEREAS, the City of Patterson (“City”) intends to adopt and follow a policy that does not proselytize, advance, disparage, or show any purposeful preference to any single religious view to the exclusion of others; and
WHEREAS, the City recognizes its constitutional duty to interpret, construe, and amend its policies and ordinances to comply with constitutional requirements as they are announced. {CW113646.4}
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the City Council of the City of Patterson as follows:
1. In order to solemnize proceedings of the City Council, it is the policy of the City Council to allow for an invocation to be offered at its meetings for the benefit of the City Council and the community.
2. No member of the City Council, or any person in attendance or observing such meetings, shall be required to participate in any invocation that is offered.
3. The invocation shall be voluntarily delivered by the clergy/leader of a church, congregation, or other religious group (including religious, atheist, or agnostic groups or assemblies) (cumulatively, “Assembly” or “Assemblies”), which are located within the City of Patterson or its sphere of influence. To ensure that such Assembly clergy leader (the “Presenter”) is selected from a wide pool of the City’s Assemblies, on a rotating basis, the Presenter shall be selected according to the following procedure:
a. The City Clerk shall compile and maintain a database of the Assemblies (the “Assembly List”) with an established presence in the City of Patterson. b. The Assembly List shall be compiled by referencing the listing for “churches,” “congregations,” or other religious assemblies in the annual Yellow Pages telephone book published for the City of Patterson, research from the internet, or consultation with local chambers of commerce. All Assemblies with an established practice in the local community of Patterson are eligible to be included on the Assembly List, and any such Assembly may confirm its inclusion by written request to the City Clerk.
c. The Assembly List shall be updated, by reasonable efforts of the City Clerk, in [MONTH] of each year, with invitations being mailed out and addressed to the “assembly leader” of each Assembly listed on the Assembly List. d. The invitation shall be dated at the top of each page, signed by the City Clerk at the bottom, and shall read as follows:
Dear [Assembly leader]:
The City of Patterson City Council makes it a policy to invite leaders of religious organizations with an established presence in the City of Patterson to offer an invocation before the beginning of its meetings to solemnize the occasion for the benefit of the City Council and the community. As the leader of one of these organizations, the City Council invites you to offer this important service at an upcoming meeting of the City Council.
If you desire to participate in this regard, please complete and submit the attached interest form by [DATE]. Invocation presenters are scheduled on a first- {CW113646.4}
come, first-served basis, or rotational basis. City Council meetings are held on the first and third Tuesdays of the month. Please identify any dates that conflict with your schedule on the interest form. Please note that City Council meetings are subject to cancellation for lack of business, the lack of a quorum, or at the discretion of the City Council.
Should you elect to participate, please keep in mind that you will be addressing a community with a variety of faith and non-faith traditions. To maintain the spirit of the public meeting occasion, the City Council requests that invocation presentations be limited to one (1) minute, and that the invocation opportunity not be utilized to advance or disparage any specific faith or belief, and the City Council recommends that the content in invocations be acceptable to all members of the community.
On behalf of the City Council, the City Council thanks you in advance for considering this invitation.
Sincerely,
City Clerk
e. Interested Assembly Leaders shall be scheduled as Presenters on a first-come, first-served basis, or other rotational selection method. f. If the Presenter does not appear at the scheduled meeting, the Mayor may ask for a volunteer from among the City Council to deliver the invocation.
4. No Presenter shall receive compensation for their service.
5. The City Clerk shall make reasonable efforts to ensure a variety of eligible Presenters are scheduled for the City Council meetings. In any event, no Presenter shall be scheduled to offer an invocation at consecutive meetings of the City Council, or at more than five (5) City Council meetings in any calendar year.
6. Neither the City Council nor the City Clerk shall engage in any prior inquiry, review of, or involvement in the content of any invocation to be offered by a Presenter.
7. This policy is not intended, and shall not be implemented or construed in any way, to affiliate the City with nor express City preference for, any faith or religious denomination. Rather, this policy is intended to acknowledge and express the City’s respect for the diversity of beliefs represented and practiced among the citizens of Patterson.
8. This policy shall become effective immediately upon approval by the City Council. {CW113646.4}
PASSED AND ADOPTED AT A REGULAR MEETING OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PATTERSON ON THE 21st DAY of JUNE 2022, BY THE FOLLOWING ROLL CALL VOTE:
AYES:
NOES:
EXCUSED:
APPROVED:
Dennis McCord
Mayor of the City of Patterson
ATTEST:
Aracely Alegre
City Clerk of the City of Patterson
I hereby certify that the foregoing is a full, correct, and true copy of a resolution passed by the City Council of the City of Patterson, a Municipal Corporation of the County of Stanislaus, State of California, at a regular meeting held on the 21st day of June 2022, and I further certify that said resolution is in full force and effect and has never been rescinded or modified.
DATE:
______________________________
City Clerk of the City of Patterson