Agendas are available on the City Website
https://www.ridgecrest-ca.gov/council-agendas
Ridgecrest City Council
Successor Redevelopment Agency
Financing Authority
Housing Authority
AGENDA
August 20, 2025
Closed Session 5:30 p.m.
Regular Session 6:00 p.m.
City Hall, Council Chambers
100 100 West California Avenue
Ridgecrest CA 93555
Ricca Charlon, CMC
City Clerk
[email protected]
(760) 499-5002
In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, if you are a disabled person and you need a disability-related modification or accommodation to participate in the meeting, please contact Ricca Charlon at (760) 499-5002. Requests must be made as early as possible and at least one full business day before the start of the meeting.
Watch meetings on-line:
All of our meetings are streamed live at https://ridgecrest-ca.gov/369/Watch or on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/cityofridgecrest/live and are also available for playback after the meeting.
Call in for public comments:
To participate with verbal comments, please call (760) 499-5010. This phone line will allow only one caller at a time, so if the line is busy, please continue to dial. We will be allowing a 20-30 second delay between callers to give time for media delays and callers to dial in. If you wish to comment on multiple items you will need to call in as each item is presented.
CITY COUNCIL
Travis Endicott, Mayor
Kyle Blades, Mayor Pro-Tem
Solomon P. Rajaratnam, Vice Mayor
L. Scott Hayman, Council Member
John ‘Skip’ Gorman, Council Member
Ron Strand, City Manager
Keith Lemieux, City Attorney
Martin Koczanowicz, City Attorney
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100 W. CALIFORNIA AVE. | RIDGECREST, CA 93555
Phone 760.499.5000 | Fax 760.499.1520
www.ridgecrest-ca.gov
NOTICE AND CALL OF A SPECIAL CLOSED SESSION MEETING OF THE
RIDGECREST CITY COUNCIL / SUCCESSOR REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY /
HOUSING AUTHORITY / FINANCING AUTHORITY
TO THE MEMBERS OF THE RIDGECREST CITY COUNCIL / SUCCESSOR
REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY / HOUSING AUTHORITY / FINANCING AUTHORITY, PUBLIC AND CITY CLERK:
PUBLIC NOTICE that a SPECIAL CLOSED SESSION MEETING of the Ridgecrest City Council/Successor Redevelopment Agency/Housing Authority/Financing Authority is hereby called on:
Wednesday, August 20, 2025 @ 5:30 p.m.
City Council Chambers
100 W. California Avenue
Ridgecrest, California
Said SPECIAL CLOSED SESSION MEETING shall be for the purpose of:
CONFERENCE WITH LEGAL COUNCIL Potential LITIGATION Gov Code Section 54956.9(b), Claim of Anderson
Dated: August 14, 2025
Travis Endicott, Mayor / Chair
ATTEST:
Ricca Charlon, City Clerk
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RIDGECREST CITY COUNCIL
SUCCESSOR REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY
FINANCING AUTHORITY
HOUSING AUTHORITY
AGENDA
Wednesday, August 20, 2025 Closed Session – 5:30 p.m.
Regular Session – 6:00 p.m.
CALL TO ORDER
ROLL CALL
APPROVAL OF AGENDA
CLOSED SESSION
CONFERENCE WITH LEGAL COUNCIL Potential LITIGATION Gov Code Section 54956.9(b), Claim of Anderson
REGULAR SESSION
• Pledge Of Allegiance
• Invocation
PUBLIC COMMENT OF ITEMS NOT ON THE AGENDA - Persons wishing to address the Council on matters that are within the Council’s jurisdiction and DO NOT ALREADY APPEAR ON THE AGENDA, may do so at this time.
COUNCIL ANNOUNCEMENTS/DIRECTION
CONSENT CALENDAR – All Matters Listed Under The Consent Calendar Are To Be Considered Routine And Enacted By One Motion Unless Pulled By A Council Member Or A Member Of The Public.
1. A Resolution Approving The Project List For Fiscal Year 2025-2026 For The California State Of Good Repair (SGR) Program For The Following Project: Electric Cutaway Purchase Covarrubias
2. A Declaration Of Equipment And Vehicles As Surplus According To The FY25-26 Adopted Budget Purchasing Policy And Resolution 25-29 Roberts
DISCUSSION / ACTION ITEMS
3. Proposed Approval For The Expenditure Of Park Impact Fees To Install Permanent Fencing On The JV And Varsity Softball Fields At Leroy Jackson Sports Complex In The Amount Of $65,000 Wegener
4. Discussion Regarding The Board Of The Indian Wells Valley Groundwater Authority (IWVGA) Hayman
5. Council’s Consideration Of Rules Of Order For Council Meetings Attorney
AGENDA - CITY COUNCIL / SUCCESSOR REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY / FINANCING AUTHORITY / HOUSING AUTHORITY REGULAR – August 20, 2025
COMMITTEE REPORTS**Committee Meeting dates are subject to change and will be announced on the City website
Economic Development Committee
Members: Kyle Blades and Solomon Rajaratnam
Meeting: 1st Monday of the month @ 5:15 p.m.
Location: City Hall Conference Room B, 1st Floor
➢ Next meeting October 6, 2025
Finance Committee
Members: Solomon Rajaratnam and Scott Hayman
Meeting: 2nd Tuesday each month at 5:30 p.m.
Location: City Hall Conference Room B, 1st Floor
➢ Next meeting September 9, 2025
Infrastructure Committee
Members: Mayor Endicott and Kyle Blades
Meeting: 4th Thursday each month at 5:00 p.m.
Location: City Hall Conference Room B, 1st Floor
➢ Next meeting August 28, 2025
Parks, Recreation, and Quality of Life Committee
Members: Mayor Endicott and Scott Hayman
Meeting: 1st Tuesday each month at 5:30 p.m.
Location: City Hall Council Chambers
➢ Next meeting September 2, 2025
OTHER COMMITTEES, BOARDS, OR COMMISSIONS
CITY MANAGER REPORT
FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS
MAYOR AND COUNCIL COMMENTS
ADJOURNMENT
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Ridgecrest City Council
Successor Redevelopment Agency
Financing Authority
Housing Authority
STAFF REPORT
SUBJECT: A Resolution Approving The Project List For Fiscal Year 2025-2026 For The California State Of Good Repair (SGR) Program For The Following Project: Electric Cutaway Purchase
PRESENTED BY: Sergio Covarrubias, Transit Administrator SUMMARY:
The Road Repair and Accountability Act of 2017, Senate Bill (SB) 1 (Chapter 5, Statues of 2017), signed by the Governor on April 28, 2017, includes a program that provides additional revenues for transit infrastructure repair and service improvements. This investment in public transit will be referred to as the State of Good Repair Program.
The Transit Division has an estimated allocation of fifty-one thousand, five hundred and eighteen dollars ($51,518.00) from the State of Good Repair Program.
It is the recommendation of staff that these funds be used in conjunction with future allocated State of Good Repair funds to replace one or more current 29-foot, gasoline-powered cutaway buses with a battery electric cutaway bus. The replacement vehicle is more suited to meet current service demands and is in line with state requirements that transit services begin transitioning to zero emission vehicles beginning in 2026 and being fully transitioned by 2040. Vehicles purchased prior to the 2026 milestone will be counted towards required zero emission purchasing ratios.
Additionally, the battery electric vehicle transition, and the Corporation yard solar power project, currently under construction will reduce Transit Division expenditures, and ,lower funds the matching funds needed to supplement the required farebox recovery ratios.
FISCAL IMPACT: Provides $51,518 in state funding for capital projects within the Transit Division.
ACTION REQUESTED: Approve a Resolution Approving the Project List for Fiscal Year 2025-2026 For the California State of Good Repair (SGR) Program for the following project:
Electric Cutaway Purchase
CITY MANAGER’S RECOMMENDATION:
Submitted by: Sergio Covarrubias, Transit Administrator Action Date: August 20th, 2025 This Page Intentionally Left Blank
City of Ridgecrest
RESOLUTION #25-XX
APPROVING THE PROJECT LIST FOR FISCAL YEAR 2025-2026
FOR THE CALIFORNIA STATE OF GOOD REPAIR PROGRAM:
ELECTRIC CUTAWAY PURCHASE
WHEREAS, Senate Bill 1 (SB 1), the Road Repair and Accountability Act of 2017, established the State of Good Repair (SGR) program to fund eligible transit maintenance, rehabilitation and capital project activities that maintain the public transit system in a state of good repair; and,
WHEREAS, SGR funds are allocated by the Kern Council of Governments; and, WHEREAS, the City of Ridgecrest’s share of SGR funds for fiscal year 2025-26 is estimated to be $51,518.00; and,
WHEREAS, these SGR funds will be used in the future for the purchase of an electric cutaway bus; and,
WHEREAS, in order to qualify for these funds, the City of Ridgecrest is required to submit a proposed project list to California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) on an annual basis.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the City Council of the City of Ridgecrest hereby:
1. Approves the aforementioned project as the SB1 State of Good Repair Project List for FY 2025-2026; and
2. Agrees to comply with all conditions and requirements set forth in the Certification and Assurances document and applicable statutes, regulations and guidelines for all SGR.
3. Authorizes the Transit Administrator to submit a request for Scheduled Allocation of the State of Good Repair funds and to execute the related grant applications, forms and agreements.
ADOPTED, AND APPROVED, this 20th day of August 2025, by the following vote:
AYES:
NOES:
ABSENT:
ABSTAIN:
___________________________
Travis Endicott, Mayor
ATTEST:
______________________
Ricca Charlon, City Clerk
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Ridgecrest City Council
Successor Redevelopment Agency
Financing Authority
Housing Authority
STAFF REPORT
SUBJECT: A Declaration Of Equipment And Vehicles As Surplus According To The FY25- 26 Adopted Budget Purchasing Policy And Resolution 25-29 PRESENTED BY: Terry Roberts, Public Works Director
Staff is requesting to surplus equipment and vehicles that are inoperable, not used, or have outlived their useful life. Said equipment will utilize public auction direct sales, silent auction, or any other means necessary beneficial to the City for disposal.
At a later date staff will prepare a resolution to allocate the money to an expenditure.
FISCAL IMPACT: $0, revenues from the sale of said equipment will be deposited in a revenue account and allocated to the FY 25-26 Budget by a separate resolution to be utilized as an expenditure.
ACTION REQUESTED:
1. Authorize staff to declare the listed Items as Surplus.
2. Authorize staff to negotiate terms for the disposal of said items.
CITY MANAGER’S RECOMMENDATION: Action as Requested
Submitted by: Terry Roberts Action Date: August 20, 2025 This Page Intentionally Left Blank
City of Ridgecrest Resolution No. 25-xx
RESOLUTION NO. 25-xx
A DECLARATION OF EQUIPMENT AND VEHICLES AS SURPLUS
ACCORDING TO THE FY25-26 ADOPTED BUDGET PURCHASING
POLICY; RESOLUTION 25-29
WHEREAS, In June of 2025, the City Council adopted the FY25-26 Budget, within said budget the Purchasing Policy lays out how to dispose of equipment, and; WHEREAS, In this Policy, and Administrative policy 05-55 there is a section on Depreciation of equipment and the useful life expectancy in years, and; WHEREAS, Assets to be disposed must be approved by the Department Head and the City Manager, and;
WHEREAS, Assets funded through grants/contracts may have restrictions on how they can be disposed of, and;
WHEREAS, Staff has researched the items listed below and found them not to have any restrictions, and;
WHEREAS, The Department Head and the City Manager have approved the surplus of said items.
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, That The City Council Of The City Of Ridgecrest Does Hereby Declare As Follows:
Section 1. The following equipment is declared as surplus:
MODEL CITY PURCHASE BOOK
MAKE MODEL YEAR R NO AGE PRICE VALUE
Cat #120 blade 1972 R-42 53 $33,895 $1,000
Ford 340B Tractor 1989 R-177 36 $17,461 $5,000
Case 695 Tractor 1994 est R-232 31 $27,717 $9,000
Hesston 8200 Swather 1998 est R-233 27 $22,790 $7,000
Dodge 3/4T PickUp 2000 R-286 25 $28,615 $7,000
KenWorth Vacuum Truck 2012 R-388 13 $282,381 $100,000
Multi-Equip Hay Bailer 2015 est R-416 10 $63,829 $20,000 Massey Ferguson Tractor 2015 est R-417 10 $51,028 $11,000 New Holland Bale Wagon unknown N/A unk unknown $10,000
John Deere Hay Rake unknown N/A unk unknown $3,000
Reinke Center Pivot (530 ft) unknown N/A unk unknown $1,000 Reinke Center Pivot (340 ft) unknown N/A unk unknown $1,000 City of Ridgecrest Resolution No. 25-xx
Section 2. Staff is authorized to negotiate terms for the disposal of items list above by:
public auction direct sales, silent auction, or any other means necessary beneficial to the City.
APPROVED AND ADOPTED this 20th day of August 2025 by the following vote:
AYES:
NOES:
ABSENT:
ABSTAIN:
Travis Endicott, Mayor
ATTEST:
Ricca Charlon, CMC, City Clerk
REASON FOR RECOMMENDED
MAKE MODEL DISPOSAL GRANT? METHOD
Cat #120 blade Past Useful Life No Public Auction
Ford 340B Tractor Past Useful Life No Public Auction
Case 695 Tractor Past Useful Life No Public Auction
Hesston 8200 Swather Past Useful Life No Public Auction Dodge 3/4T PickUp Past Useful Life No Public Auction
KenWorth Vacuum Truck Past Useful Life No Public Auction Multi-Equip Hay Bailer Hay Task Stopped No Public Auction Massey Ferguson Tractor Hay Task Stopped No Public Auction New Holland Bale Wagon Hay Task Stopped No Public Auction John Deere Hay Rake Hay Task Stopped No Public Auction
Reinke Center Pivot (530 ft) Hay Task Stopped No Public Auction Reinke Center Pivot (340 ft) Hay Task Stopped No Public Auction 3 This Page Intentionally Left Blank
Ridgecrest City Council
Successor Redevelopment Agency
Financing Authority
Housing Authority
STAFF REPORT
SUBJECT: Proposed Approval For The Expenditure Of Park Impact Fees To Install Permanent Fencing On The JV And Varsity Softball Fields At Leroy Jackson Sports Complex In The Amount Of $65,000
PRESENTED BY: Nerissa Wegener, Parks and Recreation Director SUMMARY: City staff has been working diligently to complete several improvements at the Leroy Jackson Youth Sports Complex. One longstanding request from both the IWV Youth Softball League and Burroughs High School has been the installation of permanent outfield fencing on the JV and Varsity softball fields. Previously, concerns were raised that such fencing would limit use by adult slow-pitch softball leagues and tournaments. After evaluating field dimensions and engaging all stakeholders, city staff confirmed that installing 6-foot slatted chain-link fences will not restrict any existing users and will, in fact, enhance field functionality for all provided some minor adjustments are made to adult league rules.
Benefits of installing permanent outfield fencing include:
• Youth softball teams will no longer need to manually set up or take down temporary breakaway fencing before and after games.
• Burroughs High School will be able to host CIF-sanctioned games, a requirement previously unmet due to lack of permanent fencing.
• The IWV Youth Softball League will qualify to host All-Star and potentially National Championship level games—opportunities currently unavailable due to field limitations. • All field user groups, including adult slow-pitch leagues, support the fencing installation and agree it will not impact their ability to play or hold tournaments.
City staff has received a quote to install the fencing at an estimated cost of $65,000, which includes a $5,000 contingency to address any unexpected issues.
Staff recommends that the Ridgecrest City Council approve a resolution authorizing the installation of 6-foot slatted chain-link outfield fencing on the JV and Varsity softball fields at the Leroy Jackson Youth Sports Complex in the amount of $65,000.
FISCAL IMPACT:
Allocate increase for outfield fence installation not to exceed $65,000 in Park Impact Fees ACTION REQUESTED:
1. Council to approve the expenditure of Park impact fees to make capital improvements to Leroy Jackson sports complex softball fields in the amount of $65,000
2. Authorize the Finance Director to amend the FY26 budget to reflect this budget increase.
CITY MANAGER’S RECOMMENDATION: Action as requested
Submitted by: Nerissa Wegener, Parks and Recreation Director Action Date: August 20, 2025 This Page Intentionally Left Blank
RESOLUTION NO. 25-
A RESOLUTION TO APPROVE THE EXPENDITURE OF PARK IMPACT
FEES TO INSTALL PERMANENT FENCING ON THE JV AND VARISTY
SOFTBALL FIELDS AT LEROY JACKSON SPORTS COMPLEX IN THE
AMOUNT OF $65,000
WHEREAS, the City Council of the City of Ridgecrest has collected Park Impact Fees from residential construction projects; and,
WHEREAS, the City of Ridgecrest has the need to do capital improvements to the Leroy Jackson Sports Complex JV and Varsity softball fields; and, WHEREAS, the Park Impact fees are available for such projects; and, WHEREAS, these funds will be used to install permanent fencing on the JV and Varsity field at the Leroy Jackson Youth Sports Complex: and, WHEREAS, the expenditures will not affect the general fund; and, WHEREAS, this was not a budgeted expense in the FY 2026 budget.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the City Council of the City of Ridgecrest does hereby:
1. Approve the expenditure of Park impact fees to make capital improvements to Leroy Jackson sports complex in the amount of $65,000 and includes a $5.000 contingency
2. Authorize the Finance Director to amend the FY26 budget to reflect this budget increase.
APPROVED AND ADOPTED, this 20th day of August 2025 by the following vote:
AYES:
NOES:
ABSENT:
ABSTAIN:
Travis Endicott, Mayor
ATTEST:
Ricca Charlon
City Clerk
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Ridgecrest City Council
Successor Redevelopment Agency
Financing Authority
Housing Authority
STAFF REPORT
SUBJECT: Discussion Regarding The Board Of The Indian Wells Valley Groundwater Authority (IWVGA)
PRESENTED BY:
L. Scott Hayman, City Council / IWVGA Representative
SUMMARY:
Report and discussion regarding Board meetings of the IWVGA. Including, Board discussion and consideration of issues of importance requiring action by the IWVGA.
FISCAL IMPACT: None
ACTION REQUESTED: Discuss
CITY MANAGER’S RECOMMENDATION: Action as requested
Submitted by: Ricca Charlon Action Date: August 20, 2025 This Page Intentionally Left Blank
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Ridgecrest City Council
Successor Redevelopment Agency
Financing Authority
Housing Authority
STAFF REPORT
SUBJECT: Council’s Consideration Of Rules Of Order For Council Meetings PRESENTED BY: Martin Koczanowicz, City Attorney
SUMMARY:
Recently staff was directed to place this item on the Council agenda for consideration. Draft Rules of Order for Council Meetings may be discussed by the Council and direction provided to staff for next steps.
ANALYSIS:
At recent meetings questions arose about the authority of a single Council Member placing items on the agenda and discussion about potential rules for conduct of meetings. Staff researched this issue and discovered that Rules of Conduct were discussed by the City Council in 2017. At that time no action was taken to adopt the proposed rules. A draft of those rules with some minor amendments is attached to this staff report as Exhibit A. Also, a draft of more detailed and robust rules used in some other jurisdictions served by our office has been included as Exhibit B.
Staff will present the item and answer any questions Council may have regarding either of those drafts, or potential for different set of rules. After deliberation and receipt of public comment Council may take action in accordance with the recommendations below.
FISCAL IMPACT: City Council’s approval of any set of Rules will not have a direct fiscal impact on the General Fund. To the extent that Rules of Conduct result in more efficiently run meetings, some indirect positive fiscal impacts may be realized.
ACTION ALTERNATIVES:
1. By motion approve Rules of Order based on either templates provided or a hybrid of those drafts.
2. Direct staff to return with a different draft for Council consideration at the next meeting.
3. Abandon adoption of any Rules of Order and table the item.
CITY MANAGER’S RECOMMENDATION:
Same as Above
Submitted by: Martin Koczanowicz Action Date: 8/20/25
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Page | 1 Adopted Conduct at Public Meetings (Final)
Conduct at Public Meetings
COUNCIL MEETINGS
All council meetings are conducted in compliance with the Ralph M. Brown Act (California Government Code section 54950, et. seq.), which requires legislative bodies to hold their meetings in public except under specific circumstances where closed sessions are authorized.
Except as otherwise provided by these rules, the Municipal Code, or applicable provisions of state law, the procedures of the City Council shall be governed by the latest revised edition of Rosenbergs Rules of Order.
The applicability of these City Council rules, or any one thereof, may be suspended for an item or subject matter by a majority of the Councilmembers present at a meeting that such item is being considered.
Regular Meetings
The City Council holds regular meetings on the first and third Wednesdays of each month. The regular meeting shall commence at 6:00 p.m. In some cases a special meeting may be held immediately prior to the regular meeting for purposes of conducting a Closed Session. In those cases where it is anticipated that a closed session will be unusually lengthy, the City may set the special meeting at an announced time. Agendas will be prepared and the meeting will be conducted with the intention of concluding the meeting no later than 10:30 p.m.
The City Council Chamber in Ridgecrest City Hall has been established as the place for holding its regular meetings.
Special Meetings
Occasionally, the mayor, mayor pro tem, City Manager or city clerk may call a special meeting to consider specific items. The city clerk’s office will post a notice of these meetings at least 24 hours in advance.
Closed Session
The city council may meet in closed session before, during or after a meeting to discuss matters authorized under the provisions of the Brown Act. No Councilmember, employee of the City, or any other person present during a Closed Session of the City Council shall disclose to any person the content or substance of any communication which took place during the Closed Session unless the City Council specifically authorizes the disclosure by majority vote or unless the disclosure is required by law. In the event that the closed session is expected to last beyond the Page | 2 Adopted Conduct at Public Meetings (Final)
start of the regular meeting, the City Clerk will provide an estimate to the public of the expected start of the public meeting.
Workshops/Study Sessions/Town Hall
The city council may conduct workshops or study sessions for a specific purpose, such as the preliminary annual city budget. These sessions will be agenized in the same manner as special meetings. They may be held at a place other than the council chambers.
THE AGENDA
The City Clerk shall prepare the Agenda under the direction of the City Manager as follows: The City Manager shall consult with the City Attorney in the preparation of the Agenda. The Agenda and all available supporting documents shall be delivered to Councilmembers at least 72 hours prior to the Wednesday City Council meeting to which it pertains or as soon thereafter as possible. Exceptions can occur for items without that are time critical as long as public notification and posting laws are complied with.
Each agenda will contain an item for “Future Agenda Items” during which members of the city council may request to have matters added to the agenda of any upcoming regular meeting.
Matters directed to be placed on the Agenda at the direction of at least two Councilmembers shall be listed on the Agenda in the order of receipt by the City Clerk.
The City Clerk shall post the Agenda as required by the Brown Act. Copies of the Agenda shall be posted on the City’s website, in the lobby of City Hall and at the Kern County Library. The City Clerk shall maintain on file in his or her office declarations establishing compliance with the posting requirements.
No action shall be taken on any item not appearing on the posted Agenda unless the item is added to the Agenda in the manner authtorized by the Brown Act.
The business of the City Council shall be conducted in the order and manner specified below. The order may be changed by a majority vote of those present. The following is the order of business:
1. Call to Order
2. Roll Call
3. Approval of Agenda
4. Public Comment- Closed Session(if applicable)
5. Closed Session (if applicable)
6. Regular Session 6:00 PM
a. Pledge of Allegiance
b. Invocation
Page | 3 Adopted Conduct at Public Meetings (Final)
7. City Attorney Report from Closed Session
8. Presentations- Mayor will ask the presenter if they are prepared to answer questions.
9. Council Announcements
10. Public Comment on items not on the agenda
11. Consent Calendar- The consent calendar shall consist of the approval of minutes of previous meetings and other routine items such as contracts and resolution which do not necessitate a separate public hearing and which are determined in the Agenda preparation process to be relatively non-controversial. Ordinances for second reading and adoption may be placed on the consent calendar if all members of the City Council were present when the vote for first reading and introduction took place and this vote was unanimous. The consent calendar shall be considered as one item regardless of the number of matters appearing on it and may be approved by a single vote. The title to the individual consent items need not be read unless a request to do so is made by any Councilmember. Members of the public shall have an opportunity to address the City Council concerning item(s) on the consent calendar. Members of the public shall be heard prior to City Council approval of the consent calendar. Councilmembers and public may request to have individual matters removed from the consent calendar to receive an oral staff report, or have discussion or deliberation of such item.. All matters remaining on the consent calendar may be approved by a single vote. Any items removed from the consent calendar shall be considered separately in the order of their appearance on the Agenda. Removed items may be heard immediately following the consent calendar or may be heard after the City Council concludes other matters on the agenda.
12. Discussion and Other Action Items
13. Public Hearings- This item consists of public hearings required by specific provisions of law.
14. Ordinances
15. Committee Reports
16. Other Committees, Boards, or Commissions- Boards and commissions who may present reports under this item include, but are not limited to, all City boards, commissions and task forces.
17. Public Comment. Limited to items within the City’s jurisdiction and not on the agenda.
Members of the public shall limit their remarks to five minutes.
18. City Manager Report
19. Future Agenda Items
20. Mayor and Council Comments
21. Adjournment
MINUTES
The City Clerk shall have exclusive responsibility for preparation of the Minutes, and any directions for corrections in the Minutes shall be made only by majority vote of the City Council.
Page | 4 Adopted Conduct at Public Meetings (Final)
PRESIDING OFFICER
The Mayor shall be the Presiding Officer at all meetings of the City Council. In the absence of the Mayor, the Mayor Pro Tempore shall preside. In the absence of both the Mayor and Mayor Pro Tempore, the Vice Mayor shall be the Presiding Officer.
The Presiding Officer may move, second, and debate from the chair, subject only to such limitations of debate as are imposed upon Councilmembers by these rules, and shall not be deprived of any of the rights or privileges of a Councilmember by reason of his or her acting as the Presiding Officer. The Presiding Officer shall (1) preserve order at all meetings of the City Council, (2) state (or cause to be stated) each question coming before the City Council (3) announce the decisions of the City Council on all subjects; and (4) decide all questions of order subject to the right to appeal rulings on questions of order to the entire City Council.
RULES OF DEBATE
A Councilmember desiring to speak shall gain recognition by the Presiding Officer. Every Councilmember desiring to question City staff shall address his or her questions to the City Manager, the City Attorney, the City Clerk or designated staff. Every Council member shall be afforded the opportunity to speak on any item on the agenda for a reasonable period at the discretion of the Presiding Officer.
PROCEDURE FOR ADOPTING A MOTION
The following procedure shall be followed in connection with any Agenda item requiring a motion:
(a) The Presiding Officer reads the title.
(b) Presiding Officer calls for a staff report.
(c) Councilmembers question City staff.
(d) Council conducts Public hearing, or obtains public comment. (e) Council deliberates.
(f) A Councilmember makes a motion, another Councilmember seconds the motion, and the Council debates it, with the maker of the motion having the opportunity to speak last. (g) The Presiding Officer or City Clerk restates the motion. (h) The Council votes on the motion.
(I) The City Clerk announces result.
Page | 5 Adopted Conduct at Public Meetings (Final)
ADDRESSING THE COUNCIL DURING THE MEETING
The city council encourages public participation in the decision-making process and appreciates when residents bring issues of community concern to their attention. Individuals wishing to address the council on any agenda item may do so at the time the item is considered. However, members of the public do not have the right to give testimony outside the scope of or unrelated to the agenda item under consideration. Additionally, members of the public should strive to avoid unduly reiterating their own or others’ testimony.
Comments are limited to no more than 5 minutes per speaker, but that time limit may be reduced or increased at the Presiding Officer’s discretion they may ask for the debate to continue if there are numerous speakers on a particular item. In the event that new information that the public has not previously had opportunity to consider is brought up during Council response, the Mayor may allow speakers another opportunity to comment on that information, with concurrence of the City Council.
To ensure efficient proceedings and to allow for the maximum of public testimony on items that are expected to be controversial, the City Council may request those desiring to speak to be registered prior to commencement of the meeting. The City Council will make this determination upon the adoption of the agenda. Under those circumstances, the public will be asked by the City Clerk to complete a speaker card and submit it to the City Clerk. Each member of the public who has submitted a card will be called upon to speak based in order. Once all speakers have been recognized, if there is still time to consider the matter, the Mayor shall invite those who have not filled out cards and not had the opportunity to speak to address the Council.
After being recognized by the Presiding Officer, each member of the public addressing the City Council shall go to the podium, state his or her name, if desired, and whom he or she is representing, if he or she represents an organization or other person. Each member of the public is encouraged, but not required, to also state his or her address, neighborhood, or city of residence. All remarks shall be addressed to the City Council as a whole and not to any individual member thereof. An opportunity for public comment is not an opportunity to dialogue with the Council or ask questions with the expectation of immediate response. Presiding Officer may request a brief response from staff to any questions at Presiding Officer’s sole discretion. No items not properly noticed on the agenda can be deliberated by the Council.
SPECIAL ASSISTANCE FOR THOSE WHO CANNOT WAIT TO SPEAK
Members of the public, including those with special needs, who cannot wait to speak, or are not able to speak, on an agenda item may request assistance from the City Clerk. A member of the Clerk's office will provide assistance for those with special needs as reasonably possible. Those Page | 6 Adopted Conduct at Public Meetings (Final)
unable to wait to speak may submit written statement for distribution to the Council prior to the agenda item being called.
PUBLIC SAFETY
When the City Council is in session, all persons present must preserve proper decorum, safety and order. Members of the public should sit in the audience seating area, unless addressing the Council or entering or leaving the Council Chambers, should not block the aisles with personal belongings and should not bring audible equipment into the Council Chambers including unsilenced cellular telephones or pagers. Members of the public may not, except when testifying on or participating in an agenda item, enter the well area, which is the open area directly in front of the dais and extending outward from it to a line running between the points on the Clerk's desk and the podium nearest to the audience.
Any person who disrupts the meeting shall be called to order by the Presiding Officer. Disruption shall include but not be limited to, blocking the audience or camera view of the proceedings. If such conduct continues, the Presiding Officer may request the Sergeant at Arms to remove the person from Council chambers.
The Chief of Police or such member or members of the Police Department as he or she may designate, shall be Sergeant At Arms of the City Council and shall carry out all orders given by the Presiding Officer through the City Manager for the purpose of maintaining order at City Council meetings. Any Councilmember may move to require the Presiding Officer to enforce the rules, and the affirmative vote of a majority of the City Council shall require him or her to do so.
INTERPRETATION AND MODIFICATION OF THESE RULES
These rules shall be interpreted liberally in order to provide for the optimum in the free interchange of information and public debate without an unnecessary waste of time or duplication of effort.
FAILURE TO OBSERVE RULES OF ORDER
These rules of order and procedures govern the conduct of City Council meetings. These rules are intended to expedite the transaction of the business of the City Council in an orderly fashion and are deemed to be procedural only. Failure to strictly observe these rules shall not affect the jurisdiction of the City Council or invalidate any action taken at a meeting that otherwise conforms to law.
Exhibit 1
CITY OF ______________
RULES OF ORDER AND DECORUM
FOR THE CONDUCT OF CITY MEETINGS
SECTION 1. PURPOSE
The purpose of this Policy is to establish Rules of Order and Decorum for City officials, City Staff, and members of the public at all meetings of the City Council and Commissions to ensure that the business of the City is attended to thoroughly and efficiently with opportunities for orderly public participation.
SECTION 1. APPLICATION AND DEFINITIONS
1.1Application. These rules are intended to apply to meetings of all legislative bodies of the City ___________, elected and appointive.
1.2Definitions. The “Presiding Officer” of the City Council shall be the Mayor, or in the Mayor's absence, the Vice Mayor, or in both of their absences any other member designated by the City Council. The “Presiding Officer” of the City’s Commissions shall be the “Chair.” The “Clerk” shall be the City Clerk or the presiding Secretary of the City’s Commissions.
SECTION 2. TIME AND PLACE OF MEETINGS
2.1 Regular Meetings:
1. The City Council shall conduct regular meetings in the Council Chamber at __________on the first and third Wednesday of the month at 6:00 P.M.
2. Community Services Commission shall conduct regular meetings in the Council Chamber at P.M.
3. The Planning Commission shall conduct regular meetings in the Council Chamber at P.M.
4. Once convened, such meetings may be adjourned to another location within the City if unusually large crowds or other circumstances warrant. 2 2.2 Special Meetings: Special meetings may be called by staff or a majority of the Council/Commission in compliance with the Brown Act. No business other than that officially noticed in the Agenda may be discussed.
2.3 Notice: Notice of all regular, special and adjourned meetings must be provided and posted in accordance with the Brown Act. Seventy-two hours’ notice is required for regular meetings; 24-hour notice for special meetings. Notices of the meeting shall be posted at the following locations per Ordinance No. .:
SECTION 3. AGENDA
3.1 Agenda Requirement: No action or deliberation of a matter may be taken at a meeting unless that matter is listed on a printed and posted Agenda containing sufficient information to apprise a reasonable person of the proposed action (or unless that item is added to the Agenda as set forth below).
3.2 Placing Matters on an Agenda [City Council Only]: By request of any Member during the Council Comments period of a regular meeting (See Section 5.7) items may be added to the agenda of a subsequent meeting, provided that a majority of the Council concurs with the request. The City Manager will make every effort to place the item on the Agenda within one month of the request by the majority of the Council. However, should the City Manager determine the Agenda item would require significant staff resources, the City Manager may place the item on the Agenda at a subsequent meeting, as an “Informational and Directional” item to ascertain if the Council concurs with the allocation of staff resources or to provide sufficient time to research the Agenda item and present said research to the Council.
3.3 Emergency Items: Emergency and non-agendized items may be added to an agenda only in accordance with state law. Emergency items are only those matters affecting public health or safety such as work stoppages, disasters and other severe emergencies. Adding an emergency item requires a majority vote.
3.4 “Need-Arose” Items: Non-agendized items may be added to the agenda only if the Council/Commission makes findings that (1) the need to consider the item arose after the posting of the agenda, and; (2) there is a need to take immediate action at this meeting.
These findings must be approved by a four-fifths vote. This matter shall be considered as part of “Approval of the Agenda Order” as referenced in Sections 5.1 and 5.2. 3 SECTION 4. QUORUM
4.1 City Council Quorum. The City Council composed of five members. Pursuant to Government Code Section 36810, three members of the City Council shall constitute a quorum.
4.2 Planning Commission Quorum. The Planning Commission is composed of five members. Three members shall constitute a quorum.
4.3 Design Review Commission Quorum. The Design Review Commission is composed of five members. Three members shall constitute a quorum.
4.4 Civil Service Commission Quorum. The Civil Service Commission is composed of five members. Three members shall constitute a quorum.
4.5 Community Services Commission Quorum. The Community Service Commission is composed of five members. Three members shall constitute a quorum.
4.6 Historical Preservation and Cultural Resource Commission Quorum. The Historical Preservation and Cultural Resource Commission is composed of five members.
Three members shall constitute a quorum.
4.7 Absence of Quorum. When there is no quorum, any member of the Council/Commission shall adjourn such meeting or, if no member of the Council/Commission is present, the Clerk shall adjourn the meeting.
SECTION 5. ORDER OF BUSINESS
5.1 City Council Agenda Order: At every regular meeting of the City Council, the order of business shall be discussed and acted upon in substantially the following manner, provided that the Mayor may alter the order of business with the concurrence of a majority of the City Council.
1) Call to Order
2) Pledge of Allegiance
3) Roll Call
4) Approval of Agenda Order
5) Presentations
6) Public Comment on non-agenda and consent items
4 7) Consent Agenda
8) Public Hearings
9) Continued Business
10) New Business
11)City Manager's report
12) Council Comments and Conference/Meeting Reports
13) Closed Session (if any)
14) Adjournment
5.2 Commission Agenda Order: At every regular meeting of the Commission, the order of business shall be discussed and acted upon in substantially the following manner, provided that the Chair may alter the order of business with concurrence of a majority of the Commissioners.
1) Call to Order
2) Pledge of Allegiance
3) Roll Call
4) Approval of Agenda Order
5) Public Comment on non-agenda items
6) Action Items
7) Discussion Items
8) Commissioner Reports
9) Adjournment
5.3 Roll Call: Before proceeding with business, the Clerk shall enter in the minutes the names of all members of the Council/Commission present. If any member of the Council/Commission arrives after the roll call or needs to leave prior to the adjournment of a meeting, the Clerk shall enter in the minutes the time at which such member arrived or left.
5.4 Approval of Agenda Order: After Roll Call, the Council/Commission shall review and approve the order of the items on the Agenda. At this time, any member of the Council/Commission may move to reorder the items on the Agenda and the Presiding Officer shall re-order the items on the Agenda if the majority of the members so consent.
This time shall further be used to address any “need-arose” items as described in Section
3.4. 5.5 Consent Agenda : The Consent Agenda shall consist of routine items for which staff contemplates no significant discussion by the City Council. A Consent Agenda item may be removed for discussion at the request of any Councilmember. A removed Consent 5 Agenda item will be considered after the City Council acts upon the remainder of the Consent Agenda.
5.6 Special Presentations [City Council Only]: Special presentations may be conducted at any meeting at the City Council's discretion.
5.7 Public Comment: During Public Comment the public is invited to comment on items within the jurisdiction of the City but not on the agenda and on Consent Calendar items.
See Section 11 below.
5.8 Public Hearings and Action Items: Public hearings are scheduled to comply with State law or in accordance with the San Gabriel Municipal Code. See Section 10 below.
Action Items are those requiring an Action by Council/Commission and subject to public comment.
5.9 City Council/Commissioner Reports: Reports of members shall be limited to five minutes per member, unless additional time is granted by the Presiding Officer which shall not be unreasonably denied.
5.10 Automatic Adjournment [City Council Only]: No new items on the agenda for a City Council meeting shall be considered after 11:00 P.M. and the meeting shall be adjourned upon conclusion of the item under consideration at 11:00 P.M., provided that the City Council may consider a new item after 11:00 P.M. if the City Council determines by a majority vote of the members present that an item be considered after 11:00 P.M.
SECTION 6. VOTING
6.1 Duty to Vote: When present, all members of the Council/Commission are to vote unless prohibited by law or conflict of interest.
6.2 Roll Call Vote: A roll call vote will be taken and recorded for every action taken and such roll call vote shall be entered in the minutes of the meeting showing those members of the Council/Commission voting aye, those voting no and those not voting or absent.
Members of the Council/Commission shall use the electronic voting display when available.
6.3 Conflicts of Interest: A conflict of interest shall be declared whenever appropriate and in compliance with State law. The affected member of the Council/Commission will step down from the dais and leave the Chamber as required by State law.
Commented [MK1]: Not super majority?
6 6.4 Tie Vote: A motion fails on a tie vote. The Presiding Officer may publicly explain the effect of the tie vote for the audience or may direct the City Attorney to do so.
6.5 Voting Requirements of City Council: Enactment of an ordinance, adoption of a resolution, as well as approval of a motion or order involving a payment of money by the City Council requires the affirmative vote of three or more Councilmembers. Other motions or actions require a vote at least by a majority of a quorum of Councilmembers present (i.e., two votes in the case that only three Councilmembers are present), unless otherwise specified by State law.
6.6 Voting Requirements of Commissions: All actions by the Commissions require the affirmative vote of the total quorum of its members.
6.7 Reconsideration [City Council Only]: Reconsideration of a City Council action shall be allowed when a member of the prevailing majority of the Council when the vote on the original action was taken makes a motion for reconsideration during Council Comments at a meeting following that at which the original action was taken; provided that no motion for reconsideration will be entertained after one year from the time the original action was taken unless the Council determines significant new information has arisen which warrants such action.
SECTION 7. THE MINUTES
7.1 Content: The minutes will be a clear and concise statement of the actions taken at the Council/Commission meeting, including the motions made and the vote thereon. The minutes shall include the date, hour and place of the meeting; whether it is a regular, adjourned regular or special meeting; the names of the members of the Council/Commission and staff present and absent; and any action taken by the Council/Commission. If any member of the Council/Commission arrives late or departs before the adjournment, the minutes shall reflect his or her arrival or departure time.
Whenever the Council/Commission acts in a quasi-judicial proceeding , the minutes shall include a complete summary of the witnesses.
7.2 Preparation: Minutes shall be prepared by the Clerk and presented to the Council/Commission for approval. The Council/Commission may then, by motion, make such corrections as conform to fact and formally adopt the minutes. Members of the Council/Commission are not required to have attended the meeting that is the subject of the minutes as a condition to vote on approval.
SECTION 8. ACTIONS
7 8.1 Process for Action Items. Consideration of Action Items shall follow the following process:
8.1.1 Announcement by the Clerk: The Clerk shall announce the item under consideration by reference to its listing on the agenda.
8.1.2 Staff Report: Responsible Staff members shall present a report of staff regarding the action item.
8.1.3 Questions of Staff: Members of the Council/Commission may ask factual questions of staff to clarify the report. Additional questions of staff may be asked during debate and discussion as described in section 8.1.5.
8.1.4 Public Comment: If any public speaker cards have been received for the item or a member of the public expresses a desire to address the Council/Commission when the item is called, the public shall be invited to speak on the item using the process described in Section 11.
8.1.5 Debate: Before or after any initial motion on any item by any member of the Council/Commission, the members of the Council/Commission may debate the item, make comments relevant to the item, respond to any questions related to the item and ask questions of staff related to the item.
8.1.6 Motions: Any member of the Council/Commission may initiate an item for formal consideration by the Council/Commission by making a motion. A member of the Council/Commission may make an independent motion, may make a motion to implement staff recommendation, or may request assistance from the City Manager or City Attorney as to the form of a proposed motion. Upon making of the motion, a second member of the Council/Commission may second the motion. A duly offered and seconded motion shall be restated by the Presiding Officer, City Manager, or City Attorney.
8.1.7 Vote: Unless withdrawn, the Council/Commission shall vote upon the motion, as provided in Section 6.
8.2 Resolutions: A resolution is a formal document that records an action of the Council/Commission. Resolutions are considered by the Council/Commission upon motion and proper second. Resolutions are sometimes required by law or may be recommended by the City Manager or City Attorney to record an action of the 8 Council/Commission which is considered of particular importance. Resolutions shall be presented using the City’s standard format. They shall be reviewed and approved by the City Attorney prior to any presentation to the Council/Commission according to rules and procedures developed by the City Manager.
8.3 Ordinances: Ordinances are the vehicle used by the Council/Commission to repeal or amend existing law, as codified in the San Gabriel City Municipal Code, or to enact new law. Ordinances shall be presented using the City’s standard format. They shall be reviewed and approved by the City Attorney prior to any presentation to the Council/Commission according to rules and procedures developed by the City Manager.
8.4 Ordinance Process: In accordance with the California Government Code, ordinances are considered by the Council in a two-step process. Unless determined to be an item of Urgency by a four-fifths vote of the Council as set forth in Section 8.6 below, ordinances are introduced by the majority of the Council at one meeting and then approved and adopted by the majority of the Council at a subsequent meeting. No significant changes except clerical corrections or minor verbiage revisions are allowed during or after first reading, or the ordinance will be returned for another introduction and first reading.
Following adoption at the second meeting, within fifteen days the City Clerk shall publish the ordinance as set forth in Section 36933 of the Government Code. The ordinance shall become effective thirty days after adoption unless the ordinance is an urgency ordinance adopted in accordance with Section 8.6 below.
8.5 Adoption by Title Only: State law requires that an ordinance be read in full prior to adoption unless this requirement is waived by the Council. It is the City’s standard practice to waive reading in full. Therefore, all motions to adopt ordinances shall include a request that the ordinance be introduced by title only. Ordinance titles may be read by the Clerk or City staff.
8.6 Urgency Ordinances: Where the Council determines by a four-fifths vote that there is a need to take immediate action to preserve public health and safety, an ordinance may be adopted as an Urgency Ordinance. Urgency Ordinances shall be effective immediately upon approval. Within fifteen days, the City Clerk shall publish the Urgency Ordinance as set forth in Section 36933 of the Government Code. If any Urgency Ordinance is adopted by a majority of the Council but fails to receive an affirmative vote of four-fifths of the members of the Council, such ordinance shall be adopted as a non-Urgency ordinance.
8.7 Correct Legal Document: Upon occasion, ordinances or resolutions are submitted in longhand or in draft form with on-the-spot amendments. These preliminary papers may be re-typed in final form to reflect the action taken by the Council/Commission during 9 the adoption/approval process; such re-draft, when signed and attested, becomes the original and proper document to be retained in the files.
SECTION 9. DEBATE AND PRECEDENCE OF MOTIONS
9.1 Processing of Motions: A motion shall be considered pending before the Council/Commission following a motion and second by the members Council/Commission as described in section 8.1.6.
9.2 Division of Question: If the item contains two or more divisible propositions, the Presiding Officer may divide the question and require a vote on each portion of the question.
9.3 Precedence of Motions [City Council Only]: Once a motion is pending before the City Council, no other motion on the matter shall be entertained except those listed below.
These motions have precedence in the order listed:
9.3.1 Amendments: A motion to amend the motion may be entertained only with the consent of the member who originally made the motion and, if the motion has been seconded, by the member who seconded the motion. An amendment modifying the intention of a motion may be considered, but an amendment relating to a different matter or an amendment that would alter the original motion so that it relates to a substantially different matter shall not be considered. Motions to amend a motion shall be voted upon first, then the main motion, whether or not amended, shall be voted upon. In lieu of voting upon a motion to amend, the member who made the original motion may withdraw the original motion and restate a motion on the same subject with the consent of the member who seconded the motion. Any motion that has been validly amended or validly withdrawn and restated as provided in this section shall then be voted upon.
9.3.2 Motion to call the question: A motion to call the question is to close debate on the main motion. If the motion to call the question fails, debate is reopened; if the motion to call the question passes, then a vote on the main motion is in order.
9.3.3 Withdrawing a motion: A motion may be withdrawn only by the member who made the motion with the consent of the member who seconded the motion.
A withdrawn motion does not appear in the minutes. Commented [MK2]: That’s different, why would the minutes not reflect a made and withdrawn motion?
10 SECTION 10. PUBLIC HEARINGS AND APPEALS
10.1 Hearing: Hearings shall follow the following process:
10.1.1 Announcement by the Clerk: The Clerk shall announce the item under consideration by reference to its listing on the agenda.
10.1.2 Statement by Legal Counsel: The Presiding Officer shall formally open the public hearing and may request a statement by the City Attorney regarding the nature of the hearing and the rules to be followed during the hearing.
10.1.3 Staff Report: For a legislative Public Hearing, staff shall present a report and a recommendation for Council/Commission action. At a quasi-judicial hearing, City Staff shall present evidence in support of the findings or reasons upon which the order, citation, decision, or determination, was based.
10.1.4 Questions of Staff: Members of the Council/Commission may ask technical or factual questions of staff to clarify the report. Members shall refrain from raising questions or expressing comments which indicate the member has formed opinions before the hearing has been conducted and public testimony received. Additional questions of staff may be asked during debate and discussion as described in section
10.1.8. 10.1.5 Hearing: The applicant will be given the opportunity to present their case first.
The parties and anyone who participates in a hearing may be represented by an attorney or other person of the parties' choice. The parties have a right to appear, testify, present evidence, examine and cross-examine witnesses, and present written or oral arguments. Additionally, the parties may request, and the Presiding Officer may allow the parties to submit written briefs, either before, during or after the hearing. In consultation with the City Attorney, the Presiding Officer shall specify, prior to the start of the hearing, if a time limit will be imposed and what that time limit is for the initial presentations and how much time will be allowed for rebuttal. Unless otherwise determined by the Presiding Officer in consultation with the City Attorney, the maximum allowed time for initial presentations shall be 30 minutes; the opponents (if any) will then be granted equal time to present their case; the applicant will then be allowed 10 minutes to present rebuttal (not supplemental) evidence; and the opponents (if any) will then be granted 10 minutes to present redress (if any).
10.1.6 Public Comment: The public shall be invited to speak on the item using the process described in Section 11.
11 10.1.7 Close of Hearing: After the staff report, all presentations, rebuttal and redress and public comment, the Presiding Officer will call the public hearing to be closed.
10.1.8 Debate and Discussion: After the close of the hearing, the Council/Commission may debate the matter as described in Section 8.1.5. and may ask questions of the parties, witnesses or staff.
10.1.9 Motions: After debate and discussion, the Presiding Officer may ask for a motion disposing of the matter or any member of the Council/Commission may initiate a motion using the procedure described in Section 8.1.6.
10.1.10 Vote: Unless withdrawn in accordance with Section 9.3.3, the Council/Commission shall vote upon the motion, as provided in Section 6.
10.2 Evidence: In a quasi-judicial hearing the parties concerned must submit all evidence pertinent to their position during the public hearing. However, in order to save time, anyone may refer to previous testimony or to documents previously filed, as all of the records, exhibits, and minutes of other meetings are before each member of the Council/Commission, all of which is part of the record. Such hearing need not be conducted according to the technical rules of law relating to evidence and witnesses. Any relevant evidence may be admitted if it is the type of evidence on which responsible persons are accustomed to rely on in the conduct of serious affairs, regardless of the existence of any common law rule or statute which might make improper the admission of such evidence over objection in civil actions. Hearsay evidence may be used for the purpose of supplementing or explaining any direct evidence but shall not be sufficient in itself to support a finding unless it would be admissible over objection in civil actions.
Copies of the reports and records of any governmental agency, division, or bureau will be accepted as evidence in lieu of the original thereof. Each speaker is required to abstain from irrelevant testimony, repetition, excessive hearsay, using profanity or obscenities or making statements that are inaudible, unintelligible or otherwise not able to be recorded by the Clerk. All parties are reminded to restrict their remarks to matters relevant to the pertinent portions of the Municipal Code.
10.3 Witnesses: Each person who desires to speak must first be recognized by the Presiding Officer. Upon receiving recognition, the speaker should give their name and address for the record. If a person refuses to give their name and address for the record, then their statement will not be considered as evidence in the proceeding, but will be lodged as a comment from an anonymous member of the public in accordance with the Brown Act.
12 10.4 Scope: The scope of the hearing shall be limited to the order, citation, decision, or determination being appealed, the grounds for relief raised in the notice of appeal and any specific requirements of this Code.
10.5 Waiver of Rights: The failure of the appellant or any interested party to raise an objection to the Presiding Officer either before or during the hearing of any defect in notice or procedure provided under the Code or at law or in equity shall be deemed a waiver of the defect.
10.6 Failure of Appellant to Appear: Unless otherwise provided in the Code, if the appellant fails to appear for the hearing at the time and place noticed, the Presiding Officer in their discretion may conduct the hearing to a conclusion or may dismiss the appeal. If the appeal is dismissed, the appeal is deemed denied and the order, citation, decision, determination appealed from shall become final and effective on the date of the hearing. Upon a showing of good cause, the Presiding Officer may set aside their decision to dismiss due to the appellant's failure to appear and may reschedule the appeal for hearing.
SECTION 11. PUBLIC COMMENT
11.1 Public Comment: A person wishing to address the Council/Commission shall first be recognized by the Presiding Officer. Comments should focus on a specific matter within the jurisdiction of the Council/Commission. Each person shall address all remarks to The Council/Commission as a body, not to any member thereof and not to staff. No person, other than a member of the Council/Commission and the person having the floor, shall be permitted to enter into any discussion without recognition by the Presiding Officer. If during public comment, a person expresses a concern regarding the City’s staff or service, the Council/Commission may refer the nature of the concern to staff for investigation, resolution or a report.
11.2 Speaker’s Request Cards: Speaker’s Request Cards should be filled out and given to the Clerk prior to public comment. The Presiding Officer may request that speakers provide their name and street name for the record, although persons who wish to speak are not required to provide their name or address. The Clerk shall indicate the order in which each card is received. The Presiding Officer or Clerk will then call those speaker cards in the order received. The card shall indicate whether the member of the public wishes to speak during public comment or during a particular business item. Remaining members of the public shall be invited to speak once all cards have been called. 13 11.3 Timing of Public Comments: Public comments on items not on the agenda or on Consent Calendar items shall take place during the public comment period described in Section 5. Members of the public may only provide comment on items not on the agenda or on Consent Calendar items in the public comment period. Public comment on items that are on the agenda shall take place during consideration of that item as described in Section 8.
11.4 Written Comments and Presentations: Videos, PowerPoint or similar presentations during public comment ordinarily are not permitted. Members of the public are encouraged to present written comments, preferably in advance of the meeting, as a way to fully communicate their thoughts on agendized or non-agendized items. When written materials are presented, they should be submitted to the Clerk for distribution and record keeping ahead of time. Written comments submitted by 4:00 P.M. on the meeting day shall be forwarded to the Council/Commission for consideration prior to the meeting.
Comments submitted after 4:00 P.M. on the meeting day will be forwarded to the Council/Commission as soon as reasonably feasible, but may not be seen before the meeting.
11.5 Time Limits: While the City embraces the right of public participation, it acknowledges that public comment must, at times, be limited. Unless additional time is granted by the Presiding Officer or a majority of the Council/Commission, each person shall limit public comment to three minutes. The Presiding Officer may grant a representative of a large speaker group additional time to speak for the group on any agenda item. If one or more groups or sides on an issue wish to speak, the Presiding Officer shall endeavor to grant equal time to each group or side. Members of the public requiring a translator will be granted double the usual time allotment.
SECTION 12. RULES OF DECORUM
12.1. Applicability. All rules of decorum shall apply to the City Council and all City Commissions, their staff, and the public attending their meetings.
12.2. Decorum. Members of the City Council shall conduct themselves in an orderly, professional and businesslike manner to ensure that the business of the City shall be attended to efficiently and thoroughly and to ensure that the integrity of the deliberative process of the City Council is maintained at all times. Members of the City Council shall maintain a polite, respectful and courteous manner when addressing one another, the City Staff, and members of the public during City Council meetings. 14 12.3. Role of the Presiding Officer. The Presiding Officer of the Council/Commission shall be responsible for maintaining the order and decorum of meetings. It shall be the duty of the Presiding Officer to ensure that the Rules of Decorum and Procedures contained herein are observed. The Presiding Officer shall maintain control of communication between Councilmembers and between the City Council and members of the public. The Presiding Officer may make and second motions when no other Councilmember/Commissioner does so.
The Presiding Officer shall serve as the parliamentarian and decide all questions of order under these rules, with the assistance of the City Attorney. Any such decision shall be final unless overridden by a majority vote of the Councilmembers present and shall be binding and legally effective for purposes of the matter under consideration
12.3. Communications among City Councilmembers at Meetings.
12.3.1 Councilmembers wishing to speak shall request the floor by being recognized by the Presiding Officer before speaking. The Presiding Officer must recognize any Councilmember who seeks the floor when appropriately entitled to address the City Council.
12.3.2 No Councilmember shall speak again until all Councilmembers have had the opportunity to speak.
12.3.3 Councilmembers shall remember that the purpose of the City Council meeting is to efficiently conduct the business of the City. Councilmembers should avoid repetition and shall limit their comments to the subject matter at hand.
Councilmembers should endeavor to express and support their views without engaging in unnecessarily lengthy debates.
12.3.4 When one Councilmember is speaking, other Councilmembers shall not interrupt, disrupt or disturb the speaker. During questions and deliberations, the Presiding Officer may vary the speaking sequence of Councilmembers from item to item.
12.3.5 Use of cellular phones for texting, calling, or social media browsing by Councilmembers is prohibited during City Council meetings; provided however, that Councilmembers are not prohibited from using cellular phones, tablets or other similar devices for purposes of reading a pre-written speech or making reference to notes.
Should the need arise for a Councilmember to use a cellular phone, that Councilmember shall leave the dais.
15 12.3.6 Communications between Councilmembers outside public meetings are governed by the Ralph M. Brown Act (“Brown Act”).
12.4. Communication with Members of the Public Addressing the Council.
12.4.1 On specific agenda items, Councilmembers may question any person addressing the City Council at the conclusion of that person’s testimony or all public testimony on that agenda item. A Councilmember wishing to ask questions of a member of the public shall first be recognized by the Presiding Officer.
12.4.2 Councilmembers shall not engage the person addressing the City Council in a debate, but shall confine communication to a brief question and answer format conducted by permission of the Presiding Officer.
12.4.3 All Councilmember requests to speak shall be made to the Presiding Officer.
12.4.4 If a member of the public addresses the City Council on a matter that is not on the Agenda (e.g., during Public Comments), the Brown Act does not allow Councilmembers to engage in discussions nor deliberation of the matter. A Councilmember may do the following: refer the matter to staff (or another source); ask for additional information or request a report back; or give a very limited factual response. If a Councilmember so wishes, the Councilmember may, during the Councilmember Comments portion of the meeting, request that the matter be placed on the next Agenda as set forth in the procedures in Section 3.2 of this Policy (Placing Matters on an Agenda).
12.4.5 The City Council may not prohibit public criticism of the policies, procedures, programs, or services of the City or its acts or omissions. A speaker may not be stopped from speaking because either the Presiding Officer or members of the City Council disagree with the viewpoint being expressed; provided, however, that members of the public shall comply with the Procedures in Section 12.6.3(e) of this Policy (Rules for Members of the Public).
12.5. Rules for City Staff.
12.5.1 Decorum. City Staff shall not engage in dialogue with members of the public during City Council meetings and shall limit conversations between themselves as much as possible unless authorized by the Presiding Officer. City Staff shall direct all comments and presentations to the City Council through the Presiding Officer. When 16 addressed by a City Councilmember, Staff shall respond in a polite, professional, and courteous manner. All requests to speak by members of the City Staff shall be made to the Presiding Officer. Conversely, City Councilmembers shall at all times address City Staff in a polite, professional, and courteous manner. City Councilmembers shall not berate or attack City Staff during City Council meetings; rather, any concerns a City Councilmember has with City Staff shall be addressed with the City Manager outside of the meeting.
12.5.2 Role of the City Manager. The City Manager's duties during City Council meetings include keeping a record of concerns raised by the City Council regarding direction for future Staff action and facilitating the orderly presentation of Staff reports.
12.5.3 Role of the City Clerk. The City Clerk or their deputy shall keep minutes of the open meeting; shall call and record roll call votes; and shall read ordinance titles and agenda items as requested by the Mayor.
12.5.4 Role of the City Attorney. The City Attorney’s duties during City Council meetings include assisting the Presiding Officer with parliamentarian procedures, including these Rules of Decorum and facilitating legal issues associated with agenda items.
12.6. Rules for Members of the Public.
12.6.1 Within the City Council Chamber.
(a) Members of the audience shall not engage in disorderly or boisterous conduct, including the utterance of obscene, lewd, loud, threatening, or abusive language; clapping; whistling; yelling; stamping of feet; or other acts which disturb, disrupt, impede or otherwise render the orderly conduct of the City Council meeting infeasible. A member of the audience engaging in any such conduct may, after warning by the Presiding Officer, at the discretion of the Presiding Officer or a majority of the City Council, be subject to ejection from that meeting. However, clapping or other celebratory actions from members of the audience are allowed during the Presentations portion of the City Council Agenda. (b) No person shall stand or sit in the aisles. No person shall block any doorways . (c) Placards, signs, and posters that would disturb, disrupt, impede or otherwise render the orderly conduct of the City Council meeting infeasible, or substantially 17 block the view of any other person in attendance, may not be brought into the City Council Chamber. For the safety of all, no signs on sticks are allowed in the Council Chamber.
(d) Packages, bundles, suitcases, large or potentially dangerous objects shall not be brought into the City Council Chamber if such objects pose a threat or as otherwise disrupt the orderly conduct of the City Council meeting. (e) Except as otherwise allowed by the City Council, no animals except for service animals shall be brought into the City Council Chamber. (f) Photographs, audiotapes and videotapes may be taken within the City Council Chamber, so long as such activity does not disrupt and disturb the audience, public speakers or Councilmembers, interfere with the orderly conduct of the meeting, or creates a safety concern (i.e., blocking of isles). The Council reserves the right to designate an area for photography, audiotaping and videotaping, in which case such activity shall occur in that area only.
(g) Within the City Council Chamber, all cell phone and pager ringers shall be turned off; no talking on cell phones is allowed and all electronic equipment shall be operated in a manner which does not emit sound or disturb other members of the public or disrupt the orderly conduct of the meeting. (h) The Sergeant-at-Arms is authorized to enforce these rules.
12.6.2 Noise Adjacent to the City Council Chamber. Noise emanating from outside the City Council Chamber which is audible within the City Council Chamber shall not be permitted. The Sergeant-at-Arms is authorized to enforce this rule by requesting those in the lobby to remain silent or to leave the area.
12.6.3 Persons Addressing the City Council.
(a) Public oral communications at the City Council meetings should not be a substitute for a process for resolving an item that can be handled during the normal working hours of the City government.
(b) Members of the public may address the City Council during the Public Comment period, i.e., those matters that are not on the Agenda, or prior to the consideration of any agenda item. Any person wishing to speak, whether during the Public Comment period or on an agenda item, is requested to complete a Commented [MK3]: I don’t like this one? Let’s talk about it. 18 “Speaker’s Request Card” and submit the form to the City Clerk prior to the Public Comment period on the Agenda. Speaker requests submitted after the end of the Public Comment period on the Agenda will be subject to the Mayor’s/Chair’s discretion. A person who speaks on an item during Public Comment may not make the same comment again at the time the agenda item is heard. All those speaking shall do so from the podium.
(c) No person shall address the City Council without first being recognized by the Presiding Officer. The person shall respond when their name is called by the City Clerk, as directed by the Presiding Officer. The speaker shall go to the podium, or shall raise their hand to indicate that they wish to go to the podium to speak. (d) The purpose of addressing the City Council is to formally communicate to the Council on matters relating to City business or citizen concerns. During the Public Comment period, members of the public wishing to address the City Council must confine those issues to those matters that are within the subject matter jurisdiction of the City Council.
(e) Each person who addresses the City Council shall do so in an orderly manner.
In compliance with these Rules of Decorum, speakers are requested to refrain from making individualized personal attacks, slanderous or profane remarks to any member of the Council, City Staff or general public. Any person who utters threatening language, or engages in any other disorderly conduct which disrupts, disturbs or otherwise impedes the orderly conduct of any Council meeting shall, at the discretion of the Presiding Officer or a majority of the Council, be barred from further audience before the Council during that meeting. (f) Persons addressing the City Council shall address the Council as a whole and shall not engage in either a debate or question and answer with individual Councilmembers, City Staff, or with other members of the audience. Persons addressing the City Council shall not make personal attacks, charges or slanderous remarks against any City Staff member, regardless of whether or not the City Staff member is named or by another reference which tends to identify such City Staff member (such as job title). Any legitimate charges or complaints must be presented through the proper administrative channels, which includes contacting the City’s Human Resources Department at City Hall.
(g) Members of the public addressing the City Council shall have three minutes to speak. At the discretion of the Presiding Officer, individual speaking time may be shortened to allow all speakers to address the City Council. Members of the public 19 should refrain from unduly repetitious comments. This rule shall not apply to the proponents and opponents of applications at public hearings. (h) Members of the public addressing the City Council are prohibited from requesting City resources or using their own resources such as flash drives or other forms of electronic media to exhibit any PowerPoint or visual presentations on City equipment during Public Comment or at public hearings.
(i) Members of the public addressing the City Council have the right to request a spokesperson be chosen for a group whenever a group of persons wishes to address the Council on the same subject matter. However, when a speaker represents a large group, they should so indicate and request additional time to speak from the Presiding Officer.
(j) Any public requests for Staff comment, or other Staff involvement, shall be made to the Presiding Officer, who may then direct such inquiries to the City Manager, City Department Head or City Attorney as appropriate.
(k) No person except City Staff shall be permitted within the platform area in front of the Council dais without the prior consent of the Presiding Officer or City Manager.
12.7. Enforcement of Rules.
12.7.1 Sergeant-at-Arms. The City's Police Chief or their designee shall be ex-officio Sergeant-at-Arms of the City Council. The Sergeant-at-Arms shall carry out all lawful orders and instructions given by the Presiding Officer for the purpose of maintaining order and decorum in the City Council Chamber. The Sergeant-of-Arms shall enforce the rules of decorum or eject any person(s) from the City Council Chambers or place the person(s) under arrest or both, upon the lawful direction of the Presiding Officer, or upon their own discretion, as applicable.
12.7.2 Violations. Upon a violation of the Rules of Decorum and Procedures established herein, the procedure to enforce the rules is as follows:
(a) Warning. The Presiding Officer shall first request that a person who is violating the rules cease such conduct. If, after receiving a request from the Presiding Officer, the person persists in violating these rules, the Presiding Officer shall order a recess. The Sergeant-at-Arms is authorized to warn the person that their conduct is violating the rules and that they are requested to cease such conduct. If upon 20 resumption of the meeting the violation persists, the Presiding Officer shall order another recess, whereupon the Sergeant-at-Arms shall have the authority to order the person ejected from the meeting and/or cited in violation of Penal Code Section 403 for disturbing a public meeting. Any violations of Penal Code Section 403 can be charged as a misdemeanor.
(b) Motion to Enforce. Any Councilmember may call a point of order specifically identifying the particular provision(s) of this Policy in which the City Council has failed to abide. At that time, the City Council shall immediately act upon the point of order by roll call vote. If the Presiding Officer of the City Council fails to enforce the Rules of Decorum and Procedures set forth herein, any member of the City Council may move to require the Presiding Officer to do so, and an affirmative vote of a majority of the City Council shall require the Presiding Officer to do so. If the Presiding Officer fails to carry out the will of the majority of the City Council, the majority may designate another member of the City Council to act as Presiding Officer for remainder of the meeting, for the limited purpose of enforcing the Rules of Decorum and Procedures established herein.
(c) Clearing the Room. Pursuant to Government Code Section 54957.9. In the event that any meeting is willfully interrupted by a group or groups of persons so as to render the orderly conduct of such meeting unfeasible and order cannot be restored by the removal of the individuals who are willfully interrupting the meeting, by a majority vote of the Councilmembers the meeting room may be ordered cleared and the meeting shall continue in session. Only matters appearing on the Agenda may be considered in such a session. Representatives of the press or other news media, except those participating in the disturbance, shall be allowed to attend any session held under this sub-section.
SECTION 13. COMMISSION ATTENDANCE, DISCLOSURE AND REGULATORY REQUIREMENTS, AND NON-COMPLIANCE.
13.1 Absences. If a member of a Commission is absent without a valid excuse from three consecutive regular meetings of the Commission, or fails to attend 50% or more of the regular meetings of the Commission during a calendar year, unless excused by the Chair, or in case of the Chair being absent, the Vice-Chair, the Council may declare such member’s seat vacant and appoint a new member to serve the balance of the unexpired term.
21 13.2 Conflict of Interest Disclosure. As required by California State Law and the City’s Conflict-of-Interest Code, appointed officials must file a Statement of Economic Interests upon appointment to office, annually, and upon assuming and leaving office.
13.3 Mandatory Ethics Training. (Government Code §53234 et seq.). Following California State Law, all Commissioners, will be required to complete the Assembly Bill 1234 (AB 1234) Ethics Training. AB 1234 requires two hours of ethics training within one year of assuming the position. This training is valid for two years, and must be retaken every two years.
13.4 Brown Act (Government Code §54950 et seq.). – Commissions are subject to the Brown Act and must maintain “substantial compliance” with the Brown Act’s various provisions. Commissioners are required to attend a City-held Brown Act training within one year of appointment and every two years thereafter.
13.5 Non-Compliance with Requirements. City of __________ Commissioners not in compliance with the required state law disclosure and regulatory requirements, which include a current AB 1234 Ethics Training certificate and conflict-of-interest disclosure statements, will be suspended from their position until compliance is re-established.
Notice of such suspension will be issued by the City Manager upon verification and notification by the applicable Department Head. The matter will then be scheduled for formal City Council action at the next convenient City Council meeting, at which time the City Council may also consider removing the Commissioner from office.
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