RULES COMMITTEE AGENDA: 12/10/25
ITEM: B.12
TO: HONORABLE MAYOR AND
CITY COUNCIL
FROM: Councilmember
Rosemary Kamei, District
1 SUBJECT: SEE BELOW DATE: 12/5/2025
APPROVED:
SUBJECT: APPROVAL OF BLACK HISTORY MONTH 2026 FLAG RAISING AND TOWER LIGHTING SPONSORED BY COUNCIL DISTRICT 1 AS A CITY
COUNCIL SPONSORED SPECIAL EVENT TO EXPEND CITY FUNDS AND
ACCEPT DONATIONS OF MATERIALS AND SERVICES FOR THE EVENT
RECOMMENDATION
1. Approve the Black History Month 2026 Flag Raising scheduled on February 13, 2026, as a City Council sponsored Special Event and approve the expenditure of funds.
2. Approve the Black History Month 2026 Tower Lighting scheduled from February 13, 2026, to February 20, 2026, as a City Council sponsored Special Event and approve the expenditure of funds.
3. Approve and accept donations from various individuals, businesses, or community groups to support the event.
4. Place the item on the December 16, 2025, Council Agenda for action.
BACKGROUND
On February 1, 2005, the City Council adopted Resolution 72517 which requires Councilmembers to submit a memorandum to the Rules Committee regarding proposed City Council sponsored Special Events and the proposed use of any funds.
Black History Month 2026 Flag Raising will be held on February 13, 2026, at San José City Hall Rotunda and sponsored by Councilmember Rosemary Kamei. This special event celebrates Black History Month by raising the Pan-African Flag at City Hall, and brings together African American community members and leaders to share in culture and cuisine. The event is free and open to the public.
The display of the Pan-African Flag on February 13, 2026, is permitted under Council Policy 2-1, C.3 – Flags Displayed in Conjunction with Official Ceremonial Items: “Other
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
December 10, 2024
Subject: Black History Month 2025 Flag Raising
flags may be displayed in conjunction with official actions, ceremonial items, or proclamations of the City Council.”
The Tower lighting colors will be red, yellow, and green, which are colors associated with the Pan-African Flag and Black History Month. According to Dr. Tyler D. Parry, Professor of African American and African Diaspora Studies at the University of Nevada Las Vegas, the red represents the blood shed by those who have died fighting for freedom and equal rights, yellow references the flag of Ethiopia, and green represents the continent of Africa1.
ANALYSIS
City Council Policy 7-14, City Hall Event Lighting Policy, Sections B.1 and C.1 allows Tower lighting in conjunction with proclamations for official actions or ceremonial items as approved by City Council. It also allows for extended lighting beyond one cycle between sundown and sunrise.
Approval by the City Council of the event will ensure compliance with the Council’s prior direction regarding Council Special Events. In observance of existing fundraising disclosure requirements, Councilmember Rosemary Kamei will report any cash or in-kind donations received for the event on their Disclosure of Fundraising Report (DFR-1).
Approval of this memorandum will enable Council District 1, City departments, and the Office of the City Clerk to proceed with the event. Any cash donations received will be processed pursuant to the City’s normal financial and budgetary procedures.
PUBLIC OUTREACH/INTEREST
The Office of the City Clerk will post the item on the City’s Website for the December 10, 2025 Rules Committee Agenda and the December 16, 2025 Council Agenda.
CEQA
Not a Project, File No. PP15-077, Temporary Special Events.
Reviewed by:
TONI J. TABER, CMC
City Clerk
For questions, please contact Toni Taber, City Clerk, at (408) 535-1260. 1 Samantha Olson, “What Are the Black History Month Colors and What Do They Mean?,” Seventeen, February 1, 2023, https://www.seventeen.com/life/a42708948/black-history-month-colors/.