City of Santa Clara
Council Policy Manual
ADDING AN ITEM ON THE AGENDA
CP 030 Page 1 of 3 Revised
Resolution No. 23-
PURPOSE
POLICY
To establish a clear, effective, and easily understood process for members of the City Council and the public to have items, within the jurisdiction of the City Council, placed on the City Council agenda for consideration.
Referral from Members of the City Council:
After consultation with the City Manager (and/or City Attorney, as appropriate), the Mayor or any individual Councilmember may submit a written request by using the Council Item Request Form to the City Manager’s Office for inclusion of an item on a City Council agenda, provided the request is received two (2) days prior to the public release of the agenda packet.
An item may be referred to the City Manager for inclusion on a City Council agenda during a Council Meeting by City Council action.
Referral from a Council Committee:
Council Committees may submit a written request to the City Manager’s Office for inclusion of an item on a City Council agenda, provided the request is received two (2) days prior to the public release of the agenda packet.
Council by way of the Committee minutes, which are typically prepared within three weeks following the Committee meeting.
Items Referred During a Council Meeting:
By Council action, an item may be referred to the City Manager for inclusion on a City Council agenda. If the request requires further study of the item from staff, a full analysis shall be prepared at the direction of the City Manager with at least thirty (30) calendar days prior to the meeting, unless otherwise directed by the City Council. If the request requires more than thirty (30) calendar days to prepare, status updates will be provided to the City Council every sixty (60) days as an informational memo.
PROPOSED
City of Santa Clara
Council Policy Manual
ADDING AN ITEM ON THE AGENDA
CP 030 Page 2 of 3
Revised
Resolution No. 23-
Requests from Members of the Public:
1. Public Presentations: Any member of the public may address the City Council under the “Public Presentations” section of the agenda to make a request of the City Council to
add an item to a future meeting.
2. Individual City Council Members: Members of the public may directly petition individual City Council members to
request that an item be
added to a future Council meeting. The council member may then choose to submit the request through the Council referral process outlined in this policy.
3. City Manager and City Departments: Members of the public may also petition the City Manager or City Staff for specific action. The City Manager and/or staff may respond, as appropriate, or direct the member of the public to the other methods of petitioning the City outlined above.
PROCEDURE
FOR HANDLING
REQUESTS
DURING CITY
COUNCIL
MEETING
1. At the meeting where the request is heard, Council discussion is limited to whether the item should be added to an agenda and a date, not the merit of the item. Valid considerations that can be discussed include whether the matter is being addressed in some other way, resource requirements, legality, timing, and prioritization.
2. Council may take the following actions when a request is made:
a. No action
b. Refer the request to City Staff for further study and a timely report back to Council. If the request requires more than thirty (30) calendar days to prepare, status updates will be provided to the City Council every sixty (60) days as an informational memo. c. Refer the item to a future Priority Setting meeting
d. Placement on a future Council Meeting agenda for further consideration or action
City of Santa Clara
Council Policy Manual
ADDING AN ITEM ON THE AGENDA
CP 030 Page 3 of 3 Revised
Resolution No. 23-
PROCEDURE
FOR WRITTEN
REQUESTS
FROM CITY
COUNCIL
1. Members of the City Council shall use the Council Item Request Form to submit a written request for referral of an item to be placed on a future City Council agenda.
2. Prior to submitting a Council Item Request form, the Member shall discuss the proposed request with the City Manager (and/or City Attorney, as appropriate) to determine if City Staff is currently addressing the topic of the request, resource requirements, legality, timing and prioritization. If the City Staff's response does not satisfy the Member's request, the Member may submit the Council Item Request form for placement on a future City Council Agenda.
3. Once the City Clerk's Office receives the Council Item Request Form, it should immediately be forwarded to the City Manager for placement on an agenda, if possible, within two (2) Council meetings after receipt of the original request from the City Clerk's Office. All written material (Council Item Request Form and any support material) will be submitted on the agenda in the form substantially provided by the requester without any staff analysis, including fiscal review, legal review and policy review, until the City Council has had the opportunity to provide direction to the City Manager.
Attachments: Council Item Request Form
COUNCIL ITEM REQUEST FORM
The Council Item Request F orm is for members of the City Council to submit written requests to the City Manager’s Office for inclusion of an item on a future City Council meeting agenda. At the meeting where th e initial written request is heard, discussion should be limited to whether the item should be added to an agenda and a date, not the merit of the it em. A majority vote of the City Council is required for the item to be added to future Council meeting agenda for action.
CONTACT INFORMATION
Requesting Member of City Council
Contact E-mail
Contact Phone
Today’s Date
WRITTEN REQUEST
I, , hereby request that the following item
be placed on the City of Santa Clara Council and Authorities Concurrent meeting agenda:
Reference: Council Policy 030 – Adding an Item on the Agenda Resolution No. 23-