Westminster City Council
SUBJECT
Title
Request to Revise Process for Placement of Agenda Items and Calling of City Council Special Meetings.
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publichearing
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From: Christine Cordon, City Manager
Requested by: Councilwoman Amy Phan West;
Council Member NamQuan Nguyen
Prepared by*: Christine Cordon, City Manager
*Staff reports prepared by staff on behalf of members of the City Council do not reflect the opinions of staff and are generated in collaboration with the requesting council member(s).
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RECOMMENDED ACTION
Recommendation
Consider the request to revise the process of placing agenda items and calling City Council special meetings and provide direction regarding revisions.
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BACKGROUND
This item is requested by Councilwoman Amy Phan West (District 1) and seconded by Council Member NamQuan Nguyen (District 4).
Approved by the City Council at the meeting of February 22, 2023, the current process to place an item on the agenda by a member of the City Council is as follows:
• The mayor shall have an independent right to place items on the agenda.
• Any two council members may also place an agenda item by notifying the city manager.
• Any request by either the mayor or by two council members must comply with the following generally applicable restrictions:
o Requests from council members must be made two Thursdays prior to the council meeting to coincide with the staff calendar.
o The mayor or council member(s) requesting the item shall retain control of the item, and when it will be placed on the agenda. Reasonable time shall be given to staff to allow for research and preparation of the report.
o If the item is presented at a public meeting and fails, there is a six-month cooling period where the item cannot be requested again by the same council member, unless there is an urgency as determined by the city manager or majority vote of the City Council, as a result of new information, legislation, litigation, or policy.
Currently, multiple council members have items pending that have yet to be presented or discussed at a council meeting. Councilwoman Phan West and Council Member Nguyen suggest implementing an expiration. If an item is stalled for six months from the time of the request and no progress has been made, the item should expire and purged from the list of pending agenda item requests.
Additionally, in order to hold a City Council special meeting, a request may be made by a quorum of the City Council (any three members), or the mayor may solely call for a special meeting. Councilwoman Phan West and Council Member Nguyen believe that in any circumstance to which an item is being discussed at a special meeting, if there are three council members requesting a special meeting to discuss a particular topic, then all three council members should have their names included on the report.
In light of the April 30th Jane Fonda Day proclamation agenda item, Councilwoman Phan West and Council Member Nguyen are also recommending additional parameters to ensure a streamlined process. If an item is requested to be placed on an agenda, these are the parameters for providing proper credit:
• If an item is requested for a meeting, but a special meeting is called to discuss the same or similar item, credit should be provided to the council members who call for the special meeting. To prevent a Brown Act violation, only the initiator of the item and his/her second shall be allowed to work on the report.
• If an item is requested by multiple council members, then whoever requested it first shall receive credit along with his/her second.
FISCAL IMPACT
None.
LEGAL REVIEW
The City Attorney’s Office has reviewed as to form.
CONCLUSION
The City Council is being requested to consider revising the process of placing agenda items and calling City Council special meetings and provide direction regarding the revisions.
ATTACHMENTS
1. None.
REVIEWED BY
Erin Backs, Finance Director
Christian Bettenhausen, City Attorney
Christine Cordon, City Manager