CITY COUNCIL: Amendments to Five Council Policies

Meeting Date: February 3, 2009
Prepared by: Heidi Burch

City Council
Agenda Item Summary

Name: Approve amendments to five Council policies as considered at the October 28,
2008 Council retreat.

Description: At its retreat on October 28, 2008, Council considered amendments to five Council policies. As no formal action could be taken at this special meeting, these revisions are now being brought forward for approval. The five policies approved were: 89-3; 89-06; 89-41; 94-02; and the City Council Rules and Procedures.

Overall Cost:
City Funds: N/A
Grant Funds: N/A

Staff Recommendation: Approve the five policy amendments.

Important Considerations: Amendments to Council policies must be done periodically to ensure they are in the best interest of the City and accurately reflect current practice.

Decision Record: None.

Reviewed by:

__________________________ _____________________
Rich Guillen, City Administrator Date


POLICY NO. C-89-3
APPEARANCES AT CITY COMMISSION, BOARD OR COMMITTEE MEETINGS
Statement of Purpose:
It is of paramount importance to the City Council that all City business be conducted in a fair and impartial manner. At the same time, the Council recognizes that citizens serving their community cannot be expected to give up their right of free speech. This policy is an attempt to establish guidelines which balance the individual’s right of free speech with the community’s right to due process through the fair and impartial conduct of City business.

Members of City Council are in the dual role of acting as legislators, passing rules and regulations by which to govern the City, and also acting in the quasi-judicial role of reviewing a specific project or appeal from another board or commission within the City.

In the legislative role, comments from any source or lobbying by an individual or group are acceptable. While it is a gray area of law, it is preferable to avoid ex parte contacts regarding specific projects on appeal from a board or commission including the viewing of a particular site or project. If it is necessary to view a particular project or site, those items can be placed on a Council tour so that all members hear and see the same information and the appellant has his or her case heard in a public forum where each member of Council may ask questions.

Policy Governing Council Members:
Members of the City Council may attend and observe hearings and meetings of City
commissions, boards and committees of which they are not members. However, since
they may later be required to review and act on decisions and recommendations of lower bodies, Council members should not participate in or attempt to influence their decisions.

Policy Governing Members of Boards, Commissions and Committees:
Appointed members of City commissions, boards and committees may attend hearings
and meetings held by other City bodies of which they are not members. If a member of a commission, board or committee is attending the hearing or meeting of another
commission or board over which they have discretionary powers to review decisions or
recommendations, then that member should not participate in or attempt to influence the decision of such body.

If the member is not attending at the direction of and as an official representative of another body, he or she may still participate in the meeting as long as it is clearly explained in advance that such participation is strictly personal and unofficial. Those who serve their community hold a public trust, and they should avoid giving any appearance of unfairness.
Amended 2/09

POLICY C89-06
APPOINTMENT TO COMMISSIONS, BOARDS, COMMITTEES
Appointment to all City Boards, Commissions and Committees are established by the
City’s Municipal Code as Mayoral appointments with confirmation by the City Council.
Posting and Notification of Vacancies
State law requires an annual posting prior to December 31 of all appointive terms on
Boards, Commissions and Committees which are scheduled to expire within the
upcoming year. The notice shall not be removed until these vacancies have been filled.

State law requires unscheduled vacancies (resignation, etc.) to be publicly noticed within 20 days after the occurrence of the vacancy and prohibits appointment to the vacancy within 10 days of the public notice.
1. The City Clerk shall maintain a file containing all applications for appointive
positions. All applications must be made on a form provided by the City Clerk. Applications will be purged annually in November. Interested applicants must reapply.
2. A letter and application form shall be sent to each current Board/Commission/Committee member whose term is set to expire in October, inquiring about their intent to seek reappointment and specifying that an affirmative response does not automatically mean reappointment. Those Commissioner/Board members who wish to be reappointed must complete and return the application to the City Clerk by a date certain.
3. A subcommittee, comprised of the Mayor and Mayor Pro Tempore, shall review all applications and interview each prospective member.
4. The City Clerk shall notify the Mayor, Mayor Pro Tempore, members of Council, the chairpersons of Boards/Commissions, and appropriate department directors of upcoming vacancies.
5. The City Clerk shall place a display ad in the Carmel Pine Cone seeking
applications from the general public. The Clerk shall establish a deadline for
applications to be received. Immediately following the deadline, copies of these applications shall be provided to the subcommittee of the Mayor and Mayor Pro Tempore for their review.
6. The subcommittee shall notify the City Clerk in sufficient time to place the
nominees on the September City Council agenda for ratification by the full Council.
7. Appointments shall be confirmed by majority vote of those members present
at the Council meeting at which the matter has been scheduled.
8. The Mayor and City Clerk shall notify each appointee of the City Council’s
action. The Clerk shall provide a current 700 Statement of Economic Interest
Assuming Office Form and a Value Statement for acknowledgement of receipt by each new appointee.
9. All new appointees shall receive a Handbook for New Commission/Board/Committee members.
10. The City Clerk shall notify all new appointees of the date and time to attend
an orientation program conducted by the City Attorney. The program will
cover City government in general, and not be Commission/Department specific.
11. Each department subsequently will arrange a full departmental orientation
meeting, including review of the individual’s own orientation handbook. This
is the handbook that expands upon the information contained in the Citywide
commissioner handbook.

Unscheduled Vacancies:
1. All resignations shall be in writing and filed with the City Clerk, who will
distribute it to the affected parties. A Notice of Unscheduled vacancy will not
be posted until such a written resignation is received.
2. The appointment procedure shall follow the same guidelines as that for
regularly scheduled appointments, with the exception that no appointment
shall be made until 10 days after the public Notice of Unscheduled Vacancy.

Oath of Office:
1. The City Clerk shall administer the Oath of Office and present a Certificate of
Appointment to each new appointee at the applicable Board/Commission immediately following the Council meeting when they are confirmed.

POLICY NO. C89-41
ACCEPTANCE OF DONATIONS AND GIFTS TO THE CITY
The City Council welcomes and encourages gifts to the City of Carmel-by-the-Sea. In
order to formalize the City’s policies regarding the acceptance of gifts and donations, the following shall apply:
1. All donations and gifts of non art-related items with a value of $1,000 or less may be accepted by the City Administrator and/or the Mayor without the prior
approval of the City Council.
2. All donations and gifts with a value in excess of $1,000 must be approved and
accepted by a Resolution of the City Council.
A. Donated public benches may have a 3¾" x 1¼" brass plaque placed on the bench. The plaque may have a short message whose text is subject to approval by the City Administrator. Any person wanting to donate a new bench or take responsibility for an existing bench must live in or memorialize someone who has lived in Carmel-by-the-Sea or in the sphere of influence.
3. No plaque or other identification may be attached to any other gift or donation
that is placed in any public building or in the public right-of-way without specific
authorization of the City Council.
4. Other donations and gifts with a value in excess of $1,000 will be formally
recognized by a letter of appreciation from the Mayor.
Amended: 2/09

POLICY NO. C94-02
DUAL MEMBERSHIP ON CITY BOARDS/COMMISSIONS/COMMITTEES
PURPOSE: To establish a policy for membership on more than one Council-appointed
Board/Commission/Committee.
POLICY PROCEDURE:
Persons shall not serve simultaneously on more than one Council-appointed standing
Board/Committee/Commission.
This policy does not preclude the appointment of current members of Boards/Commissions/Committees to ad hoc committees or to task force groups.
Amended 2/09

CITY OF CARMEL–BY-THE-SEA
CITY COUNCIL
RULES AND PROCEDURES
The City Council is composed of five members: Mayor and four Council Members. The
Mayor serves a two-year term and members of the City Council serve four year terms.
I. ELECTED OFFICIALS
A. Mayor (directly elected since 1978)
The Mayor is the chair of the meeting and, as such, presides at all Council meetings. As the titular head of the City Council, the Mayor represents the City at quasi-governmental and social functions and may represent the City Council before other governmental bodies on specific matters as my be authorized by the City Council.
B. Mayor Pro Tempore
The Mayor Pro Tempore is appointed by the Mayor in May. The Mayor Pro Tempore
shall not serve more than two consecutive one-year terms. This appointment is
announced by the Mayor, but does not need to be ratified by the City Council. In the
absence of the Mayor, the Mayor Pro Tempore shall chair the City Council meetings and
may attend social/quasi-governmental functions on behalf of the City.
C. Absence of both the Mayor and Mayor Pro Tempore
In the absence of both the Mayor and Mayor Pro Tempore, members of the City Council
shall appoint an acting Mayor Pro Tempore, who shall have the powers and duties of the Mayor Pro Tempore as described above.
II. CITY COUNCIL MEETINGS
City Council meeting dates and types (e.g. Regular, Special, Closed Session, Tour of
Inspection) are regulated by Chapter 2 of the Municipal Code.
A. Agenda
Only items that are agendized may be acted on at any Council meeting.
• Agenda Preparation
The draft agenda is prepared by the City Administrator and City Clerk with the input of all department directors and is reviewed at the weekly staff Management meetings.
• Agenda Finalization
The Mayor and Mayor Pro Tempore meet with the City Administrator and City Clerk
nine days prior to the meeting to finalize the draft agenda.
• Continuance of Agenda Item
Any City Council member who is ill or will be away from the City may request, in
writing, that an item of “personal interest” or a “major issue” be continued to the next meeting. The City Council shall vote on the issue of continuance.
• Agenda Posting
The Agenda is posted (City Hall, Main Library and Post Office bulletin boards and on the City Website) a minimum of 72 hours prior to a regular meeting and a minimum of 24 hours prior to a Special Meeting.
B. Orders of City Business
The Orders of City Council business are adopted by Resolution of the City Council.
Currently, the Orders of City Council Business are:
• Extraordinary Business
This category allows the City Council to recognize volunteers, employees, present
certificates of appreciation and awards.
• Announcements from City Council Members & City Administrator
This category allows an opportunity for City Council Members to comment on meetings
attended of outside agencies and the City Administrator to give a brief report to the City Council and receive presentations that require little or no action.
• Public Appearances
State law requires that the public has an opportunity to speak. The Public Appearances section allows persons to speak a maximum of three minutes on items of business, other than scheduled agenda items.
• Consent Agenda
The Consent Agenda consists of routine and non-controversial City matters. Any City
Council Member or member of the public may ask to have an item pulled from the Consent Agenda for discussion. Such items are normally moved to the end of the
meeting.

If a City Council Member has a question for information only about a Consent Calendar
item, the Member should ask ahead of time, rather than pulling the item for discussion during the meeting.

Corrections to the Minutes are given to the City Clerk prior to the meeting so that
corrections can be made prior to their adoption.

• Public Hearings
Public Hearings consist of zoning amendments, General Plan amendments, appeals of
Commission decisions and other items mandated by the State. If the Public Hearing is an appeal, appellants are allowed a total of 10 minutes to speak on their own behalf after the staff report and at the close of public comment in order to have the opportunity to rebut public comments. Other speakers will be allowed three minutes.

Formal Public Hearings must be advertised pursuant to State and Government Codes.
• Ordinances
Ordinances are the most binding of all City laws. They comprise the Municipal Code of
the City of Carmel-by-the-Sea. Ordinances require two readings and do not become
effective until 30 days after the second reading.

• Orders of Council/Resolutions
Items that require City Council discussion/debate/direction are placed under those
categories. Decisions that are more formal often take the form of a Resolution and are placed in that category.

III. CONDUCT OF CITY COUNCIL MEETINGS
A. General Procedure
It is the policy of the Council not to become involved in entanglements over
parliamentary procedure. Pursuant to the Municipal Code, the Chair shall have authority to prevent the misuse of motions, or the abuse of any privilege, or obstruction of the business of the Council by ruling any such matter out of order. The Mayor will assist the Council to focus on the agenda, discussions and deliberations. He/she has been delegated the responsibility to control the debate and order of the speakers.

B. Questions Addressed to a Council Member
With the concurrence of the Mayor, a Council Member holding the floor may address a question to another Council Member. That Council Member may respond while the floor
is still held by the Council Member asking the question.

Council Members will limit their comments to the subject matter, item or motion being
currently considered by the Council. They will govern themselves as to the length of
their comments or presentation.

C. Meeting Procedures for review of Each Item on the Agenda (with the
exception of Public Hearings:
• The Mayor will read the agenda item under discussion.
• Staff will present a brief report.
• City Council questions of staff.
Upon recognition by the Mayor, Members of City Council may ask questions of the staff prior to opening of the discussion to members of the audience.

D. Public input/oral presentations
Any member of the public wishing to address the Council orally on a specific agenda
item may do so when the item is taken up by Council, or as otherwise specified by the
Council or its presiding officer. Oral presentations are limited to three minutes, unless otherwise provided.

Persons who anticipate oral presentations exceeding three minutes are encouraged to
submit comments in writing to the City Clerk, by the Tuesday prior to the meeting so they may be included in the agenda packet. In order to expedite matters and to avoid
repetitious presentations, whenever any group of persons wishes to address Council on
the same subject matter, the presiding officer may request that a spokesperson be chosen by the group. A specified time limit also may be set for the total presentation for any group.

• Close of Public Comment
Once public comment is closed, it cannot be reopened unless Council agrees by
consensus.

• Staff response to questions from the public.
Based on staff responses to the public, members of the City Council may wish to address further questions to staff.

• The Mayor/City Administrator/Attorney shall remind the City Council of the
action before Council.
• City Council discussion
• City Council action/motions
Before a motion can be considered or debated, it must be seconded. Once the motion has been properly made and seconded, the Chair shall open the matter for discussion offering the first opportunity to the moving party and, thereafter, to any City Council Member properly recognized by the Chair. Once the matter has been fully discussed and the Chair calls for a vote, no further discussion will be allowed.
Council Members may be allowed to explain their vote briefly for the record. Once a
vote is taken, all Council Members shall support the action taken.

• Substitute motions
When a motion is on the floor, any member of City Council may make a substitute
motion. If the substitute motion is seconded, it shall be acted upon prior to acting on the main motion.
• Tie votes
A tie vote results in a failed motion. In such an instance, any member of the Council may offer a motion for further action. If there is no action by an affirmative vote, the result is no action. If the matter involves an appeal and an affirmative vote does not occur, the result is that the decision appealed stands as decided by the decision-making persons or body from which the appeal was taken.

• Motions to reconsider
Motions to reconsider a matter may be made at the same meeting or at the next
succeeding meeting following a Council action for reconsideration. Such motions must
be made by a Council Member voting in favor of the original motion.

• Staff announcement of decision
The Mayor, City Administrator, City Attorney, or City Clerk shall announce the vote and passage or failure of an item.

E. Meeting Procedure for formal Appeals/Public Hearings
When a matter for public hearing comes before the City Council, the Mayor shall inquire if there are any persons present who desire to speak on the matter which is to be heard or to present any evidence regarding the matter.

The procedure for holding City Council appeals differs from other items where the public is allowed to speak in that appellants are allowed to have 10 minutes to make a presentation, including closing comments. The public testimony follows, after which the appellants are given an opportunity for rebuttal or closing arguments.

• Public comments/discussion
No person will be permitted during the hearing to speak about matters or present any
evidence that is not germane to the matter being considered. A determination of
relevance shall be made by the Mayor or City Attorney, but may be appealed by any
Member of the City Council.

F. Minutes of Meeting Policy (C 89-02)
The Minutes of the City Council meeting are action minutes and do not reflect City
Council commentary and discussion. However, if a Council Member wishes to include
comments in the record, they will be included if so requested at the meeting. (e.g. “for the record, I wish to state…”)

• Items entered into the record
All agenda items/documentation/correspondence received at a Council meeting shall be
retained in the Clerk’s records.

• Distribution
The minutes shall be distributed to members of the City Council for comment and/or
correction in the Council packet. The City Clerk will correct the minutes prior to the meeting, and if the correction is substantive, copies of the corrected minutes shall be distributed to all members of the Council.

G. Official Recordings of the Meeting
All City Council meetings are recorded. This ensures accuracy of the minutes and
provides a temporary record of the City Council proceedings. Once the minutes are
approved, legally, the tapes do not have to be retained. However, recordings of the
Council meetings are retained for 10 years; Planning Commission for seven years; and
recordings of other commissions/boards for two years.
Amended: October 28, 2008