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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCity Council Resolution 04-007 RESOLUTION NO. 04-007 POLICY RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SARATOGA ESTABLISHING POLICY PERTAINING TO NORMS OF OPERATION AND RULES OF ORDER AND PROCEDURE FOR CITY COUNCIL WHEREAS, it is critical to the successful operation of any public or private organization and agency, that rules, standards, or nonns be established to define the roles, responsibilities and expectations of the governing board and staffin the operation of the organization; and WHEREAS, the establishment of rules, standards or nonns by a City Council will promote under-standing and trust among members of the City Council and City Staff concerning their roles, responsibilities, and expectations for the operation of the City; and WHEREAS, periodic review will assist each new member ofthe City Council to better understand their responsibility and role as a Councilmember. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the City Council of the City of Saratoga, State of California, that policy pertaining to Nonns of Operation and Rules of Order and Procedure for City Council is hereby established as follows: CITY COUNCIL NORMS OF OPERATION Section 1. OPERATION OF CITY COUNCIL MEETINGS A City Council Meetings shall be run following the outline listed in Section 6.B. of this document Each item shall be introduced by the Mayor, followed by a staff report and either a public hearing or public comment period. After close of public comments, the City Council will deliberate the matter following Roberts Rules of order. The Mayor may entertain a general discussion ofthe item before a motion is offered. B. The Mayor may place an item anywhere on the agenda. Two City Council members may place an item on the agenda. C. A single City Council Member may place on item on the agenda under City Council Member Items. Items under this manner shall have a limited staff report, if appropriate. No significant resources (more than three hours of staff time) shall be used by staff until the Council gives direction on the item. The Mayor shall detennine when three hours of effort has been utilized. D. If an item appears again in a future Council meeting, it shall be heard under Old Business. Items placed under public hearings shall only be those that are defined by law as requiring a special notice and a public hearing or those called by City Council on its own volition. 1 E. In order to ensure that all members ofthe public have an opportunity to speak and that the Council is able to complete its business, there will be a three-minute limitation on comments by the public except for applicants and appellants at public hearings or as otherwise provided by law. In order to effectively enforce this rule, the City Clerk will monitor the time for each speaker with an electronic timer. The timer will beep at the one- minute remaining point, and again at the three-minute point If there are more than twenty (20) identified speakers for one item at the begirming of the public comment period or public hearing, the Mayor may adjust the three-minute time down to two minutes per speaker. F. Closed sessions of the City Council shall generally be conducted prior to the 7:00 p.m. business portion of regular meetings. If necessary, Closed Sessions not completed prior to the 7:00 p.m. business portion will be considered at the conclusion ofthe business portion ofthe meeting, or as otherwise detennined by the City Council. Special Council Meeting may be called by the Mayor with proper public notice. G. Members of Council should not engage in debate with a member of the public or Staff at Council meetings since these debates seldom resolve concerns and many times inflame feelings at a public meeting. Any concerns by a member of Council over the behavior or work of a City employee during a Council meeting should be directed to the City Manager privately to ensure the concern is resolved. H. Prior to the close of the public hearing or comment period Councilmembers may ask questions of anyone in the audience. The public hearing and comment period are the times for Council to receive evidence. Once the hearing or comment period is closed, the Council deliberates based on that evidence. While Council may elect to re-open a hearing or comment period (assume no prejudice to the rights of an applicant or appellant) it should make every effort to get all the infonnation it needs while the hearing or comment period is still open. If the Council asks questions after the final presentation of the applicant/appellant in a pennit-related hearing the Council would need to provide the applicant/appellant with an opportunity to rebut the answers to the questions. While these rules need not apply as strictly to hearings where due process is less of an issue (i.e., an ordinance amendment) a unifonn set of rules for all public hearings and comment periods is desirable. L The Mayor may, with Council concurrence, schedule Council review of agenda items out of their prescribed order on the printed agenda if a large number of the public are present to speak on agenda item. Section 2. CITY COUNCIL RELATIONS WITH CITY STAFF A There shall be mutual respect rrom both Staff and Councilmembers of their respective roles and responsibilities when and if expressing criticism in public session. B. City Staff shall acknowledge the Council as policy makers and the City Council shall acknowledge Staff as administering the Council's policies. 2 C. All written requests for infonnation or questions by City Councilmembers to Staff shall be directed to the City Manager, City Attorney, City Clerk, or Department Managers (wit h a copy to the City Manager). All complaints should be submitted to the City Manager or, if a complaint concerns the City Manager, to the City Attorney. D. All written infonnational material requested by individual Councilmembers shall be submitted by Staff to all Councilmembers with the notation indicating which Councilmember requested the infonnation. E. Council shall not attempt to coerce Staff in the making of appointments, the awarding of contracts, the selection of consultants, the processing of development applications, the granting of City licenses or pennits. The Council shall not attempt to change or interfere with the operating policies and practices of any City department. F. Mail that is addressed to the Mayor and City Council shall be circulated by the City Clerk to the City Council with a comment as to which Staff person will be assisting the Mayor in preparing a response. The Mayor's response, in addition to the original communication, will be submitted to the City Council for their infonnation. G. The City Clerk shall not open mail addressed to an individual Councilmember unless requested to do so by the Councilmember. H. Individual Councilmembers shall not direct Staff to initiate any action or prepare any report that is significant in nature or initiate any project or study. All such direction shall be provided by the City Manager or by action of a majority ofthe City Council at a City Council meeting. Councilmembers may ask for limited resources and infonnation for items that are on an agenda as long as any infonnation is distributed to all City Councilmembers Section 3. CITY COUNCIL RELATIONSHIP WITH CITY COMMISSIONS AND OTHER BODIES A Members of the City Council should not attempt to influence or publicly criticize commission recommendations, or to influence or lobby individual commission members on any item under their consideration. It is important for commissions to be able to make objective recommendations to the City Council on items before them. Members of Council that attempt to strongly influence commission positions on an item may prejudice or hinder their role in reviewing the commission's recommendation as a member ofthe City CounciL B. Individual Councilmembers shall have the right to attend meetings but shall refrain from speaking or becoming involved in the meeting's discussions. If asked a question, the Councilmember person should indicate that he/she can only provide a personal opinion and does not speak for the Council as a whole. 3 C. If a member of the City Council appears before another governmental agency or organization except as member of outside agency appointed by the City Council to give a statement on an issue affecting the City, the Councilmember should first indicate the majority position and opinion of the Council (if any). Personal opinions and comments may be expressed only if the Councilmember clarifies that these statements do not represent the position of the City Council. Section 4. CITY COUNCIL HANDLING OF LITIGATION AND OTHER CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION A. City Councilmembers shall keep all written materials and verbal infonnation provided to them on matters that are confidential under State law in complete confidence to insure that the City's position is not compromised. No disclosure or mention ofinfonnation in these materials shall be made to anyone other than Councilmembers, the City Attorney or City Manager. B. All negotiations and other contacts concerning matters that have come before the City Council in closed session (including, but not limited to, property acquisition or disposal, a pending claims or litigation, and/or employee negotiations) with the other party and/or party's agents or other representatives shall be limited to, and made by, the designated City staff representative handling the negotiations, claim or litigation unless the City Council has directed that a specific Council member to assist staff in negotiations. Except as authorized above, no Councilmember who has participated in any closed session shall have any contact or discussion with the other party or its agents or representatives concerning the matter under consideration except during public meetings of the City Council. All public statements, infonnation and press releases shall be handled exclusively by the City's designated spokesperson. Section 5. BUSINESS OF THE CITY COUNCIL A. Seating Arrangement ofthe City Council- The Mayor shall be seated on the left ofthe five members of the City Council. The Vice Mayor shall be seated to the right ofthe Mayor. The Councilmember with the most seniority shall be seated to the right of the Vice Mayor and the remaining Councilmember shall be seated to the right ofthe most senior Council member. The outgoing Mayor shall be seated to the far right of the Vice Mayor. When there is no outgoing Mayor the remaining Councilmembers shall be seated based upon length of service on the City Council with the most senior member seated to the right of the Mayor. In the case of members having been elected at the same time, seniority shall be detennined by the number of votes received at the election. The highest vote getter shall be considered senior and so on. The City Clerk shall arrange nameplates at the Council dais at all Council meetings to assure this seating arrangement is followed. B. City Council Reorganization - On non-election years the City Council shall hold a special meeting on the second Tuesday of December. The floor shall be open to nominations for the purpose of electing a Mayor and Vice Mayor to serve for the following year. Such elections shall be made by a majority vote ofthe Councilmembers present at the meeting. 4 The Mayor and Vice Mayor shall assume the duties of their respective offices immediately upon election. The Mayor and Vice Mayor shall serve a one-year term at the pleasure ofthe Council. On election years the City Council shall meet at a regular scheduled meeting next following the meeting at which the declaration of the election results was made pursuant to Section 10262 or 10263 of the Elections Code and choose one of its members as Mayor, and one of its members as Vice Mayor. (Government Code Section 36801). C. Mayor and Council Roles - The Mayor shall act as the primary spokesperson and official representative of the City Council, unless such responsibility is delegated by the Mayor, or otherwise assigned by a majority vote ofthe City Council. The Mayor shall preside at all regular, adjourned, and special meetings of the City Council, including joint meetings with commissions and closed sessions. The Mayor shall execute all official City documents, warrants and correspondence approved by City Council. The Mayor shall serve as the primary contact for the City Manager to provide direction and advice regarding routine planning and operational issues (i.e. meeting schedules, dispositions of correspondences, etc.) Nothing in this section is intended to suggest that the position of Mayor wields formal power or authority in excess of the other members of the City Council. Rather, the person serving as Mayor is to be recognized as the leader of the Council, or first among equals. The Vice Mayor shall serve and perform the functions as Mayor in the absence ofthe duly elected Mayor. D. Council Committee/Agency Assignments Every December immediately following the City Council reorganization the Mayor shall announce that new appointments for Committee/Agency Assignments are necessary. A list of committee/agency assignments shall be given to each Councilmember and each Councilmember shall provide the City Clerk with a list of the Committee/Agency Assignments in which the Councilmember is interested. The Mayor shall propose appointments for Council approval at the City Council meeting immediately following the reorganization. E. Ex Parte Communications An Ex Parte Communication occurs when a Council member receives information nom a member of the public outside of a public meeting concerning a matter to be heard by the City Council. Ex Parte communications are an inherent part ofthe City of Saratoga's commitment to allowing City residents ample opportunity to consult with elected officials both inside and outside of public meetings. At the same time, the City is committed to the principle that the business of the public should be conducted in public, to ensure that citizens are afforded the opportunity to participate in the making of decisions that affect their lives, and the means to evaluate choices made by the City and its officers. Where a City Councilmember has received information outside of a public meeting that the Councilmember believes has a bearing on the decision and that is not reflected in the staff report presented to the Council and the public, the Councilmember should provide that information to the rest of the Council and the public following the staff report and prior to beginning of public testimony on the matter. This will allow the public and other 5 members of the Council to consider the information in forming their views on the decision at hand. In addition, persons affected by the decision will also have the opportunity to know the evidence on which the decision is to be based and have an opportunity to comment on it and, if need be, to rebut it. This approach allows all members of the public access to elected officials and to the rationale for decisions made by those officials. F. Issuing Proclamations and Commendations A proclamation is prepared at the discretion of the Mayor to proclaim a specific date or event. Proclamations are prepared for signature by the Mayor. They may be presented at a City Council meeting or at an event or meeting outside the City Council meeting. A commendation is prepared at the discretion of the Mayor. A commendation may be issued for accomplishments such as: · Athletic/academic accomplishments · Act of heroism · Youth Accomplishments · A Community Organization's Citizen of the Year · A Community Organization's Business Person of the year · Outgoing elected officials · Outgoing City Commissioners Commendations are prepared for signature by the Mayor. They may be presented at a City Council meeting or at an event or meeting outside the City Council meeting. Section 6. RULES OF ORDER AND PROCEDURE FOR CITY COUNCIL MEETINGS A Time of Meetings Regular meetings of the City Council shall be held on the first and third Wednesday of each month in the Civic Theater commencing at 7:00 p.m. Special meetings shall be held as necessary and convenient on the second or fourth Tuesday of the month commencing at 7:00 p.m. or at such other time as may be necessary or convenient. B. Order of Agenda The following is the usual order of agenda items for regular Council meetings. The Mayor with the concurrence of Council can change the order in which items on the agenda are heard. . Open Session - The Mayor opens the meeting in the Administration Conference Room at City Hall, to allow the public an opportunity to comment on closed session items before the Council adjourns to Closed Session, as required by law. Commission interviews are also done at this time. . Joint Meeting with City Commissions - Reserved time for Commission members to meet with the City Council for their yearly update. 6 · Closed Session - Immediately following open session, the Council adjourns to closed session in the Administration Conference Room at City Hall. Start times may vary depending on volume of closed session items and the estimated time required to conduct the closed session. The items are listed on the agenda as required by law, however this meeting is not open to the public. · Mavor's Report on Closed Session - The Mayor is required to announce any action taken during closed session before reconvening to the open session of the regular meeting. · Call to Order - the Mayor calls the regular meeting to order. · Pledge of Allegiance - The Mayor may lead or call upon a member of the public or staff to lead the pledge. · Roll Call - A quorum constituting 3 of the 5 members of the Council is required to conduct any Council meeting. The City Clerk calls the roiL · Report of Posting of the Agenda - The City Clerk reports on the posting of the agenda as required by law. · Oral Communications - During this portion, any persons who wish to address the City Council on a subject not on the agenda may do so. Oral communications are not intended as the means for debate or decision-making, but only for making a presentation in person. Comment shall be limited to three minutes for members of the public who wish to speak · Communications from City Commissions - Reserved time for Commission Chairs, or designated representative, to report infonnation to the City Councilor request direction. · Council Direction to Staff -Reserved time for the City Council to request follow up on Oral/Commission Communications. · Announcements - Reserved time for the Mayor to make special announcements. · Ceremonial Items-These items include presentation of proclamations, commendations, appointments, administration of Oath of Office and special introductions. · Special Presentations - reserved time for groups, agencies, persons to speak to the Council on special items. · Consent Calendar-These items are routine and non-controversial items of business. Items in this section will be acted in one motion, unless removed by the Mayor or a Councilmember. Any member of the public may speak to an item on the Consent Calendar, or request the Mayor remove an item for discussion. Resolutions concerning decisions made at previous meetings are for the purpose of memorializing the decision to assure the accuracy of the findings, the prior vote, and any conditions imposed. · Public Hearings - There are two kinds of public hearings, those required by law and those called by the City Council of its own volition. In either event, the purpose is to provide an opportunity for all interested persons to be heard. Applicants/Appellants and their representatives have a total of ten minutes maximum for opening statements. Members of the public may comment on any item for up to three minutes. Applicant! Appellants and their representatives have a total of five minutes maximum for closing statements · Old Business - These are general items, which have been considered by the Council at a previous meeting. · New Business - These are general items, which have not been previously considered by the CounciL 7 · Council Reports on Committees- Provides members of the Council an opportunity to report on agency/commission assignments. · City Councilmember Items - Provides members of the Council an opportunity to introduce discussion/action on items not currently before the Council for consideration. · City Manager Items - City Manager or City Attorney may bring up other items of interest or make announcements under this section. · Adjournment-The Mayor may adjourn the meeting to a date specific. Ifno date specific is announced, the next meeting will be the next regularly scheduled Council meeting. C. Disruµtive Comments and/or Conduct No person who addresses the Council shall make any belligerent, personal, impertinent, irrelevant, redundant, slanderous, loud, threatening, abusive or disparaging remark, statement or commentary toward the Council, staff or other individuals in a manner which disrupts, disturbs or otherwise impedes the orderly conduct of the Council meeting, nor shall any person engage in any other disorderly conduct which so disrupts, disturbs or impedes the orderly conduct of the meeting. Any violation of this rule shall be grounds for tenninating the person's comment period. Continued inappropriate behavior or comments, after having been directed to discontinue, also shall be grounds for removal from the meeting. Council shall not be belligerent or make disparaging commentary toward the speaker. Nothing in this section shall prohibit or discourage orderly criticism of any City decision or policy within the limits of these rules. If a member of the public fails to follow these rules after being warned once, the Council may bar that individual from further testimony for the evening or remove the person from the meeting. The above foregoing resolution was passed and adopted by the Saratoga City Council at a regular meeting held on the 21 st day of January, 2004 by the following vote: AYES: Councilmembers Nonnan Kline, Nick Streit, Vice Mayor Kathleen King, Mayor Ann Waltonsmith NOES: Councilmember Stan Bogosian ABSENT: None ABSTAIN: None C¿U~#' Ann Waltonsmith, Mayor 8