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HomeMy WebLinkAboutSS2 - Meeting Procedures & Council NormsCITY OF NEWPORT BEACH CITY COUNCIL STAFF REPORT Study Session Agenda Item No. SS2 February 8, 2011 TO: HONORABLE MAYOR AND MEMBERS OF THE CITY COUNCIL FROM: Leilani Brown, City Clerk ext. 3005, Ibrown(oNewportBeachCA.gov David R. Hunt, City Attorney ext. 3131, dhuntCa.NewportBeachCA.gov Dave Kiff, City Manager 949 - 644 -3000, dkiff(cbnewportbeachca.gov SUBJECT: City Council Meeting Procedures, Council Norms: Including Consideration of Updating Council Policies A -6 (Open Meeting Policies) and A -10 (Procedural Rules for the Conduct of City Council Meetings) RECOMMENDATION: Give direction as to Council's preferences on Council norms, updating the meeting policies and provide direction as to any other changes Council may wish to see. Even before the events of Saturday, January 8, 2011 in Tucson, Arizona, Mayor Henn asked staff to review what other municipalities or government bodies do in regards to civility, respect for speakers and the deliberative process, and the order of procedure for Council meetings. Among other things, suggestions have included: 1. Adopting and reaffirming "norms" which Council Members will embrace and abide by in the spirit of increasing public meeting civility and respect. City staff will be expected to accept and abide by similar norms consistent with staffs role; 2. Moving Public Comment on Non - Agenda Items earlier in the agenda, to allow persons wishing to speak during this period to avoid having to wait well into the evening until after Public Hearings; and 3. Aligning the time allowed for Public Comment on Non - Agenda Items with the time allotted for public comment on agenda items to be more consistent. A list of suggested Council Norms is shown as Attachment A, along with the US Conference of Mayors' "Civility Accord." If the Council was interested in incorporating any or all of these Norms, it could be done as an amendment to the "decorum" section of Council Policy A -10. Honorable Mayor and Members of City Council February 8, 2011 Page 2 Policies A-6 and A -10. Council Policies A -6 and A -10 govern the conduct of Council meetings.' There have been discussions periodically of updating the policies to move public comment to the beginning of the agenda and to make the length of time allotted to public testimony on agenda items the same as the time allotted to public comment the same, three minutes. Policies A -6 and A -10 would need to be updated to make either or both of these possible changes. Staff seeks Council's direction on these issues. Policy A -6 addresses the order of business for each Council meeting. It is recommended that Council move public comment from after Public Hearings to immediately before the Consent Calendar. Such a move would allow the public to testify early and avoid having to wait until the end of the agenda. Additionally, the public could comment on whether Consent Calendar items should be pulled for discussion, thus allowing Council the benefit of their request when Council decides what it wishes to pull from the Consent Calendar for fuller review before action. Section B of Council Policy A -10 allocates time to both testimony on agendized matters and public comment. Testimony on agendized matters is limited to five minutes while public comment is limited to three minutes. Staff recommends Council consider making the time allocated to both three minutes. This change would eliminate confusion and allow for more persons to testify on significant items during the meeting. The Mayor could always extend time if he felt it warranted upon the request of individuals testifying. There may be other changes you feel are appropriate to discuss and we solicit your direction in that area. Please give staff guidance on whether you wish for these changes to be made, along with any other changes you feel are appropriate. Environmental Review Staff recommends the City Council find this action is not subject to the California Environmental Quality Act ( "CEQA ") pursuant to Sections 15060(c)(2) (the activity will not result in a direct or reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment) and 15060(c)(3) (the activity is not a project as defined in Section 15378) of the CEQA Guidelines, California Code of Regulations, Title 14, Chapter 3, because it has no potential for resulting in physical change to the environment, directly or indirectly. Public Notice Notice has been given consistent with the Ralph M. Brown Act. No other public notice is required by this item. Funding Availability No funding is necessary to effect these possible changes. ' Copies of the two policies as proposed to be amended are appended as Attachments Band C for ease of reference. Honorable Mayor and Members of City Council February 8, 2011 Page 3 CONCLUSION Please provide us with your direction as you feel appropriate. Prepared by: OFFICE OF THE CITY ATTORNEY By 0w David R. Hunt, City Attorney Submitted By: CITY CLERK'S OFFICE By 4 A -P Na, Leilani Brown, City Clerk Attachment A: Draft Council Norms and US Mayors' Statement on Civility Attachment B: Council Policy A -6 Attachment c: Council Policy A -10 [A09- 00297]- SSSRprtre Council Meeting Policies Honorable Mayor and Members of City Council February 8, 2011 Page 4 Attachment A Council Norms - Proposed 1. We will work together as a body, modeling teamwork, thoughtful decision making, and civility for our community; 2. During Council and Committee meetings: • We will show respect, consideration and courtesy to each other, community members and staff. This includes actively listening to our colleagues and community members during comments and discussions. • We will limit interruptions — be they e- mails, texts, or phone calls — only to those most urgent. When interruptions occur, we will step out of the meeting to address the urgent matter and then rejoin the meeting. • We recognize that our body language and expressions during public discussions can show humor, irritation. frustration. or inattentiveness. even when such messages were unintended. o We will encourage open dialogue, with everyone engaged in discussions, including members of the community and City staff, in order to make the best decisions. • Brevity is an important part of dialogue — we will be concise and to the point, expecting community members and staff to do so as well to enable as many discussion inputs as possible given limited time. • We will be prepared for our meetings (e.g., review agenda materials and ask questions of staff prior to Council meetings); 3. We will share information, inquiries, and avoid surprises; 4. We will set priorities and act in accord with them throughout the year; 5. We will make decisions as a Council body rather than as individual Council Members; 6. When contacting City staff, we will work though the City Manager, except where the City Manager may suggest otherwise; 7. We will clearly communicate our intentions and opinions with each other, being both candid and cordial; and 8. We will be engaged in the community so as to be visible and knowledgeable about community interests. Honorable Mayor and Members of City Council February 8, 2011 Page 5 THE UNITED STATES CONFERENCE OF MAYORS CIVILITY ACCORD January 19 -21, 2011 On the morning of January 8, 2011, gunshots fired in one of our nation's great cities reverberated through all of America. A federal judge and a nine - year -old girl were among the six people killed that day in Tucson, and Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, the target of the shooting rampage, was among the 14 more who were wounded. The pain inflicted on them, their families, and the entire Tucson community is shared by people across our nation. Regardless of what the motives behind the tragedy in Tucson might have been, it occurred in an atmosphere in which public discourse is often confrontational and lacking in civility. We should use this event as a point of departure, to recommit ourselves to building a more civil society in which each person is respected and public and political discourse are aimed at the betterment of our nation and its people and not the destruction of those with whom we disagree. As President Barack Obama said in the January 12 memorial service, "only a more civil and honest public discourse can help us face up to our challenges as a nation." We believe that because mayors are the elected leaders closest to the people, restoration of civility must begin with us. We are in a unique position to have a positive impact on behavior — individual and collective — and to lead by example. While the tragedy in Tucson is the impetus for this Accord, it represents a commitment that must live on in every mayor in our nation from this day forward. Through The U.S. Conference of Mayors, we, the mayors of America's cities, in order to restore civility to our communities and through them to our nation, pledge our commitment to the following principles for civility: • Respect the right of all Americans to hold different opinions; • Avoid rhetoric intended to humiliate, de- legitimatize, or question the patriotism of those whose opinions are different from ours; • Strive to understand differing perspectives; • Choose words carefully; • Speak truthfully without accusation, and avoid distortion; • Speak out against violence, prejudice, and incivility in all of their forms, whenever and wherever they occur. We further pledge to exhibit and encourage the kinds of personal qualities that are emblematic of a civil society: gratitude, humility, openness, passion for service to others, propriety, kindness, caring, faith, sense of duty, and a commitment to doing what is right. Honorable Mayor and Members of City Council February 8, 2011 Page 6 The immediate need is to help our citizens through this difficult period. Our long term responsibility is to work with them to build that civil society. Attachment B OPEN MEETING POLICIES PURPOSE ME The Newport Beach City Council and certain Boards, Commissions and Committees are required to comply with the Ralph M. Brown Act (Brown Act). The Brown Act requires public entities to deliberate and take action, in open session. The City Council has adopted these rules to ensure compliance with the Brown Act and to promote full citizen participation in the discussions and decisions of their elected and appointed representatives. POLICY A. Regular Meetings. The City Council shall hold regular meetings on the second and fourth Tuesdays of each month except in December when the only meeting will be held on the second Tuesday. The meetings shall be held in the Council Chambers of the City Hall, 3300 Newport Boulevard in the City of Newport Beach. The regular meeting shall begin at 4:00 p.m., or as otherwise scheduled due to the demand of business, for Study Session, Closed Session to follow immediately thereafter, recess after Closed Session, and reconvene at 7:00 p.m. The December meeting of even - numbered years shall begin at 4:00 p.m., or as otherwise scheduled due to the demand of business, without reconvening at 7:00 p.m. The City Council may hold a regular meeting, special meeting, or adjourned regular or special meeting at another location within the City, or locations outside the jurisdiction of the City provided appropriate notice is given pursuant to, and the location of the meeting is consistent with, the Brown Act. When the day for any regular meeting falls on a legal holiday, no meeting shall be held on such holiday, but a regular meeting shall be held at the same hours on the following business day. B. All regular, special and adjourned meetings of the City Council, Boards, Commissions, and Committees created by the Charter or formal action of the City Council and which have continuing subject matter jurisdiction shall be called, noticed and conducted in compliance with the Brown Act. C. Regular City Council Meeting Agenda. 1. Staff shall provide the City Clerk with the title and recommendation of all items to be placed on a regular Council meeting agenda no later than 5:00 p.m. two Fridays before the next regular City Council meeting. The City Clerk shall prepare the regular meeting agenda of all such matters under the direction of the City Manager. This agenda shall be delivered to the City Council Members on the W Thursday preceding the Tuesday Council meeting to which it pertains. 1 The agenda and staff reports will be available for the public and media in the Office of the City Clerk no later than 83:30 ap.m. on the Tlmrscla�— Friday preceding the meeting, except for supplemental nda items . kieh , ill h^ .,:hale ne later than 5 :00 p on the FFi la preceding the meeting. The cit.; (;lerk shall insuve delivery ef all supplemental staff repefts te the Cen Library before close of business an Friday. 2. Members of the City Council may place items on the agenda for discussion by submitting a title or topic sufficient to satisfy the requirements of the Brown Act on or before 5:00 p.m. on the Thursda}— Tuesday preceding the meeting at which the item is to be discussed. These ;tevas . ,;n appear ncler tke eetie of the - agenja titled, "Matteis whieh Council Ta^.,..1.ers Weld Like Placed on Pu#areAgenda scusslen, Aetien-, er '<e discussion T� ).— City Clerk shall prepare a supplemental agenda listing all discussion items i� th,. ,1:S,...,...ion :t,..... was reEeived after the cutoff time for the y ,...1..,... meting 3. The regular meeting agenda shall contain a brief description of each item of business to be transacted or discussed and a statement that members of the public may offer testimony as to any matter on the agenda and may speak on non - agenda items during the public comment section of the agenda. The regular and supplement—al agenda shall be posted on the bulletin board outside the main entrance of City Hall, at least 72 hours before each regular meeting, and the City Clerk shall maintain records of the name of the person posting the agenda, and the date and time of posting. 4. As a general rule, members of the City Council will ask that a matter be scheduled for a report and /or discussion prior to requesting the matter be placed on the agenda for action. However, the Council may, given appropriate circumstances, vote to place a matter on a future regular meeting agenda for action without prior discussion or report. CLOSED SESSION AGENDA The closed session agenda shall be prepared by the City Attorney. The closed session agenda shall strictly conform to the format specified in the Brown Act. The City Attorney shall prepare a written report, or give an oral report, of any action taken in closed session that is required to be reported in open session by the Brown Act. Aj A -6 COUNCIL CORRESPONDENCE The City Clerk is authorized to open and examine all mail or other written communications addressed to the City Council and to immediately give a copy to the City Manager. The City Manager shall give immediate attention to administrative business referred to in the communication that does not require Council action and may be promptly concluded or shall prepare a staff report for the next available Council meeting. ORDER OF BUSINESS The agenda for regular meetings of the City Council shall contain the following items in the order listed: Study Session Closed Session - After Study Session - Council Chambers Conference Room Recess Reconvene at 7:00 p.m. for Regular Meeting Roll Call Closed Session Report Pledge of Allegiance Invocation Presentations Notice to the Public City Council Announcements or Matters Which Council Members Would Like Placed on a Future Agenda for Discussion, Action or Report (Non- discussion Item) Public Comments on Non - Agenda Items 3 W! Consent Calendar: A. Reading of Minutes /Ordinances and Resolutions B. Ordinances for Introduction C. Ordinances for Adoption D. Resolutions for Adoption E. Contracts and Agreements F. Miscellaneous (for example: Planning Commission Agendas, budget amendments, and permit applications) Items Removed from the Consent Calendar Oral Reports from City Council on Committee Activities Public Hearings Continued Business Current Business Motion for Reconsideration Continued Closed Session, if necessary (report if applicable) Adjournment The order of business shall not be changed except by majority vote of the City Council. PREPARATION OF MINUTES The City Clerk shall have the exclusive responsibility for preparation of the minutes, and any directions for changes in the minutes shall be made only by majority action of the City Council. READING OF MINUTES Unless the reading of the minutes of a Council meeting is ordered by a majority vote of the Council, such minutes may be approved without reading if the City Clerk previously furnished each Council Member and the public binder and website with a copy. Adopted - November 13,1967 Amended - March 28,1994 Amended - June 13,1977 Amended - June 27,1994 Amended - October 25,1977 Amended - December 12,1994 Amended - February 9,1981 Amended - February 26,1996 Amended - December 9,1996 Amended - May 26,1998 Amended - November 8,1999 (eff.1/1/2000) Amended - March 14, 2000 Amended - February 27, 2001 Amended - March 27, 2001 Amended - August 28, 2001 Amended - January 27, 2004 Amended - March 9, 2004 Amended - March 28, 2006 Amended - February 26, 2008 Amended - October 27, 2009 Amended - December 6, 2010 [A 10- 00138] -A -06- Redline for 219 111 CC Mtg 5 Attachment C MK PROCEDURAL RULES FOR THE CONDUCT OF CITY COUNCIL MEETINGS RULES OF ORDER FOR CITY COUNCIL PROCEEDINGS A. Rules of Order. Except as provided in this Policy, the City Charter, other rules or practices followed by the City Council, or applicable provisions of State law, the procedures of the Council shall be guided by the latest revised edition of Robert's Rules of Order. 1. Failure to Observe Rules of Order. Rules adopted to expedite the transaction of the business of the Council in an orderly fashion are deemed to be procedural only and the failure to strictly observe such rules shall not affect the jurisdiction of the Council or invalidate any action taken at a meeting that is otherwise held in conformity with law. B. Public Input. Members of the general public have the right to address the City Council on any item on the agenda, as well as any item under the subject jurisdiction of the body. 1. Agendized Matters. Speakers on agenda items shall limit their comments to five --f-5} three j- minutes and shall step down from the lectern immediately after their time has elapsed unless the presiding officer has granted the speaker's request for additional time. The presiding officer may grant the speaker additional time if they fethe speaker is addressing the Council on a complicated or complex matter or if the speaker represents a group of individuals whose individual testimony would exceed the total time allotted to the speaker. Speakers shall limit their comments to matters relevant to the item on the agenda. 2. Non - agendized Matters and Consent Calendar. The agenda shall contain a public comment section during which any member of the public may address the Council on any non - agenda item generally considered to be a municipal affair and within the subject matter jurisdiction of the Council and /or to request that an item be removed from the Consent Calendar. To ensure that all members of the public have an opportunity to address the Council during public comments, each speaker shall be limited to three (3) minutes and shall immediately step down from the lectern upon expiration of the allotted time unless the presiding officer has granted the speaker's request for additional time. Staff and /or members of the City Council may briefly respond to each speaker who testifies during public 1 A -10 comments. Responses shall be limited to the specific issue(s) raised by the speaker and shall generally be limited to information helpful to the public's understanding of the issue(s) raised by the speaker. The City Council shall not take action relative to any public comment unless an action would be authorized by Section 54954.2(b) of the Government Code. OFFICERS A. Presiding Officer. The Mayor shall be the Presiding Officer at all meetings of the City Council. In the absence of the Mayor, or at the Mayor's request, the Mayor Pro Tempore shall preside. In the absence of the Mayor and Mayor Pro Tempore, the City Clerk shall call the Council to order, whereupon a temporary Presiding Officer shall be elected by the Council Members present to serve until the arrival of the Mayor or Mayor Pro Tempore. 1. Powers and Duties of Presiding Officer. a. Participation. The Presiding Officer may move, debate and vote from the Chair. b. Question to be Stated. The Presiding Officer shall state (or announce) the motion prior to opening any subject to debate (Refer to CONDUCT OF BUSINESS - Section A.2.c.). The Presiding Officer or such member of the City staff as he or she may designate shall verbally restate each question immediately prior to calling for the vote. C. SigL'ng of Documents. The Presiding Officer shall sign all ordinances, resolutions, contracts and other documents necessitating his or her signature which were adopted in his or her presence, unless he or she is unavailable, in which case the signature of an alternate Presiding Officer may be used. d. Sworn Testimony. The Presiding Officer may require any person addressing the City Council to be sworn as a witness and to testify under oath, and the Presiding Officer shall so require if directed to do so by a majority vote of the Council. 2 A -10 B. Parliamentarian. The City Clerk shall be designated as Parliamentarian for the City Council proceedings to advise the Presiding Officer. Within the limitations imposed by Robert's Rules of Order, the Presiding Officer has the authority to determine proper parliamentary procedure. CONDUCT OF BUSINESS A. Rules of Debate. 1. Getting the Floor. Every Council Member desiring to speak shall first address the Chair, gain recognition by the Presiding Officer, and shall confine himself or herself to the question under debate, avoiding personalities and indecorous language. 2. Opening Debate. The following three steps are necessary prior to opening debate on any subject except as noted. a. Motions. Before any subject is open to debate, a motion must be made. The motion is a proposal in that it sets forth something the person making the motion favors. b. Motions - Second Required. A motion by any member of the Council, including the Presiding Officer, may not be open to debate without a second. Such action does not mean that the seconder endorses the motion, but only that he /she wishes to have the motion considered. C. Stating of Motion. The motion must be stated (or announced) by the Presiding Officer prior to opening the subject to debate. Exceptions: i. Oral Presentations. Oral presentations may be made by staff, or someone designated by staff, prior to a motion being made and debated upon. ii. Questions to Staff. At any time during the proceedings, every Council Member desiring to question the City staff shall, after recognition by the Presiding Officer, address the questions to the City Manager, the City Clerk or the City 3 A -10 Attorney, who shall be entitled either to answer the inquiry himself or herself or to designate a member of his /her staff for that purpose. iii. Public Hearings. For matters that are the subject of a public hearing, the procedures for opening debate are suspended until after the public hearing is closed. 3. Addressing the Council a. Manner of Addressing Council. Each person desiring to address the Council shall step up to the microphone in front of the rail, state his /her name and address for the record, state the subject he /she wishes to discuss, may state whom he /she is representing if he /she represents an organization or other persons and, unless further time is granted by the Mayor, and shall limit his /her remarks to five -(5) three 3 minutes, under- pt these who Publie Cenu7.e t.. see iRm .;I;all be lirr;ted to 41.,..... (3) utes. All remarks shall be addressed to the Council as a whole and not to any member thereof or to the audience. No question shall be asked a Council Member or a member of the City staff without the permission of the Presiding Officer. Exception: The City Council may preside over administrative hearings or designate a hearing officer to take evidence and submit proposed findings and recommendations. In the event the City Council conducts any hearing that is quasi judicial or administrative in nature, the following procedure shall be followed: i. The presiding officer may ask the City Manager to summarize the nature of the hearing and the issues to be resolved by the City Council. ii. The presiding officer shall invite the person or entity that filed the application for permit, license or other entitlement (applicant) to make a presentation. The applicant shall have a reasonable amount of time to present evidence or testimony relevant to any issue before the City Council. The City 4 A -10 Council, City Manager or City Attorney may ask questions of the applicant or any witness presented by the applicant. iii. In the event the matter is pending before the City Council by virtue of an appeal, the presiding officer shall invite the appellant to make a presentation. The appellant shall have a reasonable amount of time to present evidence or testimony relevant to any issue before the City Council. The City Council, City Manager or City Attorney may ask questions of the appellant or any witness presented by the appellant. iv. Upon conclusion of the presentations by the applicant and the appellant, if any, the presiding officer shall invite testimony from members of the audience. V. Prior to closing the hearing, the presiding officer shall give the applicant the opportunity to comment on the evidence with the right to comment limited to no more than five (5) minutes. vi. The presiding officer shall have the discretion to require the applicant, the appellant and their respective witnesses, to present testimony under oath. vii. The presiding officer shall have the right to exclude testimony or evidence which is not relevant to any issue before the City Council. viii. Hearsay evidence shall be admissible but shall not be sufficient to sustain a decision or finding unless corroborated by testimony or evidence that would be admissible in a Court of law. The presiding officer may ask the City Attorney for guidance relative to evidentiary rulings unless the City Attorney is presenting evidence on behalf of a City department or City employee, or is otherwise representing any person or entity adverse to the applicant or appellant. b. Spokesman for Group of Persons. In order to expedite matters and to avoid repetitious presentations, whenever any group of persons wishes to address the Council on the same subject matter, it shall be proper for the Presiding Officer to request that a spokesman be 5 /_6i[Il chosen by the group to address the Council and, in case additional matters are to be presented by any other member of said group, to limit the number of such persons addressing the Council, subject to the right of all members of the public to speak on any item on the agenda pursuant to the Brown Act. 4. After Motion. After a motion has been made or a public hearing has been closed, no member of the public shall address the Council from the audience on the matter under consideration without first securing permission to do so by a majority vote of the City Council. 5. Interruptions. A Council Member, once recognized, shall not be interrupted when speaking unless called to order by the Presiding Officer, unless a point of order or personal privilege is raised by another Council Member, or unless the speaker chooses to yield to a question by another Council Member. If a Council Member, while speaking, is called to order, he or she shall cease speaking until the question of order is determined and, if determined to be in order, he or she may proceed. Members of the City staff after recognition by the Presiding Officer shall hold the floor until completion of their remarks or until recognition is withdrawn by the Presiding Officer. 6. Points of Order. The Presiding Officer shall determine all points of order subject to the right of any Council Member to appeal to the Council. If an appeal is taken, the question shall be "Shall the decision of the Presiding Officer be sustained ?" A majority vote shall conclusively determine such question of order. 7. Point of Personal Privilege. The right of a Council Member to address the Council on a question of personal privilege shall be limited to cases in which the integrity, character or motives are questioned or where the welfare of the Council is concerned. A Council Member raising a point of personal privilege may interrupt another Council Member who has the floor only if the Presiding Officer recognizes the privilege. 8. Privilege of Closing Debate. The Council Member moving the adoption of an ordinance, resolution or motion shall have the privilege of closing debate. 6 WK 9. Limitation of Debate. No Council Member shall be allowed to speak more than once upon any particular subject until every other Council Member desiring to do so shall have spoken. 10. Protest Against Council Action. Any Council Member shall have the right to have the reasons for his or her dissent from, or his or her protest against, any action of the Council entered in the minutes. Such dissent or protest to be entered into the minutes shall be made in the following manner: " I would like the minutes to show that I am opposed to this action for the following reasons....." 11. Remarks of Council Member and Synopsis of Debate. A Council Member may request through the Presiding Officer the privilege of having an abstract of his or her statement on any subject under consideration by the Council entered in the minutes. If the Council consents thereto, such statement shall be entered in the minutes. B. Rules of Decorum. 1. Council Members. While the Council is in session, the members must preserve order and decorum. Each Council Member shall conduct himself or herself with decorum and shall neither, by conversation or otherwise, delay nor interrupt the proceedings or the peace of the Council, nor disturb any member while speaking or refuse to obey the orders of the Presiding Officer. Members of the Council shall not leave their seats during the meeting without first obtaining the permission of the Presiding Officer. 2. Decorum of Speakers. Speakers shall not engage in willful conduct which interrupts the meeting or interferes with the orderly conduct of the meeting. Any speaker engaging in such conduct shall be called to order by the presiding officer and, if the conduct continues, the presiding officer may order the speaker barred from speaking and /or attending the meeting. No person shall be declared out of order, prevented from speaking or barred from attendance at any meeting because of any disagreement with the speaker's position or view on any matter, because of the speaker's identity or because of any disagreement with the content of relevant testimony. 7 A -10 3. Members of the Audience. No member of the audience shall willfully interrupt the orderly conduct at the meeting. The presiding officer shall direct the removal of any individual whose willful interruption renders infeasible the orderly conduct of the meeting. In the event the removal of the individual or individuals willfully interrupting the meeting does not restore order, the presiding officer may order the meeting room cleared and continue in session. Media representatives shall be allowed to remain at the meeting except those representatives of whose willful conduct interrupted the meeting. 4. Persons Authorized to be Within Rail. No person except members of the Council and the City staff shall be permitted within the rail without the consent of the Presiding Officer. 5. Enforcement of Decorum. The Chief of Police, or such member or members of the Police Department as he may designate, shall be Sergeant - at -Arms of the City Council and shall carry out all orders given by the Presiding Officer for the purpose of maintaining order and decorum at the Council meetings. Any Council Member may move to require the Presiding Officer to enforce the rules upon affirmative vote of a majority of the Council. VOTING PROCEDURES A. Voting Procedure. Any vote of the Council, including a roll call vote, may be registered by the members by answering "Yes" for an affirmative vote, "Abstain' for an abstention, or "No" for a negative vote upon the member's name being called by the City Clerk, or by pressing a switch to cause a green light to show for an affirmative vote, the yellow light to show an abstention, or a red light to show for a negative vote, upon a vote being called for by the Presiding Officer. Following the vote, the City Clerk shall audibly announce the results of the vote by name indicating whether the question carried or was defeated. The same shall be recorded in the minutes as the vote. The Presiding Officer in his or her discretion may publicly explain the effect of a vote for the audience, or he or she may direct a member of the City Staff to do so, before proceeding to the next item of business. B. Disqualification for Conflict of Interest. Any Council Member who is disqualified from voting on a particular matter by reason of a conflict of interest shall publicly state or have the Presiding Officer state the nature of such 8 A -10 disqualification in open meeting. Where no clearly disqualifying conflict of interest appears, the matter of disqualification may, at the request of the Council Member affected, be decided by the other Council Members. A Council Member who is disqualified by reason of a conflict of interest in any matter shall not remain in his or her seat during the debate and vote on such matter, but shall request and be given the permission of the Presiding Officer to step down from the Council table. A Council Member stating such disqualification shall not be counted as a part of a quorum and shall be considered absent for the purpose of determining the outcome of any vote on such matter. C. Failure to Vote. Every Council Member should vote unless disqualified by reason of a conflict of interest. A Council Member who abstains from voting in effect consents that a majority of the quorum may decide the question voted upon. D. Tie Vote. Tie votes shall be lost motions and may be reconsidered. E. Changing Vote. A member may change his vote only if he makes a timely request to do so immediately following the announcement of the vote by the City Clerk and prior to the time that the next item in the order of business is taken up. F. Reconsideration. A motion to reconsider the vote on any action taken by the City Council at either this meeting or the previous meeting may be made only by one of the Council Members who voted with the prevailing side. MISCELLANEOUS A. Ordinances, Resolutions and Contracts. 1. All ordinances, resolutions and contracts shall be prepared by the City Attorney. No ordinance shall be prepared for presentation to the Council unless ordered by a majority vote of the Council, or requested by the Mayor, or City Manager, or prepared by the City Attorney on his own initiative. The Planning Commission may initiate zoning and planning ordinances. 2. Prior Review by Administration Staff. All ordinances, resolutions and contract documents shall, before presentation to the City Council be reviewed by the City Manager. 9 A -10 3. Reading of Ordinances and Resolutions. If a motion to waive reading of all ordinances and resolutions has been adopted at the beginning of the Council meeting, the City Clerk will read the ordinances and resolutions by title only. If any Council Member so requests, the ordinance or resolution shall be read in full. B. Council Meeting Length. It is the intent of the City Council that no additional item will be introduced on a City Council agenda after the hour of 11:00 p.m. Furthermore, it is the City Council's intent that if the item introduced and being discussed by 11:00 p.m. is not concluded by 12:00 a.m., the Council should adjourn the meeting to another date. The intent and purpose of this policy is to encourage a reasonable hour in which the Council business is discussed and to protect against fatigue in discussing and deciding important City issues. C. Seating Arrangement for City Council. Following each councilmanic election, members of the City Council shall be seated at the Council table with senior Council Members having first choice of seats. The Mayor, however, shall be seated in the center of the Council table and the Mayor Pro Tempore shall always be seated immediately next to and to the right of the Mayor. In the event of equal seniority among members of the Council, selection of Council seats shall be made alphabetically. Adopted - August 21,1972 Amended - November 24,1975 Amended - November 28,1977 Amended - July 24,1978 Amended - September 11, 1978 Amended - November 27,1978 Amended - October 23,1979 Amended - February 9,1981 Amended - June 25,1984 Amended - October 22,1984 Amended - March 24,1986 Amended- January 12,1987 Amended - May 26,1987 Amended - November 28,1988 Amended - August 13,1990 Amended - October 22,1990 Amended - June 28,1993 Amended March 28,1994 Amended - October 9,1995 Amended - February 26,1996 Amended - August 28, 2001 10 .......................... Brown, Leilani From: Jim Mosher pimmosher @yahoo.com] Sent: Sunday, February 06, 2011 9:26 AM To: Dept - City Council Cc: Brown, Leilani; Hunt, David; Kiff, Dave ITEC "$` i " aF Ae"x ? u Subject: February 8th Study Session -- Agenda Item SS2 p ° . i3. >, it Attachments: Comments on Feb-8 -2011 ItemSS2.rtf Dear Council Members, In reviewing the agenda for the February 8, 2011 Study Session, I had several concerns about the proposed modifications to the rules for conduct of Council meetings to be discussed as Agenda Item SS2. I have two major criticisms: * I don't think limiting public comment on agenda items to three minutes serves the public interest or the Mayor's stated objective of being receptive to public input. I urge you to reject staffs recommendation. * The obligation to read the titles of the ordinances and resolutions being voted upon at Council meetings may need to be clarified. This is a non - trivial matter, no less mandatory for proper enactment than the requirement that they cannot be passed with less than four affirmative votes. The Charter requirement is already repeated in Policy A -10, but it has not been followed (or understood ?) for the last several years. Reading the titles would not significantly impede the progress of the meetings and it would help the public to understand what business is being transacted. It is certainly in the interest of open government. And one positive suggestion: * The revision of these policies provides an opportunity for the Council to designate the official responsible for preparing summaries of proposed and adopted ordinances as required by the new Charter Section 414 adopted as part of Measure V. The logical person to do this would seem to be the City Attorney, since he is already tasked with preparing the ordinances themselves. Having available a clear and concise summary of the exact effects of each proposed and adopted ordinance -- similar to the brief "impartial analyses" that appear in sample ballots and ideally prepared in time for inclusion in the staff report -- would be a significant "cultural" change and would help the public (and perhaps even the Council ?) to better understand what is being voted upon. The summaries that have been published since Measure V became effective on Dec. 20, 2010 have not really fulfilled this requirement. For example, the "summary" of Ordinance 2011 -2 on entertainment operator licenses, published on page B4 of the Daily Pilot for January 29th, lists the findings necessitating the ordinance but provides no hint of what the body of the ordinance says or how it addresses those findings. You may wish to ask staff to read the more detailed comments in the attachment which includes suggested language for implementing the preceding suggestion (which probably needs fine - tuning by the City Attorney), comments on proposed changes not mentioned in the staff report, and a number of other cleanups which could be made at this time. Yours sincerely, Jim Mosher Comments on February 8, 2011 Study Session - Agenda Item SS2 These are my comments on the three attachments to this agenda item regarding the conduct of Council meetings. The language in the attachments is in blue. Suggested alternatives are in red. The reason(s) for the suggestions are listed as bullet points. Attachment A: Council Norms - Proposed These seem generally excellent suggestions with the following exceptions: "5. We will make decisions as a Council body rather than as individual Council Members" • I don't think I understand what this means. Is it saying all actions will be unanimous? • The first clause seems redundant with the Brown Act requirement that the City Council can take action only as a group. • The second clause seems at odds with the public's expectation that the Council's collective decisions will be the result of seven independent votes. "6. When contacting City staff, we will work though [sic] the City Manager, except where the City Manager suggests otherwise." • Since the Charter already provides a carefully thought out policy on this, including an option to contact staff directly for purposes of inquiry, it would seem better to say something like: "We will contact the City's administrative staff only as provided by Charter Section 406." Attachment B : Proposed Policy A -6 (Open Meeting Policies) General comment: the Brown Act open meeting obligations apply to "any congregation of a majority of the members of a legislative body at the same time and place to hear, discuss, or deliberate upon any item that is within the subject matter jurisdiction of the legislative body," however the policy mentions only Regular Meetings. Should this policy include Study Sessions and other non - regular meetings? A. Regular Meetings As pointed out many times the omission of the second regular meeting in December (and August) is inconsistent with Charter Section 407. The citizens have the right to present their grievances and transact business twice each month, and the Council members have a responsibility to provide that opportunity. The Charter right to two regular meetings per month can be changed only by a majority vote of the electorate. C. Regular City Council Meeting Agenda. 1. Near the end of the first paragraph, "This agenda" should perhaps read "The agenda and staff reports "? • . The staff reports seem an integral part of the agenda packet. 2. "The agenda and staff reports will be available for the public and media in the Office of the City Clerk no later than..." should perhaps read: "The materials provided to the Council will be placed on the City's public website and made available for inspection in a public binder maintained in the Office of the City Clerk no later than..." • In the interest of transparency, it is important that the public be able to see the same materials as the Council members. • Explicit mention of the current custom of posting the materials on the internet seems particularly important in view of the proposed deletion of the requirement to deliver a physical copy to the Central Library. Without either provision, there is no guarantee the public will be able to review the materials over the weekend preceding the meeting. • The reference to a "public binder" would be helpful since it is mentioned, without explanation, in the final section of this policy ( "Reading of Minutes'). 3. "The regular meeting agenda shall contain a brief description of each item of business to be transacted or discussed..." suggested: "The regular meeting agenda shall contain a brief description of each item of business to be transacted or discussed, including the full titles of any ordinances or resolutions proposed for adoption..." • The "brief description" requirement is part of the Brown Act (Gov. Code 54954.2) where a length of 20 words or less is generally regarded as adequate. However, in Newport Beach Charter Section 412 requires reading either the full text or titles of ordinances and resolutions scheduled for adoption. Until about 1994, the full titles (rather than Brown Act descriptions) were printed in the agenda. This seems like a good practice even if it is not technically required by either the Charter or the Brown Act. Order of Business Moving public comments on non - agenda items to the earlier position on the agenda seems useful, but there should probably be a second opportunity at the end. Asking for "any additional public comment" just before adjourning would not seem a great burden on the Council, and would give the public an opportunity to speak on matters they thought were going to be discussed earlier but, for whatever reason, were not. Another topic which may be in need of a place on the agenda is claims against the City. Under Charter Section 1114 "Any person dissatisfied with the refusal of the City Manager to approve any demand, in whole or in part, may present the same to the, City Council which, after examining into the matter, may approve or reject the demand in whole or in part." I am not familiar with the history or currents status of this matter, but for many years a review of the claims presented against the City was part of the regular agenda, and it seems something the public would be both interested in and has a right to know about. Under Charter Section 1114 it would seem the Council should provide an opportunity on the agenda and a mechanism for members of the public to place their disputed claim there? PREPARATION OF MINUTES (need to insert new item under this) • Under the Measure V Charter amendment to Section 414 that became effective December 20, 2010, the City promised voters it would be adhering to the requirements of California Government Code Section 36933. That law requires publication of legal summaries of proposed and adopted ordinances "prepared by an official designated by the city council" If it is not possible to prepare a 'fair and adequate summary" special publication requirements are triggered. Either before or after this item (or possibly in Policy A -10 under Miscellaneous A.1), the Council needs to designate someone to prepare legal summaries of new ordinances. The City Attorney would seem the logical choice since that officer prepares the similar "impartial analysis" of ballot measures. Suggestion: PREPARATION OF ORDINANCE SUMMARIES Prior to their adoption, the City Attorney shall prepare a summary of the effects of each ordinance proposed for adoption, suitable for publication by the City Clerk under Charter Section 414, or if a fair and adequate summary cannot be prepared so inform the City Clerk. Attachment C : Proposed Policy A -10 (Procedural Rules for the Conduct of City Council Meetings RULES OF ORDER FOR CITY COUNCIL PROCEEDINGS B.1.: no basis has been offered for reducing the time for public comments on agenda items from five to three minutes. The Charter obligation (Section 411) is to allow citizens adequate opportunity "to present grievances" and "offer suggestions for the betterment of municipal affairs." The Council has wide latitude to set an exact limit, but I am not aware the current five minute allotment has led to significant abuse of the right to be heard. 00WO 11 trim lust] O1:i1fy11�.`V A.3.a. It seems poor engineering to attempt to restate the time limits for public comment that have already been specified in more detail in the section cited above (B.1). To avoid repeating the limits, "and, unless further time is granted..." would seem better as "and confine his /her remarks to the allowed time." "All remarks shall be addressed to the Council as a whole and not to any member thereof or to the audience. No question shall be asked a Council member or a member of the City staff without the permission of the Presiding Officer." • The two sentences are self-contradictory. Suggested: "All remarks shall be addressed to the Council as a whole unless the Presiding Officer gives permission to ask a question of a Council member or a member of the City staff" A.3.b. Spokesman for Group of Persons. • "Spokesman" should be "Spokesperson" ? B.S. Enforcement of Decorum. "The Chief of Police, or such member or members of the Police Department as he may designate," • "he" should be "he /she" ? VOTING PROCEDURES C. Failure to Vote. "A Council member who abstains from voting in effect consents that a majority of the quorum may decide the question voted upon." This wording implies that questions can be decided by a majority of the members voting. This is certainly not true of ordinances and resolutions where four affirmative votes are required by Charter Section 412 irrespective of how many council persons are present and/or vote. Suggestion: delete this sentence or provide a clearer explanation of what is meant. E. Changing Vote. "A member may change his vote only if he makes.." • "he" should be "he /she" ? MISCELLANEOUS A. Ordinances, Resolutions and Contracts. • As previously mentioned, provision should be made either here or in Policy A -6 for preparation of ordinance summaries by the City Attorney for publication by the City Clerk. A.3. Reading of Ordinances and Resolutions. • This provision is redundant with Charter Section 412. It seems unwise to emplace duplicate policies which might conflict with the Charter. Suggestion: delete B. Council Meeting Length. "It is the intent of the City Council that no additional item will be introduced on a City Council agenda after the hour of 11:00 p.m." The word "additional' is superfluous and confusing. It sounds like it is referring to new non - agenda items. The sentence would read better without it. Comments by: Jim Mosher (,jimmoshergyahoo.com ) Date: February 5, 2011 Brown, Leilani From: Laura Curran [lauracurran @me.com] Sent: Monday, February 07, 2011 3:31 PM To: Dept - City Council Cc: Kiff, Dave; Brown, Leilani Subject: 2/08 - Study Session - Changes to Meeting Procedure Council Members, Dave Kiff, Leilani Brown: Read the Staff report re the changes proposed for discussion in the 2/08 - Study Session - Changes to City Council Meeting Procedure appear positive. Any effort which make it easier for residents and other parties to attend Meetings, and comment as desired, especially earlier in the Council Meeting, is appreciated. Thank you Laura C. Curran i tiff ®_� T Central Newport Beach Community Association PO Box 884 • Newport Beach, CA • 92661 -0804 www.CentralNewportOrg Date: February 8, 2011 9 M To: Mayor Henn, Members of the City Council qV M From: Central Newport Beach Community Association ( CNBCA) co M Subject: Item 2, Study Session February 8, 2011 " ap f'i"1 Q 0 The Directors of the Central Newport Beach Community Association are concerned with some of the changes in procedures proposed in the staff report for the subject Study Session. Agenda Availability — Please keep agenda deadlines as they are now. In this age of transparency in government, it is disturbing to see a proposed rollback of the provision of information to the electorate. Having the Council agenda available by the Thursday morning before a meeting enables the citizens to analyze proposals and staff reports in a thorough manner and contact informed staff for input if necessary. This lead time is especially valuable to community associations such as CNBCA so that directors and members concerned with a topic can collaboratively formulate an informed opinion. More time actually aids the Council members by allowing reasonable responses based on facts rather than random opinions. By deferring publication of an agenda until late on Friday, there is only one business day to formulate and communicate an informed opinion. • Speaking time — Please keep public comments on agenda items at five minutes. We realize that it sometimes painful to sit through reiterations of same points and occasional ramblings but that is the price of representative government. Often a citizen will feel deeply about an agenda item but is not used to public speaking or government meeting conventions. Some citizens now have trouble making a point in five minutes and they should not be penalized by a shortened speaking time as opposed to professionals who can make a concise presentation. • Public Comments /Consent Calendar — We support placing public comments at the beginning of the agenda and this might encourage more public participation in city government. Removing an item from the Consent Calendar should not be part of public comments, however. Requiring that items to be removed from the Consent Calendar during public comments will only serve to confuse members of the public, again, those not familiar with government participation. It is not difficult to call up the Consent Calendar and ask the public at that time if anyone wants to remove an item. Additionally, it would be appreciated if agenda items that are anticipated to draw a large number of interested public citizens could be moved to early in the agenda. It is difficult for the average citizen to wait through multiple agenda items until 9:30 P.M. or later until a controversial item comes up. Central Newport Beach Community Association Box 884 NewPort Beach CA 92661 -0884 While consultants and homeowners with an economic interest can wait as long as it takes to be heard, the average citizen has to work the next day, is paying a babysitter or is elderly and cannot endure until the later hours. Thank you for consideration of our comments. 4t/ � -irk'° Central Newport Beach Community Association Louise Fundenberg, President Page 2 of 2