This chapter establishes city council procedures. It applies to all regular and special meetings of the city council. In addition, Sections 2.14.020, 2.14.030, 2.14.050, and 2.14.070 through 2.14.160 apply to all meetings and public hearings before all city boards and commissions.
The meanings of the terms "mayor," "city council," "councilmember," and "city clerk," include the corresponding positions of other boards and commissions when this chapter applies to them.
(Ord. 335 § 1, 2004)
A. 
For purposes of this chapter, "meeting" means the gathering together of three or more members of the city council, or a majority of the total members of a board or commission, at the time and place established by ordinance, resolution, or motion for regular or adjourned meetings, or at such other time and place authorized by law for special meetings, so that the members may act in their official capacities to make decisions, commitments, or promises. The term also includes all meanings given to it by legislative or final appellate court definitions.
B. 
All meetings must be open and public, with the exception that the city council may hold closed sessions from which the public may be excluded when specifically authorized by the laws of the State of California.
C. 
"Quorum" means three or more members of the city council or a majority of the total members of a board or commission. If a quorum is present, regular business may be transacted.
D. 
Councilmembers are expected to attend all city council meetings. If, without permission, a councilmember fails to attend all regular city council meetings for sixty consecutive days after the last regular meeting the councilmember attended, that office becomes vacant and will be filled as any other vacancy.
E. 
If less than a quorum is gathered at the time and place and for the purpose of conducting a meeting, the councilmembers who are present must adjourn under Section 2.14.050.
F. 
A Councilmember who is present at a meeting but abstains from one or more votes will be counted for purposes of constituting a quorum.
G. 
A Councilmember who is disqualified from voting by law will not be counted for purposes of constituting a quorum.
(Ord. 335 § 1, 2004)
A. 
Unless otherwise specified by resolution, the city council must hold regular meetings on the first and third Tuesday of each month at an hour to be set by resolution. Regular meetings will be held in the council chambers at the Lemon Grove Community Center, 3146 School Lane, Lemon Grove, California or at another place within the city limits to which the meeting may be adjourned.
B. 
When the day for any regular meeting falls on a legal holiday, no meeting will be held that day.
C. 
The mayor or any two members of the city council may call a special meeting at any time by delivering written notice to each councilmember and to each local newspaper of general circulation, radio, and television station that requests notice. The delivery must be made at least twenty-four hours before the meeting time specified in the notice. The notice must be posted at least twenty-four hours prior to the special meeting in a location that is freely accessible to members of the public.
1. 
The notice must specify the time and place of the special meeting and the business to be transacted.
2. 
No business other than the business specified in the notice may be considered at the special meeting.
3. 
Written notice to any councilmember may be dispensed with if, at or prior to the time the meeting convenes, the councilmember files with the city clerk a written waiver of notice.
4. 
Proper notice is deemed received by any councilmember who is actually present at the meeting at the time it convenes.
(Ord. 335 § 1, 2004)
A. 
A meeting may be terminated or continued to another time, place, or date by adjournment, regardless of whether or not all matters on the agenda or under discussion have been acted on or concluded. No meeting may be terminated before all public hearings for that meeting are closed or continued to another time, place, and date. A motion to adjourn is always in order and must be decided without debate.
B. 
No meeting may be adjourned to a date beyond the next regular meeting. When a meeting is continued to a future date, if either the time or place is not stated in the order of adjournment, it is deemed to be at the time or place specified for regular meetings of the council.
C. 
If less than a quorum appears at a regular meeting, the present councilmembers must adjourn the meeting to a stated day and time. If no councilmembers are present, the city clerk must adjourn the meeting to a stated day and time. The city clerk must deliver written notice of an adjournment personally, or by any other means, to each councilmember at least three hours before the adjourned meeting is held and must post the notice within twenty-four hours after the adjournment.
D. 
Once adjourned, a meeting may not be reconvened.
(Ord. 335 § 1, 2004)
A. 
All agenda items must be filed with the city clerk by noon on the Tuesday preceding the regular meeting. All reports, communications, ordinances, contract documents, and other matters to be submitted to the city council must be delivered to the city clerk by five o'clock p.m. on the Tuesday preceding the regular meeting. Whenever feasible, each item on the agenda must contain a staff recommendation and the specific action requested of the city council. The agenda must be made available to the public when it is made available to the city council.
B. 
No matters other than those listed on the agenda may be finally acted upon by the city council. However, matters not on the agenda may be submitted for city council consideration and action pursuant to state law or under any of the following conditions:
1. 
Upon a determination by a majority vote of the city council that an emergency situation exists, as defined in Government Code Section 54956.5;
2. 
Upon a determination by a two-thirds vote of the city council, or if less than two-thirds of the councilmembers are present, a unanimous vote of those councilmembers present, that there is an immediate need to take action and that the need to take action came to the city's attention after the agenda was posted; or
3. 
The item was posted for a prior meeting of the city council, which occurred not more than five calendar days before, and at that prior meeting, the item was continued to the meeting at which action is being taken.
C. 
The business of the council shall be taken up for consideration and disposition in the following order:
1. 
Call to order;
2. 
Pledge of Allegiance;
3. 
Presentations;
4. 
Changes to the agenda;
5. 
Public comment;
6. 
Consent calendar;
7. 
Council remarks and announcements (Non-action items);
8. 
New and continued public hearings and ordinance readings;
9. 
Continued public comment;
10. 
City manager/department director reports (non-action items);
11. 
Closed session;
12. 
Adjournment.
The regular order of business may be changed or suspended for any purpose at any particular meeting by the Mayor with the consent of the majority of the councilmembers present.
(Ord. 335 § 1, 2004)
A. 
The minutes are a clear and concise statement of each and every city council action, including the motions made and the votes on them. The reasons for a motion, voting, council debate, and audience comments and reactions are generally irrelevant for purposes of the minutes. The city clerk determines the scope and format for the minutes of all meetings, including those of boards and commissions, and has exclusive responsibility for preparing the minutes. Changes in the minutes may be made only by action of the city council.
B. 
Minutes may be approved without a reading if the city clerk has previously furnished each councilmember with a copy.
C. 
Records of each closed session of the city council must be kept as required by state law.
(Ord. 335 § 1, 2004)
A. 
The mayor is the presiding officer at all city council meetings. In the absence of the mayor, the mayor pro tem is the presiding officer. In the absence of the mayor and the mayor pro tem, the city clerk will call the council to order, and the councilmembers who are present will elect a temporary presiding officer, who will serve until the arrival of the mayor or mayor pro tempore or until adjournment.
B. 
The mayor or the mayor's designee must sign all ordinances, resolutions, and other documents requiring a signature. The mayor must preserve strict order and decorum at all regular and special meetings of the council. The mayor must state, or call upon the clerk to state, every question before the city council, call for the vote, and announce the decision of the city council on all subjects. The mayor decides all questions of order; however, if any councilmember appeals a decision, a majority vote of the city council will govern and conclusively determine that question of order.
C. 
The mayor has the power, authority, and discretion to do the following without a vote of the city council:
1. 
Set time limits on city council discussions of any matter;
2. 
Set time limits on communications from members of the public to the city council. No member of the public may address the city council for more than three minutes on any agenda item without the consent of the mayor;
3. 
Declare the opening of public hearings;
4. 
Rule that any motion on a subject not on the agenda is out of order, in which case the motion becomes void;
5. 
Table any motion on any matter until the next regular or special city council meeting, whenever the city attorney advises that there is a question as to the validity or constitutionality of a proposed course of action;
6. 
Require that any witness testifying to facts at any public hearing be sworn before proceeding further with testimony;
7. 
Rule any speaker out of order, terminate any person's communication with the city council, or declare a recess in order to establish order at any meeting;
8. 
Move, second, and debate, subject only to the limitations of debate that are imposed on all councilmembers.
D. 
The mayor may not be deprived of any of the rights and privileges of a councilmember by reason of being mayor or acting as the presiding officer.
E. 
The mayor has and may exercise all other powers and duties as are authorized by law.
(Ord. 335 § 1, 2004)
A. 
The term "hearing" includes all public hearings required by state or local law, employee disciplinary proceedings, and proceedings for the revocation, suspension, or reinstatement of permits, licenses, and franchises.
B. 
Public hearings are conducted in the following order:
1. 
Hearing opened by the mayor;
2. 
Staff reports presented;
3. 
Public comments received;
4. 
Hearing closed by majority vote;
5. 
Deliberation by the city council; and
6. 
Action taken by majority vote.
C. 
At the time and place designated in the notice, the city council must afford any interested person or that person's authorized representative, or both, the opportunity to present witnesses, documentary evidence, statements, arguments, or contentions, orally or in writing, subject to the rules in this chapter.
D. 
All statements, documents, exhibits, communications, petitions, maps, and other items submitted at the hearing may be considered by the city council as evidence and, in that event, retained as part of the record. Whenever practical, a written staff report must be prepared and presented as part of the staff presentation. Evidence may not be taken outside the council chambers and may not be considered by the city council, except when, during the hearing, the meeting is adjourned to a particular place and time for the purpose of taking visual or demonstrative evidence.
E. 
If a councilmember is absent for a hearing that is continued to a subsequent meeting, that councilmember may participate in the matter at the subsequent meeting, if otherwise qualified, upon stating for the record that the councilmember has listened to the tape recording of the prior portions of the hearing and is prepared to participate.
F. 
Any hearing may, by minute action, be continued to any subsequent regular or adjourned meeting of the city council in compliance with the laws of the State of California.
(Ord. 335 § 1, 2004)
A. 
When a motion is made, a vote on the motion must be taken by voice, roll call, or voting device and entered in full upon the record.
B. 
A councilmember's vote may be changed only upon a timely request to do so immediately following the announcement of the vote by the city clerk and before the next item in the order of business is taken up.
C. 
Ordinances, resolutions, and other matters submitted to the city council must be adopted by a majority vote, unless a greater number of votes is required by law. When a majority vote cannot be obtained and one or more councilmembers is absent, that matter will automatically be added to a future agenda so that it can be considered at least once by the city council with all councilmembers present.
D. 
The term "majority vote" means three votes.
(Ord. 335 § 1, 2004)
A. 
Every councilmember desiring to speak must address the mayor and, upon recognition by the mayor, must confine comments to the question under debate and avoid personal and indecorous language.
B. 
A councilmember, once recognized, may not be interrupted when speaking, except for a call to order. If called to order while speaking, a councilmember must cease speaking until the question of order is determined. If the councilmember is determined to be in order, the councilmember may proceed.
C. 
The councilmember moving the adoption of an ordinance, resolution, or council action has the privilege of closing the debate.
(Ord. 335 § 1, 2004)
A. 
No motion may be debated or voted upon unless it has received a second. Only one motion may be considered by the city council at any time.
B. 
A motion to reconsider an action by the city council may only be made at the meeting at which that action was taken. Such a motion must be made by a councilmember on the prevailing side. The motion may be made whenever no other motion is pending. The motion takes precedence over all other motions and is subject to debate. If the action to be reconsidered was a public hearing item, it must be re-noticed as originally required and considered at a future meeting, unless a finding is made by a majority vote that all of the interested members of the public who were present are still present in the council chambers.
C. 
Any councilmember may make or remake a motion at a city council meeting, except when the subject matter of the motion has been tabled.
D. 
A motion to table takes precedence over all other motions and is subject to debate. When a motion to table is passed, the matter may not be considered by the city council again unless the matter is removed from the table by a majority vote.
E. 
Once tabled, a mailer may not be placed on the agenda or discussed unless a councilmember who voted to table the matter requests that the matter be removed from the table or requests the city clerk to place the matter on the agenda for the purpose of determining whether or not the matter should be removed from the table.
(Ord. 335 § 1, 2004)
Any councilmember may have the reasons for that councilmember's dissent from or protest against any action of the city council entered in the record and the minutes.
(Ord. 335 § 1, 2004)
A. 
Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, proceedings of the city council are governed by common sense and good taste. If a dispute concerning procedural mailers is not specifically covered in this chapter, the majority vote prevails.
B. 
Rules adopted to expedite the transaction of the city council's business in an orderly fashion are deemed to be procedural only, and the failure to strictly observe those rules does not affect the jurisdiction of the city council or invalidate any action taken at a meeting that is otherwise held in conformity with the law.
(Ord. 335 § 1, 2004)
A. 
Any person desiring to address the city council must first obtain permission from the mayor. Unless the mayor rules otherwise, any person may address the city council upon obtaining permission from the mayor, subject to the following:
1. 
Public Hearings. Interested persons and their authorized representatives may address the city council orally or in writing regarding matters which are then subject to a public hearing under Section 2.12.090.
2. 
Non-Hearing Matters. Interested parties and their authorized representatives may address the city council orally or in writing regarding matters with which they are concerned and which are then the subject of city council discussion. When copies of written communications are furnished to each councilmember present, the communications will not be read aloud at the meeting unless so ordered by a majority vote. Written communications from the administrative staff will not be read aloud unless requested by a councilmember.
3. 
Public Comment. A person may address the city council during public comment regarding any matter with which the person is concerned. Except for brief comments, the city council may not discuss any matter not on the agenda or take any action except to refer that matter to a future agenda.
4. 
Written Notice. All speakers must give written notice to the city clerk, in a form approved by the city council. The speaker's name will be entered in the meeting minutes.
5. 
Addressing the council. Each person addressing the city council must speak into the microphone at the speaker's podium, state his or her name in an audible tone for the record, and, unless further time is granted by the mayor, limit the address to three minutes. All remarks must be addressed to the city council as a body and not to any individual councilmember. No person other than the city council and the person having the floor may enter into any discussion, either directly or through a councilmember, without the permission of the mayor.
6. 
Limitation to Agenda Item. Except during public comment, the mayor may not permit any communication, written or oral, to be made or submitted unless the communication addresses the agenda item then under discussion.
7. 
Consent Required. No person may address or question a councilmember, the staff, or any other person without the prior consent of the mayor.
8. 
Anonymous Communications. Anonymous communications may not be considered or placed on the agenda.
9. 
Group Communications. When an identifiable group of persons, as opposed to the public at large, wishes to address the city council on the same agenda item, the mayor may request that a spokesperson be chosen by the group to address the city council. If additional issues are to be presented at the hearing by any other member of the group, the mayor may limit the number of persons and the speaking time, so as to avoid the unnecessary repetition of issues.
10. 
Time Limits. The mayor may limit a person's speaking time to a reasonable period so that the business of the city council is performed expeditiously and unnecessary repetition is avoided.
11. 
Additional Opportunity to Address the Council. Subject to the needs of the city council to expeditiously perform its business and to avoid repetitive testimony, a person may be permitted by the mayor to address the city council more than once on any particular item. No person may address the city council more than once on an item until all persons present and wishing to address the city council have been provided the opportunity to do so. The mayor may limit a person's additional speaking time and may not permit repetitive testimony from any person.
(Ord. 335 § 1, 2004)
A. 
While the city council is in session, all persons must preserve the order and decorum of the session. A councilmember may not delay or interrupt the proceedings or the peace of the city council, disturb any councilmember while speaking, or refuse to obey the orders of the city council or the mayor, except as otherwise provided in this chapter.
B. 
Any person who disrupts or impedes the orderly conduct of a city council meeting by making personal, impertinent, or slanderous remarks, by becoming boisterous while addressing the city council, or by engaging in any other disorderly conduct will be immediately barred from further audience before that session of the city council by the mayor, unless permission to continue is granted by a majority vote.
C. 
Any person who disrupts or impedes the orderly conduct of a city council meeting by acting in a disorderly, contemptuous, or insolent manner toward, or by becoming boisterous while addressing the city council, a councilmember, or a staff member is subject to the criminal penalties of this code. Any person who fails, on demand of the mayor, to comply with any lawful order is subject to the criminal penalties of this code.
D. 
The city manager may designate one or more appropriate persons to act as sergeants at arms to carry out all orders and instructions given by the mayor for the purpose of maintaining order and decorum at the city council meeting. Upon instruction from the mayor, it is the duty of the sergeant at arms to place any person who violates the order and decorum of the meeting under arrest and cause that person to be prosecuted under this code. The complaint must be signed by the mayor or another appropriate person who is present.
(Ord. 335 § 1, 2004)
If less than a quorum is present at a meeting, the attendance of absent councilmembers may be compelled by a subpoena that is signed by the councilmember presiding over the councilmembers constituting less than a quorum. A subpoena may be issued only upon a majority vote of the councilmembers convening for the purpose of issuing the subpoena. A councilmember must obey a subpoena and participate in good faith in the meeting to which the councilmember is subpoenaed, so that the essential business of the city council may be conducted. A councilmember who fails to obey a subpoena or to participate in the meeting is subject to the criminal penalties of this code.
(Ord. 335 § 1, 2004)