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AMEND CITY COUNCIL POLICY CHAPTER 3.02 CITY COUNCIL AND MAYORAL APPOINTMENTS TO BOARDS, COMMISSIONS, AND COMMITTEES AS IT RELATES TO THE APPOINTMENT PROCESS
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RECOMMENDATION
Accept by motion action, suggested changes to the board and commission appointment process as reviewed and recommended by Council Legislation Environmental Committee at their March 9, 2016 meeting.
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Summary
Appointments to Boards and Commissions are made in a number of ways. Staff brought this matter to the Legislation Environmental Committee (Committee) for review and discussion, to look at developing a standard way of making appointments to the City’s boards and commissions that will best serve the City. Attachment A shows the recommended changes to Council Policy Chapter 3.02 City Council and Mayoral Appointments to Boards, Commissions, and Committees.
DISCUSSION
Background
The City Attorney and City Clerk’s Offices have been working to make changes to how appointments are made to the City’s boards and commissions. Through these updates, the City continues to refine the appointment process. As Councils change and the process evolves, it is necessary to revisit the policy to ensure the process reflects best practices and the goals of the City Council.
Present Situation
City Council Policy Chapter 3.02 City Council and Mayoral Appointments to Boards, Commissions, and Committees (Attachment A) states that to move forward with the appointment process, there must be at least one more qualified applicant than the number of vacancies. For meeting bodies such as the Central Parking District Advisory Board, Climate Action Plan Advisory Committee, Development Oversight Board, and Port Commission, which have very specific requirements, establishing a pool with the required number of qualified applicants can take such a considerable amount of time that qualified applicants lose interest and withdraw.
The City currently follows four methods to appoint members to the City’s boards and commissions. The four methods are as follows:
1) City Councilmembers and the Mayor individually appoint or nominate members and the full City Council subsequently ratifies all selections;
2) City Council appoints members as a whole at a City Council meeting using a ranking method;
3) Mayor recommends members and the full City Council ratifies appointments; and
4) Members are nominated or selected by the lead department and/or the specific appointing commission and the full City Council ratifies the appointment.
Method 1 - Councilmembers Individually Appoint a Member
Under Method 1, whereby the Councilmembers individually appoint a member of their choice as long as the member meets the minimum requirements set forth as follows;
• Community Development Committee - appointee must be a resident of the City of Stockton.
• Measure A Citizens’ Advisory Committee - appointee must be a resident of the City of Stockton.
• Planning Commission - appointee must reside in the appointing Councilmembers District.
• Water Advisory Group - appointee must reside in one of the Stockton Municipal Utilities' three utility service areas.
Councilmembers may directly appoint a member of his/her choosing to any of the above bodies without recruitment as long as the individual meets the requirements and has a current Board or Commission application on file in the Clerk’s Office. If the Councilmember has difficulty filling any of these seats, staff will assist in conducting a recruitment to fill the appointment.
Method 2 - City Council as a Whole Appoints Members at a Council Meeting
Under Method 2, the City Council as a whole appoints members at a Council meeting. Under this method, the City Clerk's Office conducts a recruitment, interviews the candidates, and video streams the interviews live. Councilmembers can view the video stream either live or at their convenience, and will vote on the candidate of their choice using the ranking methodology at a subsequent Council meeting. The City Council considers applicants for appointments to the following bodies:
• Civil Service/Equal Employment Commission
• Parks and Recreation Commission
• Port Commission
• San Joaquin County Commission on Aging
• San Joaquin County Mosquito and Vector Control District
• San Joaquin Regional Transit District Board
Method 3- Mayor Appoints Members and City Council Ratifies Appointment
Under Method 3, the Mayor by the various resolutions that established the specific board or commission has the authority to appoint members directly as long as the full City Council ratifies the appointment(s):
• Building & Housing Board of Appeals
• Climate Action Plan Advisory Committee
• Handicapped Access Board of Appeals
• Mayor’s Task Force for Persons with Disabilities
• Measure W Committee
Method 4- Miscellaneous Appointments
There are various other methods of appointments, which are specified below:
• Arts Commission - City Clerk conducts recruitment and transmits applications to the Arts Commission for consideration. Mayor appoints with City Council consent; recommendations are submitted to the Mayor by the Arts Commission through the City Clerk’s Office.
• California Correctional Health Care Services Citizens Advisory Committee - City Clerk conducts recruitment and submits applications to the City Council for review. City Council submits their recommendations to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) for selection and ratification.
• City Council Salary Setting Commission - City Clerk conducts recruitment and transmits applications to the Civil Service Commission for consideration. This Commission is appointed by the Civil Service Commission; no action by the Council is taken
• Central Parking District Advisory Board - City Clerk conducts recruitment and transmits the applications to the Central Parking District Advisory Board for review. The Central Parking District Advisory Boards submits its recommendations to the City Council for approval.
• Cultural Heritage Board - City Clerk conducts recruitment and transmits applications to the Planning Commission for review. The Planning Commission submits their recommendations to the full City Council for ratification.
For your information, City Clerk staff conducted a survey (Attachment B) to get an idea of how other cities make appointments to their boards and commissions. Of the six agencies surveyed, three relied on recommendations to Council by the Mayor, two utilized appointment committees that make recommendations to Council, with one using a combination of processes dependent on the board or commission.
The Council Legislation/Environmental Committee does not recommend any changes to the above appointment methods, but notes the following suggestions for consideration:
1) Allow for the filling of a vacancy from an existing pool of applicants that had been previously considered, should a vacancy occur within one year of making an appointment.
2) In the case of multiple vacancies without the required number of qualified applicants, the policy will allow Council the discretion for appointments to proceed with the existing qualified applicants or for direction to staff to conduct another recruitment. Filling vacancies with the available, qualified applicants would allow the timely filling of vacant positions with applicants that have expressed an interest, without causing them to wait an extended length of time, possibly losing interest, and withdrawing from consideration.
As staff was incorporating these edits to the policy for consideration, it was discovered that some of the original sections were inadvertently left out of the new Council Policy format. These sections are being replaced as noted below.
Prior Section IX - Commission Annual Reports to the City Council - new Chapter 3.02.030 Commission Chair’s Annual Report to the City Council (Attachment C)
Prior Section XII - Voting Policy - new section Chapter 3.02 (15)
Prior Section XIII - Mandatory Ethics Training for Commissioners - new section Chapter 3.02 (16)
Attachment A - Council Policy Chapter 3.02
Attachment B - Process Survey
Attachment C - New Council Policy Chapter 3.02.030