Irvine Municipal Code Art. IV The City Council

Commencing with the general municipal election of November 2024, the City Council, hereinafter termed "Council," shall consist of a Mayor and six (6) Council members elected to office in the manner, at the times, and in the sequence provided in this Charter.

The Mayor shall serve a term of two (2) years and shall be elected from the City at large. Any person who serves two (2) full terms as Mayor shall not be eligible to serve again as Mayor. If a Mayor serves a partial term in excess of one (1) year, it shall be considered a full term for the purpose of this provision. Other than as set forth herein, compensation, vacancies and the filling of vacancies shall be the same for the office of Mayor as provided for the office of Council member by this Charter. The Mayor, in addition to serving as the presiding officer of the Council, shall have all of the rights, powers and duties of a Council member and shall be a member of the Council.

The term of office for each Council member shall be four (4) years and shall be elected on a by-district basis from one (1) of the six (6) single-member Council Districts of the City, as established pursuant to Section 400.1. Alternatively, and successively, three four-year terms shall be filled at one general municipal election and three four-year terms at the next such election, consistent with the sequence of terms of Council members in the fifth paragraph of this Section 400. Any person who serves two (2) full terms as a Council member shall not be eligible to serve again as a Council member. If a Council member serves a partial term in excess of two (2) years, it shall be considered a full term for the purpose of this provision.

Notwithstanding the first sentence in the third paragraph of this Section 400, the second sentence in the first paragraph of Section 401, or the first sentence of the second paragraph of Section 401, the Mayor and Council members in office at the time this Charter provision takes effect shall continue in office until the expiration of their respective terms and until their successors are elected and qualified, so long as they remain legally registered voters and residents of the City. Recall proceedings, if any, of any Council member(s) serving the remainder of a term pursuant to this provision, and the election of a successor to such Council member(s) to complete that term, shall be conducted at large. If any Council seat held by a Council member serving the remainder of a term pursuant to this provision becomes vacant prior to the end of such term by means other than the recall, such Council seat shall be filled by appointment or election at large; provided, however, that if the vacating Council member resides in either the Council District designated 5 or the Council District designated 6 then, notwithstanding Section 403, a by-district election shall be held for the District where the vacating Council member resides at the earliest feasible date.

The Mayor shall be elected at the general municipal election held in November 2024, and each second year thereafter. One (1) Council member from each of the four (4) Council Districts designated 1, 2, 3, and 4 shall be elected at the general municipal election held in November 2024. Notwithstanding the term of office specified in the first paragraph of this Section 400, the Councilmember elected from the Council District designated 1 at the November 2024 general election shall hold office for a term of two (2) years and until their successor qualifies; the remaining three (3) Council members selected at the November 2024 general election shall each serve a term of four (4) years and until their respective successors qualify. One (1) Council member from each of the three (3) Council Districts designated 1, 5, and 6 shall be elected at the general municipal election held in November 2026, and shall each serve a term of four (4) years and until their respective successors qualify.

The term of the Mayor and a Council member shall commence at the next regularly scheduled meeting of the Council following certification of the election results by the election official or such earlier other date as may be established by ordinance of the Council, and they shall serve until their successor qualifies. Any ties in voting for Mayor or Council member shall be settled by the casting of lots. No person shall simultaneously hold both the office of Mayor and Council member.

The term limits shall not apply to any term that began before November 4, 2014.

As used herein the term "qualifies" shall mean, in addition to the provisions of the general law, having taken the oath of office following the election and their term of office shall have commenced.

(Amend. of 9-8-78; Amend. of 6-3-86; Amend. of 3-1-88, § 1; Amend. of 6-7-88; Amend. of 11-5-91; Amend. of 11-4-14; Ord. No. 24-10, § 1, 3-5-24)

Editor's note— The amendment of § 400 adopted Sept. 8, 1978, was approved at an election held Nov. 7, 1978. It was filed with the secretary of state by chapter 6 of 1979. A further amendment was approved at an election held June 3, 1986. It was filed with the secretary of state Jan. 2, 1987, as Charter chapter 4, further amendment was adopted at an initiative referendum held Nov. 3, 1987, and filed with the secretary of state Feb. 16, 1988, as Charter chapter 1. The section was further amended at an election held June 7, 1988, and filed with the secretary of state July 15, 1988, as Charter chapter 12. The section was further amended at an election held Nov. 5, 1991, and filed by the secretary of state and became effective Dec. 16, 1991, as Charter chapter 25. The section was further amended at an election held Nov. 4, 2014, and filed by the secretary of state and became effective Jan. 21, 2015, as Charter chapter 6. The section was further amended at an election held March 5, 2024, and filed by the secretary of state and became effective May 28, 2024, as Charter chapter 10.

For the purpose of electing the Council Members commencing with the November 2024 general municipal election, the City shall be divided into six (6) single-member districts (each such district a "District" and, collectively, "Districts"). The names and the respective boundaries of the Districts shall be as set forth in City Council Resolution 23-88. Following each decennial federal census, and at other such times as are authorized by applicable law, the City Council may, by ordinance or resolution, adjust the boundaries of any or all of the Districts of the City so that the Districts shall be as nearly equal in population as may be, consistent with law applicable to the creation and rearrangement of the boundaries of local districts. Any territory annexed to or consolidated with the City shall, prior to or concurrently with completion of the proceedings therefore, be added to an adjacent District or Districts by the City Council by ordinance, which addition shall be effective upon completion of the annexation or consolidation proceedings notwithstanding any other provision of the Charter to the contrary.

(Ord. No. 24-10, § 1, 3-5-24)

No persons shall be eligible to hold the office of Mayor unless they are a legally registered voter and resident of the City. Commencing with filing of nomination or such other equivalent declaration of candidacy as may be required or authorized by law in connection with the general municipal election of November 2024, no person shall be eligible to hold the office of Council Member unless they are a legally registered voter and resident of their respective District, as established pursuant to Section 400.1, and nominated and elected only by the voters of their respective District.

Every Council Member or candidate for Council Member shall be and remain a qualified voter in the District from which they seek office from the time of filing nomination papers or such other equivalent declaration of candidacy as may be required or authorized by law, throughout the full term of their office, if elected or appointed in lieu of election. No creation of a District or change in the boundary or location of any District shall abolish or terminate the term of office of any Council Member prior to the expiration of the term of office for which the Council Member was elected or appointed in lieu of election, notwithstanding any other provision of this Section, Section 400, or Section 400.1.

(Ord. No. 24-10, § 1, 3-5-24)

Compensation for Council member is hereby set, and from time to time shall be changed, in accordance with the provisions of the Government Code relating to salaries of Council members in general law cities. Such compensation may be increased or decreased other than as set forth above by an affirmative vote of a majority of the voters voting on the proposition at any election.

(a) A vacancy shall exist on the Council, and shall be declared by the Council, upon the occurrence of any of the events enumerated in the provisions of the Government Code pertaining to vacancies in public offices.

(b) A declaration by the Council of a vacancy resulting from forfeiture of office shall be subject to judicial review, provided that within two weeks after such declaration an appropriate action, or proceeding for review is filed in a court having jurisdiction of the action or proceeding. During the pendency of any such action or proceeding, anyone appointed by the Council or elected by the people to fill such vacancy shall have all the rights, duties, and powers of a Council member and shall continue in such office as provided herein unless and until said court rules the declaration of the Council invalid and such ruling has become final.

(c) The method of filing vacancies on the City Council shall be as prescribed by ordinance of the City Council.

All powers of the City shall be vested in the Council except as otherwise provided in this Charter.

Officers of the Council (other than the elected Mayor), the time, place and the method of calling meetings, the rules of order for the conduct of proceedings by the City Council and the order of succession in the event of a vacancy in the office of Mayor shall be as established by ordinance of the City Council.

(Amend. of 3-1-88, § 2)

Editor's note— An amendment to § 405 was approved at an initiative referendum held Nov. 3, 1987; filed with the secretary of state Feb. 16, 1988, as Charter chapter 1; and was adopted by the council Mar. 1, 1988.

Subject to the rules governing the conduct of Council meetings, any citizen, personally or through counsel, shall have the right to present grievances at any regular meeting of the Council, or offer suggestions for the betterment of municipal affairs.

With the exception of ordinances which take effect upon adoption pursuant to this Article, no ordinance shall be adopted by the Council on the day of its introduction, nor within five days thereafter. An ordinance effective upon adoption as provided herein may be introduced and adopted at the same time. All ordinances shall be read by title only either at the time of introduction or at the time of adoption unless three members of the Council request that the ordinance be read in full. In the event that any ordinance is altered after its introduction, it shall not be finally adopted except at a meeting held not less than five days after the date upon which such ordinance was altered. Correction of a typographical or clerical error shall not constitute an alteration within the meaning of the foregoing sentence.

Unless otherwise required by this Charter, the affirmative votes of at least three members of the Council shall be required for the enactment of any ordinance, resolution or order for the payment of money.

All ordinances and resolutions of the City Council shall be signed by the Chairman of the Council and attested by the City Clerk.

Any ordinance declared by the Council to be necessary as an emergency measure for preserving the public peace, health, or safety and containing a statement of the reasons for its urgency, may be introduced and adopted at one and the same meeting if it is passed by at least four affirmative votes.

The City Clerk shall cause each ordinance to be posted in at least three public places in the City in lieu of publication unless publication is requested by the City Council or otherwise required by law.

Detailed regulations pertaining to any subject, when arranged as a comprehensive code, may be adopted by reference by the passage of an ordinance for such purpose. Such code need not be posted or published in the manner required for the enactment of ordinances. Any or all ordinances of the City may be compiled, consolidated, revised, indexed, including such restatement and substantive change as is necessary in the interest of clarity, and arranged as a comprehensive ordinance code. Such ordinance code may be adopted by reference as provided herein. Copies of any adopted code of regulations shall be made available for purchase at a reasonable price.

An ordinance shall become effective after the thirtieth day following its adoption, or at any later date specified therein, except the following, which shall take effect upon adoption:

(a) An ordinance calling or otherwise relating to an election.

(b) An ordinance declaring the amount of money necessary to be raised by taxation, fixing the rate of taxation, levying the annual tax upon property, or levying any other tax.

(c) An emergency ordinance adopted in the manner provided for in this Article.