Laguna Niguel Municipal Code Art. 1 General Provisions

The city council may establish by ordinance or resolution such commissions, boards and committees as it deems necessary and determine the duties and responsibilities of such commissions, boards and committees. All of the provisions of this article are applicable to the commissions, boards and committees established by the city council, except that the city council may establish provisions applicable to a particular commission, board or committee that are different from those contained in this article. In the event of a conflict between the general provisions contained in this article and the specific provisions contained in the another article of this division, a separate section of this Code, or specific resolution applicable to a particular commission, board of committee, the provisions of that other article, section or resolution shall control.

(Ord. No. 2019-198, § 3, 10-1-19)

This division does not pertain to ad hoc or standing committees of the city council established by the mayor or city council that consist exclusively of city councilmembers.

(Ord. No. 2019-198, § 3, 10-1-19)

(a) All members of commissions, boards and committees of the city shall, at all times during their incumbencies, be bona fide residents and registered voters of the city unless provided in a specific article of this division 3 of the Code.

(b) Generally, it is the policy of the city council that no person, except members of the city council if specifically authorized in a specific article in this division 3 of the Code, shall be a member of more than one commission, board or committee at any one time. However, it is recognized that the city council may, in extraordinary circumstances, appoint a person to two commissions, boards or committees at the same time. The prohibition set out in this section does not prevent a member of a commission, board or committee from simultaneously serving on one or more ad hoc or temporary committees.

(c) Relatives of a currently serving city councilmember shall not be eligible for appointment to any city commission, board or committee. For purposes of this section, the term "relatives" means spouse, parent, sibling (including foster or step), children (including adoptive, foster or step); in-laws, grandparent or grandchild, aunt or uncle, niece or nephew. In addition, the term "relatives" also means all other legally related persons (e.g. grand-nephew, grand-niece, cousin or other relative) not listed in the preceding sentence, provided that a person in this latter group of relatives must live in the same household as the currently serving city councilmember.

(Ord. No. 2019-198, § 3, 10-1-19; Ord. No. 2022-213, § 2, 4-5-22)

(a) Scheduled vacancies. Members of commissions, boards and committees shall be appointed by the following procedure. The city clerk shall provide public notice, in the manner he or she deems appropriate, that the city council will be appointing members by considering applicants for membership and of the deadlines and timing for submittal of applications and selection of members. The city council shall, after public notice, receive and consider applications for membership, determine which applicants, if any, to interview, hold interviews with the selected applicants, and appoint members by a majority vote of membership of the city council. The city clerk shall retain all applications submitted to the city for a period of two years. In addition to these procedures, the city clerk shall, on or before December 31 of each year prepare and submit to the city council for approval, a list of all regular and ongoing commissions, boards and committees of the city, which list shall be known as the city's local appointments list, as required by Government Code Section 54972, as such section may be amended from time to time.

(b) Unscheduled vacancies. When a vacancy occurs in the membership of a commission, board or committee before the end of the incumbents term or office, that vacancy shall be considered unscheduled and shall be filled in compliance with the state law provisions governing the filling of those unscheduled vacancies, as provided in Government Code Section 54970—54974, as those sections may be amended from time to time. In addition to following those procedures, such vacancies shall be filled by appointment for the unexpired portion of the term made in the manner as set forth in section (a) of this section, or the city council may, by majority vote of its membership and in lieu of utilizing the procedures set forth in subsection (a), appoint a person to fill a vacancy on a commission, board or committee whose name is on a list of applicants for membership on that commission, board or committee that had previously been developed pursuant to subsection (a).

(Ord. No. 2019-198, § 3, 10-1-19)

Each commission, board or committee shall annually select a chairperson and a vice-chairperson. The city manager shall provide the necessary staff for clerical and technical assistance to all commissions, boards and committees.

(Ord. No. 2019-198, § 3, 10-1-19)

Each commission, board or committee member shall be appointed to either a one-year term or a two-year term. Terms of office shall run from January 1st through December 31st of the same year for a one-year term or from January 1st through December 31st of the succeeding year for a two-year term. If a member was appointed to a one-year term, then the city council may, prior to the end of that first one-year term, and without following the formal appointment process for scheduled vacancies set forth in subsection (a) of section 2-3-4 of this article, reappoint that member to a second one-year term. At the completion of any two-year term or the completion of the second of two one-year terms, a commission, board or committee member may be reappointed pursuant to the procedures set forth in subsection (a) of section 2-3-4, or the city council may, without utilizing the procedures set forth in subsection (a) of section 2-3-4, reappoint a member to a commission, board or committee by a majority of the membership of the city council.

(Ord. No. 2019-198, § 3, 10-1-19)

(a) No person shall be appointed to hold office as a member of any one city commission or committee for more than three consecutive two-year terms, for more than six consecutive one-year terms, or for more than six consecutive years of a combination of two- and one-year terms.

(b) After a person has served three consecutive two-year terms or six consecutive years on one commission or committee, that person may again be appointed to serve on that commission or committee after he or she has been off that commission or committee for at least two years.

(c) If a person serves for at least one year of a two-year term, that person for purposes of this section shall be considered to have served a full two-year term.

(d) The term limits established by this section shall apply retroactively and, therefore, terms that were completed prior to the effective date of this section and terms that are in existence at the time of the effective date of this section shall count for purposes of applying the term limits established by this section.

(e) This section does not apply to the investment, banking and audit committee, the military support committee or the youth committee.

(Ord. No. 2019-198, § 3, 10-1-19)

Each commission, board or committee shall establish its own meeting schedule, including date, time and place of meetings. A quorum of the majority of all the members appointed shall be required for the transaction of any business. All meetings of each commission, board or committee shall be held in compliance with the Ralph M. Brown Act (Government Code § 54950 et seq.).

(Ord. No. 2019-198, § 3, 10-1-19)

Should any commission, board or committee member be absent from three consecutive meetings of the commission, board or committee during his or her term, that member shall automatically vacate his or her position on the commission, board or committee. Such vacancy shall be filled in the same manner as any other unscheduled vacancy, unless the position remains vacant for the remaining term of the incumbent, in which case, it will thereafter be filled in the manner required for a scheduled vacancy.

(Ord. No. 2019-198, § 3, 10-1-19)

The compensation, if any, for members of all other commissions, boards and committees shall be set forth in the article providing for the establishment and operation of each commission, board or committee. Unless provided otherwise in the establishing resolution, no commission, board or committee member shall be compensated for attendance at more than two meetings in one month.

(Ord. No. 2019-198, § 3, 10-1-19)

Members of commissions, boards and committees serve at the pleasure of the city council and any member of a commission, board or committee may be removed from membership on the commission, board or committee before the expiration of his or her term with or without cause or reason by a four-fifths vote of all of the members of the city council. If a member is to be removed with cause, the city council member initiating such removal shall provide the commission, board or committee member with a brief statement of the reasons for proposed removal, and the city council shall provide the member reasonable notice and an opportunity to respond to those reasons at or before the city council meeting at which the removal action is proposed to be taken.

(Ord. No. 2019-198, § 3, 10-1-19)

The Ralph M. Brown Act (California Government Code Section 54950 et seq.) applies to the operation of all commissions, boards and committees that are covered by this division. Any meeting of a commission, board or committee shall comply with the notice, agenda, public access, public communication and all other provisions of that law unless otherwise stated by that law.

(Ord. No. 2019-198, § 3, 10-1-19)