Los Altos Hills Municipal Code Art. 1 Meetings

(a) Time—Place. Regular meetings of the City Council shall be held on the third Thursday of each month at 5:30 p.m. in the Council Chambers of the Town Hall, 26379 Fremont Road, Los Altos Hills, California, or in such other place within the Town limits to which the meeting may be adjourned. In the event that there are no closed session items on the agenda, the City Council meeting shall begin at 6:00 p.m. If by reason of emergency it shall be unsafe to meet in the Town Hall, meetings may be held at such other place within the Town limits as is designated in the special meeting notice.

(b) Holidays. When the day for any regular meeting falls on a legal holiday, no meeting shall be held on such holiday, but a meeting shall be held at the same hour on the following business day unless the meeting has been either cancelled or rescheduled to another day by the City Council.

(c) Meetings to Be Public. All regular meetings of the Council shall be open to the public and shall comply with all requirements of California Government Code Section 54950 et seq.

(d) Order of Business. Council business shall normally proceed in the following order. Roll call and closed session shall convene at 5:30 p.m. The City Council will conclude the closed session by 6:00 p.m. or continue the closed session at a later point in the meeting. Public hearings will commence at approximately 7:00 p.m.

(§§ 1 and 3, Ch. III, Ord. 717, as amended by § 1, Ord. 200, eff. December 6, 1972; §§ 1, 2, Ord. 311, eff. April 3, 1987; § 1, Ord. 317, eff. December 18, 1987; § 1, Ord. 350, eff. April 17, 1992; § 1, Ord. 398, eff. February 5, 1999; § 1, Ord. 417, eff. November 17, 2001; § 1, Ord. 438, eff. September 18, 2005; § 1, Ord. 502, eff. August 13, 2006; §§ 1, 2, Ord. 506, eff. April 22, 2007; § 1, Ord. 518, eff. March 20, 2010; § 1, Ord. 537, eff. June 17, 2012; § 1, Ord. 594, eff. June 19, 2021)

Special meetings may be called at any time by the Mayor, or by three members of the Council, and shall be noticed pursuant to California Government Code Section 54956.

All special meetings of the Council shall be open to the public and shall comply with all requirements of California Government Code Section 54950 et seq.

(§§ 2 and 3, Ch. III, Ord. 171, as amended by § 1, Ord. 209, eff. May 18, 1973; § 2, Ord. 594, eff. June 19, 2021)

The Council may hold closed sessions during a regular or special meeting, from which the public may be excluded, consistent with and for the purpose of considering the matters referred to in the Ralph M. Brown Act and State law. Disclosure of any confidential information that has been acquired by being present in a closed session is prohibited in accordance with Government Code Section 54963.

(§ 3, Ch. III, Ord. 171, as amended by § 3, Ord. 594, eff. June 19, 2021)

All reports, communications, ordinances, resolutions, contract documents, and other matters to be submitted to the Council at a regular meeting shall be delivered to the City Clerk not later than 10:00 a.m. on the Thursday preceding the meeting. The City Clerk shall prepare the agenda of all such matters under the direction of the City Manager. The agenda shall be available to Council members not later than 3:00 p.m. on the Friday preceding the Thursday Council meeting to which the agenda pertains, and it shall be made available to the public pursuant to the agenda posting requirements under California Government Code Section 54954.2.

Matters to be considered at any special meeting shall be delivered to the City Clerk at least 24 hours in advance of the meeting.

The City Manager may place on the agenda for any regular or special meeting any item which he or she deems of interest to the Council. Any member of the City Council may place an item under the "Council Initiated Items" section of an agenda, during which the City Council may consider the item and whether further action or consideration would occur.

(§ 4, Ch. III, Ord. 171, as amended by § 51, Ord. 200, eff. December 6, 1972; § 1, Ord. 518, eff. March 20, 2010; § 4, Ord. 594, eff. June 19, 2021)

(a) Availability to the Public. Correspondence addressed to the Council which is received by the City Clerk or any other officer or employee of the Town shall not become a public record until received and filed by the Council at a regular, special, or adjourned meeting of the Council. Correspondence received in the office of the City Clerk or in any other office after 10:00 a.m. on the Wednesday preceding a regular Council meeting shall not be placed on the agenda unless the correspondence concerns a matter to be considered by the Council at the next regular meeting or is determined by the Mayor or the City Manager to be an urgent matter which should be brought to the immediate attention of the Council. Correspondence shall not be read aloud at a Council meeting unless requested by a majority vote of the Council.

(b) Mailing Copies to the Council. The City Manager shall forward to each member of the Council a copy of each item of correspondence.

Such mailing shall take place, if possible, not later than the Wednesday preceding the meeting at which such correspondence will be considered.

(c) Authority of the City Manager. The City Manager is hereby authorized to open and examine all mail or other written communications addressed to the Council and to give such communications immediate attention to the end that all administrative business referred to in the communications, and not necessarily requiring Council action, may be acted upon between Council meetings.

(§ 5 Ch. III, Ord. 717)

If a meeting is not completed by 10:00 p.m., the City Council shall then determine whether to consider further agenda items or adjourn and defer unfinished business until the next regular meeting of the Council.

(§ 6, Ch. III, Ord. 171; § 3, Ord. 311, eff. April 3, 1987; § 2, Ord. 350, eff. April 17, 1992; § 3, Ord. 506, eff. April 22, 2007)

(a) Preparation. The City Clerk shall have the exclusive responsibility for the preparation of the minutes of Council meetings, and any directions for changes in the minutes shall be made only by majority action of the Council.

(b) Approval. 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 has previously furnished each Councilmember with a copy.

(§ 7 and 8, Ch. III, Ord. 171)

A Councilmember may request through the presiding officer of the Council meeting the privilege of having an abstract of the statement of such Councilmember 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.

(§ 12, Ch. III. Ord. 171)

Any Councilmember 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 of the Council meeting. Such dissent or protest to be entered in 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..."

(§ 13, Ch. III, Ord. 171)

The Mayor shall be the presiding officer at all meetings of the Council. In the absence of the Mayor, the Mayor Pro Tempore shall preside. In the absence of both the Mayor and the Mayor Pro Tempore, the City Clerk shall call the Council to order, whereupon a temporary presiding officer shall be elected by the Councilmembers present to serve until the arrival of the Mayor or Mayor Pro Tempore or until adjournment.

Wherever in this article the term "Mayor" is used, it shall apply equally to the presiding officer as set forth in this section.

(§ 9, Ch. III, Ord. 171)

(a) Participation. The presiding officer may move, second, debate, and vote from the Chair.

(b) Seating Arrangement for the Council. The Mayor shall, following each Councilmember's election and at such other times as he or she may deem necessary, establish the seating arrangement of the members of the Council. The Mayor Pro Tempore shall always be seated immediately next to the Mayor.

(c) Question to be Stated. The presiding officer or such member of the Town staff as he or she may designate shall verbally restate each question immediately prior to calling for the vote. Following the vote the presiding officer shall announce whether the question was carried or was defeated. 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 Town staff to do so, before proceeding to the next item of business.

(d) Signing 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.

(e) Sworn Testimony. The presiding officer may require any person addressing the 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.

(§ 10, Ch. III, Ord. 171)

(a) Getting the Floor. Every Councilmember desiring to speak shall first address the Chair, gain recognition by the presiding officer, and confine him or herself to the question under debate, avoiding personalities and indecorous language.

(b) Questioning the Staff. Every Councilmember desiring to question the Town staff shall, after recognition by the presiding officer, address his or her questions to the City Manager, the City Clerk, or the City Attorney, who shall be entitled either to answer the inquiries themselves or to designate members of their staffs for that purpose.

(c) Interruptions. A Councilmember, 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 Councilmember, or unless the speaker chooses to yield to a question by another Councilmember. If a Councilmember is called to order while speaking, 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 Town staff, after recognition by the presiding officer, shall hold the floor until the completion of their remarks or until recognition is withdrawn by the presiding officer.

(d) Points of Order. The presiding officer shall determine all points of order, subject to the right of any Councilmember 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.

(e) Point of Personal Privilege. The right of a Councilmember to address the Council on a question of personal privilege shall be limited to cases in which his or her integrity, character, or motives are questioned or where the welfare of the Council is concerned. A Councilmember raising a point of personal privilege may interrupt another Councilmember who has the floor only if the presiding officer recognizes the privilege.

(f) Privilege of Closing the Debate. The Councilmember moving the adoption of an ordinance, resolution, or motion shall have the privilege of closing the debate.

(g) Limitation of Debate. No Councilmember shall be permitted to speak more than once upon any particular subject until every other Councilmember desiring to do so shall have spoken.

(§ 11, Ch. III, Ord. 171)

Except as otherwise provided in this article, or in other rules adopted by the Council, or in other applicable provisions of State laws, the procedures of the Council shall be governed by the latest revised edition of Roberts Rules of Order.

(§ 14, Ch. III, Ord. 171)

All rules adopted to expedite the transaction of the business of the Council in an orderly fashion shall be 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 which is otherwise held in conformity with law.

(§ 15, Ch. III, Ord. 171)

(a) Councilmembers. While the Council is in session the members shall preserve order and decorum, and a member shall neither, by conversation or otherwise, delay nor interrupt the proceedings or the peace of the Council, nor disturb any member while speaking, nor refuse to obey the orders of the presiding officer. Members of the Council shall not leave their seats during a meeting without first obtaining the permission of the presiding officer.

(b) Employees. Members of the Town staff and employees shall observe the same rules of order and decorum as are applicable to the Council; provided, however, members of the Town staff may leave their seats during a meeting without first obtaining the permission of the presiding officer.

(c) Persons Addressing the Council. Any person making impertinent, slanderous, or profane remarks or who becomes boisterous while addressing the Council shall be called to order by the presiding officer and, if such conduct continues, may, at the discretion of the presiding officer, be ordered barred from further audience before the Council during that meeting.

(d) Members of the Audience. Any person in the audience who engages in disorderly conduct, such as the clapping of hands, the stamping of feet, whistling, using profane language, yelling, or similar demonstrations, which conduct disturbs the peace and good order of the meeting, or who refuses to comply with the lawful orders of the presiding officer, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon instructions from the presiding officer, it shall be the duty of the Chief of Police or his or her authorized deputy to remove such person from the Council Chamber and to place him or her under arrest.

(e) Persons Authorized to Approach the Council Table. No person, except members of the Council and the Town staff, shall be permitted to approach the Council table during a meeting of the Council without the consent of the presiding officer.

(§ 17, Ch. III, Ord. 171)

The Chief of Police, or such members of the Police Department as he or she may designate, shall carry out all orders given by the presiding officer for the purpose of maintaining order and decorum at Council meetings. Any Councilmember may move to require the presiding officer to enforce the rules of decorum, and the affirmative vote of a majority of the Council shall require him or her to do so.

(§ 18, Ch. III, Ord. 171)

(a) Manner. Each person desiring to address the Council shall step to the microphone provided for such purpose and shall state his or her name and address for the record, the subject he or she wishes to discuss, whom he or she is representing if he or she represents an organization or other person, and, unless further time is granted by a majority vote of the Council, shall limit his or her remarks to five minutes. All remarks shall be addressed to the Council as a whole and not to any member thereof. No question shall be asked a Councilmember or a member of the Town staff without the permission of the presiding officer.

(b) Spokesmen for Groups 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 chosen by the group to address the Council and, in the event additional matters are to be presented by any other member of such group, to limit the number of such persons addressing the Council.

(c) After Motions Are Made and Hearings Are Closed. 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 from the presiding officer.

(§ 16, Ch. III, Ord. 171)

A motion by any member of the Council may not be considered by the Council without receiving a second.

(§ 19, Ch. III, Ord. 171)

Any vote of the Council, including a roll call vote, may be registered by the members by answering "Yes" for an affirmative vote or "No" for a negative vote upon his or her name being called by the City Clerk.

(§ 20, Ch. III, Ord. 171)

Any Councilmember 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 disqualification in open meeting. Where no clearly disqualifying conflict of interest appears, the matter of disqualification may, at the request of the Councilmember affected, be decided by the other Councilmembers. A Councilmember 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 Councilmember 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.

(§ 21, Ch. III, Ord. 171)

Every Councilmember should vote unless disqualified by reason of a conflict of interest. A Councilmember who abstains from voting in effect consents that a majority of the quorum may decide the question voted upon.

(§ 22, Ch. Ill, Ord. 171)

Tie votes shall be lost motions and may be reconsidered.

(§ 23, Ch. III, Ord. 171)

A Councilmember may change his or her vote only if he or she makes a timely request to do so immediately following the announcement of the vote by the City Clerk and prior to the time the next item in the order of business is considered. A Councilmember who publicly announces that, he or she is abstaining from voting on a particular matter shall not subsequently be permitted to withdraw his or her abstention.

(§ 24, Ch. III, Ord. 171)

A motion to reconsider any action taken by the Council may be made only on the day such action was taken. The motion to reconsider the action may be made either immediately during the same session or at a recessed or adjourned session thereof. Such motion may be made only by one of the Councilmembers who voted with the prevailing side. The provisions of this section shall not be construed to prevent any Councilmember from making or remaking the same or any other motion at a subsequent meeting of the Council.

(§ 25, Ch. III, Ord. 171)

(a) Preparation—Authorization. All ordinances 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, requested by the Mayor or City Manager, or prepared by the City Attorney on his or her own initiative.

(b) Prior Approval by Administrative Staff. All ordinances, resolutions, and contract documents, before presentation to the Council, shall have been approved as to form and legality by the City Attorney and shall have been examined and approved for administration by the City Manager or his or her authorized representative.

(§ 26, Ch. III, Ord. 171)

At the time of the adoption of an ordinance or resolution, it shall be read in full unless, after the reading of the title thereof, the further reading thereof is waived by the unanimous consent of the Councilmembers present. Such consent may be expressed by a statement by the presiding officer in the following manner: "If there is no objection, the further reading of the ordinance (or resolution) shall be waived." If any Councilmember so requests, the ordinance or resolution shall be read in full.

(§ 27, Ch. III, Ord. 171)