Pacifica Municipal Code Ch. 8 General and Special Municipal Elections

* Chapter 6, as added by Ordinance No. 313-C.S., effective November 9, 1981, renumbered to Chapter 8 by codifier because Chapter 6 is in use.

The General Municipal Election for positions on the Council in the City be held on the first Tuesday following the first Monday in November in even-numbered years, commencing November 1982.

(§ 1, Ord. 313-C.S., eff. November 9, 1981)

The City Clerk shall petition the County to consolidate the City's General Municipal Elections with State-wide General Elections being held on the first Tuesday following the first Monday in November of each even-numbered year, commencing November 1982, and shall seek approval of this chapter in accordance with Section 36503.5 of the Government Code of the State.

(§ 1, Ord. 313-C.S., eff. November 9, 1981)

(a) The terms of office for Councilmembers elected to office in March, 1978, in accordance with Section 36503.5 of the Government Code of the State, are extended through the first Tuesday following the General Municipal Election on November 2, 1982.

(b) The terms of office for Councilmembers elected to office in April, 1980, in accordance with Section 36503.5 of the Government Code of the State, are extended through the first Tuesday following the general Municipal Election in November, 1984.

(c) The terms of office for Councilmembers elected in November 1982, and in each subsequent General Municipal Election, shall be for terms of four (4) years. Elected City Councilmembers shall hold office for the term set forth in state law.

(§ 1, Ord. 313-C.S., eff. November 9, 1981, as amended by § 2, Ord. 724-C.S., eff. March 28, 2005)

No person who has served two (2) terms of office as a Pacifica City Councilmember shall be eligible to run for election as a Pacifica City Councilmember. If for any reason a person serves a partial term as [a] Pacifica City Councilmember in excess of two (2) years, that partial term shall be considered a full term for purposes of this term limit provision.

(§ 3, Ord. 777-C.S., eff. November 2, 2010)

(a) Definitions. The following definitions apply for the purposes of this section:

"Candidate" shall mean a candidate, as that phrase is defined in Section 82007 of the Government Code, for any City elective office.

"Committee" has the meaning set forth in Section 82013 of the Government Code.

"Contribution" has the meaning set forth in Section 82015 of the Government Code.

"Duplicate" shall mean one (1) of two (2) or more identical things; a copy.

"Electronic filing system" shall mean the electronic online filing and data storage system provided for by the City Clerk for campaign statements, reports, forms, or other documents filed pursuant to Government Code Section 84100 et seq.

"Independent expenditure" has the meaning set forth in Section 82031 of the Government Code.

"Person" has the meaning set forth in Section 82047 of the Government Code.

"Recall" shall mean a recall of an elective officer of the City made pursuant to Division 11 (commencing with Section 11000) of the Elections Code.

(b) Posting of campaign reports and statements on City website. All campaign statements, reports, forms, or other documents filed with the City Clerk pursuant to Chapter 4, "Campaign Disclosures" (commencing with Section 84100) of Title 9 of the California Government Code, as may be subsequently amended, on the City's electronic filing system shall be made available to the public via the City's website as set forth in Section 2-8.06(e), as soon as possible after receipt but no later than two (2) working days after filing. Reports filed with the City Clerk in paper form will be posted as soon as possible after receipt but no later than two (2) working days after filing.

(c) City Clerk publication of summary. Two (2) months before, and again in the week preceding any special or general election, the City Clerk shall publish in each of the following mediums, a summary of contributions and independent expenditures, as reflected in campaign reports and statements filed with the City Clerk pursuant to Title 9, Chapter 4, Articles 1 and 2 (commencing with Section 84100) of the Government Code, relating to any City office, any local ballot measure, or recall: (1) a local newspaper of general circulation which newspaper is selected pursuant to the discretion of the City Manager, (2) the City's website, and (3) the City's email distribution list. The City Clerk shall also make the summary available in hard copy form at a Pacifica library. The summary shall contain the following information:

i. The total contributions received by each candidate and each committee as reported on the most recent campaign reports and statements filed with the City Clerk.

ii. For contributions from a single source totaling Six Hundred and no/100ths ($600.00) Dollars or more: the full name of the contributing person; amount contributed; the city of residence if contributing person is an individual, principal place of business if contributing person is not an individual; the candidates or committees which received the contribution; and if made by an individual, then that individual's occupation and employer.

iii. The total amount of independent expenditures in favor of and opposed to any local candidate, ballot measure, or recall.

iv. For independent expenditures greater than or equal to One Thousand and no/100ths ($1,000.00) Dollars: the full name of the person making the expenditure; amount spent; the city where the person making the independent expenditure resides if the expenditure is made by an individual; the city where the person's principal place of business is located if the expenditure is not made by an individual; the candidate, ballot measure, or recall which the expenditure supported or opposed; and whether the expenditure was for support or opposition.

(d) Public disclosure of non-filing. Three (3) days after any filing deadline required under Title 9, Chapter 4, Article 2 (commencing with Section 84200) of the Government Code, the City Clerk shall disclose to the public by press release the name of any candidate or committee who has failed to file any required filing.

(e) Reporting of independent expenditures to City Clerk. Any person who makes independent expenditures totaling more than Five Thousand and no 100/ths ($5,000.00) Dollars in support of or in opposition to any candidate, local ballot measure, or recall shall notify the City Clerk. In addition, that person shall also notify the supporting and opposing committees where the expenditure involved a local ballot measure or recall, and shall notify all candidates where the expenditure involved a candidate. Notifications to the City Clerk, and to any committee or candidate as applicable under this subsection, shall be made within twenty-four (24) hours by email, guaranteed overnight mail through the United States Postal Service or equivalent private delivery service, or personal delivery. Notifications shall be sent to the address of the committee or candidate on record with the City Clerk. Notifications shall be made each time this threshold of Five Thousand and no 100/ths ($5,000.00) Dollars is met.

(§ 3, Ord. 820-C.S., eff. September 13, 2017; § 2, Ord. 863-C.S., eff. June 23, 2021)

(a) Use of electronic filing system.

(1) Except as set forth in subsection (3) of this Section 2-8.06(a), any elected officer, candidate, committee other person required to file specified campaign statements, reports, forms, or other documents with the City Clerk pursuant to Chapter 4, "Campaign Disclosures" (commencing with Section 84100) of Title 9 of the California Government Code, as may be subsequently amended, and has received contributions or made expenditures of Two Thousand and no 100/ths ($2,000.00) Dollars or more in a calendar year, may electronically file such statement using the City's electronic filing system in accordance with any applicable administrative policies and procedures established by the City Clerk.

(2) To ensure reporting continuity, once a campaign statement, report, form, or other document is filed electronically on behalf of any elected officer, candidate, or committee, all future campaign statements, reports, forms, and other documents filed on behalf of that officer, candidate or committee for that election cycle must be filed electronically.

(3) An elected officer, candidate, committee or other person may choose not to use the City's electronic filing system by filing all original campaign statements, reports, forms, or other documents in paper form with the City Clerk.

(b) Filing options when a duplicate must be filed with City Clerk. In any instance in which an original campaign statement, report, form, or other document must be filed with the Secretary of State or other agency, and a duplicate of that document is required to be filed with the City Clerk, the duplicate version filed with the City Clerk may be in electronic or in paper form.

(c) Inability to access city's electronic filing system. If, for technical reasons, the City's electronic filing system is inoperable for a period of time or cannot accept a particular type of campaign statement, report, form or other document, an elected officer, candidate, committee or other person shall timely file that document in paper form with the City Clerk, unless otherwise directed by the City Clerk.

(d) Posting of data. The City Clerk shall ensure that the City's electronic filing system makes all electronically-filed campaign statements, reports, forms, or other documents available in a format that provides the greatest public access. The data shall be made available free of charge. The data made available on the City's electronic filing system shall be redacted to ensure that street name of the persons or entity representatives listed on the electronically filed forms or any bank account number required are not disclosed.

(e) Administrative policies and procedures. The City Clerk is authorized to adopt such administrative policies and procedures as deemed necessary to implement this chapter.

(§ 3, Ord. 863-C.S., eff. June 23, 2021)