Pomona Municipal Code § 510 When Ordinances may Become Effective

All powers of the City shall be vested in the Council except as otherwise provided by law or in this Charter. The City Councilmembers, in addition to the powers and duties prescribed elsewhere in this Charter, shall have the responsibility and duties to:

(a) Conduct Council business in a manner to benefit the entire City of Pomona, not strictly individual districts, areas, or constituencies;

(b) Manage discretionary funds in a manner to benefit not only district needs, but needs of the entire City of Pomona;

(c) Report to the City and to the residents on the local and City-wide impacts of issues that occur in a Councilmember's district;

(d) Report to the Council and to the public the activities of commissions and boards to which the Councilmember is also a member, particularly where they have impacts on the City of Pomona;

(e) Set goals for the improvement of the entire City of Pomona as well as improvements to individual districts;

(f) Meet at least annually as the full Council, in the City of Pomona, to facilitate the establishment and/or review of goals for the City stressing improvements that benefit all residents; and

(g) Actively communicate with the commissioners and board members that they have appointed and make an effort to meet with them at least once a year.

The Council shall consist of the Mayor and the six (6) other members of the Council, each of whom shall have the right to vote on all questions coming before the Council, except where such participation and voting on a question would constitute an impermissible conflict of interest under Section 513 of this Charter or otherwise violate State law. The Mayor shall be the presiding officer of the Council. The Council shall designate one other of its members as Vice-Mayor, to serve on a rotating basis. In the temporary absence or disability of the Mayor or during such period as a vacancy exists in the office of Mayor, the Vice-Mayor shall preside at Council meetings and perform such other of the duties of the Mayor as the Council may assign.

(a) The Council shall hold regular meetings as may be prescribed by ordinance or resolution, at least once every calendar month. Any regular meeting may be adjourned to a date and hour fixed in the order of adjournment. Each adjourned meeting shall be a regular meeting for all purposes. Special meetings may be held as provided by this Charter and any other applicable law.

(b) For any regular meeting of the Council, the City shall post an agenda containing a brief general description of each item of business to be transacted or discussed at the meeting, including items to be discussed in closed session, not later than six (6) calendar days before the regular meeting.

(c) For any special meeting of the Council, the City shall post an agenda containing a brief general description of each item of business to be transacted or discussed at the meeting, including items to be discussed in closed session, not later than seventy two (72) hours before the special meeting.

(d) Any agenda and notice of an emergency or dire emergency meeting of the Council shall be posted and given as provided in the Ralph M. Brown Act (Calif. Government Code §§54950 et seq.)

(e) The Council may take action on items of business not appearing on the posted agenda under any of the exceptions provided in the Ralph M. Brown Act (Calif. Government Code §§54950 et seq.)

(f) Except as otherwise provided herein, the City shall comply with the requirements of the Ralph M. Brown Act (Calif. Government Code §§54950 et seq.) for those Council meetings subject to the Act.

All meetings of the Council shall be open to the public, and shall be held in the Council Chambers or in such place to which the meeting may be adjourned; provided, that if by reason of fire, flood or other emergency it shall be unsafe or impractical to meet at the regular meeting place, the Council may for the duration of the emergency meet at some other place designated by the Mayor or, if he or she fails to act, by any three (3) Councilmembers.

(a) Quorum. A majority of the current members of the Council shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business at any meeting, but a lesser number may adjourn from time to time and compel the attendance of absent members in such manner and under such penalties as the Council may by ordinance prescribe. In the event all members of the Council are absent from any meeting, the City Clerk may declare the same adjourned to a stated day and hour in the manner provided by law.

(b) Rules of Conduct. The Council shall establish rules for the conduct of its proceedings. In the event no rules are established, the current edition of Robert's Rules of Order shall apply. The Council by majority vote may evict any member or any other person for disorderly conduct at any meeting and may, to the extent permitted by law, prosecute any member or other person for such conduct.

(c) Investigations. Each member of the Council and the City Clerk shall have the power to administer oaths and affirmations in any investigation or proceedings pending before the Council. The Council shall have the power to issue subpoenas, to compel by subpoena the attendance of witnesses and the production of documents and other evidence, to examine witnesses under oath and to take and hear evidence, in relation to any matter pending before it. Subpoenas shall be issued in the name of the City and be attested by the City Clerk. Disobedience of any subpoena or the refusal to testify upon other than legal grounds shall constitute a misdemeanor.

(d) Payment of Monies. Actions for the payment of money shall not be taken at other than a regular or adjourned regular meeting.

(e) Recording of Votes. The City Clerk shall call the roll and cause the ayes and noes to be entered in the minutes regarding any action requiring a vote. The City Clerk may use any manual, mechanical or electronic means to record the votes of the City Council.

At each regular meeting the Council shall, if requested, grant any person, personally or through counsel, reasonable opportunity to present grievances or offer suggestions for the betterment of City affairs, subject to such rules for orderly procedure as the Council or its presiding officer may prescribe.

Except in cases where a greater number of votes is required by any other provision of this Charter, a majority vote of the total membership of the Council shall be required for the adoption of any ordinance or resolution. Other actions may be taken by majority vote of the members present.

Ordinances, except ordinances which under this Charter may take effect upon adoption, shall not be adopted by the Council on the day of their introduction nor within five (5) days thereafter nor at any time other than at a regular or adjourned regular meeting. At the time of its introduction an ordinance shall be delivered into the custody of the City Clerk. At the time of its adoption, the Clerk shall read the title thereof and shall then read the ordinance in full if a majority of the Council present so orders.

In the event that any ordinance is altered after its introduction, it shall not be adopted within five (5) days after it is altered nor at any time other than at a regular or adjourned regular meeting; provided, that the correction of typographical or clerical errors shall not be deemed an alteration within the meaning of this sentence.

The enacting clause of ordinances adopted by the Council shall be substantially as follows:

"Be it ordained by the Council of the City of Pomona as follows:"

All ordinances and resolutions shall be signed by the Mayor and attested by the City Clerk.

Each ordinance of the City shall be posted in at least three (3) public places and on the City's website within fifteen (15) days after its adoption and shall remain posted for at least thirty (30) days.

Ordinances adopted by the Council shall become effective thirty (30) days after the date of their adoption, except the following, which may take effect upon adoption, or at such other time as the Council may specified [specify] therein:

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

(b) An ordinance relating to a local improvement adopted under law or procedural ordinance, or providing for the issuance of or otherwise relating to bonds of the City authorized by vote of its electors.

(c) An ordinance declared by the Council to be necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health or safety, containing a declaration of the facts constituting the urgency, and passed by a five-sevenths ( 5/7 ) vote of those present, unless Councilmember attendance is precluded by a natural disaster or other emergency. Such a disaster or emergency situation must be decreed by unanimous vote with at least four Councilmembers present, and upon such declaration, the ordinance would be passed and become effective immediately upon the majority vote of four Councilmembers.

(d) Any other ordinance which the Constitution of the State or this Charter does not require be subject to the power of referendum.

The provision of any ordinance specifying an effective date less than thirty (30) days from and after the date of its adoption shall be severable, and if invalid, such provision shall not affect the validity of the remainder of the ordinance and such ordinance shall take effect thirty (30) days from and after the date of its adoption unless suspended by exercise of the power of referendum.

(a) Authentication and Recording. The City Clerk shall authenticate by signing and shall record in full in a properly indexed book kept for the purpose all ordinances, resolutions, and codes of technical regulations adopted by the Council.

(b) Codification. Within three (3) years after the adoption of this section and at least every ten (10) years thereafter, the Council shall provide for the preparation of a general codification of all city ordinances and resolutions having the force and effect of law. The general codification shall be adopted by the Council by ordinance and shall be published promptly in bound or looseleaf form, together with this Charter and any amendments thereto, pertinent provisions of the Constitution and other laws of the State of California, and such codes of technical regulations and other rules and regulations as the Council may specify. This compilation shall be known and cited officially as the Pomona City Code. Copies of the Code shall be furnished to city officers upon request, placed in libraries and public offices for free public reference and made available for purchase by the public at a reasonable price fixed by the Council. The Pomona City Code shall also be posted on the City's website for public access.

(c) Printing of Ordinances and Resolutions. The Council shall cause each ordinance and resolution having the force and effect of law and each amendment to this Charter to be printed promptly following its adoption, and the printed ordinances, resolutions and Charter amendments shall be distributed or sold to the public at reasonable prices as fixed by the Council. Following publication of the Pomona City Code and at all times thereafter, the ordinances, resolutions and Charter amendments shall be printed in substantially the same style as the code currently in effect and shall be suitable in form for integration therein. The Council shall make such further arrangements as it deems desirable with respect to reproduction and distribution of any current changes in or additions to the provisions of the constitution and other laws of the State of California, or the codes of technical regulations and other rules and regulations included in the code.

(a) The Council may adopt any standard code of technical regulations by reference thereto in an adopting ordinance. The procedure and requirements governing such an adopting ordinance shall be as prescribed for ordinances generally except that the requirements for distribution and filing of copies of the ordinance shall be construed to include copies of the code of technical regulations as well as of the adopting ordinance.

(b) Copies of any adopted code of technical regulations shall be made available by the City Clerk for reference or for purchase at a reasonable price. Adopted codes of technical regulations shall also be posted on the City's website or, alternatively, a link shall be provided to another website containing such regulations.

The use of public office for private gain is prohibited. Within six (6) months of the enactment of this Charter, the Council shall implement this prohibition by ordinance. Regulations to this end shall include but not be limited to:

(a) Acting in an official capacity on matters in which the official has a private financial interest clearly separate from that of the general public,

(b) The acceptance of gifts and other items of value,

(c) Acting in a private capacity on matters dealt with as a public official,

(d) The use of confidential information, and

(e) Appearances by City officials before other agencies of the City of Pomona on behalf of others' private interests.

This ordinance shall provide for reasonable public disclosure of personal finances by officials with major decision-making authority over City expenditures and contractual matters and, insofar as permissible under state law, shall provide for fines and imprisonment of violators.