Santa Clara County Municipal Code Art. V Officers, Boards

Section 500. Officers, boards, and commissions created by this Charter or the Constitution or general laws of the state, or hereafter created by the Board of Supervisors, shall have and exercise all the powers and shall perform all the duties vested in and delegated to them by the Constitution, this Charter, or ordinance, and to the extent not in conflict with this Charter or ordinance by the general laws of this state.

Section 501. The Assessor, District Attorney, and Sheriff are elected. The election shall be held at the times and in the manner and for the term that supervisors are elected for the First and Fourth Districts in accordance with Section 202 of this Charter.

Whenever a vacancy occurs in such offices, the vacancy shall be filled by appointment of a voter of the county by the Board of Supervisors. The appointee shall hold office until the election and qualification of the successor, at the times and in the manner specified in the second paragraph of Section 203 of this Charter.

Section 502. County officers and department heads shall have the power to appoint, supervise, suspend, or remove all persons employed under their respective administrations subject to the provisions of Article VII of this Charter.

Section 503. [6] Deleted.

Section 504. [7] The County Executive shall appoint, supervise, direct, suspend, or remove the Chief Adult and Juvenile Probation Officer pursuant to Section 404(a) of Article IV of this Charter. Nothing in this section shall preclude the Board of Supervisors from exercising the power granted in Section 302(a) of this Charter.

Section 505. The number and compensation of judges of justice courts and the number, qualifications, and compensation of officers and employees of justice courts shall be fixed by the Board of Supervisors. A clerk of the justice court shall be appointed and removed by the judges of the justice court subject to provisions of Article VII of this Charter. The clerk shall appoint, suspend, and remove all other officers and employees of the court subject to the provisions of Article VII of this Charter. The Sheriff is ex-officio constable of justice courts. This section is repealed when all justice courts in the county are abolished pursuant to law.

Section 506. The Board of Supervisors may create by ordinance such advisory boards or commissions as in its judgment are required and may grant to them such powers and duties as are consistent with this Charter.

The ordinance shall provide for the number of members, the manner of appointment, the term of office, the number of terms a member may serve, meeting times, attendance requirements to retain office and the extent of subpoena authority. The ordinance may provide for the qualifications of members, the remuneration of members, and any other necessary provisions. When required by federal or state law, the ordinance may provide for the manner of appointment of officers and employees authorized to provide services to a board or commission.

Notice shall be given of vacancies on boards and commissions which shall also indicate the nominating and appointing Authority. Any person interested in an appointment shall file an application with the Board of Supervisors. Appointments shall be filled from such applications with appropriate regard for representation by all segments and elements of the county.

Members of boards and commissions shall be residents of the county. If any member ceases to be a resident of the county, or fails to maintain qualifications for the office, the office shall become vacant and the Board of Supervisors shall so declare. Members of boards and commissions appointed by the Board of Supervisors shall be subject to removal by the board for willful or corrupt misconduct in office.

The members first appointed to boards and commissions shall so classify themselves by lot that on each succeeding July 1 the term of one of their number shall expire. If the total number exceeds four, the classification by lot shall provide for the grouping of terms so that the term of at least one member shall expire on each succeeding July 1.

As soon as practicable, following the first day of July of every year, each board and commission shall organize by electing a chairperson and vice-chairperson to serve at the pleasure of such board or commission. Each board or commission shall hold regular meetings as are required by ordinance and such special meetings as it may require. Each board and commission shall adopt rules of procedure subject to approval by the Board of Supervisors. A majority of the members of a board or commission shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business and no act of a board or commission shall be valid unless at least a majority of the entire membership concurs therein. All meetings shall be open to the public.

The Board of Supervisors shall periodically evaluate the need for the boards and commissions established pursuant to this section and shall abolish those which no longer serve their intended function.

Section 507. [8] Deleted.

Section 508. The Board of Supervisors shall establish pursuant to Section 506 a county planning commission. The ordinance shall prescribe the powers and duties of the commission. Nothing in this section shall preclude the Board of Supervisors from exercising the power granted in Section 302(a) of this Charter.

Section 509. [9] On June 7, 1988, the County voters approved Measure A adding Section 509 to the County Charter to reduce the cost of operating the County jails. Pursuant to this section, the Board of Supervisors established the Department of Correction and appointed a Chief Officer (now known as the Chief of Correction) to operate the county jails and to carry out such other functions as the Board determines. This section also required the Board to ensure that an adequate number of law enforcement personnel were authorized to carry firearms to guard and transport prisoners. The Board has met this requirement by having the Department of Correction operate the jail in conjunction and cooperation with the Sheriff.

To continue to reduce the cost of operating the jails, to ensure that an adequate number of law enforcement personnel are authorized to carry firearms to guard and transport prisoners, and/or to provide flexibility to address changed circumstances, the Board may, by ordinance supported by a ⅘ths vote of the Board, convey jurisdiction over any or all jail operations to the Sheriff, to the Department of Correction, to any other department or agency that may lawfully exercise such jurisdiction, or to any of these entities jointly as the Board may determine.

Footnotes:

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Section 503: Amended and ratified by the Voters November 6, 1990; deleted and ratified by the Voters June 2, 1998.

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Section 504: Amended and ratified by the Voters March 2, 2004.

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Section 507: Amended and ratified by the Voters June 2, 1998; deleted and ratified by the Voters November 3, 1998.

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Section 509: Added and ratified by the Voters June 7, 1988. Amended and ratified by the Voters June 5, 2012.