Watsonville Municipal Code Art. 2 Legislation

* Sections 2-1.201 through 2-1.214, codified from Ordinance No. 15 C-M, repealed by Ordinance No. 728-87 C-M, effective March 12, 1987.

Official actions of the Council shall be in the form of motions, resolutions, or ordinances. Motions shall be used to express the Council’s decisions on routine questions or matters of temporary importance or to refer matters to the staff and shall be moved, seconded, and adopted by a voice vote, unless a roll call is requested by a Council member. Motions shall not be used for appropriation or expenditure of funds. Resolutions shall be used to express administrative decisions of the Council of a permanent or lasting

nature and shall be introduced, seconded, and adopted by a roll call vote. Resolutions shall be used to adopt the budget after the publication required by Section 1104 of the Charter. The Council may by resolution amend or supplement the adopted budget by transferring unused balances appropriated for one purpose to another, or by appropriating available revenue not yet appropriated in the budget. Ordinances shall be used to adopt legislative formal policy, laws in exercise of the police power, and in other instances required by law or the Charter of the City.

(§ 1, Ord. 728-87 C-M, eff. March 12, 1987, as amended by § 1, Ord. 1185-05 C-M, eff. March 24, 2005)

All ordinances shall be prepared in writing by the City Attorney. No ordinance shall be prepared for presentation to the Council unless sponsored by a Council member or prepared by the City Attorney on the recommendation of the City Manager, or City Attorney, or City Clerk.

(§ 1, Ord. 728-87 C-M, eff. March 12, 1987)

All ordinances, resolutions, and contract documents, before presentation to the Council, shall have been approved as to form and legality by the City Attorney. On substantive matters of administration, the City Manager shall advise the Council of staff recommendations thereon.

(§ 1, Ord. 728-87 C-M, eff. March 12, 1987)

(a) The City Manager or City Attorney or City Clerk may present ordinances, resolutions, and other matters or subjects to the Council for consideration. Ordinances, resolutions, and other matters or subjects requiring action by the Council shall be introduced by a Council member.

(b) With the sole exception of ordinances which take effect immediately upon adoption, no ordinance shall be adopted by the Council on the day of its introduction, or within six (6) days thereafter, or at any time other than at a regular or adjourned regular meeting, or until at least the title and a summary thereof have been published in the official newspaper of the City at least three (3) days prior to its final adoption.

An ordinance shall be introduced by motion upon a reading of at least the title and summary thereof. After publication as provided by the Charter of the City and this chapter, the ordinance shall be finally adopted by motion at a subsequent meeting. Publication of at least the title and a summary in the official newspaper of the City shall follow within fifteen (15) days after the final adoption, and the ordinance shall become effective after thirty (30) days from and after its final adoption. In the case of an amendment being made thereto prior to the final adoption of the ordinance, it shall not be finally adopted except at a regular or adjourned meeting held not less than six (6) days after the date the ordinance was so amended. The correction of typographical or clerical errors shall not constitute an amendment.

(c) Any ordinance declared by the Council to be necessary as an emergency measure for preserving the public peace, health, or safety, and containing a statement of the reasons for its urgency, may be introduced and adopted at one and the same meeting if passed by at least five (5) affirmative votes.

(§ 1, Ord. 728-87 C-M, eff. March 12, 1987)

Each ordinance and resolution shall be preceded by a brief title which shall indicate the subject thereof.

(§ 1, Ord. 728-87 C-M, eff. March 12, 1987)

The ordaining clause of all ordinances adopted by the Council shall be substantially as follows: “The Council of the City of Watsonville does ordain as follows”.

(§ 1, Ord. 728-87 C-M, eff. March 12, 1987)

A roll call vote shall be taken upon the passage of all ordinances and resolutions and be entered in the minutes of the Council. Upon the request of any Council member, a roll call vote shall be taken and recorded on any other vote. Whenever a recorded or roll call vote of the Council is in order, a designated person shall call the names of the Council members in alphabetical order, except that the name of the Mayor shall be called last.

(§ 1, Ord. 728-87 C-M, eff. March 12, 1987)

No ordinance or resolution shall be passed or become effective without receiving the affirmative votes of at least four (4) members of the Council.

(§ 1, Ord. 728-87 C-M, eff. March 12, 1987)

The amendment of any section of an ordinance or a Code section shall be solely by the reenactment of such section at length, as amended.

(§ 1, Ord. 728-87 C-M, eff. March 12, 1987)

No ordinance, or section thereof, shall be repealed except by an ordinance.

(§ 1, Ord. 728-87 C-M, eff. March 12, 1987)

No ordinance adopted by the Council shall become effective until thirty (30) days from and after the date of its adoption, except the following which shall take effect upon adoption:

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

(b) An improvement proceeding ordinance adopted under some law or procedural ordinance;

(c) An ordinance declaring the amount of money necessary to be raised by taxation, or fixing the rate of taxation, or levying the annual tax upon property;

(d) An emergency ordinance adopted in the manner provided for in this article;

(e) An ordinance annexing areas to the City; or

(f) An ordinance providing for a tax levy or appropriation for the usual current expenses of the City.

(§ 1, Ord. 728-87 C-M, eff. March 12, 1987)

A true and correct copy of all ordinances shall be kept and certified to by the City Clerk in a book marked “City Ordinances”. A copy certified by the City Clerk, or the original ordinance, shall be prima facie evidence of the contents of the ordinance and of the due passage and publication of the ordinance and shall be admissible as such in any court or proceeding.

(§ 1, Ord. 728-87 C-M, eff. March 12, 1987)

Any or all ordinances of the City which have been enacted and published in the manner required at the time of their adoption, and which have not been repealed, shall be compiled, consolidated, revised, indexed, and arranged as a comprehensive Municipal Code. Such Code shall not be published in the manner required for ordinances, but not less than three (3) copies thereof shall be filed for use and examination by the public in the office of the City Clerk. Subsequent amendments to sections of the Code shall be enacted in the same manner as required by this article for the amendment of ordinances generally.

Detailed regulations pertaining to any subject such as the construction of buildings, plumbing, electrical, fire, or other subjects which require extensive regulations, when arranged as a comprehensive Code, may be adopted by reference.

(§ 1, Ord. 728-87 C-M, eff. March 12, 1987)