REPORT TO CHARTER REVIEW COMMITTEE
SUBJECT
Title
Review of Scope for Charter Review Committee and Discussion of Work Plan
Report
BACKGROUND
The City Council established the Charter Review Committee (CRC) in 2024 to review the City of Sunnyvale Charter (Charter) and make recommendations to the Council for revisions to the Charter.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
The action being considered does not constitute a “project” with the meaning of the California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”) pursuant to CEQA Guidelines section 15378(b)(4) in that it is a fiscal and administrative activity that does not involve any commitment to any specific project which may result in a potential significant impact on the environment.
DISCUSSION
A. Overview of the Charter and Recent Revisions
A city charter is a legal document establishing a city. Historically, state involvement in city business caused tension between state and local governments. In the late nineteenth century, the California Constitution was amended to give “home rule” or “police power” to every city to “make or enforce within its limits all local, police, sanitary, and other ordinances or regulations not in conflict with the general laws.” Cities with charters approved by the voters have additional authority over their own municipal affairs, and charter rules prevail in all matters related to the city’s police force, local elections, and appointment, removal, and compensation of officers/employees paid by the city. Cal. Constit. art. XI, § 5. Charter cities are subject to state law related only to issues deemed “matters of statewide concern.”
Sunnyvale’s Charter, available online at https://ecode360.com/SU5020, was adopted in 1949 and has been amended several times. The most recent reviews by charter review committees were: (1) comprehensive Charter review in 2007; (2) proposed changes related to directly elected mayor and council member compensation in 2011; (3) changes to city council vacancy process in 2018; and (4) change to district elections in 2020. The City Council also placed some measures directly on the ballot without a review committee:
• In 2013, a change to even year elections (passed)
• In 2024, proposed amendments about using gender neutral language, eliminating the citizenship requirement for board/commission members, and changing how often City Council meets (failed, discussed in more detail below)
Attachment A lists all Charter amendment proposals and the results of each election.
B. City Council Direction for CRC
The City Council created the CRC on June 4, 2024 (Resolution 1239-24, Attachment 2). The purview of the CRC is to review the City Council’s direction regarding the scope of amendments to the Charter (discussed in more detail below) and make recommendations to the council on potential amendments to the Charter. The CRC Chair has the authority to appoint ad hoc subcommittees to research, discuss, and draft proposals on specific topics within the CRC’s purview.
Based on a November 2023 City Council Colleagues Memo (Attachment 3) and Council direction, there are nine potential issues for the CRC to study:
1. Council Vacancies (Charter § 606): Consider allowing councilmembers appointed to fill vacancies to serve until the next feasible November general election, as opposed to the next feasible election (i.e., appointees could no longer go up for election in a primary). The current provision on vacancies was adopted in 2018, before the City moved to district elections, following study and analysis by a charter review commission focused only on that issue. The 2018 CRC report on vacancies is included as Attachment 4. In addition, Sunnyvale Municipal Code (SMC) Chapter 2.30 was adopted to comply with the Charter requirement to establish a public process for appointments to fill city council vacancies that apply when the council chooses to fill a vacancy by appointment rather than election.
2. Council Meeting Frequency (Charter § 611): Consider changing the Charter provision that requires two council meetings per month to instead require at least 24 meetings per year. The City Council placed this issue on the ballot in November 2024 in a combined question that included removing the citizenship requirement for board and commission members and implementing gender neutral language throughout the Charter (issues 3 and 6 below). The measure did not pass.
3. Board and Commission Updates (Charter Article X): Examine citizenship requirements and member counts for Charter-defined commissions. The Charter currently includes five boards and commissions: (1) Personnel Board with five members (Charter sections 1007-08); (2) Planning Commission with seven members (Charter sections 1009-10); (3) Parks and Recreation Commission with five members (Charter sections 1011-12); (4) Board of Library Trustees with five members (Charter sections 1013-14); and (5) Heritage Preservation Commission with seven members (Charter sections 1015-16). All Charter board and commission members must be registered voters of the City and City residents at the time of their appointment. This issue was part of the combined question for the November 2024 ballot measure that failed.
4. Role of Mayor (Charter Article VI): Examine the role of the mayor, including whether the position of mayor should be considered full-time. The most recent changes to Charter provisions related to the Mayor occurred in 2020 when the city moved from city council seats to city council districts and opted to have six districts and an at-large mayor.
5. Council Compensation: Examine council salary and compensation. Charter provisions related to councilmember compensation were amended in 2011, when voters approved a measure removing an automatic 5% annual increase in council compensation, and setting 2012 council compensation at $2,088.64 per month and Mayor compensation at $2,784.86 per month with an annual cost of living adjustments tied to the Consumer Price Index not to exceed 5% or result in a decrease. The 2024 city council compensation is $3,027.58 per month and the mayor’s monthly compensation is $4,036.79 per month.
6. Gender Neutral Language (throughout the Charter): Update language to be gender neutral, e.g. using "they" instead of "he/she." This issue was part of the combined question on the November 2024 ballot; the measure did not pass.
7. Alternative Voting System: Evaluate whether to adopt an alternative voting system, such as ranked-choice or approval voting, or retain the existing first-past-the-post system for districts and mayoral elections. This issue was raised and discussed in the 2020 districting process but not moved forward.
8. Redistricting Commissions: Establish rules for empaneling Redistricting Commissions. Charter section 606 currently requires the City to redistrict after each decennial census or as otherwise required by law. The council also adopted SMC Chapter 2.31 to implement the requirement in Charter section 606 to establish a public process for redistricting, which includes an advisory redistricting commission of seven members and three to six alternates, eligibility and appointment requirements for redistricting commission members, redistricting criteria, and the process for public hearings and adopting maps.
9. Other items: The memo also proposed that the CRC may review all provisions in the Charter and propose additional amendments. The city manager has also requested that department heads provide suggestions for Charter revisions related to operational issues. Staff will provide department suggestions to the CRC at an upcoming meeting.
C. Work Plan
The purpose of this report is to introduce the CRC process and issues the city council has identified for the CRC to study. The council has directed the following timeline for CRC work:
|
Charter Review and Amendment Ideas* |
Feb. - May 2025 |
|
Joint Meeting with City Council re Direction on Amendments |
May 2025 |
|
CRC Charter Revision Language Drafting and Refinement |
June - Dec. 2025 |
|
Council Review of Committee Recommendations and Decision re Ballot Measure(s) |
Jan. - June 2026 |
This item provides the opportunity for the CRC to discuss how it wants to allocate work on Charter amendment ideas. Past CRCs have established subcommittees of less than a quorum of committee members, and those subcommittees work on certain topics and report back to the full committee at meetings. For example, the CRC could create subcommittee assignments based on the key issues listed above, assign specific articles of the Charter, or some combination of the two. Building up to the joint meeting with the City Council in May, the CRC’s work should focus on conceptual recommendations for potential changes. There are three regular CRC meetings (March 6, April 3, May 1) and up to two additional tentative meetings (February 27 and April 24) scheduled for the CRC before the joint meeting with the city council in May.
Following City Council direction at the meeting in May, the CRC’s work focus will shift to developing specific language for proposed amendments, and recommendations to the council on potential priorities for amendments.
PUBLIC CONTACT
Public contact was made by posting the Charter Review Committee meeting agenda on the City's official-notice bulletin board at City Hall, at the Sunnyvale Public Library and in the Department of Public Safety Lobby. In addition, the agenda and this report are available at the NOVA Workforce Services reception desk located on the first floor of City Hall at 456 W. Olive Avenue (during normal business hours), and on the City's website.
STAFF RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
This item is for discussion; staff makes no recommendation.
Staff
Prepared by: Melissa Tronquet, Assistant City Attorney
Reviewed by: Connie Verceles, Deputy City Manager
Reviewed and Approved by: Melissa Tronquet, Assistant City Attorney
ATTACHMENTS
1. History of Sunnyvale Charter Amendments
2. Resolution 1239-24 (Establishing CRC)
3. 2023 City Council Colleagues Memo Regarding Charter Review Committee
4. 2018 Charter Review Committee Report on Vacancies