REPORT TO COUNCIL
SUBJECT
Title
Consider Direction to Staff and Updates to Council Policy 7.2.19 (Boards and Commissions) as Recommended by the Council Subcommittee on Boards and Commissions
Report
BACKGROUND
On November 14, 2023, the City Council held a joint study session with Board and Commission (B/C) Chairs and Vice Chairs. The purpose of the study session was to convene an annual discussion regarding B/C effectiveness, and to invite input from B/C members to the City Council.
The input during this annual round of discussion was substantial. The November meeting resulted in over a dozen suggested improvements or modifications for consideration (Attachments 2 and 3). Of those, 10 were administrative in nature and the majority of those have been implemented already or are in progress by staff. The remainder, 7 items, were policy-based and were referred to the Council Subcommittee on Boards and Commissions (Subcommittee) for consideration.
Approximately 37 City staff members regularly spend time staffing, supporting, or facilitating Sunnyvale's 10 Boards and Commissions. The City Clerk's team convenes this staff quarterly to ensure regular coordination. Since the November 2023 joint study session, staff has coordinated with Board and Commission Staff Liaisons and key staff involved in Boards and Commissions to implement operational changes.
On February 14, 2024, the Subcommittee provided comments on several operational changes (RTC No. 24-0106) made in response to the feedback received at the joint study session. Since the Subcommittee meeting, staff liaisons to Boards and Commissions have been advised of the interest in more detailed meeting minutes, including staff responses to questions and additional detail for controversial items that generate large amounts of public comment. The Guide to Parliamentary Procedure has been posted to the Board and Commission Member Resources page and staff plan to identify or develop additional parliamentary procedur...
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