REPORT TO COUNCIL
SUBJECT
Title
Discussion and Direction on Recommendations from Charter Review Committee for Potential Charter Amendments for Further Study and Ballot Measure Consideration
Report
BACKGROUND
The Sunnyvale City Charter (Charter) governs how the City operates and provides services to the community. Sunnyvale voters approved the Charter in 1950 to increase local control over municipal affairs. Amendments to the Charter require approval by a majority of Sunnyvale voters. The Charter has been amended many times since it was adopted. Voters approved the most recent Charter amendment in 2020, changing the City's electoral system to a district-based system with one city council member elected from each of six districts and a directly elected mayor.
On November 28, 2023, a colleagues' memo was added to the Council agenda to "request that a meeting be agendized to empanel a Charter Review [Committee] (CRC) to conduct a full review of the Sunnyvale City Charter, with the goal of placing proposed amendments on the November 2024 ballot." Council directed staff to bring the item back for discussion. The colleagues' memo outlined nine potential Charter amendments for a committee to consider and indicated a desire that the Committee have the ability "to review all provisions in the Charter and to freely propose amendments."
On January 30, 2024 (RTC No. 24-0272), Council directed staff to, among other short-term actions, return to Council in the fourth quarter of 2024 with options for a more thorough charter review process similar to the one undertaken in 2007, allowing for more opportunities for public participation and adequate time to prepare several potential changes for voter consideration in November 2026.
On June 4, 2024, the City Council created an 11-member Charter Review Committee (CRC) to consider amendments proposed by the Council as well as additional amendments proposed by the CRC and City staff. After a recruitment and interview process, Coun...
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