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Home My WebLink AboutCM Boards & Commissions Term LimitsAgenda Item No: 3. c Date: February 18, 2014 SAN RAFAEL CITY COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT Department: City Manager's Office Prepared by: Rebecca Woodbury, Management Analyst City Manager Approva�% ;14 11 Vill M" 11=�Sfsl 0 ki 111:3 1-IrA 9 [$10 W0o] 01 M =1 fil _W] 4 ill: I 101 rem 9:3 Z4 J, M 4:3 0 Let 9: F;*W11 0111 1 RECOMMENDATION: Most local governments set terms for advisory board positions. In addition, some jurisdictions set limits on the number of terms a board member may serve. For those with such limits to the number of terms, the most common limit is two terms. In Marin, three jurisdictions have limits: ■ Sausalito: 2 terms (3 years each) ■ Mill Valley: 2 terms ■ Belvedere: No required limit, but Council "encourages" Planning Commission to limit to 3 terms (4 years each for a total of 12 years) and Parks & Recreation Commission to 3 terms (3 years each for a total of 9 years). All other boards do not have limits. The City of San Rafael has 8 currently active boards and commissions with terms, with a total of 53 active, voting member spaces that are appointed by the City Council. In addition, there is a Measure S Tax Oversight Committee that will soon sunset and be replaced by a new Measure E Tax Oversight Committee. Term lengths vary from 2 — 4 years, depending on the board. From time to time, special purpose committees are established for fixed periods of time, such as an advisory committee on a special project such as the General Plan, Downtown Vision, or Station Area Plan. The length of service for this type of group is usually for the duration of the project. Below is a table showing the various active boards and commissions, number of members, and term lenqths. Board Commission # of members Term length,! I ADA Access -EEIEIIE�E' -'E so • 0- a`•` rail".70WAAre 0 a Board of Library Trustees Citizens Advisory Committee on Economic Development and Affordable Housing Design Review Board Fire Commission Measure E Tax Oversight Committee (to be established by City Council in 2014) TBD Parks & Recreation Commission Planning Commission Council Meeting: 9 / Disposition: SAN RAFAEL CITY COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT / Page: 2 Other Boards'and Commissions There are several other boards, commissions, and committees worth mentioning but may not apply to the setting of term lengths and limits. The City of San Rafael appoints one member to sit on the boards for the Marin Commission on Aging and the Marin -Sonoma Mosquito & Vector Control District. These two groups are not administered or under the control of the City of San Rafael. Their term lengths and limits are governed by their own rules and regulations. In addition, the City has a Pickleweed Advisory Committee. This committee is appointed by and reports to the Parks and Recreation Commission. They have four year terms and no term limits. ANALYSIS: A jurisdiction may set a limit on the number of terms that can be served for boards and commissions in two ways. A general limit may be imposed to all boards or limits can be set on some boards, but not all. Furthermore, the City Council may allow additional terms to be served if there is a break between terms or for other special circumstances. Staff recommends the City Council adopt a resolution (Attachment 1) that creates a consistent term length and limit across all boards and commissions that the City Council appoints and has direct oversight. The proposed resolution would-. • Set all term lengths to 4 years 0 Limit members to 3 consecutive terms (12 years) for Planning Commission and 2 consecutive terms (8 years) for all other boards and commissions • Allow for an Emeritus member (non-voting) after 25 years of service • Terms currently being served or that have been served prior to the date of this resolution will not be used in calculating term limits FISCAL IMPACT: No impact. 41PTIONS: The City Council has the following options to consider on this matter: 1 . Adopt the resolution as proposed or with modifications 2. Continue action for addonal information and response to Council comments and concerns 3. Deny the proposed resolution ATTACHMENT: Resolution A 0 0 0 0 A A A 1 i A A Am A Am Aft Ift Ift Ift Am da AM 4M Ak AM i Ift Ift Aft 41h Aft A A& A& Ift # do 4v 40 4wo •4v • Am All, Am A Ah alk AM Ift A& 'Amb A Ift AM • Ab AM AM ii MV ov 40 A Aft AM • Ab Aft W iiii iiov A Ah Ift Aft Aft Aft Ift A - ft Ah i40 dv dr Ab Ah Awv Am low w a* 4M Ak 4m Aft ,neeting of the City Council of the City of San Rafael, held on Tuesday, the 18"' of February 2014, by the following vote, to wit: AYES: Councilmembers- Bushey, Colin, Connolly, McCullough & Mayor Phillips NOES: Councilmembers: None ABSENT: Councilmembers: None Esther C. Berri, City Clerk 02/18/2014 04:35PM 0000000000 00000000000 PAGE 02/02 February 17, 2014 Mayor Phllllp� and Members of the City Council San Rafael City Hall 1400 Fifth Avenue San Rafael, CA 94901 E 1, ��Nw "167=6041,11!1. 1104 1 vim r-Ulffir-11MI it has come to the attention of my neighbors and myself •that yolu are limiting the terms of some (or all?) *f the San Rafael Boards and C6mmissions. We are VERY concerned that you are diolngaway with the community/iinstitutional memory of our history and what we have done to create the town we had loved living in. Unfortunately, term 141milts not Only do away with the knowledge of what works, but also with the memory of mistakes made by residents and city staff alike. We all need to learn from our mistakes and even mistaken prec' edents we let get esta'blished, Long Term Residency Required I if you institute the proposed limits, we hop� you Will you be requiring that any resident must have lived in San Rafael for at least ten Vears before applying to serve on a board. if we cannot'retain memory within some members of a board we must at least be sure boa rds/comm issions,are populated with citizens with a real knowledge of our town and its people. We welcome new ideas,'but in context. We need people to serve who not only like to live here,, but who also have built upconnections 'in the community— yielding ongoing input from and thus the ability to represent our citizens have been paying attention to local, concerns, 0 have already aeen contributing their Ly energies in our cornMyntt and shaee some community history. That is knowledge that we�cannot expect CitySta*ff to provide. We, the stakeholders are the ones with the vested interest. Specialized Know*jedge in addition, some boards require specialized knowledge and as their members serve more time, they clearly get better at representingth-e citizens as well as navigating the waters with people on all sides of an issueor pr6ject. One sOch board is the Design Review Board. They have certainly made many San Rafael projects better, and have given awayinvaluable free advice that project architects have frequently expressed appreciationhave appeared before numerous design review panels in other Bay Area cities, including in Marin,* and find that San Rafael's is reasonable and the most professional most consistently 12olite and the least adversarial. These quaes are not fou'nd In all jurisdictions, Let the Best Candidates Serve Please, rethink this desire to mandate term limits onall Cityc'ommissions/boards. There are many ways to be involved in San Rafael, and residents can wor,k their way 'Into becoming the best qualified candidate.to serve on a particular bdard/commlsslon* but there is no reason to iritentionally remove the best qualified citizen, just because that citizen has.offered.ber or his services in years. That not in the best interest of our City. 02= i Woffm4i`♦ :=T'�TT INSTRUCTIONS: USE THIS FORM WITH EACH SUBMITTAL OF A 'CONTRACT, AGREEMENT, ORDINANCE OR RESOLUTION BEFORE APPROVAL BY COUNCIL / AGENCY. SRRA / SRCC AGENDA ITEM NO. 3. c DATE OF MEETING: 211 t i�Lol FROM: k'beceA Lzaelioow 11% It DEPARTMENT: iqAklsik�- DATE: TITLE OF DOCUMENT: e V-6-fi b -ti cayvlll�' ".111 zi S 119,�1 Is Department Head (signature) 101501KAOINN 1:40