SR-11-F (6)
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(00 -000-01
CM:VR:dvm
Council Mtg. 9/13/83
Santa Monica, Cqlifornia
SfP 1 3 1983
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TO:
Mayor and eity Counc1l
FROM:
City Staff
SUBJECT:
ReV1ew of City Boards and Commissions and
Recommendation to Approve Resolution Facilitating
the Reimbursement of Commission - Related Expenses
INTRODUCTION
This report reviews the status of the City's various Boards and
Comm~ssions, descr~bes efforts underway to co-ord1nate the work
of these bodies, outlines relevant administrat1ve procedures and
deta1ls an update of the C1ty Handbook for members of C1ty Boards
and Comm1ss10ns.
BACKGROUND
The City currently has 1n place l6 Boards and Commissions w1th a
combined membershlp of lOB.
Boards
and Commiss10ns can be d1v1ded into four distinct
categories by functJ.on (l)l (charter commlssions are indicated by
an asterisk and membership is noted).
1. Advlsory Commissions:
A1rport Commiss10n* (5)
Commiss~on on Older Amer1cans
members)
(9 & 3 non-voting
1 The Rent Control Board, a separately elected regulatory agency
of the C1ty of Santa Monlca, does not fall 1nto any of the above
categorles. Recommendat1ons in th1s report shall not apply to
the Rent Control Board.
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SfP 1 3 1963
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commission on the Status of Women (9)
Fair Elect10n Practices Commisslon (7)
Housing Camm1SS1an (7)
Library Board* (5)
Recreation and Parks CommJ.ssion* (7)
social Services Commission (7)
2. Appeals Boards w1th clear legal roles:
Building and Safety (5)
Electrical Board of Appeals (5)
Plumbing and Mechanlcal Board of Appeals (5)
3. Programmatic Comm1SS1ons WJ.th
sources and a full time staff:
J.ndependent funding
Arts Commission (9)
4. Commiss10ns with dut1es related to oversight, reVlew and
dec1s1on making:
Architectural Review Board (7)
Landmarks CommlSSJ.on (7)
Personnel Board* (5)
Plannlng CommlsS10n* (7)
Some
confusion
has
existed
about the roles of varLOUS
comm1ssions, thelr budgets and relat1onsh1p to C1ty staff. Th1s
report will clarJ.fy the mechan1sms now in place to prov1de each
commission w1th an overV1ew of J.ts role and its relationshlp to
the City as a whole.
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CITIZEN PARTICIPATION
Boards and Commiss10ns prov1de 1mportant opportunlt1es for
c1tlzen partic1pat10n 1n the working of City government. Appeals
Boards g1ve citizens legal roles 1n relatJ.onshJ.ps to d1sputes
with C1ty POllCY, wh1le overs1ght commiss10ns prov1de c1t1zen
input into the 1mportant areas of development and personnel
pol1c1es. Advisory commissions have a somewhat different role to
play. Essentially these commissions are issue-or1ented and
provide citJ.zens the opportunity to pursue interests and concerns
1n an official capac1ty under the gU1dance of the C1ty Council.
Advisory commlSSJ.ons should be seen as an opportunJ.ty for
volunteer commun1ty activity in which individuals can use the
sem1-official status of their pos1tions as City Comm1SS1oners to
strengthen their own community advocacy work. The work of
advlsory commissions should be performed primarily by the members
of these commissJ.ons with City staff providing minimal
adm1n1strat1ve support funct10ns.
COUNCIL/cOMMISSIO~ COMMUNICATION
There are three pr1mary ways 1n wh1ch commun1cation between
comm1ssions and the Counc1l can occur:
1) Counc11 Members traditionally receive the m1nutes of
City Commissions for rev~ew.
2) Commissions are asked to submJ.t yearly workplans for
revJ.ew by Council 1n May of each year. Workplans wlll
enable Council to get an overvJ.ew of the act1v1t1es of
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each Commiss10n (when relevant) and to relate budget
requests to anticipated activit~es.
3) Or1entat~on meetings will be held 1n the Fall of each
year to 1ntroduce new Comm1ssion members to the Council
and the work1ngs of City government. These meetings are
planned by the Mayor in consultat~on with the C1ty
Manager and C~ty Council and carried out with the help
of the e1ty Clerk. Orientat10n meet1ngs provide the
opportun1ty for Counc~l Members to commun1cate to
app01nted Commiss10ners their expectations of each C~ty
Comm~ss1on.
HANDBOOK FOR MEMBERS OF CITY BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS
Until 1980 newly appointed commissioners were g1ven a C1ty
Handbook wh1ch provided useful ~nformatian on C1ty government and
the role of city Commissions. Staff intends to update the
Handbook to include:
1. General Informat10n on Santa Monica Government.
2. Legal requirements related to City Commissions, noticing
of meet1ngs, conf11ct of 1nterest, etc. (currently being
written by the City Attorney's Office).
3. Par11amentary Procedure at a Glance.
4. General GU1del1nes:
Roles and Respons1b1lities of ChaJ.rperson
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Relationship to City staff
Fall orientat10n meeting
Yearly workplan
Resignations and vacancies
5. Roster of City Commiss10ns, meeting dates, overV1ew of
CommJ.ssion tasks, staff, Counc1l LJ.a1son.
6. Copy of enabling ordinance for each City Commission.
The updated CommissJ.on Handbook will be made ava~lable to all
Comm1ssioners at the Fall, 1983 or~entation meeting.
ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURES
1. Re1mbursement of Expenses
At the time of budget adoption, the C1ty Counc1l reduced the
amount of funds available for Board and Comm1SS1on allowances
and requested staff to develop some means for CommJ.ssioners
to obtain reimbursement for only those actual costs incurred
during the execution of Commission bUS1ness.
To make this des1red change, a revised resolut1on must be
adopted and new procedures put 1n place.
After considering the alternatives ava1lable, the following
approach is suggested.
Each Commissioner desir1ng reimbursement for out-of-pocket
expenses such as ch1ld care, telephone, out-of-town m~leage
and stationery should subm~t the attached form each month to
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their staff l1a1son detaLling the applicable expenses and
attachLng any available receLpts. Expenses w1ll be
reLmbursed up to a maximum of $25 per meet1ng and $50 per
month.
2. Commissioner Travel
It should be noted that travel expenses by Commissioners are
covered under the Counc1l-adopted Administrat1ve InstructJ.on
on travel. It baslcally requires pr10r approval by Council
of City-relmbursed CommlsSJ.on travel. ThlS approval may
occur as part of the annual budget process. Forms and
procedures for both advances and re1mbursement are provided
in the Travel Policy which is on file 1n each department.
COMMISSION BUDGETS
Budget allocatlons for C1ty Boards and Comm1ssions vary w1dely,
even between Commiss1ons with similar functions. Staff suggests
the followlng guidelines to help standardize the expenditures for
Clty Comm1ss10ns. These guidel1nes shall apply only to Adv1sory
Comm1ssions and the Landmarks CommissLon:
1. CommissLons meet on a once a month basis with staff support
prov1ded by the appropr1ate department. Agendas, minutes,
meet1ng announcements, etc. w1ll be prepared and sent to
CommLssion members. If a CommLSSLon wishes to meet on more
than a monthly basis, a formal request be made to the Counc11
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for approval.
Th~s shall not preclude the meet1ngs of
subcomm1ttees of Comm1SS10ns.
2. Each Commission be allocated a budget of $400 for expenses
(excluding staff support and expenses related to agendas.
minutes, etc. for the monthly meet1ngs) for subscr1pt10ns,
membersh~ps, Comm1ss10n-sponsared programs, print1ng, etc.
3. Commissions requesting a budget over $400 per year shall
submJ.t their budget request along with their proposed yearly
workplan 1n May of each year to the Counc1l pr10r to budget
de11berations.
Th1s will allow budget requests to be tied
d1rectly to proposed program activities.
What follows are the easily 1dentifiable allocations for FY
1983-84 for the var10US Comm1ss10ns.
In most cases, these
f1gures do not reflect the full costs involved 1n prov1d1ng staff
support and supplies because those amounts are often ~ncorporated
in the general department operating budget.
Adv1sor~ Comm1ssions
A1rport Comm1ssion (staff overt1me)
$
800.00
Comm~ssion on Older Americans
(publications, conference costs
printing)
l,OOO.OO
Comm1ss10n on the Status of Women
(staff overtime $l,200: membersh1ps,
conferences, pr1nting, programmatic
expenses - $6,724)
7,924.00
Fa1r Election Practices Commission
Housing Commission
350.00
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Library Board (staff overtime)
475.00
Recreatlon and Parks Commission
(memberships, conference costs,
facilltles tours, copY1ng, staff
overtime)
927.00
Soclal Services CommlSSJ.on
(staff overt1me)
863.00
Appeals Boards
Building and Safety
Electrical Board of Appeals
Plumb1ng and Mechanlcal Board of Appeals
Programmatic Commissions with lndependent funding sources:
Arts Comm1ssion (entire DJ.vis10n lncludlng
grants to outs1de organizations
10l,769.00
Commiss10ns w1th dut1es related to oversl~ht, reV1ew and
decision mak1n9:
Archltectural Review Board (staff overtime) 1,544.00
Landmarks Commission (staff overtime) 772.00
Personnel Board
(meeting expenses, supp11es, recording tapes) l,200.00
Planning Comm1SS10n
(staff overtime - $9,006; travel $2,970;
memberships - $275; chair and desk $550) 12,801.00
BUDGETARY/FINANCIAL IMPACT
The recommendat10ns put forward in this report shall have no
impact on thls year's adopted budgets for City Boards and
Commissions.
However, some savings in staff overtime may be
realJ.zed by l1m1t1ng Advisory CommisS1ons to meet1ng on a once a
month basis.
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RECOMMENDATIONS
1.
Reimbursement of commission-related
recommended that Council approve the
expenses: It is
attached resolution
related to reimbursement of comm1ssion-related expenses.
2. Vacanc1es, resignat1ons, appointments: It 1S recommended
that Council d1rect the City Clerk to prepare an
informational memorandum for the City Council's reference
describing the procedures for announcing a Comm~ssJ.on
res1gnation, f111ing Commission vacancies and mak1ng
appointments to City Commission and Boards to simplify the
process and inform Commissioners of what is required 1n
handling these matters. It 1S suggested that the
establJ.shment of quarterly appointment deadlines be
~nvestigated to reduce the work related to filling Comm1ssion
vacancies.
3. Updated roster and Handbook: It is recommended that Council
d1rect the City Clerk to ma1nta~n an updated roster of
members of C1ty Boards and Comm1SSJ.ons and provide a copy of
the Commissioner Handbook to newly appointed members of C1ty
Boards and Commissions and Task Forces.
4. Comm~ssion Budgets: It is recommended that Counc~l adopt the
follow~ng guidel~nes related to Adv1sory Commission and
Landmarks Commission budgets: a) Comm1SS10ns meet once a
month. Requests to meet on a regular basis more than once a
month shall be made d~rectly to CounC1l~ b) each CommJ.ssion
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be allocated ~400 per year for expenses (excluding staff and
rout1ne adm1nistrative costs); c) requests for budgets over
~400 per year shall be made to the Council and subm1tted with
proposed yearly workplans on May 1 of each year.
Prepared By: Lynne Barrette
Deputy C1ty Manager
Vivian Rothstein
Community L1aison
Attachments
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Counc1l Meet1ng 9/13/83
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Santa Mon1ca, Callfornla
RESOLUTION NUMBER
(CJ.ty Councll Serles)
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF
THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA PROVIDING FOR
REIMBURSEMENT OF EXPENSES OF MEMBERS OF
BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS
WHEREAS, the Clty of Santa MonJ.ca has created varJ.ous Boards
and CommlSS1ons by 1ts charter and ordlnances; and
WHEREAS, The C1ty Counc1l of the Clty of Santa Monlca appolnts
clt1zens to serve on the Boards and Comm1ss10ns; and
WHEREAS, Sectlon 1005 of the Clty Charter provldes that members
of Boards and Corrunlss1ons "shall serve w1thout compensatlon for thelr
serVlces as such"; and
WHER~AS, Councllmembers serve wlthout compensatlon but do rece1ve
the amount of $50.00 per month as relmbursement for expenses; and
WHEREAS, the C1ty Councll of the Clty of Santa MonJ.ca flnds that
members of Boards and Comm1ss1ons, l1ke Counc11members, lncur expenses
for Chlld care, telephone, travel, and stat10nery, among other th1ngs,
1n connect1on w1th thelr pub11c serVlce to the C1ty of Santa Monlca;
and
WHEREAS, the Clty CouncJ.l of the Clty of Santa Monlca flnds that
It is an econom1C hardshlp for many members of Boards and Comm1SS10ns
to J.ncur thelr own expenses related to the performance of thelr pub11c
dutles; and
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WHEREAS, the City Council of the Clty of Santa Monlca fJ.nds that
reJ.mburs1ng members of Boards and COmffilSSlOns for the expense lncurred
In the performance of the1r pub11c dutles wlll encourage partlclpatlon
on Boards and CommlsSJ.ons by all economlC segments of the communJ.ty; and
WHEREAS, on December 15, 1981, the C1ty CouncJ.l adopted Resolution
Number 6414 (CCSl, provlding for relrnburse~ent of expenses for members
of boards and commlSSlons at the standard rate of $25.00 per meet1ng
not to exceed $50.00 per month; and
WHEREAS, ln adoptlng Resolutlon Number 6414 (CCS), the Clty
Council found that a voucher system for reimbursement of expenses
would result in unnecessary admlnlstrative costs; and
WHEREAS, the C1ty Councll deslres to reVlse the systen by whlch
J.t relmburses members of boards and commlSS1ons for expenses; and
WHEREAS, thJ.s reV1Slon lS not in response to Scacc1anoce V. Clty
of Clty ~onica, et al., Los Angeles Superior Court Case Number WEC 078454,
whlch unsuccessfully sought a prelimlnary In]unctJ.on agalnst the
1~plementat10n of Resolutlon Number 6414 (CCS),
NOW THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA DOES
RESOLVE AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. That members of Boards and Commisslons created by the
CJ.ty Charter or by ordinance shall be relmbursed for expenses in the
amount of upt to $25.00 per meet1ng not to exceed the amount of $50.00
per month pursuant to the forms and administratlve procedures whlch the
City shall establlsh.
SECTION 2. That the Clty Clerk shall certify to the adoption of
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th1s Resolution, and thenceforth and thereafter the same shall be 1n
full force and effect.
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
~--t._,---...!"" \..--... - ~
ROBERT M. MYERS
Clty Attorney
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Date
APPLICATION FOR REIMBURSEMENT
OF CO~~ISSION - RELATED EXPENSES
!+bD -(0
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Name
Comrrusslon
Sf,. 21.'
Meet~ng Date
Summary of Expenses*
Amount
Explanation
ChJ.ldcare
M~leage**
Telephone
Off~ce Suppl1es
Other
Other
Total
*Attach any ava1lable rece1pts.
**The C1ty currently re1rnburses 22.5~/rn1le for rn~les traveled on C~ty bus1ness.
I attest that the above 1nforrnat1on 15 true and correct.
Slgnature of COffiffiJ.SS10ner
A 00 To
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eA:~1:LCB Santa Monica, Callfornia
C1ty Council Meeting: September 20, 1983
RESOLUTION NUMBER 6751(CC5)
(eity eouncil Ser1es)
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
SANTA MONICA PROVIDING FOR REIMBURSEMENT OF
EXPENSES OF MEMBERS OF BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS
WHEREAS, the City of Santa Monica has created various Boards
and Commisisons by its charter and ordinances; and
WHEREAS, the City Council of the City of Santa Monica
appoints citizens to serve on the Boards and Commissions; and
WHEREAS, Section 1005 of the Clty Charter prov1des that
members
of
and
Comm1sisons "shall serve wlthout
Boards
compensation for their services as such"; and
WHEREAS, Councilmembers serve without compensation but do
recelve the amount of $50.00 per month as reimbursement for
expenses; and
WHEREAS, the C1ty Council of the City of Santa Monica finds
that members of Boards and Commissions,
like Councilmembers,
incur expenses for child care, telephone, travel, and stationery,
among other things, in connection with thelr publlC service to
the eity of Santa Monica; and
WHEREAS, the City Council of the City of Santa Monica finds
that 1t is an economic hardship for many members of Boards and
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Commissions
incur
their own expenses related to the
to
performance of their public duties; and
WHEREAS, the eity Council of the C1ty of Santa Monica f1nds
that reimbursing members of Boards and Comm1ssions for the
expense incurred in the performance of the1r public duties will
encourage part~c1pation on Boards and Commisisons by all economic
segments of the community; and
WHEREAS, on December 15,
1981, the City Council adopted
Resolution Number 6414 (CCS), providing for reimbursement of
expenses for members of Boards and Commiss~ons at the standard
rate of $25.00 per meeting not to exceed $50.00 per month; and
WHEREAS, in adopting Resolution Number 6414 (CCS), the City
Council found that a voucher system for reimbursement of expenses
would result 1n unnecessary adm1nistrative costs; and
WHEREAS, the City Council desires to revise the system by
wh~ch it reimburses members of Boards and Commissions for
expenses; and
WHEREAS, this revision is not in response to Scaccianoce v.
C1ty of Santa Monica, et al., Los Angeles superior Court Case
Number WEC 078454, which unsuccessfully sought a prelim1nary
inJunct10n against the implementation of Resolution Number 6414
(ces);
NOW THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA
DOES RESOLVE AS FOLLOWS:
Sect10n l. That members of Boards and Commiss1ons created by
the City Charter or by ord1nance shall be reimbursed for expenses
~n the amount of up to $25.00 per meeting not to exceed the
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amount
of
$50.00
per
month pursuant to the forms and
administrative procedures which the city shall establish, which
procedures will perm1t mileage reimbursement for travel only
outsJ.de the city of Santa Monica.
Sect10n 2. That the City Clerk shall cert1fy to the adoption
of this Resolution, and thenceforth and thereafter the same shall
be in full force and effect.
APPROVED AS TO FO~1:
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ROBERT M. MYERS
C1ty Attorney
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ADOPTED AND APPROVED THIS
20th
DAY
OF Sertember 20
. 1 983 .
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MAYOR
I HEREB~ CERTIFY THAT THE FOREGOING RESOLUTION
NO. 6751(CCS), .WAS DULY ADOPTED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE
CITY OF SANTA MONICA ftT A MEETING THEREOF HELD ON
September 20
. 1983 BY THE FOLLOWING COUNCIL VOTE:
AYES:
COUMCILMEMBERS: Conn, Epstein. Jennings. Reed,
and Mayor Edwards
NOES:
COUNCILMEMBERS: Press and Zane
ABSENT:
COUNCILMEMBERS: ~one
ABSTAIN:
COUNCILMEMBERS: None
ATTEST:
a~1 ?;i~fc&~~
CITY CLERK