R112521
City Council Meeting: May 26, 2020 Santa Monica, California
RESOLUTION NUMBER 11252 (CCS)
(City Council Series)
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA
GRANTING AN ADDITIONAL ONE-YEAR REINSTATEMENT PERIOD TO
EMPLOYEES LAID OFF AS A RESULT OF THE RESTRUCTURING OF CITY
OPERATIONS CAUSED BY THE IMPACTS OF COVID-19
WHEREAS international, national, state, and local health and governmental
authorities are responding to an outbreak of respiratory disease caused by a novel
coronavirus named “SARS-CoV-2,” and the disease it causes has been named
“coronavirus disease 2019,” abbreviated COVID-19, (“COVID-19”); and
WHEREAS, on March 4, 2020, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors
and Department of Public Health declared a local emergency and local public health
emergency to aid the regional healthcare and governmental community in responding to
COVID-19; and
WHEREAS, on March 4, 2020, the Governor of the State of California declared a
state of emergency to make additional resources available, formalize emergency
actions already underway across multiple state agencies and departments, and help the
State prepare for broader spread of COVID-19; and
WHEREAS, on March 12, 2020, in response to social distancing guidance issued
by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the California Department of Public
Health, and the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, the City of Santa
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Monica (“the City”) cancelled all social gatherings (events, activities, programs, and
gatherings) in City facilities that were scheduled to occur through permit or license
between March 12, 2020, and March 31, 2020, absent a persuasive showing by the
permittee or licensee that the gathering could take place in accordance with the
guidance and directives of public health authorities; and
WHEREAS, on March 12, 2020, in response to social distancing guidance issued
by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the California Department of Public
Health, and the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, and to protect the
health and safety of the City workforce, the City announced that Santa Monica City Hall
would be closed to the public and open only to City employees from March 16, 2020, to
March 31, 2020; and
WHEREAS, on March 13, 2020, the President of the United States of America
declared a national emergency and announced that the federal government would make
emergency funding available to assist state and local governments in preventing the
spread of and addressing the effects of COVID-19; and
WHEREAS, on March 13, 2020, the City Manager, in his role as the Director of
Emergency Services, (“Director of Emergency Services”) issued an Executive Order of
the Director of Emergency Services of the City of Santa Monica Declaring the Existence
of a Local Emergency (“Executive Order”) (“Exhibit A”) declaring a local emergency
pursuant to Chapter 2.16 of the Santa Monica Municipal Code to ensure the availability
of mutual aid and an effective response to COVID-19; and
WHEREAS, on March 14, 2020, the Director of Emergency Services, issued a
Revised Executive Order of the Director of Emergency Services of the City of Santa
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Monica Declaring the Existence of a Local Emergency (“Revised Executive Order”)
(“Exhibit B”) restating the declaration of local emergency in order to ensure compliance
with all digital signature requirements; and
WHEREAS, on March 16, 2020, the Los Angeles County Department of Public
Health issued a Health Officer Order for the Control of COVID-19 temporarily prohibiting
group events of 50 or more people, requiring certain social distancing measures, and
ordering the closure of certain businesses; and
WHEREAS, on March 19, 2020, the City Council ratified the proclamation of local
emergency made by the Director of Emergency Services, as well as several
supplements thereto, and resolved that the proclamation and the supplements would be
operative and in effect through April 30, 2020; and
WHEREAS, on March 19, 2020, California Governor Gavin Newsom issued
Executive Order N-33-20 directing all residents of the State of California to heed
directives issued by the State Health Officer on the same date instructing all
Californians to stay home except as needed to maintain continuity of operations of the
federal critical infrastructure sectors; and
WHEREAS, on March 19, 2020, the Los Angeles County Department of Public
Health issued an enhanced Health Officer Order, the Safer at Home Order for Control of
COVID-19, amending and superseding its March 16, 2020 Order, closing all
nonessential businesses, and limiting gatherings to 9 people or less; and
WHEREAS, on March 21, 2020, the Los Angeles County Department of Public
Health issued an enhanced Health Officer Order, the Safer at Home Order for Control of
COVID-19, amending and superseding its March 16, 2020 and March 19, 2020 Orders,
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closing all nonessential businesses and prohibiting gatherings of non-household
members; and
WHEREAS, on March 22, 2020, the Director of Emergency Services issued an
Eighth Supplement to the Executive Order of the Director of Emergency Services
Declaring the Existence of a Local Emergency adopting as rules and regulations of the
City of Santa Monica the Executive Order N-33-20, issued by the Governor of the State
of California on March 19, 2020 (the “Governor’s Stay at Home Order”) and the Safer at
Home Order for Control of COVID-19, issued by the Los Angeles County Department of
Public Health on March 21, 2020 (the “County Department of Public Health’s Safer at
Home Order”), the stricter of which shall apply if there is any conflict between the
Governor’s Stay at Home Order and the County Department of Public Health’s Safer at
Home Order; and authorizing the City to issue administrative citations to enforce this
and the previously issued supplements to its emergency declaration; and,
WHEREAS, on April 6, 2020, the City Council ratified the proclamation of local
emergency made by the Director of Emergency Services, as well as several
supplements thereto, and resolved that the proclamation and the supplements would be
operative and in effect through April 30, 2020; and
WHEREAS, on April 14, 2020, the City Council ratified the proclamation of local
emergency made by the Director of Emergency Services, as well as several
supplements thereto, and resolved that the proclamation and the majority of the
supplements would be operative and in effect through May 15, 2020; and
WHEREAS, on May 7, 2020, the California State Public Health Officer issued an
order that stated that COVID-19 continues to present a significant risk to the health of
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individuals throughout California, but, consistent with Californians’ mitigation efforts and
other factors determined that the statewide data supported the gradual movement of the
entire state from Stage 1 to Stage 2 of California’s Pandemic Resilience Roadmap,
while authorizing local health jurisdictions to implement or continue more restrictive
public health measures if warranted; and
WHEREAS, on May 8, 2020, the Los Angeles County Department of Public
Health issued Addendum No. 2 to the April 10 revised County Department of Health
Safer at Home Order amending that order to permit, subject to specific conditions, the
reopening of certain specified types of lower-risk retail business for sales and service
transactions made via curbside pick-up or delivery only, and the reopening of all
previously closed public trails and trailheads, public and private golf courses, and new
and used auto sales dealerships and operations; and
WHEREAS, on May 12, 2020, the City Council ratified the proclamation of local
emergency made by the Director of Emergency Services, as well as several
supplements thereto, and resolved that the local emergency shall be deemed to
continue and exist until its termination is proclaimed by the City Council and that the
supplements shall remain in effect until May 15, 2020, or any later date expressly stated
within the text of an individual supplement; and
WHEREAS, on May 13, 2020, the Los Angeles County Department of Public
Health issued a revised Safer At Home Order for Control of COVID-19 that amended
and superseded the earlier March 16, 19, 21, 27, 31, April 10, May 3, and May 8, 2020
County Health Officer Orders and Addendums; recognized that existing community
transmission of COVID-19 in Los Angeles County continues to present a substantial
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and significant risk of harm to residents’ health; but took a limited and measured step to
partially move the County into Stage 2 of its phased approach to reopening while
keeping a low incidence of person-to-person contact and ensuring continued social
distancing and adherence to other infection control procedures – accordingly, the order
continued to prohibit indoor and outdoor public and private gatherings and events;
continued to require the continued closure of higher-risk businesses, recreational sites,
commercial properties, and activities, where more frequent and prolonged person-to-
person contacts are likely to occur; continued to allow Essential Businesses to operate
subject to social distancing requirements; allowed two categories of lower-risk
businesses to reopen subject to specified social distancing protocols, retailers not
located within an indoor mall or shopping center and manufacturing and logistics sector
businesses that supply lower-risk retail businesses; and permitted the reopening of
beaches for limited solo recreational uses, while retaining closures of beach parking
lots, beach bike paths, and piers; and
WHEREAS, on May 14, 2020, the Director of Emergency Services issued a
Fourteenth Supplement to the Executive Order of the Director of Emergency Services
Declaring the Existence of a Local Emergency extending the effective dates of the
earlier supplements to June 30, 2020, or any later date expressly stated within the text
of an individual supplement; and requiring all persons leaving their residences for the
limited purposes allowed by the County Department of Public Health’s Safer at Home
Order to strictly comply with the social (physical) distancing requirements stated in that
Order or County Department of Public Health guidance or protocols, including in
particular the requirement that cloth face masks must be worn whenever there is or may
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be contact with others who are non-household members, including while engaging in
permitted outdoor activities other than water activities; and
WHEREAS, as of May 19, 2020, the Los Angeles County of Public Health had
confirmed 39,573 cases of COVID-19 in Los Angeles County; and
WHEREAS, on April 14, 2020, in light of the impacts of COVID-19, the City
Council directed City staff to develop a plan to restructure City operations to meet the
challenges posed by COVID-19 and to balance the budget; and
WHEREAS, on May 5, 2020, in light of the impacts of COVID-19, the City
Council adopted the plan proposed by City staff to restructure City operations to meet
the challenges posed by COVID-19 and to balance the budget; and
WHEREAS, the restructuring plan adopted by Council on May 5, 2020,
eliminated approximately 331 City staff positions; and
WHEREAS, because a number of the staff positions eliminated by the
restructuring plan were vacant and others were occupied by individuals who took
advantage of a Voluntary Early Separation Incentive Program offered by the City, the
restructuring plan resulted in the City issuing layoff notices to approximately 156
employees who occupied positions eliminated by the restructuring plan; and
WHEREAS, with respect to the Classified Service, Section 1109 of the City
Charter provides that, following the abolition of positions by the City Council and the
discharge of employees holding those positions, should those positions be reinstated or
any positions involving substantially the same duties be created within one year, the
employees discharged shall be appointed thereto, and reemployment shall be in the
reverse order of layoffs; and
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WHEREAS, with respect to the Classified Service, Section 2.04.380 of the Santa
Monica Municipal Code similarly provides that, following the elimination of positions by
the City Council and the layoff of employees holding those positions, should those
positions be reinstated or any positions involving substantially the same duties be
created within one year of the employees’ layoff dates, the laid-off employees shall be
entitled to reemployment in accordance with the rules governing reemployment, and
reemployment from layoffs in a particular department shall be in the reverse order in
which the layoffs occurred; and
WHEREAS, the detrimental impacts of COVID-19 on the economy and the job
market are expected to be of long-lasting duration; and
WHEREAS, employees separating from City employment as the result of layoff
notices issued to implement the restructuring plan may possess institutional knowledge
that would remain of value to the City were the positions previously occupied by those
employees to be reinstated or were positions with substantially similar duties to be
created; and
WHEREAS, on May 12, 2020, the Council directed staff to prepare for Council
approval a resolution or ordinance, as appropriate, temporarily granting, over and above
the one year granted by Section 1109 of the Santa Monica City Charter, an additional
one year (bringing the total to two years) in which an employee discharged from City
employment as the result of a decision by the City Council to abolish a position or
reduce the number of employees in a given class in the Classified Service shall, should
such position be reinstated or any position involving substantially the same duties be
created and filled, be appointed thereto.
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NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA
DOES RESOLVE AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. As used in this resolution, the following terms shall have the following
meanings:
(a) “Laid Off Employee” means an employee in the Classified Service who
separates from City employment after receiving a layoff notice issued as the
result of either (i) the employee’s position in the Classified Service being
one of the approximately 331 positions eliminated as part of the
restructuring plan adopted by the City Council on May 5, 2020; or (ii) the
employee having been bumped, in accordance with Santa Monica
Municipal Code Section 2.04.390, from the employee’s position in the
Classified Service as the result of another position in the Classified Service
being one of the approximately 331 positions eliminated as part of the
restructuring plan adopted by the City Council on May 5, 2020; and
(b) “Prior Position” means the position in the Classified Service held by a Laid
Off Employee immediately prior to the Laid Off Employee’s separation from
City employment.
SECTION 2. Laid Off Employees shall be placed on a reemployment list in
accordance with Sections 2.04.220 and 2.04.380 of the Santa Monica Municipal Code.
The name of any Laid Off Employee on the reemployment list shall be removed two years
from the date the name was placed on the reemployment list. If a Prior Position is
reinstated, or if a position involving substantially the same duties as a Prior Position is
created or filled within two years of a Laid Off Employee’s layoff date, the Laid Off
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Employee shall be entitled to reemployment in the reinstated or created position in
accordance with the rules governing reemployment. Reemployment of Laid Off Employees
in a particular City department shall be in the reverse order in which the layoffs of the Laid
Off Employees occurred.
SECTION 3. If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase of this
Resolution is for any reason held to be invalid or unconstitutional by a decision of any court
of competent jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining
portions of this Resolution. The City Council hereby declares that it would have passed
this Resolution and each and every section, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase not
declared invalid or unconstitutional without regard to whether any portion of the Resolution
would be subsequently declared invalid or unconstitutional.
SECTION 4. The City Clerk shall certify to the adoption of this Resolution, and
thenceforth and thereafter the same shall be in full force and effect.
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
_________________________
GEORGE S. CARDONA
Interim City Attorney
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Adopted and approved this 26th day of May 2020.
__________________________
Kevin McKeown, Mayor
I, Denise Anderson-Warren, City Clerk of the City of Santa Monica, do
hereby certify that Resolution No. 11252 (CCS) was duly adopted at a meeting of
the Santa Monica City Council held on the 26th day of May 2020, by the following
vote:
AYES: Councilmembers Himmelrich, Davis, Jara, Morena, Winterer
Mayor Pro Tem O’Day, Mayor McKeown
NOES: None
ABSENT: None
ATTEST:
_____________________________________
Denise Anderson-Warren, City Clerk
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