Ord 833 ORDINANCE NO. 833
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
POWAY, CALIFORNIA, AMENDING CHAPTER 2.18 ,OF THE
POWAY MUNICIPAL CODE RELATING TO CITY COUNCIL
MEETINGS
WHEREAS, City staff and the City Attorney's Office have been progressively analyzing
the Poway Municipal Code ("PMC") and recommending updates where appropriate;
WHEREAS, revision of the procedures governing City Council meetings and public
committee meetings is required in order to provide for the efficient transaction of public business
compatible with full public participation, and in compliance with the Brown Act; and
WHEREAS, the City's current regulations regarding decorum may be impermissibly
vague, such that they are in conflict with state law and the First Amendment.
NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF POWAY DOES ORDAIN
AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1: The above recitations are true and correct.
SECTION 2: The City Council hereby approves this Ordinance and amends certain
sections of the PMC as specified below. Removals are indicated with and
additions are indicated with underline.
SECTION 3: Section 2.18.050 of Chapter 2.18 of the PMC is hereby deleted in its
entirety.
SECTION 4: Section 2.18.070(A) and (B) of Chapter 2.18 of the PMC is hereby
amended as follows:
2.18.0760 Agenda — Order of Business
A. All reports, communications, ordinances, contract documents or other matters,
including basic fact and matters pertinent thereto, which have been submitted for the
agenda, should be distributed to the City Council no later than
- _ - -- . _- - •--- -: : - -- - •"- 72 hours prior to any regular Council
meeting and 24 hours prior to any special Council meeting, whichever is shorter. Upon
distribution to the Council, the agenda materials shall become public records available to
the public. The agenda shall be posted in accordance with Government Section
54954.2(a).
B. The business of the Council shall be taken up for consideration and disposition in the
following order:
1. Call to Order;
2. Roll Call;
3. Pledge of Allegiance;
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4. Moment of Silence;
-.
e. -". .e- -•e _ : Presentations;
6. Public Comment;
7. Consent items Calendar/Waiver of Ordinance Text Reading;
8. Ordinances for Introduction;
9. Ordinances for Adoption;
10. Public Hearings;
11. Staff Reports;
12. Council initiated items;
13. Council Committee Reports (AB 1234) and Announcements;
14. City Manager items;
15. City Attorney items, including any public report of any action taken in closed
session;
16. Adjournment.
SECTION 5: Section 2.18.080(D) and (E) of Chapter 2.18 of the PMC is hereby
amended to read as follows:
D. The public hearing shall be closed by - ••-. ' - : -- _' . _:_-_ the Mayor or
presiding officer.
E. After the public hearing is closed, the City Council and staff may discuss the matter,
but no new information may be introduced unless the public hearing is reopened. A public
hearing _::- .. - _- -- _:_-_ -. ._ -. : . ••_ : : - may only be reopened by the
Mayor or presiding officer, _::- -- •-: - _ ••-••:- : -- _:_ _-: :- . if all
persons who spoke during the hearing are still present.
SECTION 6: Section 2.18.090 of Chapter 2.18 of the PMC is hereby amended to read
as follows:
B. The documents and raids are not public records and may be destroyed
immediately after the minutes of the City Council meeting are approved.
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SECTION 7: Section 2.18.100 of Chapter 2.18 of the PMC is hereby amended to read
as follows:
A. Voting may be conducted by the use of the voting light systems installed in the Council
Chambers. A red light designates a "no" or "negative" vote. A green light designates a
"yes" or "affirmative" vote. A white light designates an "abstain" or "abstention." When a
member of the Council votes to "abstain," such member shall audibly state the reason for
abstaining.
B. When the Council is voting by voice vote, an affirmative vote shall be registered by the
oral statement of "yes" or "aye" by the Councilmember voting. Silence shall be recorded
as a n-a ii tivote--A negative vote shall be registered by the oral statement "no" or
"nay" by the Councilmember voting.
C. Ordinances shall be voted upon by roll call vote as announced by the City Clerk. All
ordinances, resolutions and other matters submitted to the Council shall be passed or
defeated by a majority vote of the Council unless a greater number of votes may be
required by law. The word "majority" means three votes. - - . --- -- - - "..e
discussed.
SECTION 8: Section 2.18.120 of Chapter 2.18 of the PMC is hereby amended to add
subsection (B)(8) to read as follows:
8. Declare the closing of a public hearing.
SECTION 9: 2.18.170(A)(3)(a)-(b) of Chapter 2.18 of the PMC is hereby amended to
read as follows:
3. Oral CommunicationsPublic Comment.
a. Any person may address the Council by public comment with
regard to any City related matter which such person is concerned and is then the
subject of Council discussion. ' - - --- -. :- : . -- e -:
have first notified the City in writing of their desire to speak. All speakers shall give
written notice to the City Clerk in a form of a speaker slip approved by the City
Council in order that the same may appear on the minutes of the Council meeting.
All speaker slips shall be turned in before the item is heard.
b. Each person addressing the Council shall speak into the microphone at the
speaker's podium when the same are in use, shall state his or her name and
address in an audible tone of voice for the record, and unless further time is
granted by the Mayor, shall limit the address to three minutes, unless this three
minute time limit is reduced by the Mayor due to a large number of speakers. All
remarks shall be addressed to the Council as a body, and not to any member
thereof. No person other than the Council and the person having the floor shall be
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permitted to enter into any discussion, either directly or through a member of the
Council, without the permission of the Mayor. No person shall address or question
a Councilmember, the City Attorney, the City Manager or other official without the
prior consent of the Mayor.
SECTION 10: Section 2.18.180 of Chapter 2.18 of the PMC is hereby amended to read
as follows:
2.18.180 Rules of decorum — Enforcement.
A. While the Council is in session, all persons shall preserve the order and decorum of the
session. The standards of order and decorum shall be governed by common sense.
Meetings of the City Council shall be conducted in an orderly manner to ensure that the
public has a full opportunity to be heard and that the deliberative process of the Council is
retained at all times. The presiding officer of the Council, who shall be-the Mayor, Deputy
Mayor or, in their absence, other member so designated by the Council, shall be
responsible for maintaining the order and decorum of meetings.
B. All persons must conduct themselves in a manner consistent with good taste and
generally accepted standards of appropriate behavior. Each person who addresses the
Council shall not make personal, impertinent, slanderous or profane remarks to any
member of the Council, staff or general public. Any person who makes such remarks, or
who utters loud, threatening, personal or abusive language, or engages in any other
disorderly conduct which disrupts, disturbs or otherwise impedes the orderly conduct of
any Council meeting shall, at the discretion of the presiding officer or a majority of the
Council, be barred from further audience before the Council during that meeting.
C. A • . e- e- -: ::- ae .e-•ee- ._ .ee . - - - . -e .•. -e e . e .- e e •
-
.e. - e -e. e. a "e- -e •• e- -e e e e e- a . e
removed from the podium, or, if necessary to maintain order, barred from further audience
before that session of the Council. No person in the audience at a Council meeting shall
engage in disorderly or boisterous conduct, including the utterance of loud, threatening or
abusive language, whistling, stamping of feet, repeatedly clapping, or other acts which
disturb, disrupt or otherwise impede the orderly conduct of any Council meeting. Any
person who conducts himself in the aforementioned manner shall, at the discretion of the
presiding officer or a majority of the Council, be barred from further audience before the
Council during that meeting.
D. The rules of decorum set forth above shall be enforced in the following manner:
1. Warning. The presiding officer shall request that a person who is breaching the rules of
decorum be orderly and silent. If, after receiving a warning from the presiding officer, a
person persists in disturbing the meeting, the presiding officer shall order him to leave the
Council meeting. If such person does not remove himself, the presiding officer may order
any law enforcement officer who is on duty at the meeting as sergeant-at-arms of the
Council to remove that person from the Council Chambers.
2. Removal. Any law enforcement officer who is serving as sergeant-at-arms of the
Council shall carry out all orders and instructions given by the presiding officer for the
purpose of maintaining order and decorum at the Council meeting. Upon instruction of the
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presiding officer, it shall be the duty of the sergeant-at-arms to remove from the Council
meeting any person who is disturbing the proceedings of the Council.
3. Resisting Removal. Any person who resists removal by the sergeant-at-arms shall be
charged with a violation of this Section.
4. Penalty. Any person who violates anyprovision of this Section shall be guiltyof a
misdemeanor.
5. Motion to Enforce. If the presiding officer of the Council fails to enforce the rules set
forth above, any member of the Council may move to require him or her to do so, and an
affirmative vote of a majority of the Council shall require him or her to do so. If the presiding
officer of the Council fails to carry out the will of a majority of the Council, the majority may
designate another member of the Council to act as presiding officer for the limited purpose
of enforcing any rule of this section which it wishes to enforce.
6. Adjournment. If a meeting of the Council is disturbed or disrupted in such a manner as
to make infeasible or improbable the restoration of order, the meeting may be adjourned
or continued by the presiding officer or a majority of the Council, and any remaining
Council business may be considered at the next meeting.
SECTION 11: The title of Chapter 2.18 is hereby amended from "City Council Meetings"
to "Meetings."
SECTION 12: Sections 2.18.060 through 2.18.190 of Chapter 2.18 are hereby
renumbered to 2.18.050 through 2.18.180.
SECTION 13: If any provisions of this Ordinance or the application thereof to any person
or circumstances is held invalid, that invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications of
the act which can give effect without the invalid provisions or application and to this end the
provisions of this act are severable.
SECTION 14: This Ordinance shall be codified.
EFFECTIVE DATE: This Ordinance shall take effect and be in force thirty (30) days after
its adoption.
CERTIFICATION/PUBLICATION: The City Clerk shall certify the adoption of this
Ordinance and cause it or a summary of it, to be published with the names of the City Council
members voting for and against the same in the Poway News Chieftain, a newspaper of general
circulation in the City of Poway within fifteen (15) days after its adoption and shall post a certified
copy of this Ordinance in the Office of the City Clerk in accordance with Government Code §
36933.
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INTRODUCED AND FIRST READ at a Regular Meeting of the City Council of the City of
Poway, California, held the 3rd day of December, 2019, and thereafter
PASSED AND ADOPTED at a Regular Meeting of said City Council held the 17th day of
December, 2019, by the following vote, to wit:
AYES: MULLIN, LEONARD, FRANK, GROSCH, VAUS
NOES: NONE
ABSENT: NONE
DISQUALIFIED: NONE
Steve Vaus, Mayor
ATTEST:
_
Faviola Mei ina, CMC, City Clerk