City Council
MEETING DATE: 6/22/2015
TITLE:
Title
Discussion on Referral of a Measure Regarding Direct Election of the Mayor
End
FROM:
Charlie McClendon, City Manager
RECOMMENDATION:
Recommendation
Staff recommends the Council discuss and provide direction on this item.
Body
BACKGROUND:
On June 10, 2015 Council reviewed a number of governance issues during their regular study session. Among the topics discussed was the direct election of the Mayor. Staff was asked to report back on a number of items including the possibility of a mail only election and the deadlines to act on referring a measure to the voters.
DISCUSSION:
Staff contacted the Riverside County Registrar of Voters and learned that a measure cannot be referred to the voters using a mail only ballot. A polling place election is required. Staff also confirmed that the deadline for having approved ballot language to the County is August 1, 2015 for the November 2015 election. Thus, the last regular Council meeting during which the Council could act to refer a measure to the voters is July 22, 2015. Proposed ballot language would have to be agreed upon and adopted by Council no later than that meeting. Staff also confirmed the cost of placing a measure on the ballot to be approximately $11,200 to $21,200.
In order to move ahead in developing an item for Council to consider and act on by that date staff will need direction on a few remaining questions:
*Does Council in fact want to refer a measure to the voters to eliminate the direct election of the Mayor in favor of a selection from among existing Councilmembers.
*Does Council want the measure, if approved, to be effective prior to the next scheduled Mayoral election (November 2016).
*Does the Council want to define the process for selecting a Mayor from among the Council in the measure itself or do that through a separate action, which would be easier to amend in the future.
*Are there any othe...
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