BILL ANALYSIS Ó AB 347 Page 1 Date of Hearing: May 6, 2015 ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON LOCAL GOVERNMENT Brian Maienschein, Chair AB 347 (Chang) - As Amended March 26, 2015 SUBJECT: Local agencies: city selection committees: County of Los Angeles. SUMMARY: Requires specified city council members to serve as the voting member of the Los Angeles County City Selection Committee when a mayor is unable to attend a meeting. Specifically, this bill: 1)Provides that, for the City Selection Committee (Committee) in the County of Los Angeles (L.A. County), the following shall apply when the mayor is unable to attend a meeting of the Committee: a) The vice mayor or mayor pro tempore shall serve as the voting member and shall be entitled to one vote; and, b) In the absence of the mayor and the vice mayor or mayor pro tempore, the next ranking council member shall serve as the voting member and shall be entitled to one vote. The ranking council member shall be determined by seniority of AB 347 Page 2 service on the council. 2)Finds and declares that a special law is necessary and that a general law cannot be made applicable within the meaning of Section 16 of Article IV of the California Constitution because of the challenges faced as a result of the current governance structure of L.A. County. EXISTING LAW: 1)Establishes, in any county in which two or more cities are incorporated, a Committee for the purpose of appointing city representatives to boards, commissions, and agencies as required by law. 2)Provides that the membership of each Committee consists of the mayor of each city within the county. 3)Provides that, when the mayor is unable to attend a meeting of the Committee, he or she shall designate another member of the city's legislative body to attend and vote at the meeting in the mayor's place. FISCAL EFFECT: None COMMENTS: 1)Bill Summary. This bill provides an alternative method for ensuring replacement members for L.A. County's Committee when a mayor is unable to attend. Instead of requiring the mayor AB 347 Page 3 to designate another city council member to attend and vote in his or her stead, the bill provides that the vice mayor or mayor pro tempore shall serve as the voting member. When neither of those officials can attend, the next ranking council member shall serve as the voting member. The ranking council member is determined by seniority of service on the council. This bill is sponsored by the Los Angeles County Division of the League of California Cities. 2)Author's Statement. According to the author, "Los Angeles County has 88 cities, spanning 4,000 square miles. Los Angeles County's City Selection Committee must meet in person and requires a quorum of 45 cities to vote. Over the years, Los Angeles County's City Selection Committee has been unable to reach consistent quorums to fill the appointments, leading to frustration by mayors and councilmembers and in some cases, vacancies that remained open for years. Changing the proxy designation would allow Los Angeles County's City Selection Committee to increase those eligible from each city to meet the necessary quorum." 3)Background. Existing law creates a Committee in each county with two or more incorporated cities for the purpose of appointing city representatives to such boards, commissions and agencies as may be required by law. Committee membership is comprised of the mayor from each city in the county. Existing law requires the mayor to designate another member of the city council to serve as a replacement if the mayor is unable to attend a Committee meeting. This requirement has hampered the ability of L.A. County's Committee to achieve a quorum. 4)Arguments in Support. The Los Angeles County Division of the AB 347 Page 4 League of California Cities, the sponsor of this bill, writes, "The Los Angeles County City Selection Committee has been unable to consistently reach quorums to fill elections to regional boards and commissions. It some cases this results in key appointments remaining vacant or unable to open for elections. We believe that the unique circumstances created by serving the largest county in the state, including traffic, distance, notification, and time of meetings contributes to the quorum challenges. AB 347 offers some flexibility to meet that challenge." 5)Arguments in Opposition. None on file. REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION: Support California Contract Cities Association Cities of Bellflower, Cerritos, Claremont, Diamond Bar, Downey, Lakewood, La Mirada, Norwalk, Rosemead, Signal Hill, Torrance, and Walnut Los Angeles County Division of the League of California Cities AB 347 Page 5 Opposition None on file Analysis Prepared by:Angela Mapp / L. GOV. / (916) 319-3958