BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                     AB 347


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          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  








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               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  








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            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  








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            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











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          Opposition


          None on file




          Analysis Prepared by:Angela Mapp / L. GOV. / (916) 319-3958