REQUEST FOR CITY COUNCIL ACTION
SUBMITTED TO: Honorable Mayor and City Council Members
SUBMITTED BY: Oliver Chi, City Manager
PREPARED BY: Travis K. Hopkins, Assistant City Manager
Subject:
title
Filling an unscheduled vacancy on the City Council (continued from July 19, 2021)
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Statement of Issue:
On June 1, 2021, Mayor Pro Tem Jacob "Tito" Ortiz abandoned and resigned his City Council seat. Pursuant to Section 312 of the Huntington Beach Charter, unscheduled vacancies on the City Council are to be filled by an appointment of the City Council within 60 days. Further, the Charter stipulates that if the City Council fails to fill the vacancy within that specified timeframe, a special election must then be held to fill the vacated role.
After coordinating an overall application and assessment process, a total of 105 final candidates were identified for possible appointment to the vacant seat. On July 19, the City Council held a Special City Council Meeting to consider making an appointment, and following considerable discussion, the City Council voted to adjourn and continue the conversation at a subsequent Special City Council meeting, which was coordinated to occur on July 26.
Financial Impact:
There is no fiscal impact associated with appointing a candidate to fill the current vacant City Council seat. However, if the City Council fails to reach consensus on an individual to appoint to the abandoned City Council seat, the subsequent Special Election will cost an estimated $885K - $1M.
Recommended Action:
recommendation
Select a candidate for appointment to the vacated City Council seat.
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Alternative Action(s):
Provide direction to hold a Special Election to fill the vacant City Council seat.
Analysis:
A Special Meeting of the City Council was held on June 10, 2021 to consider the vacancy, at which time the City Council directed that an appointment process be coordinated to include an application period, introductory interviews with eli...
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