Title
CITY ATTORNEY REPORT ON CITY COUNCIL TERM LIMITS AND CITY COUNCIL DIRECTION TO STAFF REGARDING SAME
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RECOMMENDED ACTION
Recommended Action
Council hear the report and provide direction to staff as it deems appropriate.
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SUMMARY
On July 21, 2015, the City Council requested that staff prepare a report on the City Council's options regarding City Council term limits. This report has been prepared by the City Attorney's office in consultation with the City Clerk in response to that request.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
The activity is not a "Project" as defined under Section 15378 of the California Environmental Quality Act State Guidelines; therefore, pursuant to State Guidelines Section 15060(c)(3) no environmental review is required.
BOARD/COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION
Not applicable.
DISCUSSION
I. Background
Pursuant to the City's Charter, City Council members and the Mayor currently are elected to serve four-year terms. (Chula Vista City Charter, Section 300.C.) The Charter permits each Council member to serve two consecutive terms as a Council member, and the Mayor to serve two consecutive terms as Mayor. After two consecutive terms are served, a Council member or Mayor must allow at least one year to lapse from the termination of the second term before he or she may seek election to the same office again. This one-year "waiting" period also applies to any City Council member appointed to the Council. There is currently no limit on the total number of terms an individual Councilmember can serve during his or her lifetime.
The term limit rules currently in place were approved back in 1973, with voter approval of Proposition B. Prior to that, other than a nominal four-year term, there appears to have been no term limit restriction. The Proposition that converted City Council seats from "at-large" representation to "district" representation back in 2012 did not modify these rules. The term limit rules that apply t...
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