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HomeMy WebLinkAboutItem 10d - Voting Delegates for 2025 League of California Cities Annual Conference STAFF REPORT OFFICE OF THE CITY MANAGER DATE: August 19, 2025 TO: Honorable Mayor and City Council FROM: Dominic Lazzaretto, City Manager By: Justine Bruno, Deputy City Manager SUBJECT: DESIGNATION OF VOTING DELEGATES FOR THE 2025 LEAGUE OF CALIFORNIA CITIES ANNUAL CONFERENCE CEQA: Not a Project Recommendation: Designate Mayor Sharon Kwan as the Voting Delegate and Mayor Pro Tem Eileen Wang as the Alternate SUMMARY The League of California Cities (“CalCities”) Annual Conference is scheduled for October 8-10, 2025, in Long Beach. An important component of the conference is the General Assembly meeting for member cities, which begins on Friday, October 10, 2025. Consistent with CalCities’ bylaws, a city’s Voting Delegate and up to two Alternate Voting Delegates must be designated by City Council action. The Voting Delegates and Alternates are designated by the City Council to represent Arcadia and vote on resolutions that establish Cal Cities policy and bylaw amendments. It is recommended that the City Council designate Mayor Sharon Kwan as the Voting Delegate and Mayor Pro Tem Eileen Wang as the Alternate for the 2025 League of California Cities Annual Conference. BACKGROUND To vote on behalf of Arcadia at the General Assembly meeting, the City Council must select a Voting Delegate and up to two Alternate Voting Delegates. A city’s Voting Delegate and Alternate(s) must be selected by City Council action and cannot be designated by individual action of the Mayor or City Manager. Arcadia must provide evidence of such action to CalCities by Wednesday, September 24, 2025. Once the Voting Delegates - 2025 CalCities Annual Conference August 19, 2025 Page 2 of 3 delegates have been approved, the selected Voting Delegate and Alternate(s) will be submitted to Cal Cities through their online portal (see Attachment). Traditionally, voting delegates have been assigned by order and/or seniority on the City Council, as well as by expressing an interest in attending the General Assembly session. Since in-person voting is required during the General Assembly, the Voting Delegate and Alternate(s) should be selected from those that are able to attend the conference on the last day. Years when the Mayor or Mayor Pro Tem could not attend the conference, another member of the City Council was selected, or the City Manager could be authorized as the Voting Delegate on behalf of the City Council. In 2024, then-Mayor Cao and Council Member Wang, were selected as the Voting Delegate and Alternate for the Annual League Conference. Member cities may submit general resolutions 60 days before the beginning of the Annual Conference. These resolutions are policy proposals on issues of importance to cities and require support from at least five additional member cities or individual members, before being presented to the General Assembly for action. In prior years, member cities submitted resolutions for consideration before Voting Delegates were selected. This allowed the entire City Council to consider any proposed resolutions together and provide some initial direction to the Voting Delegate. At this time, there have been no policy resolutions submitted by member cities for consideration by the General Assembly. Any resolutions introduced during the conference are left to the Voting Delegate to consider and act upon. DISCUSSION The following Council Members have registered for the Annual Conference at this time: Mayor Sharon Kwan Mayor Pro Tem Eileen Wang Council Member Michael Cao Given that both the Mayor and Mayor Pro Tem are planning to attend the conference and are available to attend the General Assembly meeting, it would follow customary practices to select them as the City’s primary and alternate voting delegates, respectively. Arcadia has not traditionally designated a second alternate member for Voting Delegates - 2025 CalCities Annual Conference August 19, 2025 Page 3 of 3 voting; however, since Council Member Cao is the Immediate Past President of the Los Angeles Division of CalCities, breaking from tradition and selecting a third delegate could be warranted. ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS The proposed designation of voting delegates and alternates does not constitute a project under the California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”), as it can be seen with certainty that it will have no impact on the environment. FISCAL IMPACT There is no fiscal impact for selecting a Voting Delegate and Alternate for the Annual Conference. There is sufficient funding in the FY 2025-26 budget for three Council Members to attend the League of California Cities Annual Conference, in addition to other educational and professional pursuits. RECOMMENDATION It is recommended that the City Council determine this action does not constitute a project under the California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”); and designate Mayor Sharon Kwan as the Voting Delegate and Mayor Pro Tem Eileen Wang as the Alternate Voting Delegate for the 2025 League of California Cities Annual Conference. Attachment: 2025 CalCities Voting Delegate Information Packet 1400 K Street, Suite 400, Sacramento, CA 95814 • 916.658.8200 • calcities.org DATE: Wednesday, July 16, 2025 TO: Mayors, Council Members, City Clerks, and City Managers RE: DESIGNATION OF VOTING DELEGATES AND ALTERNATES League of California Cities Annual Conference and Expo, Oct. 8-10, 2025 Long Beach Convention Center Every year, the League of California Cities convenes a member-driven General Assembly at the Cal Cities Annual Conference and Expo. The General Assembly is an important opportunity where city officials can directly participate in the development of Cal Cities policy. Taking place on Oct. 10, the General Assembly is comprised of voting delegates appointed by each member city; every city has one voting delegate. Your appointed voting delegate plays an important role during the General Assembly by representing your city and voting on resolutions. To cast a vote during the General Assembly, your city must designate a voting delegate and up to two alternate voting delegates, one of whom may vote if the designated voting delegate is unable to serve in that capacity. Voting delegates may either be an elected or appointed official. Action by Council Required. Consistent with Cal Cities bylaws, a city’s voting delegate and up to two alternates must be designated by the city council. Please note that designating the voting delegate and alternates must be done by city council action and cannot be accomplished by individual action of the mayor or city manager alone. Following council action, please submit your city’s delegates through the online submission portal by Wed., Sept. 24. When completing the Voting Delegate submission form, you will be asked to attest that council action was taken. You will need to be signed in to your My Cal Cities account when submitting the form. Submitting your voting delegate form by the deadline will allow us time to establish voting delegate/alternate records prior to the conference and provide pre-conference communications with voting delegates. Conference Registration Required. The voting delegate and alternates must be registered to attend the conference. They need not register for the entire conference; they may register for Friday only. Conference registration is open on the Cal Cities website. Council Action Advised by September 24, 2025 For a city to cast a vote, one voter must be present at the General Assembly and in possession of the voting delegate card and voting tool. Voting delegates and alternates need to pick up their conference badges before signing in and picking up the voting delegate card at the voting delegate desk. This will enable them to receive the special sticker on their name badges that will admit the voting delegate into the voting area during the General Assembly. Please view Cal Cities’ event and meeting policy in advance of the conference. Transferring Voting Card to Non-Designated Individuals Not Allowed. The voting delegate card may be transferred freely between the voting delegate and alternates, but only between the voting delegate and alternates. If the voting delegate and alternates find themselves unable to attend the General Assembly, they may not transfer the voting card to another city official. Seating Protocol during General Assembly. At the General Assembly, individuals with a voting card will sit in a designated area. Admission to the voting area will be limited to the individual in possession of the voting card and with a special sticker on their name badge identifying them as a voting delegate. The voting delegate desk, located in the conference registration area of the Long Beach Convention Center in Long Beach, will be open at the following times: Wednesday, Oct. 16, 8:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m. and Thursday, Oct. 17, 7:30 a.m.-4:00 p.m. On Friday, Oct. 18, the voting delegate desk will be open at the General Assembly, starting at 7:30 a.m., but will be closed during roll calls and voting. The voting procedures that will be used at the conference are attached to this memo. Please share these procedures and this memo with your council and especially with the individuals that your council designates as your city’s voting delegate and alternates. Once again, thank you for submitting your voting delegate and alternates by Wednesday, Sept. 24. If you have questions, please contact Zach Seals at zseals@calcities.org. Attachments: • General Assembly Voting Guidelines • Information Sheet: Cal Cities Resolutions and the General Assembly 1400 K Street, Suite 400, Sacramento, CA 95814 • 916.658.8200 • calcities.org General Assembly Voting Guidelines 1. One City One Vote. Each member city has a right to cast one vote on matters pertaining to Cal Cities policy. 2. Designating a City Voting Representative. Prior to the Cal Cities Annual Conference and Expo, each city council may designate a voting delegate and up to two alternates; these individuals are identified on the voting delegate form provided to the Cal Cities Credentials Committee. 3. Registering with the Credentials Committee. The voting delegate, or alternates, may pick up the city's voting card at the voting delegate desk in the conference registration area. Voting delegates and alternates must sign in at the voting delegate desk. Here they will receive a special sticker on their name badge and thus be admitted to the voting area at the General Assembly. 4. Signing Initiated Resolution Petitions. Only those individuals who are voting delegates (or alternates), and who have picked up their city’s voting card by providing a signature to the credentials committee at the voting delegate desk, may sign petitions to initiate a resolution. 5. Voting. To cast the city's vote, a city official must have in their possession the city's voting card and voting tool; and be registered with the credentials committee. The voting card may be transferred freely between the voting delegate and alternates but may not be transferred to another city official who is neither a voting delegate nor alternate. 6. Voting Area at General Assembly. At the General Assembly, individuals with a voting card will sit in a designated area. Admission to the voting area will be limited to the individual in possession of the voting card and with a special sticker on their name badge identifying them as a voting delegate. 7. Resolving Disputes. In case of dispute, the credentials committee will determine the validity of signatures on petitioned resolutions and the right of a city official to vote at the General Assembly. Sixty days before the Annual Conference and Expo, Cal Cities members may submit policy proposals on issues of importance to cities. The resolution must have the concurrence of at least five additional member cities or individual members. How it works: Cal Cities Resolutions and the General Assembly General Assembly General Resolutions Policy Committees Developing League of California Cities policy is a dynamic process that engages a wide range of members to ensure Cal Cities represents cities with one voice. These policies directly guide Cal Cities’ advocacy to promote local decision-making, and lobby against statewide policies that erode local control. The resolutions process and General Assembly is one way that city officials can directly participate in the development of Cal Cities policy. If a resolution is approved at the General Assembly, it becomes official Cal Cities policy. Here’s how resolutions and the General Assembly work. The petitioned resolution is an alternate method to introduce policy proposals during the annual conference. The petition must be signed by voting delegates from 10% of member cities, and submitted to the Cal Cities President at least 24 hours before the beginning of the General Assembly. Petitioned Resolutions The Cal Cities President assigns general resolutions to policy committees where members review, debate, and recommend positions for each policy proposal. Recommendations are forwarded to the Resolutions Committee. Who’s who The Resolutions Committee includes representatives from each Cal Cities diversity caucus, regional division, municipal department, and policy committee, as well as individuals appointed by the Cal Cities president. Voting delegates are appointed by each member city; every city has one voting delegate. The General Assembly is a meeting of the collective body of all voting delegates —one from every member city. Seven policy committees meet throughout the year to review and recommend positions to take on bills and regulatory proposals. Policy committees include members from each Cal Cities diversity caucus, regional division, and municipal department, as well as individuals appointed by the Cal Cities president. During the General Assembly, voting delegates debate and consider general and petitioned resolutions forwarded by the Resolutions Committee. Potential Cal Cities bylaws amendments are also considered at this meeting. Cal Cities policy development is a member- informed process, grounded in the voices and experiences of city officials throughout the state. For more information visit www.calcities.org/general-assembly Prior to the Annual Conference and Expo Resolutions Committee The Resolutions Committee considers all resolutions. General Resolutions approved1 by either a policy committee or the Resolutions Committee are next considered by the General Assembly. General resolutions not approved, or referred for further study by both a policy committee and the Resolutions Committee do not go to the General Assembly. All Petitioned Resolutions are considered by the General Assembly, unless disqualified.2 During the Annual Conference and Expo 1 The Resolution Committee can amend a general resolution prior to sending it to the General Assembly. 2 Petitioned Resolutions may be disqualified by the Resolutions Committee according to Cal Cities Bylaws Article VI. Sec. 5(f).