OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Oakland Rules & Legislation Committee Meeting: July 24, 2025

City Council — Thursday, July 24, 2025
BodyOakland, California
SessionCity Council
DateThursday, July 24, 2025
StatusFILED
Video Record
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Transcript — Verbatim
1:38

Good morning, everyone.

1:44

Welcome to today's rules and legislation committee meeting of Thursday, July 24th, 2025.

1:49

The time is now ten thirty-one AM, and this meeting shall come to order.

1:52

Before taking roll, I will provide the speaker's instructions on how to submit a speaker's card for this meeting.

1:59

If you are here in person and wish to and would like to comment on an agenda item, please fill out a speaker's card and hand it to a clerk representative.

2:06

Umline speaker requests were due 24 hours prior to the start of this meeting, which was yesterday by 10 thirty AM.

2:12

Speaker cards will be accepted within the first ten minutes of the meeting.

2:16

This meeting came to order at 1031.

2:18

Therefore, speaker cards will be due by ten forty-one A.M.

2:21

I will now proceed with taking uh roll of members present on roll.

2:26

Council members Brown.

2:27

Present.

2:28

Five.

2:29

Present.

2:29

Rama Chandran.

2:31

Present.

2:31

And Chair Jenkins?

2:32

Present.

2:33

Thank you, showing four members present.

2:36

Moving to our first item, approval of the draft minutes from the committee meeting of July 10th, 2025.

2:41

We have one speaker.

2:42

Ms.

2:43

Sada Olabala.

2:53

The July 10th meeting of rules had on the agenda.

2:59

The contract for security for the city of Oakland.

3:03

There were two items on the agenda related to that.

3:07

One item uh reflected that the contract related to Marina would be taken up in September at the uh Oakland Public Works meeting.

3:21

Another item on the agenda related to the contract of security uh was uh from staff recommending that marina I'm sorry, allied would be the recipient of a contract.

3:39

Along with that was the amount of money owed to ABC, which was over three hundred thousand dollars, would be approved for payment.

3:52

Nothing took place in terms of that actually being approved by the city council.

4:00

So right now you have an outstanding payment to ABC security.

4:06

You also have you have an understanding that ABC security would continue to receive month-to-month contractual arrangements to stay on city security property for city, but you don't have a contract to do that.

4:24

And the minutes have not reflected anything related to ABC being here on a month to month basis until you return in September to deal with either allied marina or whoever the the way you are doing business and your minutes it it is unreal that you have the capacity to sit here and lack integrity to do your business correctly.

4:53

So you don't have a contract with ABC security.

4:58

Thank you, Mrs.

5:00

I'll entertain a motion.

5:02

Move approval.

5:04

Second.

5:05

There was a motion made by Councilmember 5, seconded by Councilmember Brown to approve the draft minutes as is on roll.

5:11

Council members Brown.

5:12

Aye.

5:12

Five.

5:12

Aye.

5:13

Rama Chandrin.

5:14

Aye.

5:15

And Chair Jenkins?

5:16

Aye.

5:16

The motion passes with four ayes, as is moving to item number three.

5:21

New scheduling, item 3.0.

5:25

Has a title change from staff.

5:28

Morning, Trinity Hall from the Office of the Senate of Oakland.

5:30

Councilmember Ken Houston representing District 7.

5:33

Um for item 3.0, we would like to recommend a title change.

5:41

Through the chair, the new title is sufficient as the old title is printed on the agenda.

5:44

Okay.

5:45

Uh so reading in the new title uh to adopt the resolution amending resolution number 88341 to replace the 2020 encampment management policy with a 2025 encampment abatement policy that A defines encampment to exclude vehicles and authorizes citation and telling of inhabited vehicles by city departments pursuant to the vehicles by pursuant to the California Vehicle Code and Oakland Vehicle Code B continues to require seven-day notice prior to non-urgent encampment and closures uh closures and C clarifies emergency and urgent health and safety conditions that authorize immediate 24 hour or 72 hour notice for encampment closures, including encampments blocking sidewalks.

6:32

And we would like to withdraw this item as it is amended with the new title to the schedule it to the September 16th City Council meeting um by way of issuing a rule 24 What's the urgency uh due to the urgency of the encampment crisis and the homeless crisis in the city of Oakland?

6:55

Um we would like this item to appear to council on September the 16th to the parliamentarians and then to parliamentarians first.

7:07

Is this possible rules committee has jurisdiction to schedule items um directly to city council um if there's a reason stated on the record for bypassing committee?

7:22

It is within this body's jurisdiction, councilmember Fife.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Procedural█████████████████████████████████████████████48%
Homelessness████████████████████21%
Public Safety██████████████████19%
Community Engagement█████5%
Contracting And Procurement███3%
Cannabis Regulation██2%
Racial Equity██2%
Summary of Proceedings

Oakland Rules & Legislation Committee Meeting: July 24, 2025

The Rules & Legislation Committee met on July 24, 2025, at 10:31 AM to approve minutes, schedule items, and review pending lists. The meeting briefly adjourned into a special City Council session due to the presence of Councilmember Houston, allowing discussion on the urgent encampment policy item. Key decisions included scheduling a September 10, 2025 special public safety committee meeting for the encampment policy and forwarding several items to the September 16, 2025 City Council agenda.

Consent Calendar

  • Approval of the draft minutes from the July 10, 2025 meeting was accepted by a vote of 4-0.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Asada Olabala (on the July 10 minutes): Criticized the handling of security contracts, stating that the minutes fail to reflect a month-to-month arrangement with ABC Security and that no contract is currently in place.
  • Asada Olabala (on all items): Urged seriousness about encampments near schools, criticized the shelter ordinance for not addressing shelter destruction (e.g., West Oakland and Lake Merit tiny homes), questioned the Unity Council's identification (calling it "non-existent" and suggesting replacement with "Spanish speaking unity council"), criticized the lack of enforcement of existing policies, and opposed the play "Co-Founders: The Musical" as a diversion from real issues.
  • Isaac Cos Reed (Open Forum): Thanked city officials for their work, highlighted the "Unite for good" Rotary International motto, invited officials to club meetings, praised intergovernmental advocacy on Measure W, and urged reconsideration of the citywide security contract to favor a local company.
  • Asada Olabala (Open Forum): Criticized the homelessness prevention focus, arguing it overlooks those already homeless—particularly African Americans, who face 89% unemployment—and noted risk factors such as drug addiction, domestic violence, mental illness, and foreclosure.

Discussion Items

  • 3.0: 2025 Encampment Abatement Policy: Councilmember Houston proposed a resolution to repeal the 2020 policy and adopt a new one that defines encampment as excluding vehicles, authorizes citation and towing of inhabited vehicles (per California and Oakland Vehicle Codes), requires 7-day notice for non-urgent closures, and clarifies conditions for immediate, 24-hour, or 72-hour notices (e.g., blocking sidewalks). A title change was read into the record. Councilmember Fife initially requested it go to the Life Enrichment Committee first, but Councilmember Houston highlighted the urgency, noting that other cities (e.g., San Francisco) are pushing RVs into Oakland. A special City Council meeting was convened at 10:38 AM due to Houston's presence, and it was scheduled to the September 10, 2025 Public Safety Committee via a special meeting (subject to quorum), then to the September 16, 2025 City Council. The item was left pending with no specific date.
  • 3.1: FY 2025-26 Appropriations Limit: Scheduled to the September 30, 2025 Finance and Management Committee.
  • 3.2: Honoring 'Co-Founders: The Musical': Approved on consent for the September 16, 2025 City Council agenda.
  • 3.3: Shelter Crisis Ordinance: After no action at the July 22 Special Life Enrichment Committee due to lack of quorum, this item was scheduled to the September 16, 2025 City Council on consent.
  • 3.4: Contract for Public-System High-Risk Youth Team: Approved on consent for September 16, 2025.
  • 3.5: Apricot Amended Use Policy and Annual Report: Approved on consent for September 16, 2025, with an added further resolved clause making a cost-benefit determination and finding the proposal safeguards civil liberties.
  • 3.6: OPD Biannual Staffing Report: Received and filed.
  • 3.7: OPD Data Sharing Policy for ALPRs: Received and filed.
  • 3.8: DOT Planning for Sideshow Abatement: Received and filed.
  • 3.9: Prohousing Designation Renewal Application: Approved on consent for September 16, 2025.
  • 3.10: Exclusive Negotiation Agreement with The Unity Council: Approved on consent for September 16, 2025.
  • 3.11: FY 2024-25 Quarter 1 and 2 Code Enforcement Update: Received and filed.
  • 4: Review of Draft Agendas and Pending Lists: The committee approved amendments removing several items from the pending list (e.g., resolutions on voter initiative opposition, council rules amendment, Coliseum sale, cannabis lounges, and Black Arts Movement district support) by a 4-0 vote.

Key Outcomes

  • 2025 Encampment Abatement Policy (Item 3.0): A title change was accepted, and the item was left pending (no date specific) with a plan to schedule a special September 10, 2025 Public Safety Committee meeting (subject to quorum) before advancing to the September 16, 2025 City Council via Rule 28.
  • Consent items (3.2, 3.3, 3.4, 3.5, 3.9, 3.10): All forwarded to the September 16, 2025 City Council agenda on consent, with the shelter crisis ordinance (3.3) requiring no action from the earlier lack of quorum.
  • Pending list amendments: Several items (e.g., opposition to voter initiative, rules restatement, Coliseum sale, cannabis lounges, Education Partnership Committee, Coliseum Board appointment, Black Arts Movement district) were withdrawn with no new date.
  • Open Forum: One speaker raised concerns about the citywide security contract and Measure W; another criticized homelessness prevention efforts for not addressing those already homeless, citing risk factors including 89% unemployment among African Americans in Oakland.

Meeting Transcript

Good morning, everyone. Welcome to today's rules and legislation committee meeting of Thursday, July 24th, 2025. The time is now ten thirty-one AM, and this meeting shall come to order. Before taking roll, I will provide the speaker's instructions on how to submit a speaker's card for this meeting. If you are here in person and wish to and would like to comment on an agenda item, please fill out a speaker's card and hand it to a clerk representative. Umline speaker requests were due 24 hours prior to the start of this meeting, which was yesterday by 10 thirty AM. Speaker cards will be accepted within the first ten minutes of the meeting. This meeting came to order at 1031. Therefore, speaker cards will be due by ten forty-one A.M. I will now proceed with taking uh roll of members present on roll. Council members Brown. Present. Five. Present. Rama Chandran. Present. And Chair Jenkins? Present. Thank you, showing four members present. Moving to our first item, approval of the draft minutes from the committee meeting of July 10th, 2025. We have one speaker. Ms. Sada Olabala. The July 10th meeting of rules had on the agenda. The contract for security for the city of Oakland. There were two items on the agenda related to that. One item uh reflected that the contract related to Marina would be taken up in September at the uh Oakland Public Works meeting. Another item on the agenda related to the contract of security uh was uh from staff recommending that marina I'm sorry, allied would be the recipient of a contract. Along with that was the amount of money owed to ABC, which was over three hundred thousand dollars, would be approved for payment. Nothing took place in terms of that actually being approved by the city council. So right now you have an outstanding payment to ABC security. You also have you have an understanding that ABC security would continue to receive month-to-month contractual arrangements to stay on city security property for city, but you don't have a contract to do that. And the minutes have not reflected anything related to ABC being here on a month to month basis until you return in September to deal with either allied marina or whoever the the way you are doing business and your minutes it it is unreal that you have the capacity to sit here and lack integrity to do your business correctly. So you don't have a contract with ABC security. Thank you, Mrs. I'll entertain a motion. Move approval. Second. There was a motion made by Councilmember 5, seconded by Councilmember Brown to approve the draft minutes as is on roll. Council members Brown. Aye. Five. Aye. Rama Chandrin. Aye. And Chair Jenkins? Aye. The motion passes with four ayes, as is moving to item number three. New scheduling, item 3.0. Has a title change from staff.

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