Personnel and Public Employees Committee Meeting - April 18, 2023
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Personnel and Public Employees Committee Meeting - April 18, 2023
The Personnel and Public Employees Committee met on Tuesday, April 18, 2023, at 3:01 PM in the City Hall Council Chamber. Chaired by Lisa Kaplan, with members Sean Loloee, Caity Maple, and Katie Valenzuela present, the committee reviewed and acted on seven agenda items covering appointments, ethics code modernization, Measure U subcommittees, performance evaluations for council-appointed officers, and the Sacramento Children's Fund commission. All votes were unanimous (4-0). The meeting adjourned at 4:30 PM.
Consent Calendar
- Item 1 – Meeting Minutes of March 21, 2023: Approved unanimously.
Public Comments & Testimony
- On Item 4 (Measure U Subcommittees): Marbella Sala, a District 3 appointee to the Measure U Community Advisory Committee, spoke in favor of establishing all three proposed subcommittees (Budget, Community Communications, and Participatory Budget), emphasizing the work done on the Measure U logo and community engagement survey.
- On Item 6 (Children's Fund Commission): Ana Taukolo (Director of Youth Programs, Alliance for Education Solutions) and Monica Ruelas (Youth Forward) urged the committee to embed equity in implementation, ensure youth voice on the commission, and include lived-experience representatives. They requested clear collaboration with the Sacramento Youth Commission and youth seats on the oversight body.
Discussion Items
- Item 2 – Ethel MacLeod Hart Trust Fund Advisory Committee Appointments: The committee interviewed four applicants for three seats. After deliberation, they recommended appointing Xavier R. Martinez (Seat C, incumbent), Pat Orner (Seat E), and Amarendra Phadnis (Seat F, incumbent). The motion passed unanimously.
- Item 3 – Sacramento Ethics Commission Recommendation (Lobbyist Code Modernization): The committee reviewed the recommendation to update Sacramento City Code Chapter 2.15 (lobbyist registration and reporting). Councilmember Valenzuela and Councilmember Maple, both former registered lobbyists, supported the proposal, citing consistency with state law and other cities. The motion to forward the recommendation to the Law and Legislation Committee for deliberation passed unanimously.
- Item 4 – Measure U Community Advisory Committee Request for Subcommittees: The committee debated a request to establish three subcommittees (Budget & Policy Development, Community Communications, Participatory Budget). After discussion, they approved only the Budget & Policy Development subcommittee to address urgent May-June budget deadlines, with direction to staff to call special meetings as needed and to report back on implementation. The motion (Valenzuela/Kaplan) passed unanimously.
- Item 5 – Annual Performance Metrics for Council Appointive Officers: The committee discussed a process for evaluating charter officers (City Manager, City Attorney, City Treasurer, etc.). Members agreed on a framework where officers would set goals, conduct self-evaluations, and receive aggregated council ratings. They directed the City Clerk to collaborate with officers and bring back a proposal with timelines.
- Item 6 – Sacramento Children's Fund Planning and Oversight Commission Implementation: The City Clerk presented a draft implementation timeline aiming to seat the commission by August 2023. Members discussed commissioner qualifications, conflict-of-interest concerns (modeled after Planning Commission rules), and the need for youth representation. They directed staff to work with the Youth Commission and bring a final recruitment plan to council in May.
- Item 7 – Board, Commission, and Committee Annual Report Template: The committee reviewed a sample annual report template (modeled after Dallas). They requested staff to solicit input from existing commissions on the template and to establish a timeline for submission and council response.
Key Outcomes
- Unanimous Votes: All six motions passed 4-0.
- Appointments: Recommended Xavier Martinez, Pat Orner, and Amarendra Phadnis to the Ethel MacLeod Hart Trust Fund Advisory Committee.
- Ethics Code: Referred lobbyist modernization to the Law and Legislation Committee.
- Measure U Subcommittees: Approved only the Budget & Policy Development subcommittee, with a report-back condition.
- Performance Evaluations: Directed staff to develop a process with charter officers.
- Children's Fund: Advanced commission implementation; staff to return with recruitment details.
- Annual Reports: Template under review; staff to engage commissions and set deadlines.
Meeting Transcript
Good afternoon, everyone. I would like to call to order the personnel and public employees committee meeting. The meeting is now called to order. Will the clerk please establish the roll call for a quorum? Thank you. Councilmember Lilowy. Councilmember Valenzuela. Here. Councilmember Maple. Here. And Chair Kaplan. Here we have a quorum for members of the public and chambers. If you we wish to speak on an agenda item and are not an applicant, please fill out a speaker slip, which can be found at the back of the room. For those who are joining us online and wish to speak, please use the raise your hand to provide public comment when the chair confirms public comment speaking period for your desired item. Online, um you just have to click raise your hand at the bottom of your screen. If you're on your mobile phone, um you can raise your hand by tapping raise hand option. And if you're on your telephone, you can raise your hand by dialing star nine. Then the mute unmute is star six. Speakers will be called on by the last four digits of their phone number. Everybody will have two minutes to speak once you are called. And soon we will now start with um today's agenda, which is our land acknowledgement. So member Lulowy, would you mind doing that for us? Please rise for the opening acknowledgement in honor of Sacramento's indigenous people and tribal land. To the original people of this land, the Nia San people, the Southern Maidu, Valley and Plain, Miroak, Padwin Winton peoples, and the people of the Wilton Rancherio Sacramento's only federally recognized tribe. May we acknowledge and honor the native people who came before us and still walk beside us today on these ancestral lands by choosing to gather together today in an active practice of acknowledgement and appreciation for Sacramento's indigenous people's history, contribution, and lives. Thank you. Indivisible with liberty and justice for all. Thank you for that, Councilmember. Now moving on to our agenda items on consent. We only have one item. Do I have a motion? Seven. Move by Maple, second by Loloe. All in favor, aye. Aye. Aye. Approved. Now moving on to our uh discussion items. We've got a packed agenda today, so I will try and move us along, and I will turn it over to our staff member. Jacob. Thank you, Chair and Councilmembers. My name is Jacob Redberg. I'm with the audit office of the city clerk. I'm here today to present the review of applicants for the F Ethel McLeod Heart Trust Fund Advisory Committee. Each applicant will be given two minutes to answer the following questions. Why are you interested in serving on this border commission? As well as be briefly describe the knowledge and experience that qualifies you for this position. And each applicant was notified of the questions prior to this meeting. So our first applicant is Griff Field. Are you here?
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