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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2023-06-13 Policy & Services Committee Summary MinutesPOLICY AND SERVICES COMMITTEE SUMMARY MINUTES Page 1 of 10 Special Meeting June 13, 2023 The Policy and Services Committee of the City of Palo Alto met on this date in the Community Meeting Room and by virtual teleconference at 7:15 P.M. Present In Person: Tanaka (Chair), Lauing, Veenker (7:18 PM) Present Remotely: Absent: Call to Order Assistant City Clerk Vinh Nguyen called roll and noted two were present with Council Member Veenker being absent. Chair Tanaka called the meeting to order. Public Comment There were no requests to speak. Agenda Items 1. Approval of the following changes to scope, compensation, and/or time: 1A. Approval of Office of City Auditor Task Order Change - 04.14 ALPR Technology Contract Management 1B. Approval of Office of City Auditor Task Order Change – 04.19 Disaster Recovery Preparedness 1C. Approval of Office of City Auditor Task Order Change - FY23-01 Citywide Risk Assessment & FY23-02 Annual Audit Plan City Auditor Adriane McCoy noted that the items were for the purpose of extending the anticipated audit completion dates. There were no scope or content changes. Chair Tanaka recognized that Council Member Veenker had joined the meeting. Council Member Lauing asked how this situation came to be, as a couple were missing just a signature. He stated it would be nice if corrective action could be done indirectly. SUMMARY MINUTES Page 2 of 10 Sp. Policy & Services Meeting Summary Minutes: 06/13/2023 City Auditor Adriane McCoy explained that there had been a delay in signing the task orders after the March Council meeting. She noted that there had also been delays in the getting document requests and meetings established with the vender related to ALPR, but the audit was underway. In terms of Disaster Recovery, they had delay with the cybersecurity report, which paused the audit. She had a meeting planned with Daren Anderson later in the week to discuss the audit launch date. Regarding the Risk Assessment and Internal Audit Plan for FY2024, she would make a presentation to the Executive Leadership Team in the next two weeks to discuss content of the risk assessment and how it would be carried out, and they would follow up with all Council members for an interview in order to compile the risk assessment results and then present a proposed Annual Audit Plan to P&S. Council Member Lauing requested to be notified in the event of future missing signatures. City Auditor Adriane McCoy acknowledged she would provide notification in the future. Council Member Veenker apologized for being late. She had witnessed an impressive response by Police and Fire to an emergency, which delayed her arrival. She asked that needed signatures be requested in the future, which P&S would be happy to help with. She did not object to the extensions. She asked who it was that staff had been unable to reach. City Auditor Adriane McCoy answered that they could not reach vendors. Council Member Veenker requested the vendors be made aware that they should be responsive to the auditors. MOTION: Chair Tanaka moved, seconded by Council Member Veenker to recommend City Council approve the change to the Task Order 04.14 ALPR Technology Contract Management, Task Order 04.19 Disaster Recovery Preparedness, and Task Order FY23-01 Citywide Risk Assessment & FY23-02 Annual Audit Plan. MOTION PASSED: 3-0 Public Comment There were no requests to speak. 2. City Council Referral to Discuss and Recommend Council Procedures and Protocols on: Board and Commissions-Related Sections and other City Council referrals related to the City Council Procedures and Protocols Deputy City Manager Chantal Cotton Gaines noted that the item was a referral from City Council related to the discussion of the Procedures and Protocols Handbook. P&S had an interest in crafting language concerning the role of the Council liaison to boards and commissions, and P&S wanted to discuss the language in partnership with chairs of boards and commissions. There was also a referral related to not lobbying boards and commissions. Staff SUMMARY MINUTES Page 3 of 10 Sp. Policy & Services Meeting Summary Minutes: 06/13/2023 would take notes of the discussion. The Committee could produce specific language for handbook or if specific language should not be provided, staff and the City Attorney’s office could draft it. She pointed out that not all boards, commissions, and City volunteers had a Council liaison. There were that about six commissions with a liaison, the Chairs of which would be engaged with in this meeting. Chair Tanaka requested the discussion begin with Item 2.8 and then Item 2.2. He asked the City Clerk to bring up a document and take notes, which could help frame some of the discussion. He discussed formatting the conversation of Item 2.8. Council Member Veenker would like the commissioners and chairs to be included in the conversation related to Item 2.2. Council Member Lauing suggested the commissioners and chairs introduce themselves. He asked them to address the need for a liaison, role changes, etc. Parks and Recreation Commission Chair Jeff Greenfield spoke of the role of the liaison being to support the Commission and their presence being appreciated. The absence of a liaison could lead to the body questioning the worth of the work they were doing. If the Council liaison would not attend a meeting, he suggested there be a written policy to communicate that to the Chair or Staff Liaison. He noted that the PRC had a very active liaison. As Chair, he tried to ask liaisons if there were comments, but he thought the BCC Handbook should document and clarify comments that would be appropriate. He proposed that the handbook include guidelines and clarification related to in-person versus remote meetings. He mentioned that participation by liaisons and ad hoc committees in the annual retreat was useful, which led to establishing work plans. Chair Tanaka thought it would be helpful for one to know to what extent a liaison should participate. He wanted boards and commissions to be independent in addressing an issue. Council Member Veenker requested liaisons share prior Council discussions and actions and assist the Board or Commission in understanding likely Council perspectives on issues. Public Art Commission Chair Hsinya Shen expressed that having a Council liaison present was fantastic. She explained that the Public Art Commission was unique in that some actions were not advisory only. Having City Council’s perspective or input on a particular topic was helpful in anchoring and guiding the decision-making process. She stated liaisons participating in the retreat would be helpful. Historic Resources Board Chair Alisa Eagleston-Cieslewicz noted that she was a new Chair and indicated that some of her comments would relate to her experience as a Board member. She remarked that it was nice to have a member of City Council present and involved. She thought it would be helpful to address getting feedback from the liaison as to Council’s history related to a particular issue and what would be appropriate to share and what the scope and dialogue SUMMARY MINUTES Page 4 of 10 Sp. Policy & Services Meeting Summary Minutes: 06/13/2023 might be. The HRC had relatively minimal needs in terms of feedback, but there could be situations where more communication might be needed. Utilities Advisory Commission Chair Lauren Segal noted that the role of the UAC had changed quite a bit over her six years on the UAC, as the City’s focus had shifted to electrification and fiber, which required more attention and community attention. The economics of utilities also required more attention. In the past, the liaisons had been active. She voiced that the value of a Council liaison was to understand what likely Council positions or priorities might be and to also relay Council discussions. She thought of it as a feedback loop. She discussed historic perspective being a help. She provided an example of a UAC meeting when a commissioner asked a specific detailed question that had been generated by a Council member, and she did not think that was appropriate nor fair to staff because they did not have an opportunity to prepare for the question. She preferred a more formal process through the liaison or that it be open in a public meeting. The UAC’s role was to support Council, and sometimes it was unclear the best way to do that, so feedback was needed. The UAC did not have a great sense of the Council’s priorities, goals, or timelines nor how Council hoped to allocate the budget within S/CAP, and she did not think there had been enough communication. Human Relations Commission Chair Kaloma Smith stated the HRC was particularly dealing with the human side and issues concerning the marginalized, and the HRC gained extreme benefit from the liaison position. A liaison explaining the City’s position on an issue was helpful, and the feedback loop was critical. Without a liaison, there was not that level of communication. He noted that a liaison sometimes helped center conversations and helped the HRC focus on primary issues because the written document sometimes did not always provide intention, context, etc., and a liaison was helpful in getting feedback and getting things on the agenda, etc. He specified that Council liaison interaction with commissions making significant decisions was critical. Council Member Veenker noted that it was heartening to hear that Council liaisons were valuable, and she wondered if reconsidering Council liaisons for committees or commissions without liaisons should be revisited. She was glad to hear that a lot of the PAC’s decisions were independent in the sense that they did reach Council but that a liaison was valuable. She wondered how liaisons should be selected as far as attributes. Chair Segal noted that a UAC member had participated in the past related to S/CAP. She did not know if it should be a question of who had more time. Chair Shen voiced that they derived a lot of benefit from the liaison’s presence and attention to the Commission’s effort, and she provided an example in which their understanding of the workings of the City government was appreciated. She stated it would be helpful to revisit the size of the PAC and other commissions. Chair Greenfield specified there was a balance in working independently and guiding, and a focus of the liaison was to guide and provide feedback, which drove efficiency. He had observed SUMMARY MINUTES Page 5 of 10 Sp. Policy & Services Meeting Summary Minutes: 06/13/2023 that liaisons attending meetings was a learning opportunity. He discussed the independent decisions the PRC would sometimes make and noted that the PRC would advise on two levels of matters – an action on a specific recommendation to Council on a policy change but a lot of the Parks rules, regulations, and policies were staff decisions and would not go to Council. Sometimes the takeaway of a liaison, which would be channeled back to Council, was not clear, and he suggested there be a way to communicate that. Council Member Veenker noted there were Brown Act issues around items not agendized, which would make it hard to communicate liaison takeaways. Council Member Lauing noted that the liaison could speak with the Chair anytime, which was a natural communication channel. Chair Smith thought liaisons received information for Council’s dialogue. The feedback could be informal and could give Council members information to enrich a Council discussion. Council Member Lauing indicated that commissions were independent and took orders from Council, depending on the commission. He believed the commissions and boards were independent and that information would be taken from official hearings and from residents that would be filtered into decisions that would become recommendations to Council for policy. He expressed that he would always side with commissions in his discussions with Council members, which would allow commissions to do their good work. He thought the independence of boards was crucial. He commented that any commission could have guest speakers and noted, for example, that S/CAP could present at a UAC meeting, which could provide information to the UAC. He voiced that a Commission should have access to any information needed to do their work. From his perspective of having a liaison, not having a liaison, and being a liaison, he thought the liaison being mostly quiet at a meeting was best, although sometimes asking pointed questions, but the liaisons should not be involved in debates. He noted there were commissions without liaisons that were not requesting one, and there was a lot of distinction between commissions in terms of the number of commissioners needed. He commented that Council previously decided to reduce the number of HRC commissioners, which had since been added back. Whether to have a liaison and the role of a liaison could be different depending on the relay of information and responsibilities of a Commission, and he thought there needed to be flexibility. Chair Segal commented that staff time had become a problem because Utility staff was under- resourced, and the UAC had declared that questions needed to come from the Chair or the Director. Council Member Lauing thought filtering was needed to stay on the Work Plan. He noted that his previous comment related more to a commissioner presenting a new agenda item not on the Work Plan for the year as opposed to more ground-level input on, for example, S/CAP. Public Comment SUMMARY MINUTES Page 6 of 10 Sp. Policy & Services Meeting Summary Minutes: 06/13/2023 There were no request to speak. Council Member Veenker asked staff if they had comments regarding the language of 2.8, which she felt was compatible with the discussion. She suggested 2.8 be amended to reflect liaisons would not participate in Board or Commission debates. Chair Tanaka asked the Clerk to display the language of 2.8 and 2.2. He wanted notes to be taken so comments could be captured. Council Member Lauing thought the role of the liaison was to be a channel of communication, not a participant in debate. Council Member Veenker suggested 2.8 be amended to reflect that liaisons would not participate in Board or Commission debates. Council Member Lauing did not want “understanding likely Council perspectives” to be perceived to mean not voicing opinions. Chair Tanaka agreed. He commented that boards and commissions often knew more about a particular topic than Council, and he thought that should be leveraged. He was in favor of delegating more decision-making to boards and commissions, which should be independent, and that perhaps more than just unanimous decisions go to consent. Council Member Veenker agreed with Chair Tanaka’s comments concerning respecting the expertise of the commissions, which she tried to do. She thought there needed to be some degree of flexibility, which she did not believe needed to be legislated or included in the document. She noted that 2.8 was to share prior Council discussions and actions, which sounded to her like providing context to a Commission as they considered issues, which would be more describing than persuading. As for understanding likely Council perspectives on issues, she did not feel the liaisons should guess how individuals would vote. She perceived it as sharing history. Chair Segal thought it was important to keep the piece referencing how the Board or Commission might support Council decision-making. Discussion ensued as to the language and content of 2.8 related to understanding Council perspectives and related to independent actions. Deputy City Manager Cotton Gaines voiced that, if directed, City staff and the City Attorney’s office could refine the language. Discussion continued related to the language and content of 2.8 in terms of a liaison being a conduit of information or a contact and liaisons attending meetings. Chair Tanaka thought attendance should be the decision of the liaison and the Commission or Board. He wondered if all commissions should have a liaison. SUMMARY MINUTES Page 7 of 10 Sp. Policy & Services Meeting Summary Minutes: 06/13/2023 Chair Segal questioned the role of the liaison if they did not attend a meeting. Chair Tanaka thought the liaison was the go-to person and that attendance should be on an as- needed basis. Chair Shen asked who should determine if a liaison should attend a meeting. Chair Tanaka thought it should be a joint decision. Council Member Lauing expressed that the handbook was being written and there could be a recommendation, which may need changes. Council Member Veenker suggested a liaison attend at the request of a Commission. Chair Tanaka proposed that all boards and commissions have liaisons. Council Member Lauing did not agree that all boards and commissions should have liaisons. Deputy City Manager Cotton-Gains was not sure such a recommendation should be through the procedures and protocols document discussion and thought it could be a suggestion on going back to Council. Discussion arose regarding language and content of 2.8 related to a liaison being a resource to a Board or Commission and being a point of contact with Council, liaison attendance, and liaison debate participation. Chair Tanaka asked the Chairs to share thoughts concerning 2.2. Chair Segal inquired if any City Council member being allowed to speak to any Commission member to clarify a position taken by a Board related to positions already taken or positions on an upcoming agenda. She did not want a liaison to influence during a meeting, but she more so did not want there to be influence outside of an agendized meeting. Council Member Veenker offered language related to Chair Segal’s comments. She questioned if contact between boards and commissions and Council members should be done formally. Chair Shen explained why it was helpful to have the Council liaison as a reference point to understand the context in which decisions would be made. Regarding Section 2.2 and the word “clarify,” she asked who would make the clarification. Council Member Veenker asked if a Council member should be allowed to contact a Board or Commission member to clarify something that had already been done. Chair Segal did not think Commission members should be limited in reaching out to Council members with questions but that Council members should be limited in reaching out to SUMMARY MINUTES Page 8 of 10 Sp. Policy & Services Meeting Summary Minutes: 06/13/2023 Commission members. She felt there was a big distinction between meetings that had occurred and upcoming meetings. Chair Greenfield commented that it was important to maintain the independence of the Commission and that there should be open dialogue in both directions. Discussion ensued concerning the language and content of 2.2 with respect to communication to understand a position taken and communication to understand the status of an ongoing issue. Council Member Veenker understood this to mean commissioners could reach out to Council members but Council members could not reach out to commissioners unless it concerned what may have already been done or the status procedurally of an ongoing issue. She discussed lobbying versus unsolicited lobbying. Discussion occurred regarding the language of 2.2 related to a Council member contacting a liaison, lobbying, and a liaison asking a Council member to advocate for a particular policy. MOTION: Council Member Lauing moved, seconded by Council Member Veenker to recommend the City Council update sections 2.2 and 2.8 of the City Council Procedures and Protocol Handbook to read: 2.2. Refrain from Lobbying Board and Commission Members It is inappropriate for a Council member to contact a Board or Commission member to lobby on behalf of an individual, business, or developer, or to advocate a particular policy perspective. It is acceptable for Council members to contact Board or Commission members in order to better understand a position taken by the Board or Commission or the status of an ongoing matter. 2.8. Role of Council Liaison to Board or Commission The role of Council liaison to a Board or Commission is to be a point of contact with Council and a resource to the Board and Commission, as well as to share prior Council discussions and actions on issues as applicable, and assist the Board or Commission in understanding how it might inform Council decision-making. The liaison is expected to attend Board or Commission meetings as requested by the body. MOTION PASSED: 3-0 Council Member Lauing asked the attending Chairs their thoughts on the work plans. Chair Greenfield answered that the work plans were worthwhile and provided an historical record on the work of a Commission. He explained that there were significant problems in the timing of the appointments of new BCC members and when work plans would be due. SUMMARY MINUTES Page 9 of 10 Sp. Policy & Services Meeting Summary Minutes: 06/13/2023 Chair Shen discussed the initial difficulties with the Excel spreadsheet format but stated they were now more able to update it. She thought it was helpful from a record-keeping standpoint and that they could continue to generate it, but it was a work in progress. Chair Eagleston-Cieslewicz stated that she had joined after the system was in place, so she had not experienced an alternative. It had been easy to learn and made sense, and the Board had been able to accomplish it with relatively few problems. Chair Segal stated the work plan was challenging timing wise because they had not had a quorum. She indicated they were a little anomalous because they had a large mandate and the work plan was many pages, which ended up not being helpful because of the size. She did not know that the UAC should be used as an example. She discussed how they had addressed the timing issue. Future Meetings and Agendas Chair Tanaka asked Council members their thoughts on the light agenda and the meeting and asked staff about upcoming meetings. Council Member Lauing knew of only leaf blowers and the last agenda item addressed in this meeting. Deputy City Manager Chantal Cotton-Gaines stated the Commission was near the end of the referrals. International Travel language was to be drafted by staff and brought back to the Committee, which she assumed would be done quickly. Censure Language needed to be discussed, which had not yet been brought to the Committee. International Travel, Censure Language, and another one, which she could not recall, were on the City Attorney’s inbox, and staff needed to provide the Committee with language or comparison points, which they planned to bring back in August. Council Member Veenker spoke of best practices on lobbying and appreciated the work going on related to Censure Language. Chair Tanaka appreciated staff having comparisons to near municipalities. Council Member Lauing asked the status of the leaf blower issue and noted categorization needed to be done in relation to other equipment. He thought leaf blowers would come forth followed by other equipment. Deputy City Manager Cotton-Gaines would contact staff and follow-up with the Committee regarding the leaf blower issue. She recalled that staff was balancing it amongst other Council priorities. Council Member Veenker asked Chair Tanaka if there were topics or categories typically seen on P&S that had not been addressed this year but should be. SUMMARY MINUTES Page 10 of 10 Sp. Policy & Services Meeting Summary Minutes: 06/13/2023 Chair Tanaka did not think there were topics or categories typically seen that had not been addressed. He wanted to talk more about meeting efficiency. Council Member Lauing indicated that adjustments needed to be made to the Work Plan schedule, which could be communicated to the Mayor and Vice Mayor informally to avoid voting, etc. He commented that the work plans could be every two years and that a referral could be requested. Chair Tanaka agreed that adjustments needed to be made to the Work Plan schedule, which could be communicated to the Mayor and Vice Mayor informally. Council Member Veenker stated that Commission appointments could be done earlier. Adjournment: The meeting was adjourned at 9:10 P.M.