TITLE
Recommendation to request City Attorney to prepare an Amendment to Long Beach Municipal Code Section 2.03.020 [b] to provide the Council meeting schedule of the 1st and 3rd Tuesdays of the month.
DISCUSSION
On April 22, 2003, the City Council and Mayor O’Neill adopted a schedule of regular meetings for the Tuesday of each week, except the last Tuesday of each month. Regular meetings of the City Council shall be held at City Hall at five o’clock (5:00) P.M. The meeting schedule is regulated by Municipal Code 2.03.020.
The policy of no Council meetings on the last Tuesday of each month stemmed out of a request from Council on January 21, 2003, to review opportunities for streamlining or efficiency measures that could result in cost savings. A March 6, 2003, memo outlined five alternatives (A-E). Alternative D, “No Last Tuesday of Month Meetings,” was adopted with the estimated cost savings of $37,560 per year at a cost of $3,130 per meeting. Since 2003, the City has saved approximately $300,000 by using this approach.
From the memo of March 6, 2003, Alternative A gave the option of conducting 2 monthly meetings. The cost savings estimate for 2003, was $87,640 per year. In addition, there will be significant benefits to the community as Councilmembers and City staff will have more time to invest in community activities.
As in 2003, the current budget evaluation is an opportune time to review the policies of the City Council and look for opportunities to improve government efficiency, reduce costs, and increase the amount of time Councilmembers and staff can invest in the community. Accordingly, it is recommended that the City Council modify the schedule of regular meetings to two per month.
SUGGESTED ACTION
Approve recommendation.
Respectfully Submitted,
COUNCILMEMBER GARY DELONG
THIRD DISTRICT
COUNCILMEMBER ROBERT GARCIA
FIRST DISTRICT
COUNCILMEMBER SUJA LOWENTHAL
SECOND DISTRICT