Discuss Term Limits for Town Council Seatswx F MEETING DATE: 04 -14 -14
ITEM NO: 3
Boa seats COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT
DATE: APRIL 10, 2014
TO: MAYOR AND TOWN COUNCIL
FROM: GREG LARSON, TOWN MANAGEKgg: /_Ww �
SUBJECT: DISCUSS AND PROVIDE DIRECTION, IF ANY, REGARDING TERM LIMITS FOR
TOWN COUNCIL SEATS
RECOMMENDATION:
Discuss and provide direction, if any, regarding term limits for Town Council seats.
BACKGROUND:
Mayor Steven Leonardis scheduled an item for Council consideration regarding term limits for Town
Council seats. This staff report provides background information for this item. At present, the Town of
Los Gatos does not have tern limits for elected officials. Town Council members serve four -year terms,
and may seek re- election without limit.
DISCUSSION:
California Government Code section 36502 allows the Town's voters to determine whether Town
Council members shall be subject to term limits. Such a decision must be made at a regular Town
election and can only apply prospectively (previous terms of re- elected incumbents do not count toward
the term limit put in place). A term limit measure may be placed on a ballot as an initiative measure
brought forward by citizens or as a Council proposed measure.
In 2009, a petition to place a measure on the ballot to establish term limits was circulated, but the
petition was rejected due to procedural errors.
Staff conducted the attached survey of City Clerks in Santa Clara County to document the existence and
details of term limits in other cities in the county. While not all of the details are available for each of
the cities, the survey provided the majority of information requested for most of the cities. Of the 14
other cities in the County, 11 have term limits. Gilroy, Morgan Hill and Saratoga do not, although
PREPARED BY: PAMELA JACOBS P *d1�
ASSISTANT TOWN MANAGER
Reviewed by: Assistant Town Manager
Attorney
PAGE 2
MAYOR AND TOWN COUNCIL
SUBJECT: DISCUSS AND PROVIDE DIRECTION, IF ANY, REGARDING TERM LIMITS FOR
TOWN COUNCIL SEATS
APRIL 10, 2014
Saratoga did have an affirmative advisory vote on the matter some years ago, with which elected
officials have voluntarily complied since then. All of the cities with term limits except Milpitas allow
no more than two consecutive four -year terms. More than half of the cities with term limits allow
Council members to seek re- election after a period of time has lapsed (typically two years).
Council may discuss if there is interest in establishing tent limits for elected officials in Los Gatos, and,
if so, what the specifics of the limitations would be. Council may consider the following options:
Option 1: Do nothing. Elected officials would continue to be permitted to seek re- election without
limit.
Option 2: Place a measure on the ballot to ask voters to decide if term limits should be established.
If Option 2 is pursued, Council should provide direction on the following issues:
■ Number of consecutive terms permitted.
■ Treatment of partial terms.
■ Period of time between the limited number of terms before Council members can again run for
re- election, if any.
If Council directs staff to take the steps necessary to place a measure on the ballot, the next regular
election would be November 2014. The last day to file a resolution calling for a measure election is
August 8, 2014.
ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT:
Is not a project defined under CEQA, and no further action is required.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The costs to add a ballot measure to the November 2014 election is estimated by the Registrar of Voters
to be approximately $52,000 depending on the number of pages the measure, plus any arguments and
rebuttals (base cost of $16,400, plus approximately $6,000 per page).
Attachment:
Survey of Santa Clara County Cities Regarding Term Limits
SANTA CLARA COUNTY CITIES TERM LIMIT SURVEY
City
Term
Details
Limits
Campbell
Yes
Two consecutive terms; re- election possible after
22 months
Cupertino
Yes
Two consecutive terms; maximum time for
appointed and elected combined of 10 years and
354 days; re- election possible after four years
Gilroy
No
NA
Los Altos
Yes
Two consecutive terms
Los Altos Hills
Yes
Two consecutive terms; re- election possible after
two years
Milpitas
Yes
Three consecutive terms as Mayor or Council
member; four consecutive terms if elected Mayor
and Council member; re- election possible after
two years
Monte Sereno
Yes
Two consecutive terms; re- election possible after
two years
Mountain View
Yes
Two consecutive terms
Morgan Hill
No
NA
Palo Alto
Yes
Two consecutive terms
San Jose
Yes
Two consecutive terms
Santa Clara
Yes
Two consecutive terms; re- election possible after
two years
Saratoga
No*
NA
Sunnyvale
Yes
Two consecutive terms; re- election possible after
two years
* In the 1990s, Saratoga voters passed an advisory measure limiting Council members
to two consecutive terms; however, there are no mandatory term limits in place. Since
then, Council members have voluntarily complied with this advisory measure.
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