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Californians Aware
THE CENTER

FOR PUBLIC FORUM RIGHTS

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July!30,!2014!
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By Email and Facsimile Transmission !
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Andrew!Phillips,!Chief!Financial!Officer/Chief!Operating!Officer!
Rich!Geisler,!Board!Secretary!
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Civic!San!Diego!
401!B!Street,!Fourth!Floor!
San!Diego,!CA!92101!
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Demand!for!Board!Action!to!Cease!and!Desist!from!Violating!the!Ralph!M.!Brown!Act!!
and!to!Amend!the!Bylaws!Accordingly!
!
Dear!Messrs.!Phillips!and!Geisler,!
!
On!Monday,!July!21,!2014,!despite!cautions!by!Californians!Aware!to!refrain!from!doing!so,!
the!Civic!San!Diego!Board!of!Directors!held!a!special!meeting,!deliberately!mislabeled!on!its!
agenda!as!a!regular!meeting,!at!which!it!appointed!Board!Chair!Cynthia!Morgan!as!its!
representative!to!negotiate!compensation!with!a!prospective!president!of!Civic!San!Diego,!
and,!in!a!closed!session,!gave!Ms.!Morgan!direction!concerning!that!negotiation.!
!
The!Board!apparently!took!these!actions!on!that!date!to!satisfy!the!Mayors!desire!that!the!
appointment!of!a!president!of!Civic!San!Diego!be!accomplished!before!the!summer!recess!
of!the!City!Council,!because!waiting!until!the!Boards!next!annually!calendared!regular!
meeting!of!July!30!would!supposedly!miss!the!Mayors!deadline.!!
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The!Board!designated!this!special!meeting!as!a!regular!meeting!to!evade!the!Brown!Acts!
provision,!in!Government!Code!Section!54956,!*!subdivision!(b),!that!a!legislative!body!
shall!not!call!a!special!meeting!regarding!the!salaries,!salary!schedules,!or!compensation!
paid!in!the!form!of!fringe!benefits,!of!a!local!agency!executive!.!.!.!
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The!Brown!Act,!in!Section!54954,!subdivision!(a)!provides!that!(e)ach!legislative!body!of!a!
local!agency,!except!for!advisory!committees!or!standing!committees,!shall!provide,!by!
ordinance,!resolution,!bylaws,!or!by!whatever!other!rule!is!required!for!the!conduct!of!
business!by!that!body,!the!time!and!place!for!holding!regular!meetings.!The!final!word!in!!
____________________________________________________________________________________________________!
*!All!further!section!references!are!to!the!Government!Code.!
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2218 Homewood Way Carmichael, CA 95608 (916) 487-7000 info@calaware.org

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Californians!Aware:!Brown!Act!Demands!
July!30,!2014!
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that!provision,!meetings,!contemplates!a!plural!or!collective!designationa!standard!
regular!schedule!by!which!the!public!can!determine!in!advance!the!time!and!date!for!the!
bodys!ordinary!business!meetings.!!!
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No!other!legislative!body!of!which!we!are!aware!interprets!the!term!regular!differently;!
as!defined!at!USLegal.com,!for!example,!a!regular!meeting!is!one!held!periodically!
according!to!the!time!stated!in!an!organizations!regulating!documents!or!under!a!standing!
rule!which!the!deliberative!assembly!has!adopted.!!In!terms!of!parliamentary!parlance,!as!
The!Meetings!Institute!notes,!regular!meetings!are!meetings!which!are!held!usually!on!a!
regular!basis!and!conduct!business!for!which!no!special!notice!needs!to!be!given!(according!
to!the!organisations!rules!or!constitution).!The!Attorney!General!likewise!observes!that!
under!the!Brown!Act,!If!a!body!calls!a!meeting!at!a!time!or!place!other!than!the!time!or!
place!specified!for!regular!meetings,!it!is!either!a!special!or!emergency!meeting.!The*Brown*
Act:*Open*Meetings*for*Local*Legislative*Bodies!(2003),!p.!16.!
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The!Boards!meetings!policy!5.3!states,!The!regular!meeting!dates,!times!and!location!shall!
be!set!annually!by!BOARD!resolution.!But!the!corporate!Bylaws!provision!on!regular!
meetings!(Article!4.2)!states!only!that!in!addition!to!an!annual!organizational!meeting,!
Other!regular!meetings!of!the!Board!shall!be!held!at!such!times!as!are!fixed!by!the!Board!or!
requested!by!the!Member.!
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The!Board!apparently!was!advised!by!counsel!that!pursuant!to!Article!4.2!it!could,!by!
simple!designation!a!few!days!in!advance,!convert!what!would!by!the!general!
interpretation!be!a!special!meeting!(because!not!falling!on!a!prebset!schedule)!into!a!
regular!meeting!for!purposes!of!satisfying!both!Section!54956!(b)!and!the!Mayors!
desired!deadline.!
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Obviously,!if!a!meeting!on!any!date!could!at!any!time!be!deemed!a!regular!meeting!by!
simple!Board!determination!such!as!was!done!here,!there!would!be!no!need!for!special!
meetings!because!there!would!be!no!regular!meeting!schedule!to!begin!with.!
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The!July!30,!2014,!regular!meeting!notice!has!been!posted!and!includes!Item!13!b!
Identification!of!Labor!Negotiator!Representative.!!We!appreciate!that!by!scheduling!this!
item!for!a!regular!meeting,!the!Board!appears!to!recognize!that!its!past!actions!violated!the!
Brown!Act.!!However!to!address!the!risk!of!repeated!violations!we!demand,!pursuant!to!
Section!54960.2,!the!following:!
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1.!The!Board!shall,!within!30!days!of!receipt!of!this!demand,!provide!Californians!
Aware!with!an!unconditional!commitment!to!cease,!desist!from,!and!not!repeat!the!ad*hoc!
designation!of!meetings!not!on!its!regular!meeting!schedule,!adopted!in!conformity!with!
Section!54954!(a),!as!regular!meetings,!and!!
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2218 Homewood Way Carmichael, CA 95608 (916) 487-7000 info@calaware.org

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Californians!Aware:!Brown!Act!Demands!
July!30,!2014!
Page!3!of!3!
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2.!The!Board!shall,!within!30!days!of!receipt!of!this!request,!take!the!necessary!
actions!to!request!the!Member!to!amend!the!Corporations!bylaws!clarifying!that!regular!
meetings!of!the!Board!shall!be!set!annually!and!all!other!meetings!outside!of!the!annually!
adopted!schedule!shall!be!either!special!or!emergency!meetings!in!conformity!with!Section!
54954!(a).!!
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We!remain!open!to!working!with!the!Board!to!resolve!this!issue!and!avoid!litigation.!If!you!
have!any!questions!about!this!matter!please!email!me!at!terry@calaware.org.!
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Sincerely,!
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!
Terry!Francke!
General!Counsel!
Californians!Aware!!
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cc:!
Mayor!Kevin!L.!Faulconer!
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!City!Councilmembers!
!
City!Attorney!Jan!Goldsmith!

2218 Homewood Way Carmichael, CA 95608 (916) 487-7000 info@calaware.org