City Council Motion Concerning the Early Notification System (ENS)
Submitted by Councilwoman Janice Hahn, 14th District
Seconded by Councilwoman Wendy Gruel, 2nd District

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MOTION

( submitted January 28, 2003 )

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The City Charter requires that an Early Notification system be established to provide the public with notice, as soon as practical, about decisions that are about to be made by the City Council, its committees, and board and commissions so that the public has a reasonable opportunity to provide input before decisions are made. The Department of Neighborhood Empowerment is required to oversee the Early Notification System (ENS). Phase I of the ENS has been completed. Phase II is underway. It plans to provide users with the ability to subscribe to notices of items from a prescribed geographic area and/or of a certain subject matter. It also plans to allow users to view the documents, such as staff reports and committee reports, that explain the agenda item.

We need to do more. A commonly-heard complaint of stakeholders throughout the city has been that their concerns are too often ignored at City Hall. People need and want to be well-informed and to do so they need understandable, timely, and reliable information.

The ENS can be enhanced through the following measures:

1. Improve the training provided to Neighborhood Councils about how to access information.

I THEREFORE MOVE that the Department of Neighborhood Empowerment immediately develop an on-going comprehensive training program schedule to be in place in thirty (30) days for the 2003 calendar year on the ENS and how to access the City Clerk files, and that each neighborhood council be trained by the end of the year.

2. The City Council, its committees, and city commissions should maintain advance agendas through the ENS system. The City Clerk and all boards and commissions should post on their Web sites, and make available through the ENS subscription system, advance agendas. Once it has been determined that issues are planned to be discussed at a certain meeting, the advance agendas would provide early notification to interested parties.

I THEREFORE MOVE that the City Clerk immediately begin posting advance agendas through the ENS system and report back to the Education and Neighborhoods Committee within thirty days on a full implementation plan.

3. Agenda items must be written in a way that is clear, understandable, and accurate. Presently, the City Clerk generally repeats wording from departmental staff reports, whether or not it is understandable to the public. Departmental staff should realize that, therefore, they are writing their reports for the public, and not just for governmental officials.

I THEREFORE MOVE that the Department of Neighborhood Empowerment develop a system so that the City Council's agendas, and commission agendas, could more clearly and accurately describe the item that is to be discussed and report back to the Education and Neighborhoods Committee within thirty days on these recommendations.

4. The City must develop methods for ensuring that the public is notified about projects whether or not they appear on an agenda. The Early Notification System provides people with notice about items that are about to appear on an agenda. The Neighborhood Councils want more than that. They need to know about other City projects that take place in their neighborhoods without them knowing about it.

I THEREFORE MOVE that the Chief Legislative Analyst report to the City Council how the City can better inform the public about neighborhood projects such as street paving, demolitions, tree trimming, sidewalk repair, trenching, and other projects that significantly impact neighborhoods, and report back to the Education and Neighborhoods Committee within thirty days.

5. The City Clerk should publish on their Web site the list of items that are pending in each City Council committee. If someone were to subscribe to and regularly read the City Council's Referral Sheet, they would know about and track all of the items that might eventually be scheduled before each committee. These lists are currently maintained by each committee's Legislative Assistant, and they are comprised of public information.

I THEREFORE MOVE that the City Clerk immediately publish their list of all the files that are pending in each committee.

6. Motions introduced through Rule 16 and agendas for special meetings should include a printed statement of urgency. The City Council's Rule 16 allows a motion to be considered by the Council without first being considered by a committee as long as the Council President approves the action, and at least 72 hours pass. This leaves little time for the public to be aware of, understand, and provide input on many issues.

The Brown Act allows the City Council, its committees, and board and commissions, to schedule special meetings with just 24 hours notice, and there is no urgency finding needed.

I THEREFORE MOVE that the City Clerk establish a system which provides a statement of urgency for all items introduced through Rule 16 of the City Council, or for all special meetings of the Council, its committees, and boards and commissions. This system should include the provision that the City Clerk sends copies of all of these urgent agendas to the Neighborhood Councils via fax or e-mail as soon as possible. The City Clerk should report back to the Education and Neighborhoods Committee within thirty days on the feasibility of this system.