Ordinance No. 1193 53
ORDINANCE NO. 1193
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF CYPRESS AMENDING AND
RESTATING THE RULES OF ORDER FOR THE CONDUCT OF CITY
COUNCIL MEETINGS
WHEREAS, the City Council of the City of Cypress is authorized to establish rules
of conduct for its proceedings pursuant to Government Code section 36813;
WHEREAS, the City Council has not updated its rules of conduct and decorum
since it adopted Ordinance No. 265 on May 24, 1965;
WHEREAS, many provisions of Ordinance No. 265 are outdated, inconsistent with
current law and practices and are in need of updating; and
WHEREAS, the City Council wishes to update and repeal and replace Ordinance
No. 265 with this Ordinance.
NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF CYPRESS DOES
ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. AGENDA. The City Clerk shall prepare an agenda of the City Council
proceedings which agenda shall be prepared in accordance with the Order of Business
and shall furnish each Council Member, the City Manager and City Attorney with a copy
of the same prior to the Council meeting, but not later than the time required pursuant to
the Brown Act preceding each meeting. Matters that are not listed on the agenda shall
not be presented to the City Council by the City Manager, except those of an urgent nature
as authorized per the Brown Act.
Section 2. DUTIES OF PRESIDING OFFICER. The Mayor shall preside at the
meetings of the City Council and shall preserve strict order and decorum at all regular
and special meetings of the City Council. The Mayor shall state every question coming
before the City Council, announce the decision of the City Council on all subjects, except
where the City Clerk makes such announcement, and decide all questions of order
subject however to an appeal to the City Council in which event a majority vote of the City
Council shall govern and conclusively determine such question of order
Section 3. CALL TO ORDER - PRESIDING OFFICER. The Mayor, or in his/her
absence the Mayor Pro Tempore, shall take the chair precisely at the hour appointed for
the meeting, and shall immediately call the City Council to order. In the absence of the
Mayor or Mayor Pro Tempore, the City Clerk shall call the City Council to order,
whereupon a temporary chair shall be elected by the Council Members present. Upon the
arrival of the Mayor or Mayor Pro Tempore, the temporary chair shall immediately
relinquish the chair upon the conclusion of the business immediately before the City
Council.
Section 4. ROLL CALL. Before proceeding with the business of the City Council,
the City Clerk shall call the roll of the Council Members and the names of those present
shall be entered in the minutes.
Section 5. QUORUM. A majority of the City Council constitutes a quorum for the
transaction of business, but a lesser number may adjourn from time to time and may
cancel the meeting by a notice. The City Clerk may also notice the adjournment or
cancellation of a meeting for lack of a quorum.
Section 6. ORDER OF BUSINESS. All meetings of the City Council shall be open
to the public. Promptly at the hour set by law on the day of each regular meeting, the
Council Members, City Manager, City Clerk and the City Attorney shall take their assigned
stations in the City Council Chambers and the business of the City Council shall be taken
up for consideration and disposition in the following order unless otherwise changed by
resolution of the City Council.
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1. Call to Order
2. Roll Call
3. Closed Session
4. Presentations
5. Oral Communications
6. Public Hearings
7. Consent Calendar; Minutes
8. New Business
9. Continued Items
10. Items from Council Members
11. Oral Communications
12. Council Member Reports and Remarks
13. City Manager Remarks
14. Adjournment
Section 7. READING OF MINUTES. Unless the reading of the minutes of a Council
meeting is requested by a Council Member, such minutes may be approved without
reading if the Clerk has previously furnished each Council Member with a copy thereof.
Minutes shall be approved by voice or roll call vote.
Section 8. RULES OF DEBATE.
(a) Presiding Officer May Debate and Vote. The Mayor, or in his/her absence, such
other Council Member as may be presiding may move, second and debate from the chair,
subject only to such limitations of debate per these rules imposed on all Council Members
and shall not be deprived of any of the rights and privileges of a Council Member by
reason of his/her acting as the Presiding Officer.
(b) Getting the floor. Every Council Member desiring to speak shall request to be
recognized by the Presiding Officer and only speak after being so recognized. '
(c) Interruptions. A Council Member once recognized shall not be interrupted
when speaking unless it be to call him/her to order, or as herein otherwise provided. If a
Council Member, while speaking, is called to order, he/she shall cease speaking until the
question of order is determined.
(d) Remarks of Council Member-When Entered in Minutes. Any Council Member
may request, through the Presiding Officer, the privilege of having a written abstract of
his/her statement on any subject under consideration by the City Council entered in the
minutes. If the City Council consents thereto, such statement shall be entered in the
minutes.
(e) Motion to Reconsider. A motion to reconsider any action taken by the City
Council may be made only on the day such action was taken. It may be made either
immediately during the same session or at a recessed or adjourned session thereof. Such
motion must be made by one on the prevailing side, but may be seconded by any Council
Member and may be made at any time and have precedence over all other motions or,
while a Council Member has the floor, it shall be debatable.
(fl Rules of Order. Except as otherwise provided in this chapter "Robert's Rules
OOMOIVi
of Order", as revised and updated from time-to-time, shall govern the conduct of the
meetings of the City Council.
Section 9. ADDRESSING THE CITY COUNCIL. Any person desiring to address
the City Council shall first secure the permission of the Presiding Officer to do so; provided
that, under the following headings of business, unless the Presiding Officer rules
otherwise, any qualified and interested person shall have the right to address the City
Council upon obtaining recognition by the Presiding Officer:
(a) Written Communications. Interested parties or their authorized
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representatives may address the City Council by written communications in regard to
matters then under discussion.
(b) Oral Communications. Taxpayers or residents of the City or their authorized
legal representatives may address the City Council by oral communications on any matter
concerning the City's business or any matter over which the City Council has control;
provided that preference shall be given to those persons who may have notified the City
Clerk in advance of their desire to speak and submitted a completed a speaker card.
(c) Public Hearings. Interested persons or their authorized representatives may
address the City Council by reading of protests, petitions, communications or similar
matters during public hearings.
Section 10. ADDRESSING THE CITY COUNCIL AFTER MOTION MADE. After a
motion is made by the City Council, no person shall address the City Council without first
securing the permission of the Presiding Officer.
Section 11. MANNER OF ADDRESSING THE CITY COUNCIL, TIME LIMIT.
(a) Each member of the public addressing the City Council shall step up to the
microphone in front of the podium, give his/her name and address in an audible tone of
voice for the record and, unless further time is granted by the City Council, shall limit
his/her address to the time allotted on the agenda for public comments. All remarks shall
be addressed to the City Council as a body and not to an individual Council Member. No
person, other than the City Council and the person having the floor shall be permitted to
participate in the discussion, without the permission of the Presiding Officer. No member
of the public may ask a direct question shall to a Council Member except through the
Presiding Officer.
(b) In discussion of any issue before the City Council, members of the public and
of the City Council must confine themselves to the question before the City Council.
(b) Spokesman for Group of Persons. Whenever any group of persons wishes to
address the City Council on the same subject matter, the Presiding Officer may request
that a spokesman be chosen by the group to address the City Council, and in case
additional matters are to be presented at the time by any other member of said group, to
limit the number of persons so addressing the City Council so as to avoid unnecessary
repetition before the City Council.
Section 12 DECORUM.
(a) By Council Members.
1. Conduct. While the City Council is in session, the Council Members
must preserve order and decorum, and a Council Member shall neither by
conversation, by the utterance of loud, threatening, profane or abusive language,
or by engaging in any other disorderly conduct at any Council meeting, delay or
interrupt the City Council proceedings. A Council Member's persistence in
discussing an agenda item or any other matter before the City Council after the
matter has been called to a vote, shall constitute a violation of this subsection.
Council Members shall obey the orders of the City Council or the Presiding Officer.
The following rules shall be obeyed:
Council Members shall keep any remarks clear, concise and
on-topic.
ii. When there are differences of opinion, Council Members shall
focus on debating the facts of the situation and avoid personalities. Council
Members should seek to build on the ideas of others and look for common
ground.
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iii. Council Members shall be prepared at Council meetings,
including by reading their agendas with enough time to ask questions prior
to the Council meeting. Every effort will be made to ask questions before
the Council meeting so that the City Manager or the City Attorney, as
applicable, has ample time to research the question before the Council
meeting.
iv. Council Members shall base their decisions on the merits and
substance of the matter at hand, rather than on unrelated considerations.
2. Censure. A violation of these rules of decorum or the Civility,
Conduct and Governance Policy by a Council Member shall be subject to the
below enforcement provisions. Any Council Member may make a motion for a
vote to censure or for a vote for removal or ejection as set forth herein.
Resolution of Censure. Any Council Member who reasonably
believes that another Council Member is violating these rules of decorum or
the Civility, Conduct and Governance Policy shall be allowed to request an
agenda item be presented, in accordance with the procedures for
requesting future agenda items, calling for staff to bring back a draft
resolution of censure by identifying the Council Member, and that Council
Member's speech, actions or behavior, that he/she believes constitutes
such violation. If approved to be presented to the City Council for
consideration, the resolution of censure may be approved by a majority of
the City Council and may contain the penalties described below. Upon such
motion, all Council Members present shall immediately vote on the motion
and state whether they agree that the identified speech, actions or behavior
constitutes a violation and justifies a vote of censure. If a majority of the
Council Members present a vote for censure, then that vote shall be duly
noted by the City Clerk and the subject of that vote shall have two (2)
minutes to make a rebuttal stating why the vote should be overturned. After
such rebuttal, any Council Member shall be entitled to make a motion to
overturn the vote of censure. If such motion is approved by a majority vote
of those Council Members present, then the City Clerk shall remove such
censure from the record. Motions to overturn a vote of censure may only be
made at the meeting at which the vote of censure was made. This
subsection contemplates no other administrative remedy to a vote of
censure other than the two (2) minute rebuttal. If not so overturned, the
Resolution of censure shall be adopted.
ii. Fines For Censure. Any Council Member who is censured by
the City Council shall be subject to a one hundred dollar ($100.00)fine per
censure. Such fine(s) shall be paid to the City Clerk within thirty (30) days
of the date imposed. Failure to pay such fine(s) within sixty (60) days shall
give rise to a civil action by the City for collection, or shall be deducted or
offset from the Council Member's compensation or per diem entitlements.
iii. Revocation of Special Privileges. Any Council Member who is
censured by the City Council shall be subject to revocation of his/her
committee assignments, regional boards and commissions, and
community-generated board/committee appointments; suspension of
official travel, conference participation, access to a City credit card, City
Council salary, stipends and benefits, and ceremonial titles.
iv. Removal. Any Council Member who is censured by a majority
of the City Council during a Council meeting, in addition to the attendant
fines, shall also be subject to a vote, upon motion by any Council Member,
by a majority of the City Council present, to remove such offender from the
Council meeting. If a majority of the City Council votes for removal, then the
subject of that vote shall have two (2) minutes to make a rebuttal stating
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why the vote should be overturned. After such rebuttal any Council Member
shall be entitled to make a motion to overturn the vote to remove. If such
motion is approved by a majority vote of those Council Members present,
then the City Clerk shall remove such vote from the record. If the vote to
remove is not overturned, then such vote shall remain part of the
administrative record and Resolution of censure. Motions to overturn a vote
of removal may only be made at the meeting at which the vote of removal
was made. If the offending Council Member does not leave voluntarily, the
Presiding Officer may order any law enforcement officer who is on duty at
the Council meeting as sergeant at arms to remove the offender from the
Council Chambers. It shall be the duty of any law enforcement officer who
is serving as sergeant at arms at the Council meeting to carry out all orders
and instructions given by the Presiding Officer for the purpose of
maintaining order and decorum, including the removal of disruptive Council
Members and/or members of the public.
v. Resisting Removal; Penalty. Any Council Member or member of
the public who resists removal by the sergeant at arms shall be guilty of a
misdemeanor.
3. Motion To Enforce. If the Presiding Officer fails to enforce the rules
set forth above, any Council Member may move to require the Presiding Officer to
do so, and an affirmative vote of a majority of the City Council shall mandate such
action. If the Presiding Officer fails to carry out the will of a majority of the City
Council the majority may designate another Council Member to act as the Presiding
Officer for the limited purpose of enforcing any provision of this Subsection which
it desires to enforce.
(b) By other Persons. Any person making personal, impertinent or slanderous
remarks or who shall become boisterous while addressing the City Council shall be
forthwith, by directive of the Presiding Officer, be barred from further audience at said
meeting before the City Council unless permission to continue is granted by a majority
vote of the City Council.
Section 13. CODE OF ETHICS. The following principles shall constitute the
Cypress Code of Ethics, applicable to all Council Members. Council Members, upon the
adoption of this Ordinance or upon entering office, shall sign a statement affirming they
read and understood the Code of Ethics. In addition, this Code of Ethics shall be
periodically reviewed and updated by the City Council.
(a) Act in the public interest. Recognizing that stewardship of the public interest
must be their primary concern, Council Members will work for the common good of the
community and not for any private or personal interest, and they will assure fair and equal
treatment of all persons, claims and transactions coming before the City Council.
(b) Comply with the law. Council Members shall comply with the laws of the
nation, the State of California and the City of Cypress in the performance of their public
duties. These laws include, but are not limited to: the United States and California
Constitutions; the Charter; the Municipal Code; laws pertaining to conflicts of interest,
election campaigns, financial disclosures, employer responsibilities, and open processes
of government. Council Members shall also comply with all applicable City policies and
procedures.
(c) Conduct of Council Members. The professional and personal conduct of
Council Members must be above reproach and should avoid even the appearance of
impropriety. Council Members shall refrain from abusive conduct, personal charges or
verbal attacks upon the character or motives of other Council Members, City staff or
public.
(d) Respect for process. Council Members shall perform their duties in
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accordance with the processes and rules of order established by the City Council
governing the deliberation of public policy issues, meaningful involvement of the public,
and implementation of policy decisions of the City Council by City staff.
(e) Incompatible employment. No Council Member, City employee or other
public official shall engage in or accept private employment, or render services for private
interests, when such employment or service is incompatible with the proper discharge of
his/her official duties or would tend to impair his/her independence of judgment or action
in the performance of his/her official duties.
(f) Use of public property. No Council Member or City employee shall request
or permit the use of City owned vehicles, equipment, materials or property for personal
convenience or profit, except when such services are available to the public generally,
and in the same manner as available to the public, or are provided as City policy for the
use of such official in the conduct of official business. No official shall use the time of any
City employee during working hours for personal purposes.
(g) Contracts with City. Council Members, City employees, or public officials
shall not have a financial interest in any business transaction, or contract with the City, or
in the sale of real estate, materials, supplies or services to the City, except as permitted
in the conflict of interest statutes of the state.
(h) Disclosure of interest in legislation. A Council Member who has a financial
or other private interest in any legislation shall disclose on the records of the City Council
or other appropriate authority the nature and extent of such interest.
(i) Conflict of interest. In order to assure their independence and impartiality
on behalf of the common good, Council Members shall not use their official positions to
influence government decisions in which they have a material financial interest. In
accordance with the law, Council Members shall disclose investments, interests in real
property, sources of income and gifts; and abstain from participating in deliberations and
decision-making where conflicts, as determined under applicable laws, may exist. Council
Members should endeavor to consult with the City Attorney before any Council meeting
to allow an evaluation by the City Attorney of any potential conflict.
(j) Confidential information. Council Members shall respect the confidentiality
of information concerning the property, personnel or affairs of the City. They shall neither
disclose confidential information without proper legal authorization, nor use such
information to advance their personal, financial or other private interests.
(k) Advocacy. When representing the City while serving on or appearing before
other government agencies or in court, Council Members shall represent the official
policies or positions of the City Council to the best of their ability when designated as
delegates for this purpose. When representing the City while serving on or appearing
before other government agencies or in court, Council Members shall advocate policies
that are in the best interest of the City over their own personal interests. When presenting
their individual opinions and positions, Council Members shall explicitly state they do not
represent the City Council or the City, and shall not allow the inference that they do.
(I) Positive workplace environment. Council Members shall support positive
and constructive workplace environment for City employees and for citizens and "
businesses dealing with the City. Council Members shall recognize their special role in
dealings with City employees not provide direction to City staff in violation of the City
Charter..
Section 14. ENFORCEMENT OF DECORUM. The Chief of Police or such member
or members of the Police Department as he/she may designate shall be Sergeant-at-
Arms of the Council meetings. He/she shall carry out all orders and instructions given by
the Presiding Officer for the purpose of maintaining order and decorum at the Council
meeting. Upon instructions of the Presiding Officer, it shall be the duty of the Sergeant-
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at-Arms or designee to place any person who violates the order and decorum of the
meeting under arrest, and cause him/her to be prosecuted under the provisions of this
Code or state law.
PASSED, APPROVED, AND ADOPTED by the City Council of the City of Cypress at a
regular meeting held on the 14th day of March, 2022.
h 24. t
MAY R OF THE CITY OF CYPRESS
ATTEST:
CITY CLERK OF TH CITY OF CYPRESS
STATE OF CALIFORNIA }
COUNTY OF ORANGE } ss
I, ALISHA FARNELL, City Clerk of the City of Cypress, DO HEREBY CERTIFY that
the foregoing Ordinance was duly adopted at a regular meeting of said City Council held on
the 14th day of March, 2022, by the following roll call vote:
AYES: 4 COUNCIL MEMBERS: Minikus, Peat, Hertz-Mallari and Morales
NOES: 1 COUNCIL MEMBERS: Marquez
ABSENT: 0 COUNCIL MEMBERS: None
.04 1/9‘kii:--2CWAY
CITY CLERK OF THE CI—Y OF CYPRESS