AgdaPkt 2018-10-22 Joint SA PFA - Laserfiche WebLink

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7.B. - Page 1 REPORT To the Honorable Mayor and City Council From the City Manager October 22, 2018 SUBJECT Public Hearing to Receive Community Input Regarding the Creation of a District -Based City Council Election System RECOMMENDATION 1) Receive a report from staff on the districting process and permissible criteria to be considered to create district boundaries; and 2) Conduct a public hearing to receive public input on district boundaries. BACKGROUND On September 24, 2018, the City Council adopted Resolution No. 15704 initiating the process to transition from an at -large election system to a district -based election system. A key reason that the City is proceeding with district -based elections is the threat of significant litigation under the California Voting Rights Act (CVRA). Faced with potentially hundreds -of -thousands, or even millions, of dollars in legal fees and damages (as some cities have experienced), the City decided to voluntarily proceed with transitioning to district -based elections. This allows the City to retain its own ability to determine and adopt an appropriate district map instead of having the risk of a court doing so. The City has established a timeline for conducting a public process to solicit public input and testimony on proposed district -based electoral maps (Attachment 1). The timeline includes the dates for the five required public hearings. The City must complete the transition process within 90 days after the adoption of the initial resolution to cap the prospective plaintiff's attorneys' fees at $30,000. Additionally, a prospective plaintiff may not bring a CVRA lawsuit within 90 days after passage of the resolution and Mr. Shenkman and the City mutually agreed to extend that safe harbor to March 31, 2019. This allows the City to retain its own ability to determine and adopt an appropriate district map instead of having the risk of a court doing so. Additionally, adopting the resolution by March 31 enables the City to cap at $30,000 its exposure of having to reimburse Mr. Shenkman his attorney fees.