Charter Review, Post 8

Continuing to focus on how the current charter but that might warrant consideration by the new commission, and what the last charter review determined. To view the entire current city charter go to: https://www.ci.pomona.ca.us/mm/cityhall/pdf/city_charter.pdf

ARTICLE X – Financial Procedures

Section 1001-1005 deal with the budget beginning with the definition of the fiscal year, and moving on to how the city manager will, working with department heads, create a draft budget to be submitted to the council 45 days prior to the start of the fiscal year. It also describes what should be in the “budget message” created by the city manager to the council.

Section 1006 deals with the adoption process by the council including public noticing and modifications to the budget as presented after the public hearing. The 2010 commission suggested the following change to this section in order to enhance how the budget notification takes place:

(a) Notice and Hearing. To achieve wide attempt dissemination of information to the residents, the Council shall distribute a press release that includes information about public hearing for budget discussion and where to obtain information about the budget, to reporters at, at least one English and at least one Spanish general circulation newspaper. The Council shall also publish a notice of public hearing for budget discussion on the City's webpage and posted in the City's public notices board. a general summary of the budget in one or more general circulation newspapers. The Council is encouraged to puhlish the summary in additional media including foreign language newspapers and electronic media[.] The message notice shall include: (italics is proposed wording, strikeout text is proposed deletion)

1007 discusses amendments to the budget after adoption including supplemental budget, reduction of budget, transfer of appropriations, and the limitations set on debt service within the budget. The 2010 commission would have eliminated the section on transfer of appropriations.

The rest of the sections deal with the fact that budget items do not carry over, the prohibition of overspending a budget, etc. Sections 1010-1011 deal with the Capital Improvement budget(s) (building projects such as streets, buildings, repairs, etc.) and the special nature of the budgets for Capital Improvements which may last more than one fiscal year. The rest of the section deals with public records, bonded indebtedness, debt limit, taxes, and independent audit.

ARTICLE XI – Revenue Bonds

This article discusses the rights of the city to issue revenue bonds for capital improvements. The 2010 commission had no suggested changes to this article.

ARTICLE XII – Contracts and Purchasing

This article covers how the city shall enter into contracts. This includes a centralized purchasing system, competitive bidding, description of illegal conflicts of interest in contracting, and a prohibition of “split bidding.”

The only section that the 2010 commission saw fit to change was to add Section 1204 as:

Sec. 1204. Local Preference

In any contract, sale, purchase, or transaction to which the City is a party, preference shall be given so far as practicable to individuals and businesses within the City of Pomona insofar as the same is not in conflict with the Constitution or general laws.

ARTICLE XIII – Franchises 

This article covers how the city deals with franchises for public utilities including requirements for franchises, procedures, terms, use of eminent domain, and the city’s right to use poles. The 2010 commission did not propose any changes to this section.

NEXT TIME: The final installment on the charter (perhaps one more after that on “moving forward”).Article XIV. - Municipal Campaign Financing and Conflict of Interest,
Article XV. - Definitions and Miscellaneous,
Article XVI. - Charter Amendment and,
Article XVII. - Charter Commission.