Apr 15, 2025 Government Operations and Efficiency Committee

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ALL

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I THINK WE ARE READY TO CALL TO ORDER THE GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS AND EFFICIENCIES COMMITTEE MEETING.

BRINGING IT TO ORDER.

CITY CLERK, CAN WE PLEASE GET A ROLL CALL? COUNCIL MEMBERS S VICE CHAIR RICK SODI.

CHAIR DUGGAN.

HERE.

WE HAVE A QUORUM.

[CALL TO ORDER]

LET'S MOVE ON TO OUR FIRST ITEM.

CITY CLERK, CAN YOU READ THE FIRST ITEM,

[ROLL CALL]

[1. 25-55003 Recommendation to approve the minutes for the Government Operations and Efficiency Committee meeting of Tuesday, October 15, 2024.         Suggested Action: Approve recommendation. ]

ANY PUBLIC COMMENT? WE WE NEED TO GET A SECOND FIRST.

OH, YOU, I CAN SECOND YOU SECOND.

THANK YOU.

I'M SPINNING OVER HERE.

OKAY.

RECEIVED.

SO WE HAVE A FIRST AND A SECOND.

UM, ALSO, DO YOU WANT TO CALL FOR A DISCUSSION? UH, YES.

ANY COMMENTS? COUNCIL MEMBER? NO COMMENT.

OKAY.

HEARING NONE, UH, MEMBERS CAST YOUR VOTE.

I, ONE, ONE MORE MOMENT.

LET ME JUST DOUBLE CHECK AND MAKE SURE THERE'S NO PUBLIC COMMENT.

AND IF ANY MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC WOULD LIKE TO SPEAK ON THIS ITEM, PLEASE COME TO THE PODIUM NOW.

NO PUBLIC COMMENT CHAIR.

AND WE ARE OPEN FOR VOTING.

PLEASE CAST YOUR VOTE.

MOTION CARRIES.

ALL RIGHT, THANK YOU VERY MUCH.

UH, LET'S MOVE TO OUR NEXT ITEM, UM, APPROVING OUR CHARTER APPOINTMENT.

OKAY.

SO CLERK RECOMMEND, CAN YOU READ THE SECOND ITEM? OKAY.

RECOMMENDATION TO RECEIVE CHARTER COMMISSION APPOINTMENTS AND REAPPOINTMENTS PURSUANT

[2. 25-55019 Recommendation to receive Charter Commission appointments and reappointment’s pursuant to Section 509 of the City Charter and Section 2.03.065 of the Long Beach Municipal Code, and forward this item to the City Council for approval.         Suggested Action: Approve recommendation. ]

ALL RIGHT, IT'S BEEN MOVED AND SECONDED.

IS THERE A STAFF REPORT OR PRESENTATION FOR THIS ITEM? THERE IS NOT.

ALL RIGHT.

I WOULD LIKE TO, OH, ANY DISCUSSION? COUNCIL MEMBER? JUST WANTED TO SAY, UM, CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL OF THOSE WHO HAVE BEEN REAPPOINTED AND TO THE NEW ONES THAT ARE JUST APPOINTED.

AND THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE AND THANK YOU FOR SAYING YES TO THIS.

ALRIGHT, I CONCUR WITH COUNCIL MEMBERS IN DEJAS.

I AM GOING TO GO THROUGH THE NEW APPOINTMENTS.

I'LL READ THROUGH CIVIL SERVICE, EMPLOYEE RIGHTS AND APPEALS COMMISSION.

DEVIN ALAR, RITA GADO, CHRISTOPHER GARNER, HURLEY OWENS, AND MARGOT MORALES.

FOR THE PLANNING COMMISSION, WE HAVE TODD LIMUS FOR THE UTILITIES COMMISSION.

CHARLES PARKIN REAPPOINTMENTS TO THE HARBOR COMMISSION.

STEVEN NEAL.

AND A REAPPOINTMENT TO THE PLANNING COMMISSION.

AVARO CASTILLO.

ALRIGHT, THANK YOU VERY MUCH.

SHALL WE MOVE TO A VOTE? WE TAKE PUBLIC COMMENT ON THE ITEM.

YES.

IF ANY MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC WOULD LIKE TO SPEAK ON THIS ITEM, PLEASE COME TO THE PODIUM NOW.

NO PUBLIC COMMENT CHAIR.

ALL RIGHT, SO WE CAN GO TO THE VOTE.

MOTION CARRIES.

ALL RIGHT, THANK YOU VERY MUCH.

ALL RIGHT.

UM, CAN YOU READ ITEM THREE PLEASE? UH, CITY CLERK? YES.

ITEM THREE IS A RECOMMENDATION TO APPROVE THE

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[3. 25-55005 Recommendation to approve the proposed Government Operations and Efficiency Committee Discussion Plan: A discussion on City Council meeting processes for better community engagement; Updates on staffing levels and implementation of Measure JB; Consider Ethics Commission recommendations; and A discussion on best practices for community meetings.         Suggested Action: Approve recommendation. ]

ALL RIGHT.

ANY COMMENT COUNCIL MEMBER? NO, THANK YOU.

ALRIGHT, UM, I'D LIKE TO MAKE SOME COMMENTS ABOUT THIS.

UM, I'M REALLY EXCITED TO BRING THIS DISCUSSION PLAN FORWARD BECAUSE I THINK IT HIGHLIGHTS A FEW KEY AREAS THAT DON'T ALWAYS GET THE FOCUS THEY DESERVE.

AND THIS COMMITTEE IS A GREAT SPACE TO DIG INTO THEM.

ONE OF THE THINGS I REALLY APPRECIATE ABOUT THIS COMMITTEE IS THAT WE HAVE REPRESENTATION FROM ACROSS THE CITY, NORTH LONG BEACH, DOWNTOWN AND SOUTHEAST LONG BEACH.

THAT BRINGS A MIX OF EXPERIENCES AND PERSPECTIVES THAT I THINK IS VERY VALUABLE.

DIFFERENT PARTS OF OUR CITY FACE DIFFERENT BARRIERS, BARRIERS TO ENGAGEMENT, AND I THINK OUR COMMITTEE MAKE MAKEUP REFLECTS THAT.

THE APPROACH I'M TAKING WITH THESE FOUR TOPICS IS REALLY QUESTION BASED.

INSTEAD OF COMING IN WITH A PREDETERMINED DIRECTION, I WANNA OPEN THE DOOR FOR DISCUSSION AND INPUT.

AND THESE ARE CONVERSATIONS THAT WE GET TO SHAPE TOGETHER BASED ON OUR EXPERIENCES, WHAT WE'RE HEARING FROM OUR COMMUNITIES AND WHAT WE THINK CAN MOVE THE CITY FORWARD.

THAT FLEXIBILITY GIVES US ROOM TO EXPLORE WHAT MAKES SENSE AND CRAFT SOLUTIONS BEFORE BRINGING THEM TO OUR ENTIRE ENTIRE COUNCIL IF NEEDED.

THE FIRST ITEM IN THIS PLAN ASKS A REALLY BASIC BUT IMPORTANT QUESTION.

HOW DO WE MAKE OUR CITY COUNCIL MEETINGS MORE WELCOMING AND ACCESSIBLE TO PEOPLE? THAT'S SOMETHING THAT I HEAR OFTEN.

I THINK ALL COUNCIL MEMBERS HERE OFTEN AND RESIDENTS WANT TO PARTICIPATE, BUT SOMETIMES THE PROCESS CAN FEEL INTIMIDATING AND HARD TO NAVIGATE.

TO CONSIDER BROADER COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, WE SHOULD LOOK AT WAYS TO MAKE OUR CITY COUNCIL MEETINGS MORE INVITING AND ACCESSIBLE BY REDUCING BARRIERS.

FOR EXAMPLE, I'VE HAD PEOPLE ASK ME WHAT TIME A COUNCIL ITEM WILL BE HEARD? AND MY USUAL ANSWER IS SOMEWHERE BETWEEN FIVE AND 10, WHICH JUST ISN'T REALISTIC FOR WORKING FAMILIES, ESPECIALLY THOSE WITH KIDS.

THE SECOND ITEM IS STAFFING LEVELS AND THE IMPLEMENTATION OF MEASURE JB IF NEEDED.

SINCE I WAS ELECTED JUST OVER TWO YEARS AGO, STAFFING HAS BEEN THE NUMBER ONE CHALLENGE WE HAVE FACED.

AND STAFFING SHORTAGES HAVE IMPACTED OUR BASIC SERVICES AND SERVICE ENHANCEMENTS THAT THIS COUNCIL WOULD LIKE TO SEE.

PEOPLE ARE ASKING WHAT CONCRETE STEPS ARE BEING TAKEN TO ADDRESS THIS AND THEIR RIGHT TO ASK.

WE PASSED MEASURE JB, WHICH I BELIEVE WILL BE A MAJOR HELP TO SHORTENING THE TIME IT TAKES TO BRING ON NEW EMPLOYEES.

WE ARE MOVING ON TO THE NEXT STEP OF IMPLEMENTATION.

WITHOUT SUCCESSFUL IMPLEMENTATION, WE'RE NOT GONNA SOLVE THE CORE ISSUE, WHICH IS FILLING VACANCIES SO WE CAN DELIVER BETTER SERVICES.

I KNOW STAFF HAS BEEN WORKING HARD ON THIS AND I THINK IT'S, I THINK THIS COMMITTEE IS A GREAT PLACE TO GET UPDATES THAT AREN'T NECESSARILY READY FOR A FULL COUNCIL UPDATE.

SO THE THIRD ITEM IS REVIEWING THE ETHICS COMMISSION'S RECOMMENDATIONS.

VOTERS OVERWHELMINGLY SUPPORTED CREATING THE ETHICS COMMISSION.

SO I THINK IT'S ONLY RIGHT THAT WE TAKE TIME TO REVIEW THEIR FIRST RECOMMENDATIONS AND CONSIDER STEPS THAT WE MAY TAKE.

I THINK IF WE'RE GOING TO SUPPORT AND UPLIFT THE WORK OF OUR COMMISSIONS, THEN THE CITY COUNCIL NEEDS TO HEAR AND CONSIDER THEIR RECOMMENDATIONS.

AND I THINK STARTING WITH A VOTER APPROVED COMMISSION IS A GREAT PLACE TO START.

LASTLY, A CONVERSATION ON BEST PRACTICES FOR COMMUNITY MEETINGS.

EVERY COUNCIL OFFICE AND DEPARTMENT HOLDS COMMUNITY MEETINGS, BUT THEY CAN LOOK REALLY DIFFERENT DEPENDING ON WHO'S HOSTING.

I KNOW MY MEETINGS ARE DIFFERENT FROM COUNCIL MEMBER RICKS ODIS AND COUNCIL MEMBERS ZENDEJAS COMMUNITY MEETINGS, BUT I THINK WE CAN ALL LEARN FROM EACH OTHER ON WHAT MAKES YOUR MEETINGS, OUR MEETINGS THE MOST SUCCESSFUL.

SO WHAT ARE THE BEST PRACTICES WE CAN ALL LEARN FROM AND MAYBE EVEN ADOPT CITYWIDE? AGAIN, THE GOAL IS ALWAYS HOW DO WE GET MORE PEOPLE INVOLVED AND ENGAGED? SO TODAY I'M ASKING THE COMMITTEE TO APPROVE THIS DISCUSSION

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WE'LL HAVE FOUR MEETINGS OVER THE NEXT YEAR, ONE TOPIC PER MEETING, AND THAT GIVES US SPACE TO HAVE THOUGHTFUL AND COMPLETE CONVERSATIONS.

IF WE NEED MORE TIME ON ANY ITEM, WE CAN ALWAYS CARRY IT OVER.

I HOPE THAT YOU'LL SUPPORT THIS PLAN AND ENGAGE IN THESE DISCUSSIONS WITH ME BECAUSE I THINK THERE'S AN OPPORTUNITY TO MAKE MEANINGFUL IMPROVEMENTS ON HOW PEOPLE EXPERIENCE AND PARTICIPATE IN CITY PROCESSES.

I BELIEVE THAT COUNCIL MEMBERS IN DEJAS MOVED THIS ITEM AND I'VE SECONDED IT.

IS THERE A PUBLIC COMMENT IF ANY MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC WOULD LIKE TO SPEAK ON THIS ITEM, PLEASE COME TO THE PODIUM NOW.

NO PUBLIC COMMENT CHAIR.

ALRIGHT, LET'S GO TO A VOTE.

MOTION CARRIES.

ALRIGHT, I'M EXCITED ABOUT THIS PLAN FOR THE NEXT YEAR.

ANY ANY COMMENT? I'M EXCITED TO, UM, COUNCILWOMAN.

MADAM CHAIR, THANK YOU FOR THIS AND THANK YOU FOR YOUR COMMENTS.

I THINK THAT WE'RE ALWAYS LOOKING FOR WAYS ON HOW TO, UH, ENGAGE A COMMUNITY IN A REALLY MEANINGFUL AND IMPACTFUL WAY AND I'M REALLY LOOKING FORWARD TO SEEING WHAT COMES OUT OF THIS.

SO REALLY HAPPY TO SUPPORT THIS ITEM.

WONDERFUL.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR THAT.

ALRIGHT, UM, I BELIEVE WE GO ON TO THE FINAL PUBLIC COMMENT.

ARE THERE ANY MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC WHO WOULD LIKE TO SPEAK ON AN ITEM THAT ISN'T ON THE AGENDA? IF ANY MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC WOULD LIKE TO SPEAK ON A NON AGENDA ITEM, PLEASE COME TO THE PODIUM NOW.

NO PUBLIC COMMENT CHAIR.

ALRIGHT, I WOULD LIKE TO ADJOURN THIS MEETING.

THANK YOU FOR ATTENDING.

THANK YOU

[PUBLIC COMMENT Opportunity to address the Government Operations and Efficiency Committee on non-agenda items. Each speaker is limited to three minutes to make their comments unless extended by the Chair.]

ALL RIGHT.