PC RES 1992-037P.C. RESOLUTION NO. 92-37
A RESOLUTION OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION OF
THE CITY OF RANCHO PALOS VERDES ADOPTING
PROCEDURES FOR THE CONDUCT OF HEARINGS ON
LAND USE MATTERS AND OTHER BUSINESS
WHEREAS, California Government Code section 65804 requires the
City Planning Commission to develop and publish procedural rules
for the conduct of zoning and planning hearings so that all
interested parties will have advance knowledge of the procedures to
be followed; and
WHEREAS, the City Planning Commission serves as an advisory
agency with respect to the processing of parcel and tentative maps
under the Subdivision Map Act; and
WHEREAS, pursuant to the requirements of the California
Government Code and the Rancho Palos Verdes Municipal Code, the
City Planning commission desires to specify procedural rules to
govern the conduct of hearings on all land use matters, including
but not limited to, zone changes and zoning text amendments,
variances, conditional use and other permit applications,
subdivision requests and appeals of administrative decisions;
BE IT RESOLVED that the following procedural rules shall,
insofar as consistent with applicable State laws and City
ordinances, govern the conduct of all business, including but not
limited to land use hearings, before the Planning Commission of the
City of Rancho Palos Verdes:
1. MEETINGS, STUDY SESSIONS, AGENDAS AND STAFF REPORTS
1.1 Ouoru :
The Planning Commission consists of seven regular members
appointed by the City Council. The Chairperson is appointed
by the Council and the Vice Chairperson shall be elected by a
majority of the Planning Commission. A quorum to conduct
business shall consist of a minimum of four members of the
Commission.
1.2 Regular Meetings:
Regular meetings of the City Planning Commission shall be held
on the second and fourth Tuesdays of each month. If the
regular meeting date falls on a City holiday, then the meeting
will be rescheduled to the next business day. All regular
meetings of the City Planning Commission will be called to
order at 7:00 p.m., unless advertised otherwise, canceled or
rescheduled. The commission will, except under exceptional
circumstances and with the consent of the majority of the
Commission, adjourn its meetings at 12:00 a.m. and not
consider new business items after 11:00 p.m., with any
unfinished business being continued to the next regular,
adjourned, or special meeting. The City Clerk, or his or her
deputy, will post notice of any continued hearing or other
unfinished business, as may be required by law.
1.3 Special Meetings:
An emergency or special meeting may be called at any time by
the Chairperson of the City Planning commission, or by a
majority of its membership, on its own motion and at the
direction of the City Council. Written notice shall be sent
by mail at least twenty-four (24) hours before the time of a
special or emergency meeting to each member and to each local
newspaper of general circulation, and to each radio or
television station, or cable television operator, which has
previously submitted a written request for notice. The notice
shall specify the time and place of the special meeting and
the business to be transacted. No other business shall be
considered at the meeting. Written notice may be dispensed
with as to any member who at or before the time of the meeting
files an oral or written waiver of notice with the Director of
Environmental Services. The waiver may also be given by
telegram. Written notice will also be dispensed with as to
any member who is actually present at the meeting at the time
it convenes.
1.4 Adjourned Meetings:
The City Planning Commission may adjourn any regular,
adjourned regular, special or adjourned special meeting to a
time and place specified in the order of adjournment pursuant
to the procedures set forth in the Ralph M. Brown Act,
Government Code section 54950, et seq.
1.5 Study Sessions:
The City Planning Commission may hold a study session as part
of a regular, adjourned or special meeting. When a matter is
set for a study session, public testimony may be barred or
limited to particular persons at the discretion of the
Chairperson, with the concurrence of the majority of the
Commission. Public notice for study sessions on specific
matters for which public hearings are anticipated in the
future will be given in the same manner as that required for
public hearings, and a record of the study session shall be
entered into the minutes of any such future public hearings.
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Page 2
1.6 Open and Closed Sessions:
i
Except as otherwise provided in this Resolution, all meetings
of the City Planning Commission shall be open and public, and
all persons shall be permitted to attend. The City Planning
Commission may, upon the advice of and with the presence of
the City Attorney or his or her assistant, hold a closed
session during a regular or special meeting, or at any time
otherwise authorized by law, to consider or hear any matter
which it is authorized by state law to hear or consider in
closed session.
1.7 Agendas•
At least seventy-two 72 hours before a regular meeting, copies
of the City Planning Commission's agenda shall be posted and
made available at the office of the Director of Environmental
Services. In accordance with the Ralph M. Brown Act, the
Commission may not take action on any item that did not appear
on the posted agenda unless an exception is made as permitted
under Government Code section 54954.2. The Chairperson may
rearrange the order of presentation of items appearing on the
agenda as he or she may deem necessary or desirable for the
conduct of the meeting. No person shall be entitled to rely
upon the order in which public hearing items appear on the
posted agenda, and any public hearing on any agenda may
commence immediately upon the time the meeting is called to
order.
1.8 Staff Reports:
When planning staff reports exist, they shall be made public
before or at the beginning of any hearing or meeting, except
in the case of closed sessions as prescribed in section 1.6
above. Staff reports shall be prepared with recommendations
and the basis for recommendations, and included in the hearing
record on any application for a change of zone for a parcel of
ten acres or more. Reports or recommendations on tentative
subdivision maps shall be in writing and shall be served on
the subdivider at least three (3) days before any hearing or
action on the map by the City Planning Commission.
2. PRESENTATION OF AGENDA ITEMS
2.1 Minutes and Recording:
Hearings on land use matters will generally be recorded by
electronic device and preserved so long as is necessary to
allow the Recording Secretary, or his or her deputy, to
prepare minutes of the hearing and to have them approved.
When a matter is contested and a request to copy and preserve
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Page 3
the recorded proceedings is made in writing to the Director of
Environmental Services before the date of the hearing, the
contested matter may be recorded by electronic device, at the
discretion of the Chairperson, and duly preserved. A copy of
any such recording may be purchased at its reproduction cost.
Members of the public may also record audio tapes of meetings
without permission from the Chairperson. In no way shall any
such recording be deemed the "official minutes" of the
meeting.
2.2 Order of Presentation
Unless the Chairperson in his or her discretion should direct
otherwise, the order for presentation should be as follows:
(a) Presentation of staff report, including any environmental
analysis or recommendation.
(b) Questions of staff by members of the City Planning
Commission.
(c) Public hearing opened.
(d) Presentation of the applicant or appellant.
(e) Presentations of persons in favor of or in opposition to
the requested action.
(f) Rebuttal comments by the applicant or appellant.
(g) Closing comments by staff.
(h) Public hearing closed.
Public hearings may be reopened by motion of the Commission
majority at any time during the meeting to permit additional
testimony and evidence, either to permit reconsideration of an
action or for any other reason. Any questions of the
applicant or appellant, or of the interested public, shall be
made during the public hearing.
2.3 Rules of Evidence:
Hearings and meetings before the City Planning Commission need
not be conducted according to formal rules of evidence. Any
relevant evidence may be considered if it is the sort of
evidence upon which responsible persons are accustomed to rely
in the conduct of serious affairs. The Chairperson may
exclude irrelevant or redundant testimony and may make such
other rulings as may be necessary for the orderly conduct of
the proceedings while ensuring basic fairness and full
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consideration of the issues involved. Any Commissioner may
raise a point of order with the Chairperson to exclude rude or
out -of -order testimony from the public. Evidentiary
objections shall be deemed waived unless made in a timely
fashion before the Planning commission.
2.4 Burden of Proof:
The burden of proof of all legal prerequisites to the granting
of the relief or action sought shall be upon the party
requesting such relief or action.
2.5 Oral Evidence, Time Limits, and Number of Speakers:
A request to speak on an item must be submitted to the
Planning Commission Secretary prior to the completion of the
remarks of the first speaker on the item. No request forms
will be accepted after that time and no additional speakers
will be allowed to speak on the item being discussed.
Any person desiring to speak must first be recognized by the
Chairperson. All comments must be made clearly and audibly,
and all speakers must first state their full names and
addresses and the names of any persons in whose behalf they
are appearing. All speakers will be limited to a five (5)
minute presentation unless added time is agreed to by the
Commission.
Applicants and appellants shall be given sufficient time, in
the reasonable judgment of the chairperson, to present their
concerns. The Chairperson may also limit the number of
speakers or amount of testimony upon a particular issue in
order to avoid repetitious and cumulative comments. Except
when necessary for immediate clarification of a particular
point, no person shall be allowed to speak a second time until
all others wishing to speak have had an opportunity to do so,
and then only at the discretion of the Chairperson and the
concurrence of the majority of the Commission.
2.6 Ouestioning of Speakers:
Any person other than a commission member desiring to direct
a question to a speaker or staff member shall submit the
question to the Chairperson, who shall determine whether the
question is relevant to the subject of the hearing and whether
or not it should be answered by the speaker or staff member.
Direct questioning of speakers or staff members may be allowed
only in extraordinary circumstances, at the discretion of the
Chairperson.
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Page 5
2.7 Evidence Received Outside a Hearing:
The Commission does not encourage the receipt of information
or evidence on a particular pending matter outside of
hearings. If any member visits a site independently, or
receives any other information pertinent to a pending matter,
he or she shall disclose the information or evidence so
received during the hearing on the matter. The applicant or
appellant shall have the opportunity to supplement or rebut
the information or evidence so disclosed, and failure to do so
shall be deemed a waiver of any objection regarding the
information or evidence.
2.8 City Attorney:
The Chairperson (or any member of the commission via the
Chairperson) may request the Director of Environmental
Services to request the City Attorney (or his or her
assistant) to explain, either in writing or orally to Staff,
as appropriate, a legal opinion on a particular matter. The
City Attorney or his or her assistant may further advise the
Chairperson on matters of evidence and procedure which may
arise, including, but not limited to, the desirability of
closed sessions to discuss pending or potential litigation.
3. MOTIONS
3.1 Notions - Second:
Action upon an order, resolution, ordinance or any other
action of the City Planning Commission may be proposed by any
member by a motion. The Chairperson may make a motion only
after all other members of the Planning commission present
have had an opportunity to make a motion on the question.
Before a motion can be considered or debated it must be
seconded, at which time it shall be on the floor and must be
considered. If not seconded, the motion is lost for lack of
a second and shall be so declared by the Chairperson.
3.2 Amendment of Motion or Substitute Motion:
A motion on the floor may be amended at any time before
adoption or rejection. When an amendment is offered, the
Planning Commission will debate and take action on the
amendment before acting on the original motion. If the
amendment is not adopted, the original motion will then be
considered. If the amendment is adopted, the original motion
as amended will then be considered.
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Page 6
3.3 Withdrawal of Motion or Second:
A motion may be withdrawn by the maker at any time before
adoption or rejection, with consent of the second. A second
to a motion may be withdrawn by the seconding member at any
time before adoption or rejection of the motion. The motion
will then be lost for lack of a second and so declared by the
Chairperson unless seconded by another person.
3.4 Tabling a Motion:
At any time after a motion has been seconded, any member may
move to table a motion. If the tabling motion is adopted, the
original motion will remain on the floor but may not again be
considered at the meeting at which it was made. The original
motion will be considered and voted upon at a regular meeting
of the City Planning Commission, specified in the motion,
unless again tabled at that time. If not considered at such
meeting, it will be deemed lost. If the tabling motion is not
adopted, consideration of the original motion will continue.
3.5 Discussion, Closure, and Question:
After a motion has been seconded, any member may discuss or
comment on the subject of the motion. The Chairperson will
recognize members of the Planning Commission with the desire
to speak, beginning with the motion's maker, and will protect
each speaker from disturbance or interference. When no member
wishes to discuss or comment further, the Chairperson will
call for a vote on the motion. Any member of the Planning
Commission may at any time move to close the debate.
3.6 Motions for Reconsideration:
Motions for reconsideration of a matter may be made by any
member who voted with the prevailing majority on the matter to
be reconsidered. Any member of the Planning Commission may
second a motion to reconsider. Motions to reconsider shall be
made at the same meeting as the original motion. If the
matter to be reconsidered was considered at a public hearing,
the public hearing will be reopened before additional evidence
is received.
4. DECISION-MAKING
4.1 voting:
Approval of any motion brought before the City Planning
Commission shall require the affirmative vote of a majority of
the members present, unless otherwise specified by law.
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Page 7
4.1.1 Tie Votes
Any tie vote shall constitute a denial of the
motion and may be reconsidered by a motion offered
by any member who voted on the matter. If there is
no action by an affirmative vote, the result is
denial. If the matter involves an appeal and an
affirmative vote does not occur, the result is that
the decision appealed stands as decided by the
decision -maker from which the appeal was taken.
4.1.2 Abstentions
Abstentions shall not count as votes for the
purpose of determining whether there has been an
affirmative vote of a majority of the members
present, but shall be counted for the purpose of
determining whether a quorum is present.
4.1.3 Roll Call
Voting upon a motion may, at the discretion of the
Chairperson, and shall, upon the request of any
member, be by roll call. When voting is not by
roll call, the Chairperson may, in the absence of
objection by any member of the Planning commission,
declare an item to be unanimously approved.
4.1.4 Motions Include Staff Recommendations
A motion to adopt or approve staff recommendations
or simply to approve the action under consideration
shall, unless otherwise particularly specified, be
deemed to include adoption of all proposed findings
and execution of all actions recommended in both
the written staff report on file on the matter and
any oral staff report presented during the hearing.
4.1.5 Absentees
A City Planning Commission member who is absent
from any portion of a hearing conducted by the City
Planning Commission may vote on the matter at the
time it is acted upon provided that he or she has
either reviewed the approved minutes of the hearing
or listened to the Staff tape recording of the
entire portion of the hearing from which he or she
was absent, provided that a tape recording exists,
and if she or he has examined all of the Staff
Report or minutes presented during the portion of
the hearing from which he or she was absent and
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states for the record before voting that the member
deems himself or herself to be as familiar with the
record and with the evidence presented at the
hearing as he or she would have been had he or she
personally attended the entire hearing.
4.2 Findings•
On any matter for which state law or City ordinance requires
the preparation of written findings, the staff report
submitted on the matter will contain findings proposed for
adoption by the City Planning Commission. Any motion directly
or impliedly rejecting the proposed findings should include a
statement of alternative or modified findings or a direction
that the matter under consideration be continued for a
reasonable period of time in order for staff to prepare a new
set of proposed findings consistent with the evidence which
has been presented and the decision which is anticipated.
4.3 Consent Items:
Items that require little or no discussion by the City
Planning Commission may be considered as consent items. the
Planning Commission will act on these items in one motion at
the beginning of the meeting. Approval by the Planning
Commission of consent items means that the staff recommenda-
tion was approved along with the findings and conditions set
forth in the staff report. Any member of the Planning
Commission, the applicant, or members of the public may
request that consent items be considered in their regular
order on the agenda. Removal of an item from the consent
calendar is subject to approval by a majority of the
commission members present.
4.4 Continuances:
Upon a showing of good cause and by request of the applicant,
member of the public, or member of the City Planning
Commission, the chairperson, at the time set for a hearing on
a particular item may order the hearing to be continued to a
specified date and time. Upon the request of any member of
the City Planning Commission, continuance decisions shall be
made by a motion and roll call vote of all members present.
5. CONSTRUCTION AND EFFECT
5.1 Construction:
These procedural rules shall be construed and applied so as to
ensure a full and fair hearing of relevant evidence which is
offered on a land use matter and to facilitate an orderly
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Page 9
analysis of evidence and issues by the City Planning
Commission. Adoption and implementation of these rules is
intended to be consistent with the provisions of California
Government Code section 65010(b).
5.2 Chairperson's Rules of order:
When there is no provision of these rules of procedure
applicable to the conduct of the meeting or hearing of the
City Planning Commission, the chairperson shall devise
appropriate rules and make final decisions on any points of
order which may arise with the concurrence of the majority of
the Commission.
PASSED, APPROVED AND ADOPTED this 26th day of May, 1992.
Dudley 0 derdonk, Director of
Environmental Services and
Secretary to the Commission
DJ9 RULES PC
Robert Katherman
Chairperson
P.C. Resolution 92-37
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