AGENDA TITLE:
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Public Hearing to Consider Waiving the First Reading and Introducing an Ordinance to Amend Lodi Municipal Code Section 2.44.040 “Appointing Authorities” Allowing the City Council to Temporarily Appoint Staff to Perform Required Duties During Appointee Vacancies and Acknowledging that City Manager and City Treasurer Are Not Conflicting Offices (CM/CA)
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MEETING DATE:
August 20, 2025
PREPARED BY:
James Lindsay, Acting City Manager and Katie O. Lucchesi, City Attorney
recommendation
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
Public Hearing to consider waiving the first reading and introducing an ordinance to amend Lodi Municipal Code Section 2.44.040 “Appointing Authorities” allowing the City Council to temporarily appoint staff to perform required duties during appointee vacancies and acknowledging that City Manager and City Treasurer are not conflicting offices.
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BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
The appointed City Treasurer position has historically been filled by the Assistant City Manager or the Deputy City Manager. However, the full-time Assistant City Manager position currently remains vacant and other qualified staff members in the Accounting Division are newer to their positions and the City of Lodi. Due to the efforts underway to update the City’s financial policies and procedures, Council expressed the need to quickly appoint a seasoned leader with financial experience to the City Treasurer role in order to maintain public peace and the City’s fiscal health.
After considering who to appoint as the City Treasurer at the July 16, 2025 City Council meeting, Council chose Acting City Manager James Lindsay to also serve in the role of City Treasurer and directed staff to prepare an urgency ordinance amending the Lodi Municipal Code (LMC).
Following Council’s direction, staff presented an urgency ordinance to amend LMC Section 2.44.040 for Council consideration at the August 6, 2025 City Council meeting. The positions of City Manager, City Attorney, City Clerk and City Treasurer are separate and distinct in LMC Section 2.44.040, and the proposed urgency ordinance clarified Council’s ability to make temporary appointments and that the City Manager and City Treasurer roles are not incompatible offices. Pursuant to Government Code Section 36937(b), the City Council has the power to enact an urgency ordinance as necessary to protect public peace, health, and safety if approved by a 4/5 vote of the Councilmembers. However, at the August 6th meeting, the Council vote was 3-1, with Mayor Pro Tempore Yepez dissenting and Councilmember Nakanishi absent. Therefore, the votes in favor of the urgency ordinance did not meet the minimum requirement for an expedited process under state law and it did not pass.
To meet the procedural requirements, staff has brought the proposed LMC amendment back to Council to proceed with a traditional ordinance adoption process. The attached ordinance would amend LMC Section 2.44.040 allowing the City Council to appoint another qualified City employee whose duties do not conflict with a role that is vacant (including the City Manager in performance of City Treasurer duties) to temporarily perform the vacant appointee role until the permanent appointment process is complete.
Therefore, Staff is recommending the City Council hold the public hearing to waive the first reading and introduce the proposed ordinance to amend Lodi Municipal Code Section 2.44.040 “Appointing Authorities” allowing the City Council to temporarily appoint qualified staff during appointee vacancies and acknowledging that City Manager and City Treasurer are not conflicting offices.
STRATEGIC VISION:
3A. Fiscal Health: Promote City's transparency & fiscal fluency.
FISCAL IMPACT:
Not applicable.
FUNDING AVAILABLE:
Not applicable.