San Joaquin County Grand Jury Tracy City Council: Restore the Public Trust

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1 The Tracy City Council create and adopt an Ethics Policy that governs the behavior of its elected officials, appointed officials, and senior staff

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1 Tracy City Council members publicly agree to set aside their personal differences and conduct the public’s business in an efficient and respectful manner, by October 31, 2019. 3.0 Council Vacancy Appointment Process Following the elections of 2012, 2014, and 2016, vacancies on the Tracy City Council occurred when one Council member was either elected or appointed to another political position. California Government Code Section 36512 statutorily grants authority to the elected officials to appoint a replacement within 60-days or call for a special election to fill the vacated seat. However, it does not define what type of appointment process should be used. It is left up to the elected officials to determine what works best for their community at the time of the vacancy. In each case, the Tracy Council chose to fill the vacancy through an appointment process, instead of calling a special election. While a special election places the selection in the hands of the voters, the San Joaquin County Registrar of Voters currently estimates that a special election in Tracy would cost $393,891. The appointment process utilized to fill vacant Council seats after the 2012 and 2014 elections resulted in contentious debates and a split Council vote of 2/2. Only after facing the possibility of an expensive special election did one of the Council members reluctantly change their vote. In each instance, a 3/2 voting bloc materialized, with the compromising Council member on the short end. The current appointment process adopted by Council as Resolution 2014-180, and amended by Resolution 2017-001, opens the application field to any eligible Tracy citizen supported by the signatures of at least 20 registered voters. After public interviews of each of the applicants, each of the Council members votes for two applicants (one vote if there are only two applicants). Voting continues as the field is narrowed by the majority of Council votes. The current appointment process was used after the 2016 election and resulted in less contentiousness. However, another 3/2 voting bloc quickly emerged, followed by the termination of the City Manager. The current process is not responsive to the will of Tracy voters and has contributed to Council alliances, engendering a 3/2 voting bloc based on loyalty to those Council members supportive of the appointee’s selection. Furthermore, after serving out their terms, each of the appointed Council members campaigned to retain their Council seat and each did not receive sufficient voter support. Table 2 summarizes the results for the past four elections. Table 3 shows the timeline for the Tracy City Council. Table 2. Tracy City Council Election Results 2012 – 2018 2018 2016 Mayor Mayor Name Votes Percentage Name Votes Percentage Robert Rickman* 13,433 52.1% Robert Rickman* 15,009 55.4% Nancy Young 12,356 47.9% Michael Maciel 12,023 44.4% Council Council Name Votes Percentage Name Votes Percentage Dan Arriola* 10,100 22.9% Nancy Young* 11,176 26.2% Veronica Vargas* 8,371 19.0% Rhodesia Ransom* 10,613 24.9% Dotty Nygard 8,256 18.7% Mary Mitracos 8,006 18.8% Juana Dement 6,952 15.8% Anne Marie Fuller 6,936 16.3% Catalina Olvera 5,516 12.5% Amer Hammudi 5,777 13.6% Amer Hammudi 4,923 11.2% 2014 2012 Mayor Mayor Name Votes Percentage Name Votes Percentage Michael Maciel* 6,977 58.4% Brent Ives* 19,300 95.00% Ray Morelos 4,906 41.0% Council Council Name Votes Percentage Name Votes Percentage Robert Rickman* 7,639 38.4% Nancy Young* 9,563 26.90% Veronica Vargas* 5,473 27.5% Michael Maciel* 9,046 25.50% Charles Manne 4,516 22.7% Ray Morelos 6,355 17.90% Robert Tanner 2,220 11.1% Charles Manne 5,698 16.10% Roger Birdsall 4,680 13.20% *Elected Table 3. Tracy City Council Timeline 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 Mayor Brent Ives Brent Ives Mike Maciel Robert Robert Rickman Rickman Council Bob Elliott Charles Veronica Vargas Veronica Member Manne* Vargas Council Steve Nancy Young Nancy Young Member Abercrombie Council Mike Maciel Mike Maciel Mary Rhodesia Ransom Member Mitracos* Council Robert Rickman Robert Juana Dan Arriola Member Rickman Dement* *Appointed

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1 The Tracy City Council adopt a resolution for filling Council vacancies that is more responsive to the voice of the voters by appointing the next highest vote-getter from the previous election by December 31, 2019. 4.0 Impact of Executive Staff Separations City Administrators In September 2017, Tracy’s highly regarded City Manager was fired by the City Council after a very contentious 3/2 vote. No explanation was given for the surprise termination. The next person in line for the position, the Assistant City Manager, was bypassed and the City’s Fire Chief was appointed to the position of Interim City Manager. Within two weeks, the newly appointed Interim City Manager forced the resignation of the Assistant City Manager, again without explanation. Chief of Police In August 2018, Tracy’s popular Police Chief was abruptly relieved of duty, and again, no explanation was given. Citizens’ outrage boiled over in the form of protests, letters to the local newspaper, and a series of emotional public pleas for transparency and accountability voiced during Council meetings. Public discord was matched by Council dissension with two members expressing their deep concerns for hidden politics at play. Council members sat silent as the Council Chamber overflowed with Tracy citizens and police officers seeking explanations and assurances from their elected officials. The sudden and unexplained departure of the City’s Police Chief was noteworthy enough to draw the attention of most regional newspapers, including the Stockton Record, San Jose Mercury News, and San Francisco Chronicle. Major network affiliates ABC, CBS, NBC, and Fox sent field reporters to cover the crowded Council proceedings. The abrupt departure of the Tracy Police Chief came as a shock to the department’s officers and triggered rampant rumors amongst staff and citizens. Many publicly speculated the loss was simply one more casualty of power politics. The Tracy Police Officers Association issued a public statement expressing they were “extremely disappointed” in the decision and that the Chief “had the full support of their membership.” On August 24, 2018, the Tracy Press editorial board entreated the Council to “End the silence, inform the citizens”. The same editorial referenced the unexplained departures of the City Manager, Assistant City Manager, and the Director of Parks and Recreation. It noted the continued silence served to spawn uninformed speculation and rumors and ended by pressing the Council “to conduct the public’s business in public.” Counting the Costs This series of unexplained leadership departures created significant turmoil for City of Tracy employees. Leadership positions were hastily filled with temporary appointments that included an Interim City Manager, Interim Assistant City Manager, Acting Human Resources Director, Acting Fire Chief, and Interim Chief of Police. Filling these positions proved difficult. The turmoil in City Hall damaged the City’s reputation as a desirable employer and made candidates reluctant to apply for open positions. It took the City over 19 months to hire a new City Manager. The Chief of Police continues to be interim until a permanent replacement is hired. In addition to the human toll, the various separations inflicted significant financial impact on the City. Severance payments to the City Manager, Assistant City Manager, and Police Chief cost the City more than $400,000. Filling these three openings required hiring an executive search firm, costing about $30,000 per position. Overall, these three separations resulted in the City of Tracy paying out approximately $500,000. Added to hard costs, are the less quantifiable costs of lost productivity from shuffling staff, fear of job loss, and general anxiety of a working environment in turmoil. City Attorney The essential role and function of the Tracy City Attorney as legal advisor to the City Council has also been negatively affected by the familiar 3/2 controlling majority on the Council. While the City Attorney serves at the pleasure of, and is appointed by, the City Council, it is imperative that the function of the City Attorney not be impaired by fear or intimidation from Council alliances.

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1. The Tracy City Council amend the Tracy City Municipal Code to require a supermajority vote of four (4) members of the City Council to remove the City Manager or City Attorney, by December 31, 2019. 5.0 Council Intrusion in City Operations Tracy practices a Council-Manager form of government in which the City Manager serves as the Chief Executive Officer for the City’s operations and acts as advisor to the Council. Tracy’s Municipal Code section 2.08.060 specifies the duties and powers of the City Manager, including: “It shall be the duty of the City Manager and he or she shall have the power to control, order, and give directions to all heads of departments and to subordinate officers and employees of the City through their department heads, to transfer employees from one department to another, and to consolidate or combine offices, positions, departments, or units under his or her direction.” To ensure boundaries of authority, Tracy’s Municipal Code section 2.08.080 is explicit in its separation of duties within its Council-Manager form of government: “The Council and its members shall deal with the administrative services only through the City Manager, except for the purpose of inquiry, and neither the Council nor any member thereof shall give orders to any subordinates of the City Manager.” The Grand Jury uncovered a sweeping pattern of over-reach by individual Council members during the past two years, including: • • • Department heads were contacted by Council members and given directives that violated City policy. Staff members received direct requests to perform tasks contrary to established procedures. Department heads and staff members were berated in public meetings and accused of “dragging their feet”. Under the Council-Manager construct, the Council sets the strategic direction of the City and proposes policies to support their objectives. The City Manager directs staff members to research and analyze the impact of the Council’s proposals and then present the impartial results of their analyses. With the City Manager acting as a firewall between Council and staff, studies and reports are based on best practices and data from the field. However, in the absence of a buffer between staff members and the Council, and in a fearful work environment, the objectivity of reports is at risk. The City of Tracy employs highly-educated, experienced, competent professionals with expertise in public administration, urban planning, economic development, and other job-related fields. Many live in Tracy, volunteer in Tracy, and are raising their families “inside the Triangle.” The stakes are high when their careers depend on pleasing the personal agendas of elected officials. It has become standard operating procedure to “keep your head down” and avoid upsetting the City Council. The Council Chamber has often become an “echo chamber” in which staff recommendations and reports are more apt to reflect the preferences of individual Council members or the Council majority, rather than proven best practices. The “echo chamber” has served to muffle the full measure and benefit of City staff’s professional experience, education, and expertise.

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1 The Tracy City Council develop and implement a written protocol for sanctions or censure of Council members who violate the Tracy Municipal Code by failing to work through the City Manager to conduct City business,