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Escalon council cuts Measure P advisory committee to three, appoints two members
Summary
At its Aug. 4 meeting, the Escalon City Council voted to amend the Measure P advisory committee policy to reduce membership from five to three and directly appointed two applicants to the committee; staff said the appointees will complete onboarding and must file Form 700 disclosures.
The Escalon City Council on Aug. 4 voted to amend its Measure P advisory committee policy, reducing the committee from five members to three, and directly appointed two applicants to the smaller panel. The council approved a resolution to repeal the prior policy and confirmed appointments of Edward Als and Gabriela Vargas to the Measure P advisory committee.
The change formalizes prior direction the council gave staff to shrink the advisory body and clears the way for the newly appointed members to begin work and receive an onboarding meeting with staff. City Attorney Frank noted for the record the two applicants who remained interested: Edward Als and Gabriela Vargas. City Manager French said staff will schedule an orientation meeting for the new committee to review the budget and committee structure, and emphasized the appointees will be required to file Form 700 financial disclosures because the committee will make policy recommendations to the council.
Council members said the move was administrative and meant to create a clear paper trail before interviews or additional recruitment for the remaining seat. Because only two candidates remained for three seats, council discussion turned to direct appointment rather than conducting interviews. The council approved the resolution and then voted to appoint the two applicants; no roll-call names for movers and seconders were recorded in the transcript but the chair called for voice votes and the motions passed on voice vote.
Applicant Gabriela Vargas told the council she was "disappointed" she had not been interviewed; city staff and the council explained that several earlier applicants had withdrawn and that the council’s past practice is to appoint directly when applicants do not exceed available seats. The city manager said some applicants had emailed that they were no longer interested, and one had moved out of state.
Staff said it will hold an onboarding session with the committee to go over the Measure P budget and committee procedures and address questions about meeting format and confidentiality. The city attorney and manager also reminded the council and the public that committee members who advise the council on policy recommendations must file Form 700 financial disclosures like other advisory members and commissioners.
The council directed staff to advertise the vacant seat and continue outreach. No additional formal actions were taken on recruitment at the meeting; staff will return to the council with any additional applicants and with the onboarding schedule.
Community members and council members at the dais offered brief remarks thanking the appointees for volunteering and encouraging transparency and data-driven outreach by the new committee.
