Palm Springs council adds last-minute closed-session item on potential litigation

The Palm Springs City Council voted Feb. 27 to add a last-minute closed-session item so members could confer with legal counsel about what the city attorney described as "significant exposure to litigation," then adjourned into closed session.

City Attorney Jeff told the council that "City staff on Tuesday afternoon became aware of facts and circumstances that would, in my opinion, justify going into closed session under conference with legal counsel." He said staff requested the council make a motion and adopt a finding — by a four-fifths vote, he said — that the facts came to light after the agenda was posted and that immediate action was needed. "The agenda description ... would read, 'conference with legal counsel, significant exposure to litigation pursuant to Government Code section 54956.9,'" Jeff said. "I'm unable to answer any questions."

Council members then took an electronic vote on adding the item. The motion passed, and with no public comment the council adjourned to the small conference room for the closed session; the meeting was set to reconvene at 5:30 p.m.

The council did not state the names or tally of votes on the record in the public portion of the meeting. The city attorney asked for the council to adopt the item by a four-fifths vote because, he said, the facts supporting the closed-session exception arose after the agenda was posted; the public record does not include whether the vote met that specific threshold. The council provided no additional detail about the subject of the potential litigation during the public portion of the meeting.

The closed-session agenda item was described on the public record as a conference with legal counsel under the California Government Code provision that allows limited closed discussion where a public agency faces significant exposure to litigation. No formal action or outcome from the closed session is recorded in the public transcript excerpt.