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Committee directs staff to draft proposal: 60‑day window to fill supervisor vacancies, appointee to run at next primary
Summary
After discussion, the committee asked staff to prepare a draft charter amendment that would require the Board of Supervisors to fill vacancies within 60 days, and specify that any appointed supervisor must stand for election at the next regularly scheduled primary (subject to candidate‑filing deadlines).
The Charter Review Committee asked staff to draft language for a proposed change to the county’s vacancy‑fill procedure for Board of Supervisors seats.
Committee members discussed mechanisms the county uses now: Placer County’s charter currently requires the remaining supervisors to fill a vacancy by unanimous vote within 30 days, and if they fail to act, the governor appoints a replacement. Committee members said 30 days can be too short to recruit and vet qualified candidates, and that the unanimous‑vote requirement can help ensure the appointee is broadly acceptable but may also produce stalemate. After debate members proposed a compromise: extend the internal appointment window to 60 days; require that any appointee run at the next regularly scheduled primary election to serve the remainder of the term (with a statutory/filing cutoff if the vacancy arises very near an election); and establish a trigger for the appointment deadline (for example a 130‑day pre‑election filing threshold to determine whether a special run is required).
The committee voted to direct staff to prepare draft charter language and a schedule of implementation options, including a fallback if no appointment can be agreed within 60 days. Staff was also asked to identify statutory filing deadlines and typical special‑election costs so the committee can weigh a public‑election option.
