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Parlier City Council adjourns special meeting, authorizes orders to compel absent members to attend
Summary
With only two council members present, the council adjourned a special meeting to the following day at 5 p.m. and authorized staff to serve absent members with an order that could trigger fines; leaders warned the absences risked jeopardizing about $700,000 in SB road funds.
The Parlier City Council adjourned a special meeting June 25 and ordered staff to serve absent members with a formal notice that could lead to fines if they fail to attend the reconvened session, council leaders said.
Council Chair said three council members did not appear at the special session and described their absences as refusals that were blocking required city business. A legal adviser to the council explained that, under state meeting law and the city’s ordinances, when fewer than a majority appear a meeting may be adjourned to a specific date and served on absent members, and that the ordinance includes penalties for failing to comply. “They will be required to attend. And if they don't attend, they will be subject to a citation in the amount of $225,” the legal adviser said.
The issue came into focus because the council must submit a resolution tied to roughly $700,000 in SB road funds by the end of the month. The chair said missing the deadline could cause Parlier to lose the funding to another city: “They're actually harming the city on receiving funds that we could have received,” the chair said.
The council instructed staff to post the adjournment order in the usual public locations, including the city website, and directed the police chief to personally serve the absent members with the order. The chair requested written confirmation — such as an email — once service is completed.
Before adjourning, the chair asked to change the reconvened meeting time to 5 p.m.; legal counsel advised that the order should be posted in the normal places and that personal service shortly before the reconvened time would still be effective. The council carried the meeting over to the next day at 5 p.m. and closed the session.
The council did not record a formal roll-call vote on the adjournment order in the transcript. Next steps are for staff and the police department to serve the order on absent members and report back in writing; the chair also said she would explore additional legal remedies if absences continue to obstruct city business.
