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Council tightens rules for advisory bodies, allows limited nonresident participation; HRC moved to committee
Summary
After a lengthy debate and public comment, council amended City Council Policy K2 to clarify committee membership rules, permitting select nonresident stakeholder participation on named committees and allowing limited city‑employee service with conflict safeguards; motion passed 4–3.
A divided Mountain View City Council on Wednesday revised its advisory‑body policy amid extended public comment and debate over who should be eligible to serve on committees and commissions. The council vote approved changes to City Council Policy K2 that clarify the definition of “committee,” specify baseline residency and age requirements and list a short set of exceptions allowing nonresident participation for some bodies.
The change was motivated by difficulties the Downtown Committee and others have faced when the existing charter and policy language clashed with the membership the city sought. Under the adopted motion, committees will, unless an establishing resolution provides otherwise, have members age 18 or older who are Mountain View residents; the motion also listed specific advisory bodies where nonresident stakeholder participation would be permitted (downtown committee, performing arts committee, senior advisory committee) and allowed, with safeguards, limited participation by city employees where no conflict exists. Council also moved the Human Relations Commission (HRC) to the committee category to allow broad resident participation — including noncitizen residents in some roles — rather than restricting membership to qualified electors under the charter.
Critics warned the change could allow nonresidents too much influence and urged keeping residents as the default membership. Supporters said limited, explicit exceptions for committees such as the Downtown Committee are necessary to include local business and property‑owner perspectives that shape downtown policy.
Following public testimony from business groups and neighborhood associations — and a request from staff to return establishing resolutions for each body so the council can specify membership criteria — the council approved the amended policy 4–3.
What happens next: Staff will bring back updated establishing resolutions for affected bodies so the council can approve the precise membership details for each advisory body. The motion also asked staff to preserve existing residency requirements unless the council votes otherwise when the new resolutions return for adoption.
