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Council debates agenda‑setting changes and asks staff to return with a written policy
Summary
Staff proposed formalizing agenda-setting by having the mayor and vice mayor meet with staff (with an optional city manager role); council members discussed options, Brown Act constraints and a tie‑breaker mechanism and asked staff to bring back a written policy for approval.
Brisbane staff recommended formalizing how council agendas are set — proposing either the mayor and vice mayor meet with staff, or that the city manager join that discussion — and suggested adding a 'future agenda items' listing that would allow items to be scheduled with two council members' support.
In the discussion, council members said they wanted to preserve the city manager’s informational role while avoiding placing the city manager in a decision‑making position that could create awkwardness. Council Member Davis said she preferred the mayor/vice‑mayor model and suggested using the most recent past mayor as a tiebreaker if needed. Other council members favored written policy to clarify the process and avoid ad hoc practices.
Council asked staff to prepare a draft policy and return it as a consent or action item at a future meeting; staff agreed to bring back a written policy and to include a procedure for future agenda-item requests and prioritization.
