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Santa Barbara City Council adjourns to closed session on labor negotiations
Summary
At a special April 14 meeting the Santa Barbara City Council adjourned to closed session under Government Code §54957.6 to instruct negotiators Michael Arnaldis and John Dus on talks with SEIU Local 620 and other bargaining units; no public was present and the council did not anticipate a report out, reconvening at 2:00 p.m.
The Santa Barbara City Council on April 14, 2026 adjourned into closed session to discuss labor negotiations with Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 620 and several other bargaining units.
The clerk read the agenda item and recommended "that council hold a closed session pursuant to the authority of Government Code section 54957.6 to consider instructions to city negotiator Human Resources Director Michael Arnaldis and City Attorney John Dus regarding negotiations with Service Employees International Union Local 620" and listed related bargaining units, including the general bargaining unit, hourly unit, Fire Management Association, Santa Barbara City Firefighters Association, Police Officers Association, Police Management Association, Santa Barbara City Supervisory Employees, American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), and unrepresented managers and confidential employees.
The meeting record indicates members recorded present during roll call included Councilmember Friedman, Councilmember Santa Maria, Councilmember Gutierrez, Mayor Prom Sten, Councilmember Harmon, Councilmember Jordan and Mayor Rouse. The clerk and the presiding official noted there was no public present in the chamber and that there were no online participants for the item.
The council then recessed into closed session, saying it did not anticipate a report out and would reconvene at 2:00 p.m. The agenda reading cited Government Code section 54957.6, the statute that allows public bodies to meet in closed session to discuss labor negotiations and provide instructions to their negotiators.
Because the discussion moved into closed session, the transcript does not record the substance of negotiations or any instructions given to city negotiators. The council’s action at this meeting was limited to adjourning into that closed session; no public vote on the matter is recorded in the available transcript.
