Glendale Council directs staff to place charter modernizations on November ballot after lengthy civil-service and finance debate

The Glendale City Council directed staff to prepare charter amendments for placement on the Nov. 3, 2026 ballot after a detailed presentation and extended council discussion. City staff said the proposals fall into three buckets: civil service modernization (including a banding rule to expand the pool of candidates and a provision allowing promotion-related reallocation), financial and accounting updates to collapse outdated funds and modernize transfers, and miscellaneous cleanups such as permitting special meetings outside City Hall.

City Attorney (staff) told the council the civil service changes were presented separately because they affect employee protections and must appear on a statewide general election; staff estimated the consolidated cost to add measures and outreach if consolidated with the statewide general election at $565,000. “The amendments now before the council generally fall into three categories: the civil service modernization, financial and accounting provisions, and miscellaneous charter cleanup,” the city attorney said during the staff presentation.

Council members pressed for details on specific provisions. Council member Asadrian raised concerns about how some civil service rules operate in practice — including the minimum duration for eligibility lists and how transfers and probationary periods are handled — and sought clarity on whether those operational issues require charter changes. The city attorney and HR staff explained that some items are governed by civil service rules rather than charter language and that the charter changes proposed focused on particular items identified by the Charter Review Committee.

A major point of debate focused on the proposal to prospectively remove department heads from classification in the civil service system (making them at-will for appointments after Nov. 3, 2026). Several council members flagged public-safety chiefs’ protections and asked whether the Charter Review Committee recommended that change; staff said the committee recommended changes to certain civil-service rules but did not endorse removing protections for department heads. Council members asked staff to correct any language or inaccurate report text before finalizing materials.

On financing and bond-sale authority, finance staff said collapsing obsolete charter fund references and allowing either competitive or negotiated bond sale methods would not alter the calculation of transfers but would give the city additional flexibility. Finance Director Jack Liang (introduced by staff) said competitive processes remain the first choice and any negotiated sale would be recommended by outside financial advisors and brought to council with a report laying out the rationale.

Council consensus: staff were directed to prepare final ordinance language and cost estimates for three measures (civil service; financial/miscellaneous; and a separate measure regarding city clerk and treasurer compensation and term limits), return next week with final drafts, and meet the August deadlines for arguments and appointments. The city attorney noted ballot argument drafts are due Aug. 10 and council appointments to draft them are scheduled for Aug. 20.