On July 25, 2006, the Council by consensus directed that the City Attorney seek an opinion from the Attorney General as to whether a member of the City Council may both appeal a decision from the Planning Board and then argue that appeal at the time and in the place and manner as a normal appellant. 

Following that meeting Councilmember Gordon felt that the Council direction included him working with our office on the text and makeup of the question to be presented.  I informed him that I did not read the direction in that manner and didn�t feel that I was authorized to take direction from one Council member, so he asked that I delay submitting the request until he had a chance to seek clarification from his colleagues, which I did.  At the Council meeting of Tuesday, August 8, 2006, the issue came up, but Dr. Gordon did not seek Council consensus to allow him to review and/or approve the request, or to change or clarify the Council direction in any other way.  The following day I therefore sent the request for an Attorney General�s opinion to Dario Frommer, our Assembly representative, to submit to the Attorney General, and I copied the members of the Council. 

At the August 15, 2006 Council meeting Council member Gordon expressed concern that the request had been submitted and asked that the matter come back for further Council discussion.  I informed the Council that such requests take some time, but in any event I was planning on discussing the matter with Mr. Frommer�s office and could advise them that the issue was still under discussion.  On Wednesday, August 16, 2006, I did have a telephone discussion with Mr. Frommer�s Sacramento office and they indicated that they would delay submitting the request to the Attorney General until I gave them further instructions. 

I have attached a copy of the opinion request that I sent to Mr. Frommer at the Council�s request.   

The options before the Council are as follows:

1.  Decide to proceed with the opinion request as drafted. 

2.  Decide that no opinion request is needed and direct that it be withdrawn. 

3.  Direct that the opinion request be redrafted in a specific manner. 

4.  As a Council make specific changes to the request and direct that it be resubmitted.

5.  Appoint a subcommittee of one or two Council members to work with the City Attorney in drafting a new opinion request. 

6.  Some combination of several of the above. 

Once Council direction is received I will contact Assembly member Frommer�s office accordingly.

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