Staff reports are critical documents so the City Council and public can learn and understand the issue and options related to local decisions.
Here's a step-by-step guide to get your item added to the City Council agenda:
Step 1
Are you working on an assignment, project, or task that you believe should be presented to the City Council at a City Council meeting? Work with your supervisor to confirm with your Department Director that your item will be added to an upcoming City Council meeting agenda. Once you have the date of the meeting, complete an Agenda Item Request Form online to let the City Clerk's Office know.
Step 2
- Generate your staff report.
- Follow these tips to make sure it's completed properly. Be sure to include all corresponding attachments and exhibits.
- If you'll be including a contract, agreement, resolution, or ordinance, make sure to seek assistance from the City Attorney's Office. You will need to have these documents approved by the City Attorney's Office before you submit your staff report.
- Send your draft staff report to your Department Director for their review and approval prior to submitting it to the City Council Meeting Team for review (three Fridays before the City Council meeting your item is scheduled for).
Step 3
Once approved by your department director, save your staff report and all associated attachments (properly labeled) to the City Council Meetings Team, Agenda Item Approval Process folder by EOD three Fridays prior to the City Council meeting. If you do not have access to the City Council Meetings Team, submit a ticket to Xantrion to request access.
You can sync this folder to your PC by following these steps.
- Open Teams
- Click the "General" channel in "City Council Meetings"
- Click "Files"
- Click "Sync" to sync this folder to your PC
Staff Report Naming Conventions
Format your staff report file names like this:
[Dept. Acronym] - [Topic of Staff Report]
Example: CD - General Plan 2040 Work Program
This topic of this staff report is General Plan 2040 Work Program and is submitted by the Community Development (CD) department.
Format your attachment file names like this:
[Attachment [Attachment Number] - [Attachment Name]
Example: Attachment 1 - Resolution
This is the first attachment that is referenced in the staff report. This attachment is a resolution.
Step 4
The City Manager's Office will coordinate with the City Attorney's Office and the Finance department to review your staff report, along with any corresponding exhibits, and will communicate with you via email once their review is complete. Please address all issues, questions, and suggested changes as requested in your staff report, in this email thread.
Step 5
Make all necessary changes to your staff report. If they include questions/comments to you in the comment section, please respond in their comment and do not delete their comment unless you have substantially completed their request.
Step 6
Once you have accepted all changes and responded to comments, please "Reply All" to the email thread to let us know that your staff report is ready for the City Manager's review. This version should have no track changes or comments left; it should be considered ready to be published, from your perspective.
Step 8
If you have a slide deck for your presentation, please send it to the City Clerk's Office by 2pm the day of the City Council meeting.
Step 9
We'll see you at the City Council meeting! If presenting a staff report, check out our tips for presenting to the City Council.