Title
Motion Directing City Staff to Implement Councilmember Simon's Request to Video-Record All Closed Session Meetings of the City Council
Staffreport
Summary and Analysis
Per a request from Council Member Simon, City staff presents for the City Council’s consideration a motion that, if adopted by majority vote of the Council, would direct staff to implement video-recordings of all closed session meetings of the City Council. The recordings would be retained by the City Attorney and would be considered confidential information, consistent with the requirements of the Brown Act.
The Brown Act at California Government Code Section 54957.2 provides that the Council may, by ordinance or resolution, designate a clerk or other officer or employee to attend each closed session of the Council and keep and enter in a minute book a record of topics discussed and decisions made at the meeting. The minute book is not a public record subject to inspection under the California Public Records Act, and shall be kept confidential. The minute book would only be available to the City Council or, if a violation of the Brown Act is alleged to have occurred at a closed session, to the Alameda County Superior Court. The minute book may, but need not, consist of a recording of the closed session. In short, the minute book, and the recording would be kept secret, only for internal use or specific legal situations.
Fiscal Impacts
Implementation of video recording may result in General Fund costs for technical solutions and security needs. While the exact amount is unknown, staff estimates potential annual costs ranging from $0 to approximately $2,500.