COMMITTEE AGENDA MEMORANDUM
Board Policy and Monitoring Committee
Government Code § 84308 Applies: Yes ☐ No ☒
(If “YES” Complete Attachment A - Gov. Code § 84308)
SUBJECT: title
Receive Information Relating to Quorum and Attendance Requirements for Board Advisory Committees and Provide Feedback.
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RECOMMENDATION: Recommendation
Receive information relating to quorum and attendance requirements for Board Advisory Committees and provide feedback.
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SUMMARY:
On September 9, 2026, the Board of Directors (Board) of the Santa Clara Valley Water District (Valley Water) directed the Interim District Counsel to review:
(1) Quorum requirements for Board Advisory Committees; and
(2) Attendance requirements for Board Advisory Committees.
BACKGROUND:
BAC Members are appointed to renewable two-year terms. Each BAC must present to the Board an “Annual Accomplishments Report” summarizing the outcomes of the Committee’s annual Board-approved work plan. Attachment 1 provides an overview of the Advisory Committees, their purpose, membership total and current quorum meeting requirements.
BROWN ACT:
California Government Code section 54952(b) states that “a commission, committee, board, or other body of a local agency, whether permanent or temporary, decision making or advisory, created by charter, ordinance, resolution, or formal action of a legislative body, qualifies as a legislative body subject to the Brown Act.” All of Valley Water’s advisory committees are subject to the Brown Act because they were created by resolution and approved by the Board. Resolution 17-75 section 4.1 further states that “Meetings of the Committees shall be open and public and called in accordance with the Ralph M. Brown act, Government Code sections 54950.”
QUORUM:
While advisory committees are instrumental to the work of Valley Water, they are heavily impacted when fellow appointed members are unable to attend a meeting and/or must exit during the meeting. Currently, Valley Water Resolution 17-75 section 4.9 allows a meeting to proceed in the event a quorum is not present at the scheduled start time of the meeting or is lost during the meeting but limits the meeting to informational items clearly stating that “No action shall be taken on any agenda item when a quorum does not exist.” Valley Water Resolution 17-75 section 4.10 further states that an “action of the Committee may be taken only upon the affirmative vote of not less than a majority of the appointed members or their alternates present.” These provisions freeze the work of the Committee until a quorum is present debilitating those members present who intend to do the work of Valley Water and are unable to, due to circumstances out of their control, i.e. a fellow committee member’s absence.
The Brown Act defines “action taken” as “a collective decision made by a majority of the members of a legislative body, a collective commitment or promise by a majority of the members of a legislative body to make a positive or a negative decision, or an actual vote by a majority of the members of a legislative body when sitting as a body or entity, upon a motion, proposal, resolution, order or ordinance.” This language can be interpreted to mean a majority of the appointed members of the legislative body absent law or policy dictating otherwise. Resolution 17-75 section 4.7 requires a majority of appointed members of the Committee to be present to constitute a quorum. Our review then focused on whether a majority of appointed members of the Committee must be present to act. The answer is yes. Where a quorum of the Committee is not present, Resolution 17-75 section 4.9 does allow for informational items to be heard, including staff reports but limits action from being taken on any agenda item when a quorum does not exist. This aligns with the Brown Act.
The quorum in the Resolution currently adheres to the Brown Act requirements. At the discretion of the Board, the language can be further consolidated. The following are provided for the Board to consider that would modify Resolution 17-75 and potentially increase attendance:
(1) Restructure BAC to smaller core memberships.
(2) Allow alternates for all BAC’s.
(3) Explore the need for a BAC vs. creation of ad hoc committees focused on specific projects.
(4) Shift meeting schedules to align with Valley Water events to encourage more attendance/participation.
(5) Ensure that remote attendance is known and understood, where allowed, by all members of each committee and that each committee member has the resources needed to attend remotely where needed.
ATTENDANCE:
Resolution 17-75 section 2.7 outlines Valley Water’s expectations for Advisory Committee member attendance and is reflected in Attachment 2.
The Brown Act does not provide internal attendance policies for committees. Considerations for the Board to review regarding attendance are provided below:
(1) Increase the minimum required notification time for an “excused” absence. (Currently the minimum requirement for an “excused” absence is 48 hours.)
(2) Create formal attendance records for each BAC and provide those attendance records to the Board on a quarterly or biannual basis as a formal report from the Clerk’s office.
(3) Establish a process to remove members from their BAC.
(4) Implement an attendance policy whereby missing a specific amount of consecutive meetings results in automatic removal from the seat.
CONCLUSION:
Valley Water’s Resolution Number 17-75 adheres to the Brown Act requirements regarding BAC’s and Attendance. Considerations provided herein may be explored upon further direction.
ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE IMPACT:
Review of the Board Advisory Committee’s quorum and attendance policies are not subject to environmental justice analysis.
ATTACHMENTS:
Attachment 1: Advisory Committee Overview
Attachment 2: Advisory Committee Attendance Expectations
UNCLASSIFIED MANAGER:
Manager
Linda Mason, 408-630-2509