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June 21, 2015 Mayor Miguel Pulido Councilmember Vicente Sarmiento Councilmember Michele Martinez Councilmember Angelica Amezcua Councilmember David Benavides Councilmember Roman A. Reyna Councilmember Sal Tinajero City Council City of Santa Ana Dear Mayor and Council, This letter is to call your attention to what I believe was a substantial violation of a central provision of the Ralph M. Brown Act, one which may jeopardize the finality of the action taken by the City Council of the City of Santa Ana. The nature of the violation is as follows: In its meeting of June 7, 2016, the City Council took action by formal vote to approve Item # 75F-1, which included: 1. The FY 2016-2017 Budget Ordinance on first reading; 2. The Seven -Year Capital Improvement Program beginning FY 2016-2017; and, 3. A Resolution amending and reestablishing the City's Classification and Compensation Plan. The action taken was not in compliance with the Brown Act because: the hearing was not properly administered; I completed and delivered a public speaker card that was in the Mayor's possession at the time of Council action but public comment was not received until after Council voted; the Clerk alerted the Mayor to the oversight multiple times but the hearing was not reopened nor was a motion to reconsider entertained as a quorum dissolved upon the completion of my remarks; and, there was no finding of fact made by the City Council that urgent action was necessary on a matter unforeseen at the time the agenda was posted. In the event it appears to you that the conduct of the City Council specified herein did not amount to the taking of action, I call your attention to Section 54952.6, which defines "action taken" for the purposes of the Act expansively, i.e. 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 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."