City Council Agenda
Memo to:
Manteca City Council
From:
Kousha Mckeenejad, Deputy City Attorney
Date:
June 2, 2026
Subject:
Amendment of MMC Chapter 2.08 "CITY MANAGER", Section 2.08.070, "Powers and duties"
Recommendation:
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Waive the first reading by substitution of the title and introduce an Ordinance of the City Council of the City of Manteca, State of California, amending Chapter 2.08 "CITY MANAGER" section 2.08.070 "Powers and duties" to grant City Manager the sole authority to appoint an Assistant City Manager.
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Background:
The Manteca Municipal Code (MMC), Chapter 2.08 "CITY MANAGER" establishes the powers and responsibilities governing the office of the City Manager within the City of Manteca ("City").
Section 2.08.070(C) of the MMC "Powers and duties" sets forth who the City Manager may appoint or remove, including the power to appoint an Assistant City Manager subject to the approval of the City Council.
The approval requirement in Section 2.08.070(C) is anomalous within that section, which otherwise grants the City Manager broad, independent authority to appoint, remove, and demote all officers and employees of the City, with the sole exception of the City Attorney. The Assistant City Manager is not distinguished from other department heads or executive staff in any functional way that justifies different treatment, and singling out this one position for Council confirmation is inconsistent with the organizational structure Section 2.08.070 otherwise establishes and with council-manager governance principles applicable to California general law cities.
Under standard council-manager governance, the City Council sets policy direction, and the City Manager administers day-to-day operations, including personnel decisions. Requiring the governing body to approve a single direct-report position creates unnecessary overlap and blurs operational authority.
Executive-level hiring often requires timely decision-making. E...
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