The following applies to the board vacancy created by the resignation of DMUSD board member Linda Crawford, effective March 12, 2008.
Materials below are extracted from the March 26, 2008 Agenda and Board Packet.
March 19, 2008
From:
Subject:
Janet Berard, Interim Superintendent
Board Discussion, Board Vacancy - Approval of Provisional Appointment/Election and of Timeline/Procedures
The resignation of former Board Member, Linda Crawford, on March 12, 2008 has prompted a need for the Board to determine the best option for filling the vacancy. Mrs. Crawford's letter of resignation is attached.
When a letter of resignation is filed with the County Superintendent's Office, the Governing Board has sixty (60) days to either call an election or make a provisional appointment to fill the vacancy. The sixtieth day is May 12, 2008.
Legal references, including Board Bylaw 9223: Filling Vacancies are attached for the Board's information and review.
Peg Marks, Legal Analyst at the San Diego County Office of Education advised the administration on the following options for filling the vacancy.
Election
If the Board determines to order an election to fill the vacancy, it must be held on November 4, 2008. The Board may adopt a resolution to authorize an all-mail ballot election. The form for adopting a resolution may be obtained from Legal Services at SDCOE.
OR
Appointment (The overwhelming choice by almost all districts In San Diego County)
The Board may determine its own procedures for advertising the vacancy, interviewing candidates, and making a provisional appointment. The Board may not discuss or act upon the appointment in closed session.
The appointed Board member will be in office until November 2008 when Linda Crawford's term would have expired. Unless a petition for a special election is filed with the County Superintendent of Schools within thirty (30) days after the Regular Board Meeting of March 26, 2008 Regular Board Meeting of March 26, 2008 date of the provisional appointment, the appointment will remain effective until November. Ms. Marks advised the District that a petition for a special June election could not be a consideration at this time because the deadline for filing was March 17, 2008. She also advised the District that a special election would be a very costly process.
After the provisional appointment, a notice of the action must be posted in three (3) public places and published in a newspaper of general circulation published in the Del Mar School community.
The normal procedure for filling board vacancies is as follows:
- Publish the vacancy in local newspapers for two weeks
- Accept applications, which become part of the public record
- Make the provisional appointment
Attached for the Board's review are a sample timeline and application for the Board's consideration.
RECOMMENDED:
The Interim Superintendent recommends that the Board approve a provisional appointment to fill the Board member vacancy and also approve the recommended timeline and application.
March 10, 2008
Dr. Randolph E. Ward
San Diego County Superintendent of Schools
6401 Linda Vista Road
San Diego, CA 92111
Dear Dr. Ward:
This is to notify you that I am resigning as a School Board Trustee of the Del Mar Union School District, effective March 12, 2008.
Respectfully submitted,
[ Linda Crawford ]
Del Mar Union School District
225 9th Street
Del Mar, CA 92014
March 11, 2008
Janet Bernard
Interim Superintendent
Del Mar Union School District
225 Ninth Street
Del Mar, CA 92014-2716
Dear Ms. Bernard:
We have received and filed a letter of resignation from Del Mar Union School District Governing Board Member Linda Crawford. Pursuant to Education Code section 5090, her resignation is effective on March 12, 2008.
Whenever a letter of resignation is filed with the County Superintendent of Schools, within 60 days the members of the governing board shall either call an election or make a provisional appointment to fill the vacancy. The sixtieth day is May 12, 2008.
A detailed outline of the procedures for filling a board vacancy and the necessary forms are enclosed. If the Board chooses to fill the vacancy by appointment, please note that we would appreciate receiving copies of the Notice of Provisional Appointment and the Roster of Public Agencies Filing.
Please do not hesitate to call Peg Marks, legal services analyst, at (858) 292-3746, if our office can be of further assistance.
Sincerely,
RANDOLPH E. WARD
County Superintendent of Schools
By
Carole A. Parks, Deputy
REW:CDP:MM
Enclosures
EDUCATION CODE
SECTION 5090-5095
5090.
Vacancies on school district governing boards or community college district boards are caused by any of the events specified in Section 1770 of the Government Code, or by a failure to elect. A vacancy resulting from resignation occurs when the written resignation is filed with the county superintendent of schools having jurisdiction over the district, except where a deferred effective date is specified in the resignation so filed, in which case the resignation shall become effective on that date. A written resignation, whether specifying a deferred effective date or otherwise, shall, upon being filed with the county superintendent of schools be irrevocable.
5091.
- Whenever a vacancy occurs, or whenever a resignation has been filed with the county superintendent of schools containing a deferred effective date, the school district or community college district governing board shall, within 60 days of the vacancy or the filing of the deferred resignation, either order an election or make a provisional appointment to fill the vacancy. A governing board member may not defer the effective date of his or her resignation for more than 60 days after he or she files the resignation with the county superintendent of schools.
In the event that a governing board fails to make a provisional appointment or order an election within the prescribed 60-day period as required by this section, the county superintendent of schools shall order an election to fill the vacancy. - When an election is ordered, it shall be held on the next established election date provided pursuant to Chapter 1 (commencing with Section 1000) of Division 1 of the Elections Code not less than 130 days after the order of the election.
-
- If a provisional appointment is made within the 60-day period, the registered voters of the district may, within 30 days from the date of the appointment, petition for the conduct of a special election to fill the vacancy. A petition shall be deemed to bear a sufficient number of signatures if signed by at least the number of registered voters of the district equal to 11/2 percent of the number of registered voters of the district at the time of the last regular election for governing board members, or 25 registered voters, whichever is greater. However, in districts with registered voters of less than 2,000 persons, a petition shall be deemed to bear a sufficient number of signatures if signed by at least 5 percent of the number of registered voters of the district at the time of the last regular election for governing board members.
- The petition shall be submitted to the county superintendent of schools having jurisdiction who shall have 30 days to verify the signatures. If the petition is determined to be legally sufficient by the county superintendent of schools, the provisional appointment is terminated, and the county superintendent of schools shall order a special election to be conducted no later than the 130th day after the determination. However, if an established election date, as defined in Section 1000 of the Elections Code, occurs between the 130th day and the 150th day following the order of the election, the county superintendent of schools may order the special election to be conducted on the regular election date.
- A provisional appointment made pursuant to Subdivision (a) confers all powers and duties of a governing board member upon the appointee immediately following his or her appointment.
- A person appointed to fill a vacancy shall hold office only until the next regularly scheduled election for district governing board members, whereupon an election shall be held to fill the vacancy for the remainder of the unexpired term. A person elected at an election to fill the vacancy shall hold office for the remainder of the term in which the vacancy occurs or will occur.
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- Whenever a petition calling for a special election is circulated, the petition shall meet all of the following requirements:
- The petition shall contain the estimate of the elections official of the cost of conducting the special election.
- The name and residence address of at least one, but not more than five, of the proponents of the petition shall appear on the petition, each of which proponents shall be a registered voter of the school district or community college district, as applicable.
- None of the text or other language of the petition shall appear in less than six-point type.
- The petition shall be prepared and circulated in conformity with Sections 100 and 104 of the Elections Code.
- If any of the requirements of this subdivision are not met as to any petition calling for a special election, the county superintendent of schools shall not verify the signatures, nor shall any further action be taken with respect to the petition.
- No person shall permit the list of names on petitions prescribed by this section to be used for any purpose other than qualification of the petition for the purpose of holding an election pursuant to this section.
- The petition filed with the county superintendent of schools shall be subject to the restrictions in Section 6253.5 of the Government Code.
- Whenever a petition calling for a special election is circulated, the petition shall meet all of the following requirements:
- Elections held pursuant to subdivisions (b) and (C) shall be conducted in as nearly the same manner as practicable as other governing board member elections.
5092.
Whenever a provisional appointment is made to the governing board of a school district pursuant to section 5091, the board shall, within 10 days of the provisional appointment of a person to fill a vacancy which occurs or will occur, post notices of both the actual vacancy or the filing of a deferred resignation and also the provisional appointment in three public places in the district and shall publish a notice pursuant to Section 6061 of the Government Code. If there is no newspaper of general circulation published in the district, notice need not be published.
The notice shall state the fact of the vacancy or resignation and the date of the occurrence of the vacancy or the date of the filing of, and the effective date of, the resignation. The notice shall also contain the full name of the provisional appointee to the board and the date of his appointment, and a statement that unless a petition calling for a special election, containing a sufficient number of signatures, is filed in the office of county superintendent of schools within 30 days of the date of the provisional appointment, it shall become an effective appointment.
5093.
- There shall be no special election or appointment to fill a vacancy on a governing board if the vacancy occurs within four months of the end of the term of that position.
- Section 5091 shall not apply to a vacancy on a governing board if the vacancy occurs, or a resignation specifying a deferred effective date is filed with the county superintendent of schools, during the period between six months and 130 days prior to a regularly scheduled governing board election and the position is not scheduled to be filled at such election. In such a case, the position shall be filled at a special election for that position to be consolidated with the regular election. A person elected to fill a position under this subdivision shall take office at the next regularly scheduled meeting of the governing board following the certification of the election and shall serve only until the end of the term of the position which he or she was elected to fill.
- If a special election pursuant to Section 5091 could be consolidated with the next regular election for governing board members, and the vacant position is scheduled to be filled at such regular election, there shall be no special election.
5094.
If for any reason vacancies should occur in a majority of the offices on any school district or community college district governing board, the president of the county board of education having jurisdiction may appoint members of the county board of education to the district governing board until new members of the governing board are elected or appointed.
5095.
Whenever any of the offices on any school district governing board or community college district governing board is vacant, the remaining governing board member or members, if any, and any governing board member or members elected or appointed to fill the vacancies, who have qualified, shall have all the powers and perform all the duties of the governing board.
DEL MAR UNION SCHOOL DISTRICT
Bylaws/Administrative Regulations of the Board
Board Bylaw 9223: FILLING VACANCIES
A vacancy exists when a member of the Board submits his/her resignation in writing to the San Diego County Superintendent of Schools (Education Code 5090).
A vacancy may be declared by remaining members of the Board if a Board member fails to comply with all the requirements for continuing in public office in the State of California, including, but not limited to, failure to attend Board meetings for three consecutive months unless prevented by illness or unless absent from California with permission required by law (Government Code Section 1770).
Whenever a vacancy occurs, or whenever a resignation has been filed with the County Superintendent of Schools containing a deferred effective date, the Board shall, within 60 days of the vacancy of the filing of the deferred resignation, either call an election or make a provisional appointment to fill the vacancy (Education Code 5091).
Del Mar Union School District
TIMELINE FOR BOARD APPOINTMENT
2008
| March 26 | Board adopts timeline and application document for filling the vacancy on the Del Mar Union School District Governing Board |
| April 1 | Application packet available to the public online (www.dmusd.org) or pick-up at the Del Mar Union School District, 225 9th Street, Del Mar. |
| April 1 to 15 | Advertise vacancy in local newspapers |
| April 25 | Deadline at 3:00 p.m. for all applications. They may be mailed, faxed or hand delivered to the District Office. |
| April 29 | Copies of all applications mailed to Board members for review. |
| May 7 | Special Board meeting at Ocean Air School to review applications and applicants in public and make the appointment. Each candidate will have five minutes to address the Board commencing at 3:15 p.m. |
More Information:
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