Added by Stats. 1949, Ch. 79.
The enacting clause of ordinances shall be: “The city council of the City of ____ does ordain as follows:”.
Article 2 - Enactment
California Government Code — §§ 36931-36937
Sections (9)
Amended by Stats. 2025, Ch. 242, Sec. 6. (SB 858) Effective January 1, 2026.
(a)Ordinances shall be signed by the mayor and attested by the city clerk. When attesting to an electronic or digital signature, the clerk may presume that the signature is genuine and attributable to the signatory if the electronic or digital signature complies with the requirement set forth in subdivision (a) of Section 16.5.
(b)The amendments made to this section by the act that added this subdivision shall not be construed to affect the validity of a clerk’s
attestation to any other digital or electronic signature.
Amended by Stats. 2002, Ch. 159, Sec. 1. Effective January 1, 2003.
(a)Within 15 days after its passage, the city clerk shall cause each ordinance to be published at least once, with the names of those city council members voting for and against the ordinance, in a newspaper of general circulation published and circulated in the city, or if there is none, he or she shall cause it to be posted in at least three public places in the city or published in a newspaper of general circulation printed and published in the county and circulated in the city. In cities incorporated less than one year, the city council may determine whether ordinances are to be published or posted. Ordinances shall not be published in a newspaper if the charge exceeds the customary rate charged by the newspaper for publication of private legal notices, but these ordinances shall be posted in the manner and at the time required by this section.
(b)Except as provided in Section 36937, an ordinance shall not take effect or be valid unless it is published or posted in substantially the manner and at the time required by this section.
(c)The publication or posting of ordinances, as required by subdivision (a), may be satisfied by either of the following actions:
(1)The city council may publish a summary of a proposed ordinance or proposed amendment to an existing ordinance. The summary shall be prepared by an official designated by the city council. A summary shall be published and a certified copy of the full text of the proposed ordinance or proposed amendment shall be posted in the office of the city clerk at least five days prior to the city council meeting at which the proposed ordinance or amendment or alteration thereto is to be adopted. Within 15 days after adoption of the ordinance or amendment, the city council shall publish a summary of the ordinance or amendment with the names of those city council members voting for and against the ordinance or amendment and the city clerk shall post in the office of the city clerk a certified copy of the full text of the adopted ordinance or amendment along with the names of those city council members voting for and against the ordinance or amendment; or
(2)If the city official designated by the city council determines that it is not feasible to prepare a fair and adequate summary of the proposed or adopted ordinance or amendment, and if the city council so orders, a display advertisement of at least one-quarter of a page in a newspaper of general circulation in the city shall be published at least five days prior to the city council meeting at which the proposed ordinance or amendment or alteration thereto is to be adopted. Within 15 days after adoption of the ordinance or amendment, a display advertisement of at least one-quarter of a page shall be published. The advertisement shall indicate the general nature of, and provide information about, the proposed or adopted ordinance or amendment, including information sufficient to enable the public to obtain copies of the complete text of the ordinance or amendment, and the names of those city council members voting for and against the ordinance or amendment.
(d)(1) Any member of the public may file with the city clerk, or any other person designated by the governing body to receive these requests, a request for notice of specific proposed ordinances or proposed amendments to ordinances.
(2)Notice pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be mailed or otherwise transmitted at least five days before the council is scheduled to take action on the proposed ordinances or proposed amendments to an ordinance. Notice may be given by written notice properly mailed or by e-mail if the requesting member of the public provides an e-mail address. Notice may be in the form specified in either paragraph (1) or (2) of subdivision (c), as determined by the city council.
(3)As an alternative to providing notice as requested of specific proposed ordinances or proposed amendments to ordinances, the city clerk, or other person designated by the governing body, may place the requesting member of the public on a general mailing list that gives timely notice of all governing body public meetings at which proposed ordinances or proposed amendments to ordinances may be heard, as provided in Section 54954.1. If this alternative is selected, the requesting member of the public shall be so advised.
(4)The city may charge a fee that is reasonably related to the costs of providing notice pursuant to this subdivision. The city may require each request to be annually renewed.
(5)Failure of the requesting person to receive the information pursuant to this subdivision shall not constitute grounds for any court to invalidate an otherwise properly adopted ordinance or amendment to an ordinance.
Added by Stats. 1955, Ch. 270.
Whenever a city having a population of less than 2,500 inhabitants adopts an ordinance code containing all ordinances and amendments previously adopted and amendments and new ordinances to bring the codification up to the date of adoption, instead of publishing such code, amendments, and new ordinances pursuant to Section 36933, the city council may cause the code, amendments, and new ordinances to be adopted by reference as provided in Sections 50022.1 to 50022.8 inclusive of this code. Thereafter all ordinances amending the code shall be published pursuant to Section 36933.
Amended by Stats. 2022, Ch. 427, Sec. 5. (SB 1489) Effective January 1, 2023.
Ordinances shall not be passed within five days of their introduction, nor at other than a regular meeting or at an adjourned regular meeting. However, an urgency ordinance may be passed immediately upon introduction and either at a regular or special meeting. Except when, after reading the title, further reading is waived by regular motion adopted by majority vote all ordinances shall be read in full either at the time of introduction or passage; provided, however, that a reading of the title or ordinance shall not be required if the title is included on the published agenda and a copy of the full ordinance is made available to the public online and in print at the meeting prior to the introduction or passage. When ordinances, other than urgency ordinances, are altered after introduction, they shall be passed
only at a regular or at an adjourned regular meeting held at least five days after alteration. Corrections of typographical or clerical errors are not alterations within the meaning of this section.
Amended by Stats. 1969, Ch. 775.
Resolutions or orders for the payment of money shall be adopted or made only at a regular meeting or at a special meeting for which the notice of such special meeting specifies the business to be transacted.
Amended by Stats. 2002, Ch. 454, Sec. 15. Effective January 1, 2003.
Resolutions, orders for the payment of money, and all ordinances require a recorded majority vote of the total membership of the city council.
Amended by Stats. 1959, Ch. 1295.
The rates of taxes to be levied or the amount of revenue required to be raised by taxation may be fixed either by ordinance or resolution. Where the tax rate or the amount of revenue required to be raised by taxation is fixed by resolution, such resolution shall be published in the same manner and within the same time as ordinances are required to be published.
Amended by Stats. 1957, Ch. 2347.
Ordinances take effect 30 days after their final passage. An ordinance takes effect immediately, if it is an ordinance:
(a)Relating to an election.
(b)For the immediate preservation of the public peace, health or safety, containing a declaration of the facts constituting the urgency, and is passed by a four-fifths vote of the city council.
(c)Relating to street improvement proceedings.
(d)Relating to taxes for the usual and current expenses of the city.
(e)Covered by particular provisions of law prescribing the manner of its passage and adoption.