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On December 13, 2022, the two newly elected city council members Michael Kulikoff, Ronald Smith, and Mayor Kelly Kulikoff were sworn in and seated. During the City Council Meeting it came time for confirming the Mayor Pro Tempore. This is where things started to get interesting. Many thought it was supposed to be Karen Macedonio, but the interpretation of the city ordinance became uncertain and understood differently in 2022 for a select few.
Here is the ordinance below as of 12/13/2022 regarding selecting the Mayor Pro Tempore.
During the agenda item there was numerous public comments and interpretations of the ordinance. Here is the discussion from the council meeting.
Key Time Frame - Watch From 20:50 to 36:00
Now that you have watched the key time frame in the above video, you will have heard public comments, councilmember and mayor's comments, and the motion made by the mayor. He made a motion to approve the newly elected city councilmember Ron Smith as the most senior councilmember to be Mayor Pro Tempore. Let that all sink in for a minute! Read the ordinance and see the selection by motion. With that being said, it came time for the vote to approve councilmember Smith as Mayor Pro Tempore based on the mayor's motion. The votes were as follows: councilmember Creighton - NO, councilmember Michael Kulikoff - YES, councilmember Macedonio - NO, councilmember Smith - ABSTAINED, mayor Kelly Kulikoff - YES. Motion failed. The city attorney then said that we could bring it back and the mayor asked to do so at the next meeting. That was it the rest of the meeting on this topic.
Since that meeting ended, a Facebook post was created on December 17, 2022. Here is the Facebook post.
Next, days prior to the upcoming January 10, 2023 City Council Meeting, the Agenda Packet was posted online. In the Agenda Packet was the information on this item and the conclusion from the city attorney's office. It was determined by them after the review of the Municipal Code, California Government Code, and past practices in the city that it should be councilmember Ron Smith, the newly elected councilmember, appointed as Mayor Pro Tempore of the city. Here is the attachment from the Agenda Packet on the item.
Now comes the day of the next city council meeting, January 10, 2023. Right as the regular meeting started, an email was sent to the city council prior to the agenda item being discussed that evening. Here is the email below that was sent to all of the councilmembers and mayor.
NOTE: Later into the meeting, a copy of the email was forwarded to the city attorney, prior to the city council voting on the Mayor Pro Tempore.
Here is the main concern between what the city attorney's office stated in their executive summary and what independent findings determined from the email sent to the council. There was a different conclusion to PAST PRACTICES. It baffles many on how their past practices determination would indicate a newly elected councilmember being immediately made Mayor Pro Tempore right out the gate. Needless to say this concern would be called out numerous times.
During the 1/10/2023 city council meeting there were numerous public and council comments once again. Here is the discussion from the council meeting.
Key Time Frame - Watch From 1:23:30 to 1:35:00
Now that you have watched the key time frame in the above video, you will have heard public comments, councilmember and mayor's comments, and the end result. It was time to vote once again. They mayor Kelly Kulikoff made a motion to approve Ron Smith. Michael Kulikoff seconded it. The votes were as follows: councilmember Michael Kulikoff - YES, councilmember Smith - YES, councilmember Creighton - NO, councilmember Macedonio - NO, mayor Kelly Kulikoff - YES. Motion passes and Ron Smith becomes Mayor Pro Tempore.
Since that meeting ended, Facebook posts were created between January 12, 2023 - January 16, 2023. Here are the Facebook posts.
Since the Mayor Pro Tempore was selected on 1/10/2023, it came time to discuss the change in the ordinance to alleviate confusion again like it did only in the 2022 election. Here is the discussion of the meeting on this. It took place during the 2/14/2023 City Council Meeting as item PH2.
Key Time Frame - Watch From 1:11:22 to 1:41:20
Now that you have watched the key time frame in the above video, you will have heard public comments, councilmember and mayor's comments, and the end result of the desired change Amending Section 2-1.104(b) of the Municipal Code. The ordinance which is listed at the beginning of this page.
You have reached the end of the incident talking points!
Here is the opinion statement regarding this all with the dispute of the selection made of Mayor Pro Tempore in the city of California City, CA.