Clay 1 Michelle Clay Professor Bartels English 123 / Intermediate Composition 21 April 2013 Logo provided by:

Clay 1Michelle Clay

Professor Bartels

English 123 / Intermediate Composition

21 April 2013

Discourse Community Project

City Clerk

Logo provided by: http://www.cityofperris.org/index.html

Clay 2

City Clerk of the City of Perris

Judy Haughney and City Clerk Discourse

City of Perris City Clerk Mission Statement provided by: http://cityofperris.org/city-hall/departments/city-clerk.html

City of Perris City Clerk’s Office Mission Statement:

“The Perris City Clerk’s Office is committed to accurately recording and preserving the actions of the City Council, safeguarding vital, historic and permanent records of the City, providing information and support to the City Council, City Staff and the Public in a timely, courteous and fiscally responsible manner and administering open and free elections.”

Clay 3


City Clerk Haughney said that “most City Clerks fall

into the City Clerk’s position by default.” In her case, she said

that “the elected official resigned and she was approached to

finish the remaining five months of the term.” City Clerk

Haughney stated that “she thought it was temporary, but her

mentor convinced her that she would be ‘good at the job,’ so

she decided to run [for City Clerk] in 2006.”

Clay 4


When elected in 2006, City Clerk Haughney had to

learn the duties of the City Clerk through mentoring. The

required training is a certification. There are two levels of

certification: the first is a Certified Municipal Clerk and the

second is a Master Municipal Clerk—both levels require a

combination of training and experience. It took City Clerk

Haughney three years to receiver her certification.

Clay 5


According to City Clerk Haughney, the City Clerk wears

many hats. She stated that her duties include serving as the

clerk for the City Clerk’s office and any boards or commissions

for the City. The City Clerk is the Records Manager, Election

Official, Filing Officer for The Fair Political Practices

Commission (FPPC). The City Clerk’s office processes public

records requests, public noticing, and the City Clerk is the bid

officer for the City.

Clay 6


City Clerk Haughney stated that “the City Clerk’s office

is also charged with codification of municipal code, recordation

of documents, processing City contracts, production,

distribution and preservation of the City Council, Public

Finance Authority, and Public Utility Authority minutes,

ordinances and resolutions.” She also said that the City Clerks

office “maintains the records management for the City,

including indexing, filing, and legislative history.”

Clay 7


She added that “the retention/destruction schedule and

the safe keeping of permanent documents…and the

department implemented a document imaging system to

assist in the preservation of records…and to date over 20,000

records have been scanned into the system.”

Clay 8


City Clerk Haughney said that there are many ways for

the City Clerk community to communicate with each other.

The main reasons for their communication is to network so

that they can receive help with problems, questions and

documents. They often conduct surveys of other cities to see

how they handle different issues and come up with a solution

that will work in their particular city.

Clay 9


City Clerk Haughney stated that the “City Clerk

community communicate throughout the year by various

conferences held by the League of California Cities, City Clerks

Association of California (CCAC), and the International Institute

for Municipal Clerks (IIMC), which all provide an educational

component.”

Clay 10


The City Clerk may also use a tool called ListServ,

which is a service provided by member of the League of

California Cities, which City Clerk Haughney describes as

“similar to a blog.” She stated that a City Clerk may read the

blogs for information, email members, submit questions,

receive help for problems or request documents.

Clay 11


The League of California Cities states their values and

mission statement as the following:

Vision: “To be recognized and respected as the

leading advocate for the common interests of

California's cities (League).”

Mission Statement: “To expand and protect local

control for cities through education and advocacy

to enhance the quality of life for all Californians

(League).”

Clay 12


The City Clerks Association of California states the following:

Mission Statement: “The CCAC was founded in 1977 with

the objective of promoting the city clerk profession

throughout the state of California. (CCAC)”

The Objectives of the CCAC are to:

• “Provide Leadership and Management Training

Opportunities in Concert with Our Diverse Society

(CCAC).”

• “Enhance Levels of Service Responsive to the Growing

Demands Within our Organizations (CCAC).”

• “Foster Pro-Active Programs to Promote Effective

Legislation (CCAC).”

• “Promote Networking System Among Members

(CCAC).”

Clay 13


She said that the “CCAC has three divisions, Northern,

Central and Southern, which holds meetings, provides

networking opportunities, has a mentoring program for new

City Clerks and provides training for mentors as well.” City

Clerk Haughney continued that “the IIMC provides opportunity

for U.S. City Clerk’s to travel to other countries to learn

International City Clerk’s processes and for ‘us’ to teach

international City Clerk’s ‘our’ processes.”

Clay 14


The International Institute of Municipal Clerks states the

following:

Mission Statement: “The International Institute of

Municipal Clerks (IIMC) is a professional, nonprofit

association that promotes continuing education and

certification through university and college-based

institutes and provides networking solutions, services and

benefits to its members worldwide (IIMC).”

Clay 15


When asked the question “What advice could you offer

someone newly joining the City Clerk community,” City Clerk

Haughney gave the following response:

“This profession is one of the most rewarding, and

challenging professions, the work is ever changing

and you never work on the same thing…there is a

variety.”

Clay 16


“You meet so many dedicated people. If you are lucky

enough [to become a City Clerk], you need to be able to

juggle [multiple things], be flexible, [and remember] nothing

is written in stone. You need to have a passion [for the job].

The City Clerk must remain unbiased, uphold honesty,

integrity, [you] do not have an opinion, must remain neutral

and stay out of [public and City] politics .”

Clay 17

The City Resolution Document

Writing AnalysisCity of Perris Resolution

Document provided by: City Clerk Haughney, City of Perris

Clay 18

The City Resolution Document

The resolution number. Summary paragraph. “Whereas” paragraphs. “Section” paragraphs. Signature page. City Council vote.

There are many important writing genres in the City Clerk community. The City resolution is an important document as it is the “Policy of the City”. The resolution document has the following features:

Clay 19

The Resolution Number

The resolution number is assigned by the City Clerk’s

Office after the City Council has approved the resolution at a

City Council meeting. The creation of the number is simply

assigned by using “next in order” number.

Clay 20

Summary Paragraph

The resolution summary paragraph provides a

description of the document and provides a “quick look” of the

contents of the resolution.

Clay 21

“Whereas” Paragraphs

The “whereas” paragraphs contain details resolution

(who, what, where and how) and may refer to local and state

codes and/or laws. These paragraphs may also refer to City

resolutions, ordinances and/or municipal codes and any

attachments and/or exhibits attached to the resolution.

Clay 22

“Section” Paragraphs

The “section” paragraphs contain the facts of the

resolution and what the City Council of the City of Perris

“resolve, declare, determine and order” or, in simple terms,

what the City Council is approving.

Clay 23

Signature Page

The signature page contains the date of adoption,

signed and approved ate of the Mayor and the City Clerk’s

signature attesting the document.

Clay 24

City Council Vote

The City Council votes contains the “Ayes” and “Noes”.

The vote records the Mayor and City Council members votes

by name under the appropriate voting area of the document.

Clay 25

Reflection

The City Clerk community is a specialized community

with lots of resources. Although City Clerk’s work individually

at their municipality, they are willing to help each other

through mentoring, providing assistance and advice to

members of the community. To join the community, you need

to be appointed or elected. The training is a combination of

formal training and on the job training. The interview was

informative, but there is a lot to learn about the community.

The best way to learn is to work in a City Clerk’s office.

Clay 26

Works Cited

City of Perris Logo.< http://www.cityofperris.org/index.html> Web 21 Apr. 2013

Haughney, Judy. Personal Interview. 13 Apr. 2013

League of California Cities. “Mission and History” <http://www.cacities.org/Top/About/Mission-History.aspx> Web 21 Apr. 2013

City Clerks Association of California (CCAC). “About CCAC” <http://www.californiacityclerks.org/About_CCAC.101.0.html> Web 21 Apr. 2013

International Institute of Municipal Clerks (IIMC). “About Us” <http://www.iimc.com/index.aspx?NID=268> Web 21 Apr. 2013

City of Perris Resolution Number 4051. Document Provided by Judy Haughney, City Clerk of the City of Perris

Documents

Clay 1 Michelle Clay Professor Bartels English 123 / Intermediate Composition 21 April 2013 Logo provided by: