Charter review panel proposes vacancy, CEO-removal and pay-rule changes; board to advance two items and delay pay measure

The Board of Supervisors received the final report of the 2025 Charter Review Committee on June 9. The committee — composed of citizen appointees representing each supervisorial district and two at-large members — examined 13 charter topics and recommended three amendments for voter consideration.

Key committee recommendations were: extend the board’s appointment window to fill a supervisor vacancy from 30 to 60 days and, where an appointment is made 130 days or more before the next statewide primary, place the seat on that primary ballot so voters elect the replacement; allow the board to negotiate alternative terms for hiring and removing the County Executive Officer (CEO) through an employment agreement rather than prescribing a fixed removal threshold; and change the supervisor-compensation method so annual pay equals 55% of the base salary for a Placer County Superior Court judge, with a maximum 10% annual adjustment in any single year and staged implementation to reach the benchmark.

Committee members and staff presented the research and rationale, stressing the need to modernize vacancy procedures and strengthen competitiveness in CEO recruitment. Committee representative Dan Woodward said the proposals were intended to return more decisions to Placer County voters and to provide flexibility in executive hiring.

During discussion the board generally supported the vacancy window increase and the CEO-removal flexibility and asked staff to draft ordinance language to bring those items back for action. Supervisors were divided on the compensation amendment and expressed concerns about timing and public perception; several members said a salary measure would be better considered in 2028 to avoid election crowding and to allow additional public outreach. The board voted to move forward with language for the first two charter amendments and to defer the supervisor-compensation measure for additional consideration and timing (the board directed staff to return in early 2028 to consider placing the pay proposal on the November 2028 ballot).

What happens next: staff will draft ordinances for the vacancy and CEO-removal items and return them for board consideration; the board asked staff to delay a supervisor-pay ordinance and to revisit placement with public outreach in 2028.