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Sec. 438. Removal of Appointed Officers.
 
   In addition to any other process for removal provided by law, the incumbent of any appointed office provided for in the Charter or created by ordinance under the authority thereof may be removed at any time after the expiration of three months from appointment by the registered voters of the City. The procedure to effect the removal of the incumbent of an appointive office shall be the same as that for the removal of the incumbent of an elected office by the recall, with the following exceptions:
 
   (a)   The petition for the removal of the incumbent of an appointed office shall be signed by registered voters equal in number to at least 20% of the entire vote cast for the office of Mayor at the last preceding general municipal election, or primary nominating election, at which a Mayor was elected.
 
   (b)   If a majority of the registered voters voting on the question vote in favor of the removal of the appointed officer, the officer shall be removed from office upon the declaration of the result of the election by the Council, and the office shall thereupon become vacant. The vacancy shall be filled by the appointing power in the same manner as other vacancies, but any appointed officer so removed shall not be eligible to any appointed or elected office under the Charter until the expiration of two years after removal.
 
 
Sec. 439. Resignation or Vacancy Pending Removal.
 
   In the event that any appointed officer whose removal is sought resigns at any time after the filing of a removal petition with the City Clerk, or a vacancy from any other cause occurs in that office, at any time prior to two days before the election, the election shall be held, but the incumbent shall not be eligible to any appointed or elected office under the Charter until the expiration of two years from the date of resignation or removal.
 
 
Sec. 440. Removal of the City Clerk.
 
   In the event that the City Clerk is the officer whose removal is sought by petition, all powers and duties prescribed in this Article for the City Clerk shall be performed by the City Attorney and not by the City Clerk.
 
 
 
INITIATIVE
 
 
Sec. 450. Subject of Initiative.
 
   (a)   Any proposed ordinance which the Council itself might adopt may be submitted to the Council by a petition filed with the City Clerk, requesting that the ordinance be adopted by the Council or be submitted to a vote of the electors of the City. Any proposed ordinance amending or repealing an ordinance previously adopted by a vote of the electors may be submitted to the Council by a petition filed with the City Clerk requesting that the ordinance be submitted to a vote of the electors of the City.
 
   (b)   Petitions to amend the Charter shall be governed by provisions of the California Constitution and applicable provisions of state law concerning Charter amendments.
 
 
Sec. 451. Initiative Petition.
 
   Any petition submitting a proposed ordinance to the Council as provided in this Article shall comply with the provisions of the Charter and the City Election Code. The following shall apply to all initiative petitions:
 
   (a)   Prior to the circulation of any initiative petition, the proponents of the petition shall submit a draft of the petition to the City Clerk, setting forth the proposed ordinance in full. In accordance with procedures contained in the City Election Code, the City Attorney shall prepare an official title and summary of the petition provisions of the proposed ordinance. The official title and summary shall be incorporated into and appear on all copies of the initiative petition circulated for signatures and filed with the City Clerk.
 
   (b)   All names signed to a petition must have been secured not more than 120 days prior to the date of filing. Any signature affixed outside of this time period shall not be counted in determining the sufficiency of the petition. To qualify for presentation to the Council, an initiative petition shall be signed by registered voters of the City in a number equal to 15% of the total number of votes cast for all candidates for the office of Mayor at the last general municipal election, or primary nominating election, at which a Mayor was elected prior to the filing of the petition. In order to be accepted for filing with the City Clerk, the petition must on its face purport to have the requisite number of signatures appended to it.
 
   (c)   The City Clerk shall examine the petition and determine whether it contains the requisite number of signatures of registered voters, in accordance with procedures contained in the City Election Code. When the City Clerk has completed the examination of the petition, the Clerk shall prepare a dated certificate showing the result of the examination, and shall notify the sponsors of the petition of either the sufficiency or insufficiency of the petition without delay.
 
   (d)   The City Election Code shall govern the process by which and circumstances under which an insufficient petition may be supplemented, the process by which a certificate of insufficiency may be contested, and the process by which and circumstances under which the signer of a petition may withdraw his or her name.
 
   (e)   If, by the certificate of the City Clerk, the petition is shown to be sufficient, the City Clerk shall present the petition to the Council without delay. The sufficiency or insufficiency of the petition shall not be subject to review by the Council.
 
   (f)   No amendments, changes, alterations or corrections of any kind, clerical or otherwise, shall be permitted to be made in any petition after it has been filed with and approved by the City Clerk.
 
 
Sec. 452. Action by Council on Initiative Petition Requesting Adoption of Ordinance.
 
   (a)   The proponents of an initiative petition may withdraw the petition in accordance with the procedures of the City Election Code.
 
   (b)   When an initiative petition requesting the adoption by the Council of a proposed ordinance is presented to the Council by the City Clerk, the Council must take one of the following actions within 20 days after the presentation, unless the petition is withdrawn by the proponents:
 
   (1)   adopt the proposed ordinance, without alteration;
 
   (2)   call a special election to be held not earlier than 110 days nor more than 140 days after Council action on the petition to submit the proposed ordinance, without alteration, to a vote of the electors of the City; or
 
   (3)   determine to submit the proposed ordinance, without alteration, to a vote of the electors of the City at either the next regular City election to be held more than 110 days from the date of Council action on the petition or the next Statewide election conducted by the County of Los Angeles to be held more than 110 days from the date of Council action on the petition.
 
   (c)   Any ordinance proposed by initiative petition, adopted by the Council and approved by the Mayor, or adopted over the Mayor's veto, shall be subject to a referendary vote as provided in Section 460 in the same manner as other ordinances adopted by the Council.
 
SECTION HISTORY
 
Amended by: Charter Amendment 1, approved March 3, 2015, effective April 2, 2015; Subsec. (a), Charter Amendment E, approved November 6, 2018, effective December 14, 2018; Subsec. (a), Charter Amendment EE, approved November 6, 2018, effective December 14, 2018.
 
 
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