CHARTER
of
San Bernardino County, California
(REVISED)
San Bernardino County, California
(REVISED)
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Article I: Name and Rights of the County
Section 101. County Powers.
Section 102. County Authority.
Section 103. County Name.
Article II: Board of Supervisors
Section 201. Governing Body.
Section 202. Election.
Section 203. Term of Office.
Section 204. Term Limits.
Section 205. Chair and Vice Chair of the Board of Supervisors.
Section 206. Powers and Duties of the Board of Supervisors.
Section 207. Limitations on Taxing Authority.
Section 208. Filling of Vacancies.
Section 209. Compensation of the Board of Supervisors.
Section 210. Staff Members of the Board of Supervisors.
Section 211. Removal of a Supervisor.
Section 212. Rules of Order.
Article III: Other Elective County Officers
Section 301. Elective County Officers.
Section 302. Powers and Duties.
Section 303. Elections and Term of Office.
Section 304. Consolidation and Segregation of Elective County Offices.
Section 305. Removal of Elective Officers.
Section 306. Filling of Vacancies.
Section 307. Staff Members of the Elective County Officers.
Section 308. Compensation of Elective County Officers.
Article IV: Appointive County Officers
Section 401. Appointive County Officers.
Section 402. Powers and Duties.
Section 403. County Officer Appointing Assistants and Others.
Section 404. Boards and Commissions.
Article V: Personnel
Section 501. Number, Duties, and Compensation.
Section 502. Civil Service System.
Article VI: Ethics and Election Integrity
Section 601. Responsibilities of Public Office.
Section 602. Training to County Officers and Employees.
Section 603. Ethics Training for the Staff of Elective Officers.
Section 604. Campaign Finance Regulations.
Section 605. Campaign Transparency.
Section 606. Redistricting Commission.
Section 607. Lobbyists.
Article VII: Miscellaneous
Section 701. Limitation on Exercise of Eminent Domain.
Section 702. Charter Review.
Section 703. Referendum of Ordinances.
Section 704. County Code Review.
Section 705. Review of Orders of the County Health Officer.
Section 706. Emergency Preparedness.
Section 707. Severance Clause.
The original Charter was framed and adopted in accordance with Section 7 1/2 of Article XI of the Constitution of California in 1913. A board of fifteen freeholders was selected at a special election held on May 14, 1912. Drawn up by this board, the original Charter was presented to the County electors on November 5, 1912. A majority favored adoption. Both houses of the State Legislature voted approval and the original Charter was filed with the Secretary of State on April 7, 1913.
Since that time, 36 amendments to the original Charter have been proposed and 27 have been adopted by the voters. The amendments that have been adopted are:
Amendment 1. Approved by the Legislature January 30, 1915; published on Page 1726, Statutes and Amendments to the Codes, 1915; election of officers other than Supervisors.
Amendment 2. Approved March 24, 1919; published on Page 1454, Statutes and Amendments to the Codes, 1919; addition of Article 2 1/2.
Amendment 3. Approved January 29, 1923; published on Page 1294, Statutes and Amendments to the Codes, 1923; salary of Sheriff fixed.
Amendment 5. Approved January 27, 1925; published on Page 1185, Statutes and Amendments to the Codes, 1925; traffic officers.
Amendment 6. Approved January 18, 1927; copied in this book from a copy certified by the Secretary of State and filed in the office of the Clerk of the Board of Supervisors of this County; salaries fixed by Supervisors.
Amendment 7. Approved January 6, 1943; amends Article I, Sections 1 and 2; election of Supervisors by district, rather than County-wide balloting.
Amendment 8. Approved January 15, 1945; amends Article I, Section 10; provides salaries of Supervisors to be fixed by legislature.
Amendment 9. Approved January 15, 1945; amends Article Ill, Section 1; provides number of officers in Class A Justice Court fixed by general law.
Amendment 10. Approved January 15, 1945; amends Article VIE, Section 1; Supervisors may suspend provision prohibiting wartime raise in compensation for elective officers.
Amendment 12. Approved January 25, 1957; amends Article II, Section 9; establishes office of County Counsel.
Amendment 13. Approved January 25, 1957; amends Article II, Section 10; establishes office of Registrar of Voters.
Amendment 17. Approved January 25, 1957; amends Article V, Section 2; provides filing of reports by County officers.
Amendment 18. Approved January 25, 1957; amends Article V, Section 6; provides inspection of books of County and Judicial District Officers by Auditor.
Amendment 19. Approved January 25, 1957; amends Article VII, Section 1; fixes compensation of elective officers.
Amendment 20. Approved January 25, 1957; amends Article VII, Section 3; provides biweekly salary payment.
Amendment 21. Approved January 25, 1957; adds Section 6 to Article 2 1/2; establishes County Board of Education.
Amendment 22. Approved February 19, 1959; amends Section I to Article IV; establishes office of County Purchasing Agent.
Amendment 23. Approved February 19, 1959; adds Section 4 1/2 to Article VII; provides for establishment of fixed benefit retirement system for employees ineligible for federal insurance.
Amendment 24. Approved February 8, 1967; amends Article V; relating to reports and accounts.
Amendment 25. Approved March 15, 1971; amends Articles I, II, III, IV, and VII, and repeals Articles 2 1/2 and VI; eliminates obsolete and unnecessary language and renumbers Charter provisions.
Amendment 26. Approved March 15, 1971; adds Section 1.1 to Article II and repeals Sections 9 and 10 of Article II and Article IV; places all County department heads in the Unclassified Service.
Amendment 28. Filed and operative December 26, 1974; repeals Section 6 of Article I and Sections 1 and 5 of Article VI; eliminates obsolete and unnecessary language and brings Charter into conformity with the California Constitution.
Amendment 29. Filed and operative December 26, 1974; repeals Section 1.1 of Article II and amends Sections 2, 5, and 10 of Article II; brings Charter into conformity with California Constitution and reflects and provides greater flexibility in the governmental structure and administration of the County.
Amendment 30. Filed and operative May 2, 1979; adds Section 9 to Article I; provides procedures for and limitations on setting of salaries for supervisors. (Repealed by Amendment 36, filed and operative November 18, 1985).
Amendment 31. Filed and operative May 2, 1979; adds an unnumbered section to Article VI (Miscellaneous); requires any increase in compensation of county-elected officers to be approved by the voters. Initiative amendment. (Repealed by Amendment 36, filed and operative November 18, 1985).
Amendment 33. Filed and operative November 16, 1981; adds Section 3A to Article II; makes office of County Clerk appointive rather than elective.
Amendment 36. Filed and operative November 18, 1985; adds Section I to Article VI; provides procedures for and limitations on setting of salaries for elected officials. Section 9 of Article I is repealed; unnumbered initiative amendment in Article VI is repealed.
Amendment 37. Filed and operative November 7, 2006; adds Section 5 of Article VI; limits eminent domain and protects property rights.
Amendment 38. Filed and operative November 7, 2006; amends Section 2 of Article I; limits terms of office; amends Section 1 of Article VI; sets salaries for Board of Supervisors.
Amendment 39. Filed and operative November 4, 2008; adds Section 11 to Article II; establishes a higher standard of ethics for staff members of County elected officers.
Amendment 40. Filed and operative November 6, 2012; amends Section 1 of Article VI; enacts a permanent cap on compensation and mandatory transparency for members of the County Board of Supervisors.
Amendment 41. On July 24, 2020, the Board of Supervisors adopted an entirely new, revised Charter for San Bernardino County, subject to ratification by the voters at the election on November 3, 2020.
Amendment 42. Filed and operative November 8, 2022; amends Article II and adds Section 207; prohibits the Board of Supervisors from increasing taxes without a vote of the people, prevents elected County Supervisors from voting to increase their salary, and facilitates effective representation in county government.