YORBA LINDA : Council to Decide on Limited-Term Issue

The City Council will decide tonight whether to proceed with a proposed ordinance to limit council members to three consecutive terms. The ordinance could face several legal barriers.

Under the proposal introduced in February by Councilman John M. Gullixson, council members would be limited to three consecutive, four-year terms, starting in November, 1992. Council members would be allowed to run for their seats again after a two-year absence, and current council members would begin counting their terms when they are next up for reelection.

Gullixson said the ordinance would ensure that council members stay in touch with the concerns of their constituents. In proposing the ordinance he also was responding to the November passage of Proposition 140, which limits the terms of California state legislators.

Although most council members support the idea, City Atty. Leonard A. Hampel has warned that because Yorba Linda operates under state law rather than its own charter, such an ordinance could be successfully challenged in court. No state statute limits the number of terms a council member can serve, and state courts have struck down ordinances in general-law cities that attempt to enforce term limits.

Councilmen Henry W. Wedaa and Irwin M. Fried said they are against term limits, arguing that such an ordinance would be illegal and that the city could lose top-quality elected representatives.

Still, Gullixson said he will propose seeking the help of state legislators to enable the city to pass a term-limit ordinance. He added that legislators could be more inclined to support a bill with the passage of Proposition 140.

“This is such an important issue. The people in Yorba Linda want it.”

If efforts to pass a term-limit ordinance fail, Gullixson said he will seek to make Yorba Linda a charter city. Earlier this year, a trial court upheld term limits in Redondo Beach, a charter city, on the grounds that the city had “home rule” authority. The ruling is being appealed.