City Charter

 

The City Charter is offered in 2 formats, Microsoft Word and Adobe Acrobat PDF (Portable Document Format). Either of these formats will allow you to see the documents as they were originally formatted. If you do not have these programs installed, you may obtain free reader versions by clicking on the links below.

Download Microsoft Word Reader | download Adobe Acrobat Reader

View the City Charter in Microsoft Word | View the City Charter in Adobe Acrobat pdf

Overview
The City of San Buenaventura is one of the oldest settlements on the Pacific Coast. It is the site of the San Buenaventura Mission founded in 1782, and incorporated as a town by the California Legislature on March 10, 1866.

The first Charter of the City was prepared and proposed by a Board of Freeholders elected October 13, 1931. The Charter was ratified and adopted by the electors on January 7, 1932, and approved by the State Legislature on January 26, 1933.

Since approval of the original Charter, the electorate approved amendments dated January 23, 1939; April 25, 1945; May 6, 1947; May 4, 1951; April 14, 1959; May 6, 1959, May 17, 1961; April 18, 1963; April 26, 1967, and July 1, 1968.

Early in 1970, a Charter Review Committee was formed to evaluate the Charter as it existed at that time. A new Charter was prepared and subsequently ratified by the electorate on November 3, 1970, and approved by the State Legislature on January 26, 1971. Then, on November 3, 1973, the electors approved and ratified amendments to the Charter. Those amendments were approved by the State Legislature on January 17, 1974.

Early in 1986, a Charter Review Committee was formed to again review the Charter as it existed at that time. A new Charter was prepared and subsequently ratified by the electorate on November 4, 1986. The Charter was submitted to and accepted by the Secretary of State on December 4, 1986, the formal effective date of the CHARTER OF THE CITY OF SAN BUENAVENTURA.

Governance
The City is governed by a Charter that constitutes the organic law of the City under the Constitution of the State of California. Under the Charter the City of San Buenaventura has the power to make and enforce all laws and regulations with respect to municipal affairs, subject only to such restrictions and limitations as may be provided in this Charter and in the Constitution of the State of California. It shall also have the power to exercise any and all rights, powers, and privileges heretofore and hereafter established, granted, or prescribed by any law of the State, by this Charter, or by other lawful authority, or which a municipal corporation may exercise under the Constitution of the State of California. The enumeration in this Charter of any particular powers is not to be held to be exclusive of or any limitation upon this general grant of power.