Department of City Attorney's Office
Reference: City Council Discussion of a Policy for Proclamations
To: Mayor Gregory Mills and Members of City Council
Through: Michael P. Martinez, City Manager
Prepared By: Alicia Calder?n, City Attorney
Date Prepared: May 8, 2025
PURPOSE
To provide a review of other municipality's policies regarding proclamations to determine whether City Council would like to consider such a policy for the City of Brighton ("City").
BACKGROUND
City Council has an agenda section for ceremonies. This part of the agenda includes swearing in new board and commission members, recognition of individuals or groups, and proclamations. A proclamation is an official document issued by the mayor proclaiming a celebration or recognition of an individual, an organization, an event, or a special day, week, or month. It is essentially a public acknowledgement of something important or worthy of celebration within the City. Proclamations may be used to honor community achievements, commemorate or celebrate historic or cultural events, or support specific initiatives or causes.
At this time, requests for proclamations are received in a variety of ways. They are sent to City staff, the City Clerk, the City Manager, Council Members, and the Mayor. A proclamation is signed and issued by the Mayor, and all Council Members are also listed under the signature line. Informally sometime in the past couple of years, City Council decided that proclamations required someone be present to receive the proclamation. That has been the only requirement. Not all requests for proclamations are forwarded or reviewed since they are received in so many different ways and there is no clear process or criteria.
City Council may want to consider adopting a policy for proclamations. The presentation will provide an overview of policies adopted by other cities. City Council may provide direction for the development of a draft policy to be brought back for further review or ad...
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