Opinion No. (2011)

KAMALA D. HARRIS Attorney General DIANE E. EISENBERG Deputy Attorney General THE HONORABLE BILL EMMERSON, MEMBER OF THE STATE SENATE, has requested an opinion on the following question: May a city council remove its appointee to the Board of Trustees of a Mosquito and Vector Control District at the council's pleasure? CONCLUSION A city council may not remove its appointee to the Board of Trustees of a Mosquito and Vector Control District at the council's pleasure. *Page 2 ANALYSIS Since 1915, mosquito abatement and vector control districts ("mosquito abatement districts") have protected California communities against the threats of vector-borne diseases. 1 In 2002, the Legislature enacted the Mosquito and Vector Control District Law 2 ("Mosquito District Law") in order "to create and continue a broad statutory authority for a class of special districts with the power to conduct effective programs for the surveillance, prevention, abatement, and control of mosquitoes and other vectors." 3 Each mosquito abatement district is governed by a board of trustees consisting of at least five members. 4 The board is a legislative body charged with establishing policies for the operation of…