Opinion No. (1999)

BILL LOCKYER Attorney General CLAYTON P. ROCHE Deputy Attorney General THE HONORABLE ROBERT WESTMEYER, COUNTY COUNSEL, NAPA COUNTY, has requested an opinion on the following questions: 1. May an alternate member of a Local Agency Formation Commission, when not serving in place of a regular member, participate in public hearings and deliberations of the commission? 2. May an alternate member of a Local Agency Formation Commission, when not serving in place of a regular member, attend closed sessions of the commission? CONCLUSIONS 1. An alternate member of a Local Agency Formation Commission, when not serving in place of a regular member, may participate in public hearings and deliberations of the commission. 2. An alternate member of a Local Agency Formation Commission, when not serving in place of a regular member, may not attend closed sessions of the commission. ANALYSIS The Cortese-Knox Local Government Reorganization Act of 1985 (Gov. Code, §§ 56000 - 57550 ; "Act") 1 provides for the establishment of a Local Agency Formation Commission ("LAFCO") in each county (§§ 56325 - 56337 ) "to encourage orderly growth and development and the assessment of local…