REPORT TO COUNCIL
SUBJECT
Title
Action on a Council Written Request (Council Policy 030) Submitted by Vice Mayor Gonzalez to Place an Item on a Future Agenda to Discuss Adopting an Urgency Ordinance to Establish a Temporary Moratorium on Detention Centers
Report
BACKGROUND
Council Policy 030 (Adding an Item on the Agenda) sets forth the procedure for written petitions. A member of the Council may submit a written request for inclusion of an item on a future City Council agenda. Prior to submitting a Council Item Request form, the Member shall discuss the proposed request with the City Manager (and/or the City Attorney, as appropriate). If City staff’s response does not satisfy the Member’s request, the Member may submit the Council Item Request form for placement on a future City Council agenda. Once the City Clerk’s Office receives the Council Item Request form, it should immediately be forwarded to the City Manager for placement on an agenda, if possible, within two (2) Council meetings after original receipt of the original request by the City Clerk’s Office.
DISCUSSION
On November 3, 2026, Vice Mayor Gonzalez requested that an item be placed on a future meeting agenda to consider adopting an Urgency Ordinance of the City of Santa Clara establishing a temporary moratorium on the filing, acceptance, processing, or approval of applications for, and the establishment or operation of, detention or custodial detention facilities within the City of Santa Clara, pending study of appropriate zoning and land use regulations.
In February 2026, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced its intent to expand U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention capacity. Since then, ICE has moved to establish two immigration processing and detention facilities in the Bay Area: one on Holsclaw Road in unincorporated Santa Clara County near Gilroy, and another at a shuttered federal correctional facility in Dublin in Alameda County.
The County of Santa Clara and the State of California filed suit against ICE and other federal agencies and officials to block the proposed facility near Gilroy. The City of Santa Clara joined 25 other Bay Area cities and counties in an amicus brief supporting the lawsuit. On September 11, 2026, the U.S. District Court granted a preliminary injunction pausing development of that facility.
In August 2026, Congressmember Sam Liccardo released a policy framework, or “toolkit,” to help local jurisdictions use their land use authority to regulate the siting and operation of detention facilities. Since then, several neighboring jurisdictions have
adopted urgency ordinances establishing temporary moratoriums on such facilities, including San José, Mountain View, Palo Alto, Los Altos, Los Gatos, Gilroy, San Mateo County, and Monterey County.
California Senate Bill (SB) 1367, Detention Facility Land-Use Restrictions, was signed into law on September 29, 2026. It prohibits local governments from approving land use changes to enable the construction of ICE detention or processing facilities owned or operated by private entities. However, SB 1367 does not take effect until January 1, 2027, and DHS is actively seeking new sites. An urgency ordinance would give the City interim land use protection until permanent regulations are in place.
If the Council supports this request, staff will work with the City Attorney’s Office and analyze various options and be able to come back to Council with a moratorium option for Council consideration at the December 15, 2026, meeting.
As a reminder, this item is for purposes of discussing whether the Council wishes to agendize this matter on a future Council agenda for a report or action. It is not for the purpose of discussing the substance of the item itself. Specifically, the policy provides as follows:
1. At the meeting where the request to add an item to a future agenda is heard, Council discussion is limited to whether the item should be added to an agenda and a date, not the merit of the item. Valid considerations that can be discussed include whether the matter is within the City’s jurisdiction, being addressed in some other way, City resource requirements, legality, timing, and prioritization.
2. Council may take the following actions when a request is made:
a. No Action
b. Refer the request to City staff for further study and a timely report back to Council
c. Refer the item to a future annual Council Priority Setting session
d. Placement on a future Council meeting agenda for further consideration or action
3. At the meeting where the item is first considered, if a majority of the City Council supports further study of the item, then a full staff analysis shall be prepared within thirty (30) days, unless otherwise directed by the City Council. If the request requires more than thirty (30) calendar days to prepare, status updates will be provided to the City Council every sixty (60) days as an informational memo.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
The action being considered does not constitute a “project” within the meaning of the California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”) pursuant to CEQA Guidelines section 15378(b)(5) in that it is an administrative activity that will not result in direct or indirect physical changes to the environment
FISCAL IMPACT
There is no fiscal impact associated with considering the request to be placed on a future agenda except for staff time.
COORDINATION
This item was coordinated with the City Manager and the City Attorney.
PUBLIC CONTACT
Public contact was made by posting the Council agenda on the City’s official-notice bulletin board outside City Hall Council Chambers. A complete agenda packet is available on the City’s website and in the City Clerk’s Office at least 72 hours prior to a Regular Meeting and 24 hours prior to a Special Meeting. A hard copy of any agenda report may be requested by contacting the City Clerk’s Office at (408) 615-2220, email clerk@santaclaraca.gov or at the public information desk at any City of Santa Clara public library.
ALTERNATIVES
a. No Action
b. Refer the request to City staff for further study and a timely report back to Council
c. Refer the item to a future annual Council Priority Setting session meeting
d. Placement on a future Council meeting agenda for further consideration or action
RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
Direct staff to proceed as Council deems appropriate.
Staff
Reviewed by: Nora Pimentel, Assistant City Clerk
Approved by: Jovan Grogan, City Manager
ATTACHMENTS
1. Policy Procedure 030 - Adding an Item on the Agenda
2. Written Petition dated November 3, 2026, Submitted by Vice Mayor Gonzalez