Assistant to the City Clerk

The City of San Mateo Office of the City Clerk is looking for a highly qualified, experienced Part-Time Assistant to the City Clerk

The Department

The Office of the City Clerk is a service department within the municipal government upon which the five-member City Council, all City departments, and the general public relies on information regarding the operations and legislative history of the City. The City Clerk serves as the liaison between the public and the City Council and provides related municipal services such as serving as the Elections Official, providing key staff for Council meetings and recording all Council action, and serving as records manager for the protection and preservation of the public record.

Look to some of the reasons why the City of San Mateo is a great place to work: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_GTIzeSpc_g

The Position

The Assistant to the City Clerk position serves as the welcoming and friendly face of government for both the City Council and the City Clerk’s office as this position is the first contact for the front counter and the primary receptionist. The position requires an ability to help demystify government services and processes, learn and maintain an understanding of all government services and procedures and help citizens get to the right service. The position’s administrative functions include responsibility for records management including filing and scanning; managing and ordering office supply inventory; writing correspondence, creating certificates of commendation and writing proclamations on behalf of the Mayor. This position also provides support for Public Records Act (PRA) request intake, coordination, and review to ensure timely and compliant responses. Excellent attention to detail, writing and proofreading skills are required and a positive upbeat attitude with the ability to be flexible, resilient, and creative when situations change is essential. The successful candidate will have a strong work ethic, a passion for making a difference and helping citizens, and a desire to grow in this field.

Some of the duties may include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Provide information and answer inquiries from officials, the public, and City staff on laws, procedures, and policies, such as the City Municipal Code, the Brown Act, and the Public Records Act; organize and assist with the filing of Statements of Economic Interests and Campaign Statements for candidates, office holders and City employees; record and file deeds and other documents requiring recordation; maintain and monitor agreements and insurance certificates; perform special projects as needed.
• Support the intake, tracking, coordination, and review of Public Records Act (PRA) requests; work collaboratively with departments to identify, gather, review, and produce responsive records; assist in ensuring accurate, timely, and transparent responses in compliance with applicable laws and City policies.
• Act as receptionist and primary responsibility for staffing the front counter; answer the telephone and assist the public and internal customers by responding to requests for information; issue, receive, process various applications.
• Review and evaluate records, applications, and reports to ensure completeness and compliance with the California Public Records Act, the Brown Act, and applicable City policies and procedures.
• Attend meetings as required, may prepare meeting minutes, may assist in City Council agenda preparation and follow-up, as needed; manage Council reservations, correspondence and calendars.
• Assist with coordinating the bi-annual City-wide Records Clean-up Event; maintain comprehensive indexing and filing system of City Council actions, including resolutions, ordinances, deeds, contracts, and agreements; provide research to staff and the public on information needs, as needed.
• Ensure that meeting facilities are properly prepared.
• Maintain logs and manage Council and Clerk correspondence and responsiveness from other departments; receive, sort and distribute incoming and outgoing correspondence.
• Assist Deputy with the preparation and distribution of notices, action reports, letters, and other correspondence as required by action taken in the meetings.
• Order office supplies, manage supply inventory; submit expense claims, pay bills as needed.
• Perform general clerical work including filing, scheduling appointments, and processing personnel, payroll and purchasing information.

The Assistant to the City Clerk receives general supervision from the Deputy City Clerk or a higher-level position and may exercise direct or functional and technical supervision over lower-level clerical positions, volunteers, and interns.

For a list of duties, reference our job specifications at www.cityofsanmateo.org.

Knowledge and Abilities
Skills:

• Exemplify an enthusiastic, resourceful, and highly responsive customer service attitude with all who are contacted in the course of the work
• Demonstrate strong knowledge of Public Records Act (PRA) processes, including intake, tracking, coordination, detailed review, and lawful redaction of sensitive or exempt information
• Manage and prioritize multiple Public Records Act requests and administrative projects simultaneously while ensuring timely, accurate, and compliant completion
• Exercise sound judgment when reviewing records for confidentiality, privilege, and statutory exemptions, ensuring transparency while protecting sensitive information
• Design and implement procedures and programs
• Solve problems, use sound judgment, and make decisions that are consistent with department philosophy
• Work independently with minimal direction
• Communicate in a positive and clear manner, both written and verbal
• Work collaboratively with multiple departments to gather responsive records and ensure timely and transparent communication
• Apply strong attention to detail when reviewing, organizing, redacting, and producing documents
• Effectively work with individuals at varying levels in the organization, as well as the public and members of the City Council
• Remain calm under the pressure of deadlines
• Work with a sense of urgency
• Promote continuous improvement of systems and processes
• Provide an accurate and detail oriented work product

Abilities:

• Learn, interpret, and apply City and department rules, regulations, policies, practices, ordinances, resolutions and laws
• Learn and operate specialized systems and software, such as document imaging, agenda management, automated 700 filing, public records request, and intranet and internet software
• Utilize electronic redaction tools accurately and efficiently to ensure compliance with legal requirements
• Understand the organization and operation of City government and of outside agencies as necessary to assume assigned responsibilities
• Independently prepare correspondence, memoranda, and responses related to Public Records Act request and other City Clerk functions
• Understand and carry out oral and written directions
• Establish and maintain cooperative and professional working relationships at all levels of the organization and with the public
• Attend evening meetings as required

Minimum Qualifications

Any combination of experience and training that would likely provide the required knowledge and abilities is qualifying. A typical way to obtain knowledge and abilities would be:

• Three years of increasingly responsible administrative support experience which included public contact and working with records management systems similar to the systems/programs of the City of San Mateo City Clerk Department
• Equivalent to high school graduation supplemented by college level coursework in business administration, public administration, or other related specialized training
• Any recent training such as academic courses and certification programs, which are relevant to this job classification
• May be required to obtain and maintain certification as a Notary Public and possess an appropriate valid California Driver’s License

Bonus Points (highly desirable)

• Certification as a Municipal Clerk (CMC) by the International Institute of Municipal Clerks or Certification through the American Records Management Association (ARMA) is highly desirable.
• Previous experience in a City Clerk's office or related experience is desirable
• Experience working with the public responding to and providing information
• Experience working with a Records Management System
• Notary Public
• Technical proficiency to support specialized system and software administration
• Experience facilitating public meetings, including managing technical equipment

ADA Special Requirement:
Essential duties require the following physical abilities and work environment:

• Ability to work in a standard office environment and assist with set-up of special events management by the Clerk’s office.

What We Offer

• Salary: $6,511 - $7,764/month
• Comprehensive benefits package including generous paid leave and health benefits
• CalPERS retirement (2% @ 55 for classic members; 2% @ 62 for new members. Classic employees contribute 8.34% to CalPERS and New members contribute 7.5% to CalPERS with participation in the Social Security Program
• City contribution of 0.5% and a 0.5% City match to Deferred Compensation
• City contribution of 1.0% to Retirement Health Savings
• Bilingual Differential $195 monthly (if applicable)
• Free Fitness classes through City of San Mateo Parks and Recreation, Employee Assistance Program, and Credit Union Membership
• This classification is represented by the San Mateo City Employees’ Association.

Apply

Submit an online application, résumé, and supplemental questionnaire at www.calopps.org or to the Human Resources Department, City of San Mateo, 330 W. 20th Avenue, San Mateo, CA 94403, (650) 522-7260.

Application Deadline

Recruitment will close by Monday, March 30, 2026 @ 5 p.m. OR upon receipt of the first 50 applications and supplemental questionnaires, whichever occurs first.

Interview Process

All applications, résumés, and supplemental questionnaires received will be reviewed for minimum qualifications. Résumés do not take the place of a completed employment application. A fully completed application is required; . Applications with "see resume" as a substitution for the work experience description, those with unclear past employment information, or those with insufficient information to evaluate possession of minimum qualifications will not be considered; missing information cannot be assumed. A limited number of the most highly qualified applicants will be invited to participate in the examination process, which may consist of an oral panel interview, written exercise, or in the form of a practical demonstration of skill and ability, or any combination of these; a Zoom oral board is tentatively scheduled for April 14, 2026.

An eligible list will be established for those who pass the examination process. Current and future vacancies may be filled from this list. The list will remain in effect for at least six months with the possibility of an extension for an additional six months. Once placed on an eligible list, and at the time a vacancy occurs, eligible candidates may be contacted by the hiring department and scheduled for additional department interviews.

Date Posted – March 2, 2026

Pay: $6,511.00 - $7,764.00 per month

Work Location: In person