The initiative might not hold up in court.

Strong Mayor Plan Could Face Legal Challenge - Sacramento News Story - KCRA Sacramento

The report, signed by City Attorney Eileen Teichert, goes so far as to suggest that the initiative might not hold up in court.

It states, "A judicial challenge would likely either strike down the Strong Mayor Initiative in its entirety or delay its implementation until a judicial ruling is finalized."

The first issue that the report raises is the creation of a ninth seat on the Sacramento City Council. If approved by voters, the initiative would remove the mayor from the City Council and replace him or her with a new ninth council member.

But the report says it "fails to address when the ninth district election occurs" and therefore the effect "would be to disenfranchise ninth district voters, denying the 55,000 residents their fundamental right to vote and representation."

The report also says the initiative would create several "legal ambiguities" by taking away some powers of the Sacramento City Council without expressly giving them to the mayor. Examples of such powers are entering into contracts, negotiating labor agreements, and settling lawsuits.