MARYSVILLE, CA (MPG) - At the Jan. 6 meeting of the Marysville City Council, they considered an update to the approved holidays for the prior calendar year, to include Dec. 26, 2025, in addition to the typical Christmas holiday.

City Manager Jim Schaad said that the city ordinance requires council approval to extend federal holidays to city employees. Just before Christmas, President Trump declared that Dec. 26 would be a federal holiday for 2025, so the council now had to decide whether to retroactively approve that holiday.

Vice Mayor Bruce Buttacavoli asked for clarification that this change was only for 2025. Schaad said Trump would need congressional action to make the change permanent.

“He announced it like two days before…so it caught us off guard,” said Schaad.

The council voted unanimously to approve the additional holiday for 2025.

Mayor Chris Branscum said, “He put us in an awkward position though, didn’t he? ‘You guys going to say bah humbug, or what?’”

Schaad said, “He does that quite often. He surprises us.” New federal holidays are typically announced well in advance, said Schaad, giving local governments plenty of time to consider approval before the date has passed.

The council also held a public hearing to consider a permanent ordinance amending the zoning code’s sign and fence requirements in the Downtown Specific Plan. There are no changes to the actual regulations themselves; instead, the change updates the language to ensure alignment with new zoning districts, and color-coded maps will ensure sign and fencing regulations are clear within each zone.

An urgency ordinance with the same change was approved in November as a temporary measure to ensure clarity in the code until a permanent ordinance could be approved.

There were no public comments on this item, and the ordinance was approved unanimously by the council.

The next meeting of the Marysville City Council is scheduled for Jan 20.